Anyone having this problem-GS6000

[Donny7833]

Installed a GS6000 last Nov and overall it's been a great machine. I'm not crazy about how it prints backlits (low density black ink), but that's another story.

I have a tech coming in tomorrow to replace the reduction belt, this will be the fourth belt since installation. 6 weeks after install we had the first belt replaced along with the drive motor and the carriage belt pulley on the same side of the machine.

The belt literally starts coming apart and makes a fairly distinctive noise. Once I hear the noise, I call tech support. Next day or two the tech shows up and replaces the belt. Our tech says this is an ongoing issue that Epson hasn't been able to solve yet, however I haven't heard it mentioned on the forums.

I've owned or operated quite a few different brands and I've never had to replace a reduction belt. Any one else have this happening?

 

[tomence]

I really want to hear more Epson users about this issue. I thought they made this printer bulletproof. So far i have red only positive comments about GS6000 you are the first with a problem. Only problem i know of is the take up reel.

 

[GoodPeopleFlags]

We got ours at the end of Oct. Haven't had that problem or any others. Sorry I can't help; just giving some feedback from another GS6000 user.

 

[Donny7833]

That's why I thought it odd that our tech said this was an ongoing problem. I've been searching the forums and haven't found a peep about it. I talked to him shortly after my first post and he's bringing a new drive gear along with the belt. I sure hope this solves it.

Not a huge problem under warranty, tech is in and out in a half hour. However if I need to have a new belt put on every 8 to 10 weeks, it could get expensive once the machine is out of warranty. Do I ask for a new machine or an extended warranty? I think if this happens again, that's what I'll do.

It does make nice prints though.

 

[tomence]

If you can get a new printer then go ahead and exchange it. Because like you said if this problem continues after the warranty it is not looking good for you. Also if you have to buy extended warranty that probably is not cheap either. We are talking probably around $4000 for one year right.

 

[jmcnicoll]

We've been running a GS6000 since early March and have not had that issue!
I love the printer!!! Only issue I have with it is the take up system and only run half a roll at a time because of it.

Jim

 

[Markus59]

Have not had this problem with our printer (knock on wood), we have had an ongoing issue with paper tracking and we have had to replace 3 heads in the 15 months that we've owned this printer, 2 under warranty and one out of warranty. What kind of sound does it make before the belt goes out? Ours was making kind of a clunking sound a couple of days ago and I couldn't pin point where it was comming from, yesterday or today it hasn't done it. I guess that $9000 2 year extended warranty may have been worth it.

 

[parrott]

Have not had this problem with our printer (knock on wood), we have had an ongoing issue with paper tracking and we have had to replace 3 heads in the 15 months that we've owned this printer, 2 under warranty and one out of warranty. What kind of sound does it make before the belt goes out? Ours was making kind of a clunking sound a couple of days ago and I couldn't pin point where it was comming from, yesterday or today it hasn't done it. I guess that $9000 2 year extended warranty may have been worth it.

Just purchased this printer yesterday and it should arrive mid next week. I have heard mostly good things, but are starting to worry about the tracking issues causing head strikes. Does anybody know what the cost of a head is? I was told mid 3k range, but want to know actual numbers from somebody that has bought one.

 

[Markus59]

Just purchased this printer yesterday and it should arrive mid next week. I have heard mostly good things, but are starting to worry about the tracking issues causing head strikes. Does anybody know what the cost of a head is? I was told mid 3k range, but want to know actual numbers from somebody that has bought one.

We had to replace one out of warranty recently and just got the bill and it was just shy of $3000, I'm not sure it was the head strikes that caused the failure, although I may be wrong, this has been the third head that has been replaced in the 15 months that we have owned this machine and it is always the green channel that has gone out. Epson does not own up to the problem with the tracking or the green channel failing on these machines. When the techs come in to fix the problem they tell me things like this is the third one this month that has had this same problem. I agree that this printer makes some great looking prints but for us it has been very expensive to run, with all the down time, parts and labor.

 

[parrott]

We had to replace one out of warranty recently and just got the bill and it was just shy of $3000, I'm not sure it was the head strikes that caused the failure, although I may be wrong, this has been the third head that has been replaced in the 15 months that we have owned this machine and it is always the green channel that has gone out. Epson does not own up to the problem with the tracking or the green channel failing on these machines. When the techs come in to fix the problem they tell me things like this is the third one this month that has had this same problem. I agree that this printer makes some great looking prints but for us it has been very expensive to run, with all the down time, parts and labor.

Thanks for the feedback, but not what I was hoping to hear. I guess the extended warranty is worth it. Anybody else having these problems?

 

[rfulford]

We had to replace one out of warranty recently and just got the bill and it was just shy of $3000, I'm not sure it was the head strikes that caused the failure, although I may be wrong, this has been the third head that has been replaced in the 15 months that we have owned this machine and it is always the green channel that has gone out. Epson does not own up to the problem with the tracking or the green channel failing on these machines. When the techs come in to fix the problem they tell me things like this is the third one this month that has had this same problem. I agree that this printer makes some great looking prints but for us it has been very expensive to run, with all the down time, parts and labor.

I am afraid that this might be a RIP issue and not the heads. Are you using ColorBurst? I found that the version of ColorBurst that I was using was not using green or orange ink on the linearization and profiling targets. Consequently, none of the profiles I created were using green ink. I believe my green head dried up as a result. I too had to replace a head but fortunately, I made the call 1 day before my 1 year warranty expired. I have migrated to ColorGate since. and have been watching the green head carefully. My epson tech said that every head he has replaced has been a problem with the green.

