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Pantone+ Series 336 Colors

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Bobby H

Arial Sucks.
Early last year Pantone added a "+336" supplement to the Pantone+ spot color library. I haven't really thought much of it until a couple customers started specifying colors in that range. Since then it has created some serious headaches.

I assumed Adobe Illustrator CC would already have the +336 colors included in the Pantone+ library, but as far as I can tell they do not. The same goes for CorelDRAW X6. We also use Flexi Cloud and Roland VersaWorks; neither of those support the new colors either (unless there is some update I missed).

For large format printing purposes we just have to create some CMYK simulations of anything specified in the +336 library. And those simulations have to be tweaked based on material profile, type of laminate used, etc. It's definitely more of a chore than using a standard Pantone spot color from the old library as a reference.

I've asked questions about this at the Adobe user forums. Some people have suggested using Pantone's $40 color manager software. That may work within Illustrator, but I don't know how compatible it is with other applications such as VersaWorks. The added swatches don't do much good if they're not supported outside of Illustrator. One participant said Illustrator CS6 had the +336 color library, which would be really odd. If it was in AI CS6 why wouldn't it be in AI CC?
 
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Bobby H

Arial Sucks.
Yes, that's my question I posted in Adobe's Illustrator forum. I've seen similar questions in the same forum as well as the InDesign forum. No decent answers provided. The +336 colors thing is a real monkey wrench of sorts that can be thrown into the design machinery. Even if Illustrator can have an updated palette that doesn't really do much good when you have to take a PDF or EPS file outside of Illustrator, such as RIPing in VersaWorks.
 
visual800

visual800

Active Member
You would do a lot better informing clients you will come close to their color but you cannot gurantee a direct 100% spot on match. If they raise hell ask them to go bring you some brochures, letterhead and business cards they had done. I gurantee you none of them will match, and YES I have done that!...and they never noticed.

explain to them PMS is an idea, and there are too many machines out there that will all have different outcomes of this color. Don't get too hung up on matching PMS its a waste of time and exhausting.

i tried to even look this color up and cannot even locate it but I see where other designers are posting on adobes forums freakin the hell out, lol. Is this a new color or a new series or 336 new colors?
 
Bly

Bly

New Member
We bought the Pantone color manager software and the new swatch books.
If your rip has a colour matching table see if the new ones are in it, otherwise convert to cmyk in Illustrator and check against the swatch.
 
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Bobby H

Arial Sucks.
i tried to even look this color up and cannot even locate it but I see where other designers are posting on adobes forums freakin the hell out, lol. Is this a new color or a new series or 336 new colors?
Click to expand...

The Pantone +336 series is a supplemental set of colors added to the Pantone+ swatches. A new set of Pantone spot color swatches will have the normal books for coated and uncoated spot colors. The 336 series is in a smaller, separate swatch book.
 
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