Epson Stylus Color 640

Product Controls: Epson Stylus COLOR 640

Cleaning Cycle - Press and hold the cleaning button for three seconds. During the cleaning cycle process, the printer makes some noise and the power light flashes. The cleaning cycle is complete when the power light stops flashing.

Printer's Nozzle Check Pattern - Make sure the printer is turned off. Then, hold down the load/eject button and press the power button. Continue to hold down the load/eject button until the power light starts to flash. Then, release the load/eject button. The printer prints one page. After it prints the page, turn off the printer.

First Ink Cartridge Installation - Turn the printer on. The power light will flash, the ink out lights will come on, and the ink cartridge holders will automatically move left to the installation position. Remove the yellow tape seals from the black and color ink cartridges. Do not remove the EPSON label from the top of either ink cartridge. If the epson lable is removed from the top of the ink cartridge, the ink will be exposed to air. In time this exposure may clog the print head and cause a printhead failure. If the EPSON label has been removed from an ink cartridge, the cartridge will not function correctly and it will need to be replaced. More importantly, to avoid potential damage to the printer, do not install a cartridge from which the EPSON label has been removed. Install the new cartridges into the printer. Make sure the labels on the ink cartridges are facing up and that the arrows on the labels point toward the back of the printer. The black ink cartridge goes on the left and the color ink cartridge goes on the right. Once the ink cartridges have been inserted into their holders, push down the ink cartridge clamps until they lock in place, and then press the cleaning button to begin charging the ink delivery system. Charging is complete when the power light stops flashing.

Install Replacement Ink Cartridge when an ink low or out condition occurs - Remove the yellow tape seal from the ink cartridge. Do not remove the EPSON label from the top of the ink cartridge. The ink in a cartridge missing the EPSON label will be exposed to air and will thicken such that print head clogging and possible print head failure can occur. If the EPSON label has been removed from the ink cartridge, the cartridge will not function correctly and it will need to be replaced. More importantly, to avoid potential damage to the printer, do not install the cartridge if the EPSON label has been removed. Hold the cleaning button until the print heads move to the left. Install the ink cartridge and press the cleaning button to begin charging the ink delivery system. Charging is complete when the power light stops flashing.

How do I install the printer driver from the CD-ROM in Windows 95, 98, or NT 4.0?

Make sure your printer is connected to your computer and that both are turned off. Then, turn on your computer but leave your printer off. Once you see the Windows desktop icons, insert the EPSON printer software CD in your CD-ROM Drive. If Windows 95 or 98 launches the installation program automatically, you will see either the "Epson License Agreement" window or the "Epson" window. If the installer does not launch automatically, click the "Start" button, select "Run", type "D:\EPSON" (if your CD-ROM drive uses a different letter, substitute it for "D"), and click "OK". If you now see an "Epson License Agreement" window, read the agreement and the click the "Agree" button to continue with the installation. If the window you see is called "Epson" and not "Epson License Agreement", click one time on the words "Re-install Printer Driver", and then when a second window called "Epson" appears, click one time on the words "Re-install Printer Driver" again. At this point, you will see a window called "Epson Printer Utility Setup". Click one time on the icon representing your printer so that it highlights, and then click one time on the "OK" button. When a second window called "Epson Printer Utility Setup" appears, click on the "OK" button one time. When the "Welcome" window appears, click one time on the "Next" button. When the "Choose Destination Location" window appears, click on the "Next" button. When the "Start Copying Files" window appears, click on the "Next" button. When the "Setup Complete" window appears, click one time on the "Finish" button.

How do I install the printer driver from driver diskettes in Windows 3.1 or 3.11?

Insert diskette 1. From the Program Manager, click on File, and then select Run. At the Command Line type "A:\SETUP" (if your drive uses a different letter, substitute it for "A") and click "OK". Follow the instructions on the screen to finish the installation. When you install the software from diskettes, only the printer driver software is installed. The additional software provided on the CD-ROM is not available on diskettes.

How do I install the printer driver from driver diskettes in Windows 95, 98, or NT 4.0?

Insert diskette 1. Click on "Start" and then select "Run". In the "Run" window, type "A:\SETUP" (if your drive uses a different letter, substitute it for "A") and click "OK". Follow the instructions on the screen to finish the installation. When you install the software from diskettes, only the printer driver software is installed. The additional software provided on the CD-ROM is not available on diskettes.

