Epson ActionLaser II

What printer operating modes are built-in in the ActionLaser II?

There are three (3) built-in operating modes:

• HP LaserJet Series IIP emulation (PCL04).
• Epson ESC/P 24-pin printer emulation (LQ-2500).
• Epson ESC/P 9-pin printer emulation (FX-86e).

How many resident fonts are in the ActionLaser II and are they scalable (ESC/P 2)?

The 14 resident fonts are not scalable.

From a cold start, what is the warm-up time on the ActionLaser II?

The warm-up time from cold start is approximately 45 seconds.

What is the rated print speed and resolution for the ActionLaser II?

The ActionLaser II print speed is up to six (6) pages per minute (PPM) when using letter-size paper, and the resolution is 300 x 300 dots-per-inch (dpi).

Is it possible to add chips to the main board of the ActionLaser II to expand the memory?

To expand the memory of the ActionLaser II use the OKB memory expansion board and a memory chip set.

How much memory comes standard with the ActionLaser II and how can this amount be increased?

The ActionLaser II comes standard with 512KB of memory. The amount of memory can be increased with a OKB memory expansion board which has sockets for a maximum capacity of 5.5MB of RAM.

What type of chips can be installed on the OKB memory expansion board?

The OKB memory expansion board has locations that will accommodate four sets of DRAM memory chips. Each set contains four chips. The board will accept two types of DRAM chips:

1. 256K x 4 bit, 80 nanosecond chips (4 of these constitute a .5MB chip set)
2. 1 MB x 4 bit, 80 nanosecond chips (4 of these constitute a 2MB chip set)

Can these chips be mixed, if so, what are the possible combinations and locations on the OKB memory expansion board?

Yes, the chip sets can be mixed; there are three (3) possible combinations that may be installed in the four (4) locations (A,B,C,D) of the OKB memory expansion board.

1. Four (4) .5MB chip sets in locations A, B, C, and D.
2. One (1 ) 2MB chip set in location A, and three (3) .5MB chip sets in locations B, C, and D.
3. Two (2) 2MB chip sets in locations A and B, and two (2).5MB chip sets in locations C and D.

Note: Although the memory board can hold up to 8MB of RAM chips, the printer can access only 5.5MB of additional memory.

What interface ports are built-in in the ActionLaser II?

The ActionLaser II has two (2) of the most commonly used interface ports built-in:

1. Centronics Parallel
2. RS-232C Serial

Will the internal serial port accept 7 or 8 bit word length?

Through the control panel, in SelecType Level 2, both 7 or 8 bit word length can be selected.

Is the Development Bias Adjustment Tool #F571 necessary?

The Development Bias Adjustment Tool #F571 is a required tool. For your convenience, we have included this tool in the Service Launch Kit.

If the Development Bias Adjustment Tool (required tool), #F571, is not used after replacing the Drive Unit, Mechanical Board, or Power Supply Unit, what would the possible failure results be?

The possible failure results could be one or a combination of: uneven, light, or dark print.

What is the maximum allowable paper curl?

The allowable paper curl should not be more than +/- 30mm (1.2").

What is the rated life of the consumable items?

When printing continuously, using letter or A4-size paper with 5% toner coverage of the sheet, the rated life for the two consumable parts are as follows:

Will the ActionLaser II feed envelopes automatically?

With the Muiti-Media Feeder a maximum of 15 standard windowless envelopes (16-24 lb) can be stacked and fed automatically.

Why does the ActionLaser II have both a cartridge slot (C) and a card slot (A)?

The cartridge slot is for HP-compatible font cartridges. PostScript cartridges for HP printers will not work in this slot.

The card slot is for identity cards sold by Epson. The Epson GL identity card (an emulation of HP's HPGL plotter language) is available as an option for the ActionLaser II. In the future, the Adobe PostScript identity card will work in this slot

The Epson GL identity card emulates which HP plotter?

The Epson GL identity card emulates an HP 7475A/7440A plotter.

What is meant by straight-through paper path?

Unlike the paper path in most laser printers, which have the shape of a "C" or an "S", the ActionLaser II's normal paper path is straight-through. In both those instances, it may be difficult to feed heavier stock or envelopes without feed jams or paper curl. Some laser printers offer the ability to utilize a straight-through paper path by changing a lever or adding an optional tray.

What are the paper handling capacities of the input tray, output tray and optional equipment?

