Level 1

22 points

Awful Color on Epson 2200 after Snow Leopard Upgrade

I'm an experience photographer and printer who has done extensive printing on the Epson 2200 under previous versions of the OS using CS4. As a beta tester for Snow Leopard I had used it extensively on another machine before the release, so I did not hesitate to upgrade my photography production computer as soon as it was available this past weekend.

The problem I now have is that print colors are all wrong - very greenish (bluish?), which is typically a symptom that nothing is managing the printing out of PS. (Reddish/purplish prints are often a symptom that color is being managed by both PS and the printer's own software.) I have changed nothing else in my workflow or printing process besides doing the upgrade - I have a solid workflow process that works consistently and accurately, or should I say it DID work so until the upgrade.

I have installed the updated 2200 drivers from the Epson web site. I have removed and re-added the printer in the preferences panel. Still no joy.

Help? Advice? Anything to try that I haven't thought of yet?

Thanks in advance,

Dan

iMac 24" (aluminum), Mac OS X (10.6)

Posted on Aug 31, 2009 9:13 PM

154 replies

risotto

Level 1

0 points

Sep 5, 2009 10:39 PM in response to Nancy Raymond

OK ... seems like everyone is dead in the water. I'm grabbing a small firewire drive and installing Leopard on it, then booting off that to print. Yes, giant pain, and kind-of ridiculous.

My next idea: we seem to have a lot of people ****** off at Epson, and wanting a working driver, who do we talk to?

This guy:

http://www.epson.com/proimaging/insideepson_Radogna2.html

562.290.4327
mark_radogna@ea.epson.com
3840 Kilroy Airport Way
Long Beach, CA 90806-2452
USA

He promises that Epson printers will work with SL, and how much he loves Apple.
Technically the 2200 does 'work' but can't print color properly. The latest driver is also dated at 21-Jan-2008.

I plan on sending him a polite email asking if new 2200 drivers will be available in the near future for Snow Leopard. It's not a corporate carpet email bomb, but it's worth a try.

danmitchell Author

Level 1

22 points

Sep 6, 2009 10:34 AM in response to Nancy Raymond

"Dan, what version of Leopard were you running?"

I keep completely up to date on OS updates so I was running the very most recent 10.5.x version - was that 10.5.8? I saw absolutely no changes in printer performance under any version of 10.5. The problem came on immediately with the installation of 10.6, but the final beta that I had been using under the Apple beta test and the official version shipped from Apple as the first release.

I'm confident that this is a "Snow Leopard" only issue.

Dan

danmitchell Author

Level 1

22 points

Sep 6, 2009 10:42 AM in response to risotto

From the "Epson guy" URL, I quote:

"Whenever Apple releases a new OS, my team gets the key questions. Should I upgrade to the latest OS now or wait? Will my Epson Stylus Pro printer work correctly? Do I require new driver or printer firmware updates? The quick answer is YES.

"If you're using an Intel-based Mac, then you'll want this upgrade. I've been using Snow Leopard for about two months now. The latest release I just installed on 7.27.2009, resolved all of my open issues. This new Mac OS is ready. And I would be surprised if Apple does not release it by the end of September 2009."

So, that sounds like a pretty clear recommendation from the Epson guy to upgrade if you use their products, no? But the products now don't work after doing that?

Hello? Epson?

risotto

Level 1

0 points

Sep 6, 2009 12:19 PM in response to danmitchell

I'm going to attach this comparison image to my email to the epson guy, and just to confirm with you guys, the difference between 10.5.x and 10.6 as far as color output is drastically flawed, not just being nitpicky, especially on a 'pro' level printer.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7175273@N07/3893236007/

danmitchell Author

Level 1

22 points

Sep 6, 2009 1:16 PM in response to risotto

risotto: That illustrates the issue perfectly. This is clearly no subtle thing.

(The results remind me of what happens if NO color management is done - under older OS versions - either by PS or by the printer. The blue/green tonality is what results from that while a reddish/purplish disaster results from managing twice, say both in PS and with the printer driver. I would not be surprised if something like the former is what ends up happening with OS 10.6.)

Dan

Sep 6, 2009 2:28 PM in response to risotto

Exactly the same results I get with an Epson 1280 printer. And it doesn't matter what profiles or such I set it to. The prints all look identical The problem is, SL, Photoshop, or Epson, isn't using the profiles properly. I've dug high and low, making sure all the profiles seem to be in the right places, reinstalled printer drivers, ect ect ect, all to no avail. I think I'll try re-installing Photoshop. I seem to remember a problem when a previous OS release came out where Photoshop color matching only worked right if Photoshop was installed AFTER the updating of the OS. There are big troubles with Lightroom too. Some printer options are crossed out. And color management isn't working there either. Prints of the same image look the same printed on CS4 or Lightroom. Maybe I'll re-install that too. I'm just glad I don't depend on printing for money!