How do I install the printer driver from the CD-ROM in Windows 3.1x?

Insert the EPSON printer software CD in your CD-ROM Drive. From Program Manager, click on "File", and then select "Run". At the Command Line type "D:\ EPSON" (if your CD-ROM drive uses a different letter, substitute it for "D") and click "OK". Read the Software License Agreement and the click on the "Agree" button to continue with the installation. Follow the instructions on the screen to finish the installation.

What are the minimum requirements to use this printer with a PC?

You will need an IBM compatible PC running Microsoft Windows 3.1, Windows 3.11, Windows 95, Windows 98, or Windows NT 4.0. If you are using Windows 3.1 or 3.11, you will need a 386/25 MHz or faster processor. If you are using Windows 95 or Windows NT 4.0, you will need a 486/25 MHz or faster processor. If you are using Windows 98, you will need a 486/66 MHz or faster processor. You will also need 16MB of RAM (32MB recommended for Windows 3.1, 3.11, 95, or 98, and 64MB recommended for Windows NT 4.0), 50MB of free hard disk space (100MB or more recommended) for storing images, a VGA/Super VGA or better display adapter and monitor, a double-speed CD-ROM drive (quad-speed or faster recommended) if you plan to use the additional software provided with the printer, and a shielded twisted-pair parallel cable (6 to 10 feet long) with a D-SUB, 25-pin male connector for your computer and a 36-pin, Centronics compatible connector for the printer.

How can I increase print speed?

Verify that your system meets the minimum system requirements. The print speed is dependent upon the amount of RAM in your system, the type and speed of your computer's processor, and the amount of free hard drive space and degree of fragmentation of hard drive space in your computer. Verify that you are using the specific driver for your printer. Close any background applications that are running. Lower the printing resolution and make sure high speed is turned on and MicroWeave is turned off in the printer driver settings. If your document does not contain color, make sure you have selected "Black" as the "Ink" setting in the printer driver. If you are printing black text, also set the "Halftoning" option in the printer driver settings to "No Halftoning".

Only garbled text is printing. Why?

The interface cable may not be securely connected. Turn off the printer and computer. Disconnect and reconnect the cable on both the printer and computer. Make sure the printer is directly connected to the computer and not through a pass through device such as a switchbox. Make sure the printer cable is fully-shielded and meets the printer's specifications (a Belkin cable with a length of 6 feet or less is recommended). Try printing a screen from a DOS prompt. If the DOS print screen is garbled, try using a different printer cable. If you are only experiencing the issue when trying to print from Windows (but the DOS print screen prints OK), make sure you are using the correct driver.

If I restart my iMac my printouts will print with large gaps between the text or an image. How can I resolve this?

To correct this issue, download and install the iMac Update 1.0 from Apple.

How can I verify that the iMac Update 1.0 is installed or not?

From the iMac's desktop, select File, Fine and type Mac OS ROM and click on Find. Highlight the Mac OS ROM and select File and click on Get Info. The Created date should be August 28, 1998 or later. If it is not, you will need to download and install the iMac Update 1.0 from Apple.

What is required to print from an iMac to my Stylus Printer?

You'll need the EPSON USB Adapter Kit for your printer model and the iMac. This kit is bundled with a cable and a USB driver for the iMac and your Stylus printer. The cable will support a connection from the parallel port of the printer to the USB port on the iMac. The driver supports the selection of a USB port in the Chooser. The driver bundled with the printer does not support a USB port option

Can I connect this printer to a MAC?

This printer does not have an Apple compatible serial port for use with a Macintosh computer. However, it will work with the new Apple iMac computer.

Why are my margins incorrect?

The paper may be loaded incorrectly. Make sure that the left and right edge guides are flush against both sides of the paper. Make sure the margins are set correctly in your software application (margins are not adjustable via the printer driver), and make sure you are not trying to print outside of the printable area of the page for your paper size (printable area of the page specifications are available in the User's Manual). Make sure the correct paper size is selected in the printer driver settings.

Is there a postscript driver available for this printer?

Epson does not produce a postscript driver for this printer.

The printer won't feed paper. What should I do?

