The HP Latex 260, the worst printer

[juf1an]

I bought the printer with much happiness
the salesman told me it was the best option
I have two solvent printers, for 6 years without problems
with the latex i wanted to attack other markets
but it has been a nightmare
slow
hot
Oily prints
heads that are damaged each 400ml

Are other references of latex printers bad as this one? are equally bad?
the cyan head its very very bad

my opinion

 

[P Wagner]

I am sorry to hear of the problems you have experienced with your HP Latex 260.

With the HP Latex machines, printhead longevity is affected by many variables and it is important that everything be set-up properly in order to maximize usage from thermal printheads. First, be sure to upgrade the printer firmware to the current version. As of today, that is SP_12.0.0.5 for the Latex 260.

Next, make sure that the Elevation Setting is set correctly for your printer. Medellin Columbia is at about 5000 foot elevation (1,500 meters). There is a setting in the firmware for elevation that you want to verify is set appropriately for your city's elevation (I believe the setting range is 3000-6000 feet).

Finally, set the printer's sleep timeout to 120 minutes - it defaults to a much shorter time, usually less than 30 minutes.

The printer should not be powered on and off on a daily basis, it is better to leave it on 24 hours per day and let it go to sleep when not in use for a lengthy period of time. Powering the printer on and off frequently can cause printhead failure.

Head Strikes with media or edge clips will damage printheads, so they should be avoided. One way to do this is to use the Manual Load option when loading media. Using this procedure, the printer will prompt the user to lift the blue lever and manually feed the media so that the leading edge is exiting the curing unit. Using this procedure ensures that the media will not hang up as it passes through the media path, and it tends to result in significantly fewer head strikes. I do not care for the Edge Clips on the L2 series, so I would discourage their use on L2 machines.

The printheads are a consumable item with HP Latex, and the heads are warranted separately from the printer. I don't know about Columbia, but in the USA, heads run $100 - $120 USD ea. It is considered a good practice to carry spares on the shelf at all times. This is to ensure your productivity when heads need replacement. Heads that need replacement before 1 liter (1000 ml) have passed through them are warranty-based replacement (HP replaces at no cost, including shipping).

The printer warm-up time and overall print throughput for the L2 machines have been significantly improved with the third generation Latex 300 units which began shipping May 2014.

 

[Christian @ 2CT Media]

Only you buddy....

All those issues are non issues with most of the Latex base as they can all be solved with some understanding.

1.) Slow... Solved by using your RIPs preheat settings and the appropriate profiles
2.) Hot... most canned profiles are set way too hot and can be turned down significantly, but the heating system for instant dry prints requires a lot of heat to evaporate the water thoroughly.
3.) Oily Prints.... You need to better profile the media you are using. There are 3 main culprits to this: Not enough heat, Too Fast of print speed, and Not Enough Airflow.
4.) Heads.... I have heads in mine that I just replaced at 19500 ml, my others are all over 12000 ml.

 

[twmiller24]

Nope, not only you. Call HP tech support -- we had a huge problem with heads on the L360, and it's a known issue.

 

[Christian @ 2CT Media]

Nope, not only you. Call HP tech support -- we had a huge problem with heads on the L360, and it's a known issue.

The 360 and 260 heads are completely different issues, he has a 260 which has been tried and true for nearly 3 years (Starting with L26500).

Those issues he listed are all operator/profiling issues, and the heads can simply be misoperation. If they are truly failing at 400ml they are in warranty (at least in the US)

 

[P Wagner]

Nope, not only you. Call HP tech support -- we had a huge problem with heads on the L360, and it's a known issue.

The latest firmware update on the Latex 300 series was pushed out last week to resolve this. That firmware is version is NEXUS_00_06_02.10

 

[BIG EASY DOES IT]

The latest firmware update on the Latex 300 series was pushed out last week to resolve this. That firmware is version is NEXUS_00_06_02.10

Works like a charm and definetly notice fine detail improvement. The biggest improvement is the adjustment to the magenta head which no longer leaves a magenta stripe on the sides on the print.