Sep 6, 2009 3:24 PM in response to matt.maier

Thanks matt.maier,

After updating to SL I lost all contact with my epson 1280. I followed your steps (with modifications) and it worked!

Sep 6, 2009 3:56 PM in response to Nancy Raymond

I have an Epson R800 which is essentially a slimmed down version of the 2200. Worked fine until a yr. ago when I switched to a mac pro. Because I had problems getting proper color at that time I contacted Epson by phone.
If you check this page
http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/Store/support/supAdvice.jsp?type=highlights&noteoid =94207

you will see their instructions indicate NON-use of gutenprint 5.1.3.

Having installed snow leopard on Friday I now find that gutenprint 5.2.3 is the new driver setup for the Epson and with that setup I have pink prints and I'm also getting info telling me I need to replace ink cartridges. That's wrong since all six have recently been replaced. On top of that because it thinks the inks are low it to print at all. I don't know how the 2200 worked in that case but previously if I ignored the low ink warning it would print anyway but the color would be off if the photo being printed required the color of the low ink.

The person from Epson that I spoke with told me rather unpleasantly that they are not much concerned about mac problems because Macs comprise only about 10% of the computer population.

Even if Epson actually has that attitude about Mac software for their products it's a pretty ******* thing to say to a customer. Clearly I will never buy another Epson product if only for that reason.

Sep 6, 2009 5:58 PM in response to Nancy Raymond

I came here to post something I found, and here was your post! I think we're on to it. If you open color sync utility and run profile first aid, all the paper/printer profiles seem to have problems and running repair doesn't fix it. So now what? Here's a copy of the color sync first aid report:

Searching for profiles...
Checking 74 profiles...
/Library/ColorSync/Profiles/EW-sRGB
Tag 'desc': Tag size is not correct. Could not be fixed.
/Library/Printers/EPSON/InkjetPrinter/ICCProfiles/Standard.profiles/Contents/Res ources/Epson IJ Printer.icc
Tag 'dmnd': Tag size is not correct. Could not be fixed.
/Library/ColorSync/Profiles/EPSON Perfection610
Tag 'dmnd': Tag size is not correct. Could not be fixed.
Tag 'dmdd': Tag size is not correct. Could not be fixed.
/Library/Printers/EPSON/InkjetPrinter/ICCProfiles/Stylus Photo 1280.profiles/Contents/Resources/SP1280_360P.icc
Tag 'dmnd': Tag size is not correct. Could not be fixed.
/Library/Printers/EPSON/InkjetPrinter/ICCProfiles/Stylus Photo 1280.profiles/Contents/Resources/SP1280_CL.icc
Tag 'dmnd': Tag size is not correct. Could not be fixed.
/Library/Printers/EPSON/InkjetPrinter/ICCProfiles/Stylus Photo 1280.profiles/Contents/Resources/SP1280_GPP.icc
Tag 'dmnd': Tag size is not correct. Could not be fixed.
/Library/Printers/EPSON/InkjetPrinter/ICCProfiles/Stylus Photo 1280.profiles/Contents/Resources/SP1280_MP-H.icc
Tag 'dmnd': Tag size is not correct. Could not be fixed.
/Library/Printers/EPSON/InkjetPrinter/ICCProfiles/Stylus Photo 1280.profiles/Contents/Resources/SP1280_PP.icc
Tag 'dmnd': Tag size is not correct. Could not be fixed.
/Library/Printers/EPSON/InkjetPrinter/ICCProfiles/Stylus Photo 1280.profiles/Contents/Resources/SP1280_GF.icc
Tag 'dmnd': Tag size is not correct. Could not be fixed.
/Library/Printers/EPSON/InkjetPrinter/ICCProfiles/Stylus Photo 1280.profiles/Contents/Resources/SP1280_PQP.icc
Tag 'dmnd': Tag size is not correct. Could not be fixed.
/Library/Printers/EPSON/InkjetPrinter/ICCProfiles/Stylus Photo 1280.profiles/Contents/Resources/SP1280_RC.icc
Tag 'dmnd': Tag size is not correct. Could not be fixed.
/Library/Printers/EPSON/InkjetPrinter/ICCProfiles/Stylus Photo 1280.profiles/Contents/Resources/SP1280_Standard.icc
Tag 'dmnd': Tag size is not correct. Could not be fixed.
/Library/Application Support/Adobe/Color/Profiles/VideoHD.icc
Header message digest (MD5) is not correct.
The file is locked. Could not be fixed.
/Library/Application Support/Adobe/Color/Profiles/VideoNTSC.icc
Header message digest (MD5) is not correct.
The file is locked. Could not be fixed.
/Library/Application Support/Adobe/Color/Profiles/VideoPAL.icc
Header message digest (MD5) is not correct.
The file is locked. Could not be fixed.
Repair done - 0 out of 15 profiles fixed.