Power the printer on and press the Load/Eject button to see if paper will load. If no paper loads, make sure the paper isn't curled or creased, isn't too old, isn't loaded above the arrow on the left edge guide, and that the paper isn't jammed in the printer. If the Paper Out light is on solid, reload the paper, making sure the paper edge guide is adjusted to fit the paper's width, and then press the Load/Eject button again to see if the paper will now load. If the Paper Out light is flashing, turn the printer off, reload the paper, turn the printer back on, and try pressing Load/Eject again to see if the printer will now successfully load the paper. If the printer still will not load paper, power the printer off, remove the printer cable, and make sure all of the packing materials are removed. If the problem persists, the printer may need to be sent in for a service.

Is the printer Year 2000 ready?

Yes, the printer is Year 2000 ready.

I removed the EPSON label from the top of one of my ink cartridges. What should I do?

Do not install the cartridge. If you have already installed it and the printer is printing correctly, change the cartridge immediately. If you have already installed the cartridge, or if a previously installed ink cartridge was missing its EPSON label at the time it was installed, and now the nozzle check will not print completely even after running cleaning cycles, your printer may need a service.

How can I get the highest quality prints from my printer?

Verify that you are using the correct printer driver for your printer model. Make sure that the printer's paper adjust lever is set to 0 for regular paper and + for envelopes or thicker media. If MicroWeave is off, turn this feature on. If High Speed is on, turn it off. Make sure the Media Type setting matches the paper or media loaded. Also, the Halftoning and Color Adjustment Mode options may be set incorrectly for your document type. Let the printer driver automatically select the settings for the best quality. The paper you are using may be damaged, old, dirty or loaded incorrectly. Remove the paper and reload a new stack ensuring that the printable side is face up. If your output is faint, check the printer driver to make sure you have selected a print resolution other than Economy. For vertical banding (white or colored lines running through an image or text) or rough or grainy images, run the Print Head Alignment utility to align the print heads. If the image does not contain the colors you expected, the color settings on your application software may need adjustment. Refer to your software documentation for help on adjusting colors. If the previous steps do not resolve the issue, the print head nozzles may be clogged. From the Utility section found in the EPSON printer driver, print a nozzle check and examine the printed dot pattern. Each staggered horizontal and straight vertical line should be complete, with no gaps in the dot pattern. If there are gaps in the dot pattern, clean the print heads by running the head cleaning utility in the printer driver. Then, print another nozzle check. The nozzle check and head cleaning are recommened as a cycle in order for the head cleanings to be most effective. If there are still gaps in the dot pattern, continue with another cycle. Perform up to 6 cycles if necessary. If the nozzle check prints completely, and you're still experiencing a problem, make sure you are using the most current version of the printer driver. You can obtain the latest printer driver from the EPSON web site. The resolution of your image may also be set too low. Increase the image resolution using your image-editing software, or decrease the size of the image. Another troubleshooting test to try is moving the printer to another computer with a different printer cable. This will eliminate the possibility of a defective printer cable, parallel port, or software issue. If you're still experiencing a problem, try replacing the ink cartridge and make sure you are using a genuine EPSON ink cartridge which has an EPSON label on top of it.

My printouts are missing color and/or black print. How can I resolve this issue?

If the printer is printing blank pages, make sure you are using the correct printer driver and make sure the paper size is correctly selected in the driver. If the printer is printing black only, the Ink option in the printer driver may be set to Black instead of Color or a setting in the software may be set to print black only. Also, the print head nozzles may be clogged. From the Utility section found in the EPSON printer driver, print a nozzle check and examine the printed dot pattern. Each staggered horizontal and straight vertical line should be complete, with no gaps in the dot pattern. If there are gaps in the dot pattern, clean the print heads by running the head cleaning utility in the printer driver. Then, print another nozzle check. The nozzle check and head cleaning are recommended to be performed as a cycle in order for the cleaning cycles to be most effective. If there are still gaps in the dot pattern, continue with another cycle. Perform up to 6 cycles if necessary. If the nozzle check is not printing completely, and if the head cleanings do not help the nozzle check pattern to print completely, try replacing the ink cartridge. Also, make sure you are using a genuine EPSON ink cartridge which has an EPSON label on top of it.

The black and/or color Ink Out light is flashing or on. What does this mean?

