Possible firmware update issue on Epson 7890 after a main board replacement.

[Restlest]

Hi. I'm new to this forum and wished I had discovered you all years ago.
I just had a repair tech replace my Epson 7890 main board. I thought all was fine but when I tried to switch the black ink the printer went into an endless loop and never completed the task. I had to force the printer off by unplugging it. When I called the repairman he suggested that the Print Head might be shorting the printer out.

Can the firmware be the problem, not the Print Head? It seems odd that doing a nozzle check would work but changing ink from glossy to matte would not.

The repairman also updated the Firmware. On a Mac the only way to check the firmware is using the Remote Utility. And when I was updating the OSX drivers I ran the check and the utility errored out with the message "Failed to acquire printer information. Check the printer connection".

If that's the case does anyone know of steps I can take to re-install or confirm the firmware is not the problem?

Thanks

 

[Restlest]

I should add that now when I turn on the printer it never completes the initialization and cycles endlessly through the 5 rolling dots. I guess it's thinking.
Thanks

 

[netsol]

i have several of the older epsons
(7600's, 9880's, 3880's, 4000's)
but i am not an epson expert

for sure, unplug you network or usb cable, in case there is an unfinished print job, calling for a different black ink configuration

when your tech was there, did he finish and run a demo print and a test print from. your pc, before he left?

i haven't setup a connection. from a mac in a number of years, but windows and mac osx identify the print device by a hardware id. (this is like a mac address for network cards, unique to your printer. AND DIFFERENT NOW THAT HE HAS CHANGED THE MAIN BOARD.

IT's time to create a new setup for the new board. it will be viewed like a whole new printer

 

[Restlest]

Unfortunately he couldn't finish because the printer was very low on one ink and I didn't have a replacement. Of course, as luck has it, there was no way for me to check beforehand as the printer's main board made it impossible to get the printer to a ready state before he came.
So no demo print! It does seem odd that a nozzle check print out worked but switching ink cartridges caused the printer to die. In that case a simple test print may not have caught the problem? And I wonder if most follow through includes interactions and commands from the computer. (It will be now, for me.)
I did get to install new Remote software (as my computer OS was updated separately); could see the ink supply from the computer, but from the point of switching ink I've had a completely unresponsive printer that only thinks about starting up.

 

[WeFixPrinters.com]

You may also want to try having the tech flash generic parameters to the printer. You may also want to try to reinstall an older version of the firmware....If you are using compatible ink, that could potentially cause an issue. What was the reason for changing the board in the first place. I believe that brand new board do not come with parameters and firmware since some main board are used in multiple printers....For example the 7890 board and 9890 board are the same, however firmware will dictate the size diff....(which is pretty much the only fdiff 24 v 44 inch carriage

 

[Restlest]

Thanks for the reply. We replaced the board because the printer was no longer communicating with the computer and vice versa. The LCD screen stayed blank. And after the main board was installed and became unresponsive I couldn't connect to the printer to revert a firmware.
The repair man who put the board in (fixing the original problem) came back out and finally got it working, at some effort and at no charge. He thought the new problem, after he installed the board, was that I hadn't waited long enough for the printer to switch from photo to matte black. As minutes and what seemed like an eternity went by, I just force shut the printer down. Then the new problems began (booting up just showed the LCD screen with the cycling dots and never getting to a menu). He said if it happened again wait, even if it took an entire day to switch inks. Fortunately, that hasn't happened.

 

[WeFixPrinters.com]

How about using the firmware update tool from Epson's website. If it is just cycling, you will need to put it in firmware update mode. If firmware doesn't do it, you may want to have someone flash generic parameters to it. As I may have mentioned earlier, most of these boards come without firmware and parameters, so if both were not put in, it is not going to function properly....The parameters are likely going to require the adjustment program, which I am not authorized to supply to you but they are sold on ebay and other places.

 

[Restlest]

Wasn't an option as the Firmware tool could not find the firmware. I could run the firmware check but it failed, giving an error saying it couldn't find it, whether that was the version or the actual firmware I don't know. I suspect since the printer never fully booted this may have impacted that. I asked the tech and he suggested why that might be the case, but now I can't remember what that was.

 

[netsol]

you know,
there are some epson specific forums, geared more to the photo industry

i haven't had the need in several years

https://community.inkjetmall.com would be where i would start

there is slmost no limit to the expertise you will fond with some of us on signs101 but, i suspect you are wandering closer to the photographic industry.

i am in new jersey. i would offer you my assistance, but in spite of my epson experience (we own about 8 of the beasts) i have never touched your particular model

to my thinking, your tech should work with you until you haveva fully functional machine. i have never left a machine with new system board in that kind of state
try posting on inkjet mall forums, i will keep an eye on both sites

you can email me at asimko@netsolnj.com if i can help in any way

 

[Restlest]

Thank you!!
Much appreciate these links and suggestions.
Just for full disclosure, the tech left because he couldn't complete a nozzle check and there wasn't more he could do, or so he said. I had run out of an ink with no a replacement cartridge (I didn't know because the main board died and I lost communication to the printer). Always keep a complete set of inks I guess. He did come back and did finish at no charge.
I'll check inkjetmall.com. Thanks.

 

[netsol]

undestood, and i don't want to come down too hard on him, but it does have a whiff of the surgeon who brags that the surgery was a success, except that the patient died

epson is very much guilty of making much too big a deal of ink change, in the middle of important processes that should finish REGARDLESS of what ink or how much of it.
(that being said i still have 8 of them)

i have to check, there are a few other sites, specifically for epson firmware, and, i believe CUSTOM firmware. no one would know more about recovering from an upgrade gone sideways.
i will try to find more info and update the thread

 

[netsol]

paul,
i would really like to be of help with this (i like when we wander into areas where i can GIVE BACK for some of the help i have gotten)

am i breaking a forum rule posting url's to other sites?
what he needs is a little too specialized for most of us, i think