I guess I'll snoop around more and see what I can find

Sep 6, 2009 6:05 PM in response to Elevator Guy

I guess I should add that since I completely reinstalled the drivers, which contain these profiles, as instructed on the Epson website, and ran the Common Updater, after deleting everything in the /Library/Printers folder, that this is clearly a problem Epson needs to fix. Not Apple, or Adobe.

risotto

Level 1

0 points

Sep 6, 2009 6:20 PM in response to Elevator Guy

The dmnd is a tag in the profile that "describes the profile" ... nothing essential.

The problem is described here:

http://www.epson.co.uk/Projectors/Epson-EB-1735W/Drivers-Support?target=article& extn=.html&articleId=3410

Epson's Solution is:
"This is not really an error, it occurs as Mac OS X cannot read/understand the tag. You can ignore this and continue to use the profile and Epson printer/scanner as normal."

I get the same thing after clearing out all printer drivers then re-installing Epson drivers fresh. Unfortunately I don't think it's responsible for the bad prints from 2200's under Snow Leopard.

The SP2200 Prem.Luster 1440.icc and SP2200 Prem.Luster 2880.icc profiles I have do not give these errors, and they yield identically bad prints to using the SP2200 Premium Luster_PK profile.

Sep 6, 2009 8:03 PM in response to risotto

Oh well, it was a grasp in the dark. Where do you think the problem is? Some people claim to not have a problem with printing. I don't know if they are printing from Photoshop or Lightroom or any other details though. Printing black text works wonderfully.

Someone, (I'm sorry I forget who now, and can't go back and look while preparing a post) said they deleted the color sync or color sync utility and fixed the greenish print trouble. I guess it can't hurt to try that.

I am able to print in iPhoto, using Colorsync and get beautiful prints, though maybe not quite as good as a good working Photoshop managed workflow. I can print in CS4 using Colorsync and it's so/so (a slight bit dull and lifeless), but printing from Lightroom doesn't work at all. Major greenish cast and very dark, just like if I try to print from CS4 with a North American Prepress type workflow and Photoshop managing color. Using Epson's "Color Controls" is sort of OK, except the whole bottom of the dialog where adjustments can be made don't show. Part of one slider does, but the rest is totally missing. So to sum up, Colorsync seems to work as well as always, and everything else doesn't. So what is the root of the problem? I don't suspect Adobe stuff, since it worked fine in 10.5, though that doesn't mean it's not the problem in 10.6. Since ColorSync seems to do OK I would tend to think it's either an Epson driver problem or a Colorsync problem.

I guess the best thing to do right now (though I go nuts when things don't work right) is to be patient and wait for Apple, Epson or Adobe to do something. And get prints from Costco if I need them that bad. LOL

danmitchell Author

Level 1

22 points

Sep 6, 2009 8:33 PM in response to aussiedogs

"The person from Epson that I spoke with told me rather unpleasantly that they are not much concerned about mac problems because Macs comprise only about 10% of the computer population."

Brilliant. And probably about 50% or more of those using serious color photography printers. And what business doesn't care about 10% of its clients?

danmitchell Author

Level 1

22 points

Sep 6, 2009 8:41 PM in response to Elevator Guy

"Some people claim to not have a problem with printing. I don't know if they are printing from Photoshop or Lightroom or any other details though. Printing black text works wonderfully."

So far, every person I've encountered who claimed to not have a problem fell into one of two categories:

1. They use the incorrect method of printing photographs - instead of selecting "Photoshop manages colors" in the first dialog and "do not manage colors" in the second, they are having the printer manage colors. According to Epson and well-know procedures for correct photo printing this approach is to be avoided - and it does not produce accurate color rendition. (If you are not very critical about color you might think it is OK, but it isn't.)

2. They are resorting to the Gutenprint (or "Gutenberg?") printer drivers. As pointed out above, Epson recommends that you not use these with your Epson printer, and for a number of good reasons. First, the correct and accurate method is the one I described under #1. Second, the Gutenberg settings are incredibly user-unfriendly and I have yet to find a comprehensible description of how to set the scores of variables correctly to duplicate the results of the normal method of printing. Some claim to have had some success, but there is no evidence that consistent, repeatable results are likely or even possible. Third, even if it did work, the Epson drivers worked right under the previous OS and they will be the right way to work under this one.

It isn't a Photoshop problem and it isn't exactly a Snow Leopard problem (though it clearly came on with OS 10.6.) It is something that Epson needs to fix by issuing updated drivers.

Dan

Network 23

Level 6

12,351 points

Sep 6, 2009 8:47 PM in response to danmitchell

danmitchell wrote:
"The person from Epson that I spoke with told me rather unpleasantly that they are not much concerned about mac problems because Macs comprise only about 10% of the computer population."

Next time anyone says that, ask them if they care about the market share of their high-end wide-format printers. I'm sure they are but a fraction of their overall consumer sales.

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Awful Color on Epson 2200 after Snow Leopard Upgrade