 

[nate]

Oddly enough the tech is here doing our third one right now.... Just finished installing the parts.

We have two, soon to be three of these machines. Only the one has problems. The other one hasn't had this particular issue yet. Go figure!

 

[nate]

I spoke too soon. Not an hour after the tech left fixing our first Epson, the 2nd one broke-- same error, same sound. The belt is broken.

The quality of the print is killer, the build quality of the machine---- not so good. However, Epson support is fantastic and the tech is usually next day with parts in tow.

I'd bet our third one will probably be our last.

 

[parrott]

I spoke too soon. Not an hour after the tech left fixing our first Epson, the 2nd one broke-- same error, same sound. The belt is broken.

The quality of the print is killer, the build quality of the machine---- not so good. However, Epson support is fantastic and the tech is usually next day with parts in tow.

I'd bet our third one will probably be our last.

I have purchased this printer, but it is still sitting in our loading dock and I am starting to have second thoughts. We are scheduled to have it installed the week of August 10th and have plenty of time to send it back if necessary. Everything I have read had been good reviews up until now and the sales rep was very convincing in the buying process. All of the above issues were concerns I had on the frontend, but was reassured that they were not issues at all. Would you send the printer back if you had the chance or are these just small issues that will be resolved over time? I understand that Epson is following through with their support, but I cannot afford and do not want to deal with the down time described above.

 

[nate]

All of the above issues were concerns I had on the frontend, but was reassured that they were not issues at all. Would you send the printer back if you had the chance or are these just small issues that will be resolved over time? I understand that Epson is following through with their support, but I cannot afford and do not want to deal with the down time described above.

It's a pain obviously to have a machine go down. It's a real pain to have two of them go down. I think our third one will be our last. Our tech is great but I really shouldn't be seeing him as much as we do! We're only 6-8 months in to these machines! Who knows what year two will bring.

Do you have a back up? Or is this your sole machine?

 

[parrott]

It's a pain obviously to have a machine go down. It's a real pain to have two of them go down. I think our third one will be our last. Our tech is great but I really shouldn't be seeing him as much as we do! We're only 6-8 months in to these machines! Who knows what year two will bring.

Do you have a back up? Or is this your sole machine?

This will be our sole machine. I bought it under the impression that it is a quality built machine that produces fantastic images. I did some research and weighed my options between this machine and the mutoh, then pulled the trigger on the epson. Now I am questioning myself, did I make the right decision? The day it is delivered, all of these issues come to light. Go figure!

 

[Markus59]

I am afraid that this might be a RIP issue and not the heads. Are you using ColorBurst? I found that the version of ColorBurst that I was using was not using green or orange ink on the linearization and profiling targets. Consequently, none of the profiles I created were using green ink. I believe my green head dried up as a result. I too had to replace a head but fortunately, I made the call 1 day before my 1 year warranty expired. I have migrated to ColorGate since. and have been watching the green head carefully. My epson tech said that every head he has replaced has been a problem with the green.

We use Production House as our RIP and it uses the green ink, the last time the tech was in he said maybe it not enough green was going through the line so I made a 20"x10" green only file that I run every morning, we'll see if this helps. The tech also had a list of bad green ink lot numbers from Epson and pulled a couple of our boxes, the lot that was in our machine at the time it went down wasn't one of them. I hope they get the bugs worked out of this printer because I do like the quality of the prints that come off it.

 

[MachServTech]

Donny7833, The reduction belt may be over tensioned. Ask the technician to show you his tension method and spec he is using. He should be using some kind of force gauge to measure this.
The green ink will always be an issue because most rips use the green channel very little or in some cases not at all. Updated versions of Colorburst and Onyx do a better job with using the green channel, but clogging in green could still be an issue with machines that are used less than 10 hours per week.
Head replacement costs can be large $$$. New owners should budget for post warranty service or extended warrantees.

 

[Donny7833]

Actually the first time the belt went our tech had brought along a new belt tensioner sent to him by Epson. Pretty fancy digital doo-dad. I think the tension has been fine.

When a belt gets replaced it looks like it tracks pretty straight. By the time I start hearing the tell tale noise, it's tracking up and down to the edges of the drive gear.

This latest one seems to be doing fine. I left the side cover off so I can take a peek at the belt as the machine is running. This time around he brought a new drive motor, pulley and belt. He also spent a fair amount of time shimming the motor and checking the belt tracking. It's been almost 2 weeks and the belt is still tracking laser straight. It's also running noticeably quieter than it has since new.

Not placing any bets, but I'm thinking/hoping this problem is solved.

As for the Green ink. I'm running Ergosoft and once a week I print some 4"x4" squares of channels 7 and 8 (orange and green). Nice solid colors and the nozzle check looks good. Our tech suggested this with his first visit, pretty proactive on his part.

Just to see how much ink is going down, I turned off all but the O and G channels (one of the environments that I created in house) and output a few raster files nested with a small pantone chart. Definitely getting a good amount of O and G in the files. I see that ColorBurst has a newer version 9.3.8 that is supposed to lay down more of those 2 channels. Any one install that yet?

 

[nate]

Our second machine is fixed again. New motor, new belt. Decision One (Epson's one site contractor) has a great tech in my area. Problem solved until the next time.

Also-- for the green-- we always use the gutter strip. Any time we print we've got ink flowing through all heads. Never had a problem yet with that one. Hopefully we never will, either.