 

[derekw13029]

I bought the printer with much happiness
the salesman told me it was the best option
I have two solvent printers, for 6 years without problems
with the latex i wanted to attack other markets
but it has been a nightmare
slow
hot
Oily prints
heads that are damaged each 400ml

Are other references of latex printers bad as this one? are equally bad?
the cyan head its very very bad

my opinion

What material are you printing on that is leaving an oily print? You either need to increase the heat, set the inter-pass delay to a higher interval (thus leaving the print in the curing area longer) or use more passes during printing with possibly a lower ink saturation (this also leaves the print in the curing area longer).

I had a similar issue on an HP L330 printing onto a transparent window cling (I think it was Drytac Viziprint). I had maxed out the heat and was getting warping of the material, and I didn't know what to do. I was sitting there with a hair dryer on the print while it came out onto the roll.

Set the inter-pass delay to about a half second, used more passes, viola. Sure it took longer, but the prints looks great and the client loved it.

 

[Drip Dry]

The latest firmware update on the Latex 300 series was pushed out last week to resolve this. That firmware is version is NEXUS_00_06_02.10

Is this update something that HP pushes automatically to my 360, or do I have to go get it.

AND... If I'm not having any real issues ( that I know of ) should I do the update

Thanks

 

[P Wagner]

Is this update something that HP pushes automatically to my 360, or do I have to go get it.

AND... If I'm not having any real issues ( that I know of ) should I do the update

Thanks

The answer to your question depends on the setting that has been chosen on your printer. If internet access is available, the printer can be set to check for updates and then either inform the operator to them, or automatically install them. Alternatively, that functionality can also be disabled, and in that case, the printer operator would need to manually download and install FW updates manually.

 

[ColoPrinthead]

I feel you, my disdain for HP wide format continues to grow. I'm not a fan of their Fisher Price My First Printers made of plastic that are slow as can be and I would rather have a solvent that is built like a tank. To top it off I just opened up the FB700 cleaning kit I have waited 9 weeks for to find that it is missing the only items I needed from it (UV filter, Wiper Blades) and I'm on a another long term wait for a freaking encoder strip. The only HP device I would ever purchase is an Indigo. Suck it, HP!

 

[eahicks]

The latest firmware update on the Latex 300 series was pushed out last week to resolve this. That firmware is version is NEXUS_00_06_02.10

If only he was talking about a 300 series....sigh....

 

[juf1an]

I am sorry to hear of the problems you have experienced with your HP Latex 260.

With the HP Latex machines, printhead longevity is affected by many variables and it is important that everything be set-up properly in order to maximize usage from thermal printheads. First, be sure to upgrade the printer firmware to the current version. As of today, that is SP_12.0.0.5 for the Latex 260.

Next, make sure that the Elevation Setting is set correctly for your printer. Medellin Columbia is at about 5000 foot elevation (1,500 meters). There is a setting in the firmware for elevation that you want to verify is set appropriately for your city's elevation (I believe the setting range is 3000-6000 feet).

Finally, set the printer's sleep timeout to 120 minutes - it defaults to a much shorter time, usually less than 30 minutes.

The printer should not be powered on and off on a daily basis, it is better to leave it on 24 hours per day and let it go to sleep when not in use for a lengthy period of time. Powering the printer on and off frequently can cause printhead failure.

Head Strikes with media or edge clips will damage printheads, so they should be avoided. One way to do this is to use the Manual Load option when loading media. Using this procedure, the printer will prompt the user to lift the blue lever and manually feed the media so that the leading edge is exiting the curing unit. Using this procedure ensures that the media will not hang up as it passes through the media path, and it tends to result in significantly fewer head strikes. I do not care for the Edge Clips on the L2 series, so I would discourage their use on L2 machines.

