Ready to burn Roland XR-640

[Graphic Extremes]

I have been struggling for two days to get this printer to print a red that resembles the dark red that is in the American Flag. No mater how I change the color or spot color all the print look like a pinkish red. I can not get the dark red to print

Original color I need is Pantone 193. Versa Works says color is out of range. So I pick a spot color from their chart and it still looks pinkish no matter what color I use. I even tried darker almost brown reds and the still come out pinkish. Print nozzle check is perfect.

I ordered an X-Rite i1 Publish Pro 3 Plus, But I don't think this will help.

Not sure what to try next. Any ideas?

 

[Sean@CedarHouse]

I don't know. if this will help but have you tried to save files as a PDF - or - EPS? EPS will change the color tone usually.

Also have you printed the Roland color chart? I've been able to hit reds using the color chart.

One last thought. Profiles. Maybe change the profiles and see if that helps?

Hope this helps

 

[2B]

Are you trying to print as RGB or CMYK?
have you tried different media?

2nd printing the Roland color chart on the INTENDED media

 

[Humble PM]

I1 Profiler will certainly help to get the best from the printer. Slightly steep learning curve, and the software documentation is slightly limited, but well worth the investment

I'm not in front of my real screen, but on my 2021 MBP, pantone 193 sure looks kinda pinkish to me. But now I look at other reference colours (marlboro, London Bus etc), I remember why I don't trust other than properly calibrated screens (which the i1 will also do...)

Seriously, I can't believe that a company's flagship 20k 7-colour printer can't hit your nation's flag.

 

[White Haus]

Our canned VW profiles will not print a nice red on our XR-640 but we can print nicer reds out of Onyx using custom profiles we created with an i1.

You'll likely be able to create some nice profiles with better ink limits once you start playing with your i1 although I'm not familiar with the workflow out of Versaworks.

 

[netsol]

A profile compensates for the characteristics of the ink, substate & your printer
By using a canned profile the peculiarities of YOUR PRINTER are removed from the equation.

 

[Sean@CedarHouse]

3M and Orafol etc. wouldn't spend tons of money creating profiles for their material if they didn't work. I don't use generic or canned profiles. Also, making your own profiles is way more work than it's worth... at least what I've found.

 

[Graphic Extremes]

Pantone 193 is the correct red for the American flag. It shows as a deeper red. But The color is not supported in VersaWorks. I am looking at Onyx because I can use my Roland and my Summa Cutter to speed things up.

I have also contacted 3M and the tech is looking into the issue for me and said he will call me back with an answer. The tech did say that he thought the Pantone 193 is supported in their profile.

 

[Notarealsignguy]

I suggest using diesel, it burns good and is less volatile than gas. Can throw a tire in the fire for a little extra kick

 

[Sean@CedarHouse]

I just found this article. Might help: https://www.rolanddga.com/blog/2020/02/26/color-management-settings-in-roland-versaworks

 

[Graphic Extremes]

Finally a Roland service employee called me back and stated that the printer is able to print the Pantone 193. He told me that it is a limitation of the VersaWorks software that is causing the problem. VersaWorks uses a coloring scheme that all the colors are not true Pantone colors but colors that their company has developed the settings for. They are close to the Pantone colors that the human eye can not tell the difference. The Roland tech actually told me to use a different rip software and I would be able to reproduce the exact color I was looking for. The tech told me that VersaWorks is an ok program to start with, but there are better options out there.

I also asked him why all the reds looked pink, he remoted into my desktop and looked at the setting I had and said they were all correct. He then had me completely remove VersaWorks from the computer and reinstall the program. I now have red colors as expected, but I am still not able to print the Pantone 193. He tweaked some settings and the color is so close that it is hard to see with the human eye, If i look close enough I can see the difference, but just looking you can not tell. You have to know what you are looking at for the color difference.

 

[Humble PM]

I love it when they bolt training wheels onto your sportster.

Are you still getting the i1? Looks like you'd get a double boost in colour fidelity - new rip and new spectro.

 

[netsol]

I suggest using diesel, it burns good and is less volatile than gas. Can throw a tire in the fire for a little extra kick

of, come on now...
i have always found the sledge hammer more satisfying.

once you are really pissed it's amazing, it doesn't seem heavy any more

 

[Humble PM]

 

[Notarealsignguy]

of, come on now...
i have always found the sledge hammer more satisfying.

once you are really pissed it's amazing, it doesn't seem heavy any more

Lets stay on topic here netsol. He said hes ready to burn it
Why does it say paper jam when there is no paper jam!

 

[netsol]

The printers use a series of "flags" a little plastic finger, springloaded.
As the paper moves, each finger will depress, then lift as the paper passes.
So, one of the fingers is broken, or stuck, or a spring is

 

[scrubz]

If your using Versaworks, this is what I did before I got rid of my VP300. First use a pantone red, any red you like. Then open the .eps is versa. From the job list - Job Settings then File Format then click convert spot color, then click the Details button. On the CMYK sliders, do 0, 100, 100, 15. Then print. Blood red. Works with grey as well, just use K at whatever % grey you want.
This was the only thing I miss about my Roland.

 

[Snap2000]

I know this post is a few months old, but making your own profile with an i1pro spectrophotometer makes a world of a difference for hitting reds. Also knowing what profile your using helps, for example the True Rich Color 2 preset in Versaworks is really just RGB: AdobeRGB1998 colorspace. Without a proper AdobeRGB monitor you'll never be able to see or design the red you are looking for. rgb(255, 0, 0) on AdobeRGB1998 looks orangeish red, but on a normal sRGB monitor it looks like a deep red. Using the right equipment and knowing what your settings mean, you can make any printer print exactly how you want.

 

[CSOCSO]

About versaworks, roland and spot colors in my experience:

I believe when you work with spot colors it shouldn't matter if the file is rgb, cmyk or saved as eps or pdf.
As long as versaworks recognizes the spot color ( make sure under file format the convert to spot color is checked)
The only thing that will alter your spot color output is the profile!! Pay attention the max ink limit under each profile. if the library output is more than the max ink limit it will reduce the output color! I had different colors coming out when I used avery or 3m profiles. I manually updated the max ink limit to %200 from 180 on the profile and after that the output spot color had the right numbers.

Oh.. and by the way. PR-42K and pr43k are nice red colors. If you want even deeper you can alter the spot color and convert it to 0,100,100,10 or 5 or 15 on that last number.