The paper capacities, using standard 20 lb. paper, are listed below:

1. Input Paper Cassette Tray (Standard) -100 sheets
2. Multi-Media Feeder (Optional) -150 sheets
3. Legal Paper Cassette Tray (Optional) -100 sheets
4. Facedown Exit Tray (Standard) -50 sheets

How does the Channel AutoSensing work?

Unlike conventional printers, the ActionLaser II can receive print jobs from both the parallel and serial ports. This means that two computers can automatically share the ActionLaser II by connecting one to the parallel port and the other to the serial port, both computers would use the same emulation. It is not necessary to connect the ActionLaser II through a network or switchbox to activate the switching of the two ports. Also, no control panel functions need to be made.

In addition, the two ports can be configured through the control panel, SelecType Level 2, in the Mode Assign, to support separate emulations. In this way, two emulations may be accessed on the same printer, if desired. Once these selections are made, no other control panel changes are required. At least one megabyte of printer memory is required to support a separate emulation on each interface (512KB per interface). Optional emulations may require additional memory.

The printer can receive data from one interface while printing data from the other interface. The first job received is the first to print. Each job prints completely before another begins printing.

If an optional interface is added, the printer can support three computers. A third emulation can be assigned to the optional interface so long as sufficient memory is available (an additional 512KB for standard emulations, more for optional emulations).

If the print quality declines, how can the transfer wire be cleaned?

Should the print quality decline, the ActionLaser II has a built-in transfer wire cleaner on the Photoconductor and Cleaning Unit (PCU) that doesn't require any special tool or cotton swab.

Can I get a print out of the current settings of the printer?

Yes, to print the Status Sheet follow the steps below:

1. Press the SelecType button to enter Level 1.
2. Press the down arrow button (Feed/Manual) until "Status Sheet" appears on the display screen.
3. Press the right arrow button (On Line) twice to activate the "Status Sheet~.
4. After the page prints, press the left arrow button (SelecType) twice to return the unit to an on-line condition.

Is there a separate "Font Sample" print of the internal fonts and cartridge fonts?

Yes, to print the "Font Sample", follow the steps below:

1. Press the SelecType button to enter Level 1.
2. Press the down arrow button (Feed/Manual) until "Font Sample" appears on the display screen.
3. Press the right arrow button (On Line) twice to activate the "Font Sample".
4. After the page prints, press the left arrow button (SelecType) twice to return the unit to an on-line condition.

If a "FEED JAM" message is displayed when the ActionLaser II is first powered up, how can the problem be corrected?

The "FEED JAM" error can be corrected by following the steps below:

1. With the power on, remove the paper cassette tray and any paper that is in the printer.
2. Open and close the printer cover.
3. Reinstall the paper cassette tray.

If the print density seems too dark or too light, is there a way to control it?

The print density is controllable by turning the small green print density control knob, which is located inside the ActionLaser II on the right side.

How often should the user replaceable ozone filter be replaced?

The ozone filter should be replaced every 5,000 pages. For your convenience, the ozone filter is packaged with the Developer and Toner Magazine (DTM), and they should be replaced together.

What is MicroArt Printing?

MicroArt Printing uses toner with a smaller particle size than that used in conventional toner. The benefits of MicroArt Printing are blacker blacks, fine line reproduction, no "edge effect" (a printer error that causes edges to be darker than the center portion of the image), and less toner blurring. In addition, an improvement to the developing method enables the printer to produce exceptional halftones with smooth reproduction of graduated shaded areas.

Won't print full page or "Page Buffer Full"

The "Page Buffer Full" message or incomplete page printing happens most often when printing spreadsheets or large graphic files. This indicates there is not enough RAM memory in the printer to process the whole page. This can be demonstrated by changing the printer resolution in the Print menu to a lower number, for example: 150 dpi instead of 300 dpi. If the complete page prints or most of the page then the problem is due to inadequate memory resources in the printer.

You can either decrease the current print driver's resolution to 150 dpi or lower (this options is found under GRAPHICS) or you can install more memory in the printer.

Stops printing and "Continue" lights

This is normal when trying to print on odd size and small documents within the printer specifications without the AUTO CONTINUE feature turned on. The printer will stall momentarily, and you will have to press the CONTINUE button after each page. It also sometimes occurs if paper misfeeds and more than one sheet is fed at one time. To avoid having to press Continue you can turn the AUTO CONTINUE feature on.

