Pages 5.6.1 prints gray instead of black. All other colors print correctly.

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Level 1

17 points

Pages 5.6.1 prints gray instead of black. All other colors print correctly.

I have an iMac with El Capitan 10.11.1, Pages 5.6.1 (updated11/14/2015), and HP Deskjet 2540 All-In-One. I've only had the problem since updating Pages. So far I've tried several things: I've restarted the computer, reloaded the printer software, updated the printer software today (version 3.1) and adjusted the opacity scale. Nothing has helped. What should I do to get my printing back to black?

iMac, OS X El Capitan (10.11.1)

Posted on Nov 23, 2015 9:01 AM

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Answer 1

Nov 23, 2015 9:16 AM in response to Patlovesjim

Create a new Pages document from a blank template. Type in the word Foo in Helvetica, and enlarge to 400%. Click on the text color wheel, and select the second toolbar item which is the sliders. Ensure that your text opacity is 100%. Use the color picker and select the center portion of any letter. Is your black showing RGB (0, 0, 0) and hex #000000?

Your printer deals in CMYK. Even though your document text may show RGB (0, 0, 0), the CMYK black setting is (74, 71, 64, 87). Not exactly true black in CMYK terms.

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Answer 2

Patlovesjim Author

Level 1

17 points

Nov 23, 2015 10:02 AM in response to VikingOSX

Thank you for the advice. I'm getting a darker gray now (MUCH better than the paler version); in the 400% enlargement the letters look striped, but when I print in 20% , it looks like a darker gray. I noticed on the sliders that after setting the hex # to 87, when I hit the Print button it changes to 4A4740, and even putting in 000087 didn't help. Do you suppose that is part of the problem I am having?

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Answer 3

Nov 23, 2015 10:09 AM in response to Patlovesjim

RGB and Hex values are intended for the screen, while CMYK values are intended for print. Use the CMYK sliders, not Hex or RGB, to arrive at the black that you want, and then click Device from that small gear selector in the CMYK slider panel.

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