The printheads are a consumable item with HP Latex, and the heads are warranted separately from the printer. I don't know about Columbia, but in the USA, heads run $100 - $120 USD ea. It is considered a good practice to carry spares on the shelf at all times. This is to ensure your productivity when heads need replacement. Heads that need replacement before 1 liter (1000 ml) have passed through them are warranty-based replacement (HP replaces at no cost, including shipping).

The printer warm-up time and overall print throughput for the L2 machines have been significantly improved with the third generation Latex 300 units which began shipping May 2014.

Thanks for the recomendations, I will implement all !!!
In Colombia the hp suports its ok, they send me the heads that are damaged. My sadness is the duration of the heads cyan.

 

[juf1an]

Only you buddy....

All those issues are non issues with most of the Latex base as they can all be solved with some understanding.

1.) Slow... Solved by using your RIPs preheat settings and the appropriate profiles
2.) Hot... most canned profiles are set way too hot and can be turned down significantly, but the heating system for instant dry prints requires a lot of heat to evaporate the water thoroughly.
3.) Oily Prints.... You need to better profile the media you are using. There are 3 main culprits to this: Not enough heat, Too Fast of print speed, and Not Enough Airflow.
4.) Heads.... I have heads in mine that I just replaced at 19500 ml, my others are all over 12000 ml.

Thanks
The slow is when it is printing, slower that roland rs,
Hot in the air
I put a slow pass and High temperature drying
And the heads all are ok, but not the cyan 1,2.

 

[juf1an]

What material are you printing on that is leaving an oily print? You either need to increase the heat, set the inter-pass delay to a higher interval (thus leaving the print in the curing area longer) or use more passes during printing with possibly a lower ink saturation (this also leaves the print in the curing area longer).

I had a similar issue on an HP L330 printing onto a transparent window cling (I think it was Drytac Viziprint). I had maxed out the heat and was getting warping of the material, and I didn't know what to do. I was sitting there with a hair dryer on the print while it came out onto the roll.

Set the inter-pass delay to about a half second, used more passes, viola. Sure it took longer, but the prints looks great and the client loved it.

thanks for the reply.
I put the inter pass and image have a improvement, but not 100%

 

[juf1an]

OK, thanks to all for the replies.

I think the hp latex its a normal printer that sell us like the best
I did a comparison of ink consumption between roland and hp latex, same file, same material. the roland rip says that consumption its 18cc and in the rip of the hp says its 41,4ml.


PD sorry for my english

 

[Ditchmiester]

With the HP Latex machines, printhead longevity is affected by many variables and it is important that everything be set-up properly in order to maximize usage from thermal printheads. First, be sure to upgrade the printer firmware to the current version. As of today, that is SP_12.0.0.5 for the Latex 260.

I just checked my printers firmware and it says its up to date at SP_11_00_00.2 is that right?

 

[P Wagner]

I just checked my printers firmware and it says its up to date at SP_11_00_00.2 is that right?

Current FW for the Latex 260/ L26500 is SP_12.0.0.5

Here is a link to obtain it:

http://h20564.www2.hp.com/hpsc/swd/public/readIndex?sp4ts.oid=5053951

.

 

[Ditchmiester]

Here is what I get...

 

[P Wagner]

OK, thanks to all for the replies.

I think the hp latex its a normal printer that sell us like the best
I did a comparison of ink consumption between roland and hp latex, same file, same material. the roland rip says that consumption its 18cc and in the rip of the hp says its 41,4ml.


PD sorry for my english

You can get a very accurate ink usage from the HP Latex machines by using the Embedded Web Server. The EWS is accessed through a web browser, by plugging in the printer's IP Address on your network. From there, drill down to Accounting > Jobs to obtain ink usage for any recent job.

Ink usage depends on the specific job being printed, and the media profile that is used. In my tests, the ink consumption of the Roland VSi and the HP Latex are similar (within about 10 percent of each other).