• Enabling the AUTO CONTINUE feature on the printer.
• Press the SELECT TYPE LEVEL 2 button.
• Press the CONTINUE button until you reach AUTO CONTINUE OFF>
• Press the FEED button until AUTO CONTINUE OFF >SET.
• Press the COPY END button until AUTO CONTINUE ON>SET.
• Press the FEED button until AUTO CONTINUE ON>.
• Press the INITIALIZE RESET (you won't see any change, but the printer knows) button, then press ON-LINE.

Poor print quality

If print quality has declined, please read through the troubleshooting section of your printer user's manual as it has important instructions on how to handle and clean the various components and locations of these items.

These are a few important things to check in a laser printer which can affect print quality.

• Print density adjustment may cause print to be too light or dark/dirty background if adjusted too low or too high.
• Printer components may be dirty with spilled toner inside printer.
• Transfer charger wire may be broken or dirty and need cleaning.
• Glass lens on print head may be dirty and require cleaning.
• Cleaning pad may need replacing.
• Toner may be low.
• Imaging cartridge or drum may need replacing.

If, after cleaning or replacing the above items, print quality has not improved, the printer should be inspected or serviced by an Epson authorized servicer.

Windows 95 printing problem

Epson laser printers emulate HP printers, so if the Epson printer model is not listed among the Windows driver choices, you need to use the appropriate HP printer driver. Since you are using Windows 95, you should install the printer's emulation which is the HPLJ2 printer driver (32-bit).

There are three changes that you will need to make.

• Go to the HPLJII properties section, go to the tab called, "GRAPHICS" select the option called, "DITHERING." Under this option select "ERROR DIFFUSION."
• Under the tab called, "FONTS." Go to "TRUE TYPE FONTS." Select on this menu, the option called, "PRINT TRUE TYPE AS GRAPHICS."
• Make sure that the port settings are set to LPT1, NORMAL, STANDARD, bi-directional or SPP only. The printer does not support ECP or EPP. Any changes to your printer port will have to be done in your system's BIOS. Refer to you Windows 95 manual or contact your computer vendor for assistance.

Error Messages

A C0002, C0003 or C9999 error usually occurs if the printer cannot understand an instruction. So the problem could be a corrupted or wrong driver sending wrong instructions, in this case we would recommend reinstalling the correct driver. Do you use any non Windows applications where there is no problem or is the problem consistant to only one application or document in Windows? This would indicated the printer hardware is not the problem. Otherwise there could be something wrong with the printer if it is not understanding a valid instruction. On the EPL-7000 the C9999 error when printing in landscape mode can be solved by using the HPII driver rather than the HPIIP driver.

The C0004 error is a controller error or could also be caused by a failing fusing unit. If you are seeing this error at power up, then you are experiencing a hardware problem with the printer. If this is the case you will need to have the printer serviced at an Epson authorized service center. If the error message appears on the LCD when it is in a process of printing or receiving the data, then what you may be experiencing is a driver corruption, reinstalling the correct driver may help.

The C0008 error message means Privilege Violation. Your software application is sending a message or a code to the printer that it is not understanding. Make sure you have the correct driver installed.

Action Laser 2 Poor Quality Printing

First turn the darkness knob under the top cover to a lighter level to see if that helps. If not, try the following cleaning steps to improve printed output.

• Remove the toner cartridge and clean the clear plastic lens on the bottom of the toner cartridge toward the front of it with some tissue.
• Next, take a dry cotton swap and wipe over the full length of the a wire, which is almost invisible, just above and toward the front, covered on top with a metal screen. Do it with only slight pressure to prevent it from breaking. Set the toner cartridge down on some newspaper.
• Remove the Photo Conductor Unit only touching the green plastic handles and carefully set it down on a flat surface. Do not expose it to bright light (normal room lighting is ok for a few minutes).
• Using some tissue, wipe off the clear plastic inside the printer at the bottom of the printer where the Photo Conductor Unit normally sits.
• Insert the Photo Conductor Unit and toner cartridge and then slide the green transfer wire cleaner on the top of the Photo Conductor Unit as far right as it will go, then back to its original position.
• If the pages print with equally spaced marks and cleaning doesn't help, then the Photo Conductor Unit will need to be replaced. This is available from Epson Accessories.