If the light is flashing, the ink supply is getting low and you will need to replace the cartridge soon. If the light is on solid, the ink cartridge is completely empty and will need to be replaced in order to continue printing. Make sure you only remove the yellow tape seal from the top of any ink cartridge you install into the printer. If the EPSON label has been removed from the ink cartridge, the cartridge will not function correctly and it will need to be replaced. More importantly, to avoid potential damage to the printer, do not install the cartridge if the EPSON label has been removed.

Why are the colors in my image incorrect?

Due to the fact that your monitor and printer use different technologies to represent colors, your printed colors cannot exactly match the colors you see on your monitor screen. Check the ink setting in the printer driver and make sure it is set to Color, not Black. Make sure the Media Type setting matches the paper or media loaded. Let the printer driver automatically select other settings for the best quality. Check to see that the paper is loaded correctly by removing the paper and reloading it, making sure that the printable side is face up. You can also adjust various color settings in your printer driver and possibly your application software to correct color problems in your image. Also, the print head nozzles may be clogged. From the Utility section found in the EPSON printer driver, print a nozzle check and examine the printed dot pattern. Each staggered horizontal and straight vertical line should be complete, with no gaps in the dot pattern. If there are gaps in the dot pattern, clean the print heads by running the head cleaning utility in the printer driver. Then, print another nozzle check. A nozzle check and head cleaning must be performed as a cycle in order for the cleaning cycles to work. If there are still gaps in the dot pattern, continue with another cycle. Perform up to 6 cycles if necessary. If the nozzle check is not printing completely, and if the head cleanings do not help the nozzle check pattern to print completely, try replacing the ink cartridge. Any ink cartridge installed into the printer must have an EPSON label on top of it.

Optic Pro 4831p Scanner

The above scanner and the Epson 640 printer have great difficulty working together. Normally you will get one working but not the other. The solution,

• Go into the Control Panel and Add Remove Programs. Uninstall both the printer and the scanner software.
• Shut the computer and down, and disconnect the printer (leaving the scanner connected).
• Restart the computer, and install the scanner software. The scanner should test and work ok.
• Connect the printer and restart the computer again.
• "New Hardware Found" message should appear, and you should be able to install the printer.
• If you don't get the "New Hardware" message, go into Device Manager, delete the printer port and then restart the computer again.

One final note, the BIOS should be set to Bi-Directional, as neither require an ECP Port.

Printer Locks on Second Print

• Goto Start/Settings/Printers.
• Go in to the Epson Stylus driver Properties.
• Goto the Utility tab.
• In the Speed and Progress section, Disable Epson printer port, and High Speed Copy.
• Click Ok and Apply.
• Restart the Computer.

Parallel Port Scanners

Sometimes Epson printers have problems working with Parallel port scanners, as the scanner software will conflict with the Epson printer management software. To disable the Epson software,

• Click on Start / Programs / Epson / Spool Manager.
• Highlight your printer in the Spool Manager Program.
• Click on Queue, then Setup.
• Under the General tab, make sure there is a check in the box "Use Print Manager for this Port".
• Click on Ok, then Queue, then click on Exit.
• Click on Start / Settings / Printers.
• Highlight your printer, then click on File and then Properties.
• Click on the Details tab, and then click on Port Settings.
• If there is an X next to "Spool MS-DOS Print Jobs" then click on the X to deselect it.
• If there is an X next to "Check Port State Before Printing" then click on the X to deselect it.
• Click on Ok, then click on Ok again.
• Close any open Windows down, then Reboot the computer.

When I print from Appleworks 5.0.3 / 5.0.4 or Word 98 from my Macintosh (PowerMac / G3 / G4 / iMac / DV iMac) to my EPSON Stylus Color/Photo inkjet printer, some of the text is cut off on the right edge. What can I do to correct this?

Follow the steps below to correct the issue of characters clipping from Appleworks and Word 98.

Appleworks:

1) Open document.
2) Click on Edit, then Preferences.
3) Topic should be set to Text.
4) Under the Options, enable "Fractional Character Widths".
5) Click OK and print the document.
6) When the file is saved, it will save the setting along with it.

Word 98:

1) Open document.
2) Click on Tools, then Preferences.
3) Click on the Print tab.
4) Under the options for current document only, select "Fractional Widths".
5) Click OK and print the document.
6) When the file is saved, it will save the setting along with it.