Epson Stylus COLOR 300 User's Guide Page 1

Color Ink Jet PrinterAll rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrievalsystem, or transmitted in any form or by

Printer Parts and Control Panel Functions paper supportedge guidesprinter coversheet feedercontrolpanelleft edge guidelock leverpaper thickness lever

ButtonsButton Function ELoad/EjectLoads or ejects paper if pressed and releasedwithin 2 seconds. Resumes printing if pressed after a paper outerror.

System Requirements To use your printer with a PC, you need Microsoft® Windows®3.1, Windows for Workgroups, Window 95, or Windows 98;and a shielded, t

Options and Consumable Products Interface cablesEPSON supplies several types of interface cables. You can useany interface cable that meets the specif

EPSON Photo Quality Glossy Paper (A4) S041126EPSON Photo Quality Glossy Paper (Letter) S041124EPSON Ink Jet Transparencies (A4) S041063EPSON Ink Jet T

Where to Get Help EPSON provides technical assistance through electronicsupport services and automated telephone services 24 hours aday. The following

To speak to a technical support representative, dial(310) 974-8550 (U.S.) or (905) 709-2567 (Canada), 6 am to 6 pm,Pacific Time, Monday through Friday

Chapter 2Setting Up the Printer Unpacking the Printer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2Attaching the Paper Su

This chapter explains how to set up your printer. If you did notalready do this as described in the Start Here guide, follow theprocedures here. (If y

Attaching the Paper Support Insert the paper support into the central slot at the rear of theprinter as shown below.Choosing a Place for the Printer F

FCC COMPLIANCE STATEMENTFor United States UsersThis equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digitaldevice, pursuan

❑Avoid using or storing the printer in places subject to rapidchanges in temperature and humidity. Also keep it awayfrom direct sunlight, strong light

Plugging in the Printer 1. Make sure that the printer is turned off.2. Plug the power cord into a properly grounded electricaloutlet.Installing the In

1. Turn on the printer. The P power light and the V ink outlight come on.2. Hold down the T cleaning button for three seconds. TheP power light begins

3. Open the printer cover.4. Lift up the ink cartridge clamp as far as it will go. Remove the protective material from the cartridge holder.5. Open th

cCaution: ❑You must remove the yellow tape seal from thecartridge. Installing the cartridge with the yellow tapestill attached will permanently damage

7. Press the ink cartridge clamp down until it locks in place.cCaution: Once you install the ink cartridge, do not open the clampagain until you repla

9. Close the printer cover.The life of a cartridge depends on the amount of text and colorgraphics you print or the number of colors you use in yourdo

3. Plug the other end of the cable into the computer’s parallelinterface. If there is a ground wire at the computer end ofthe cable, connect it to the

Installing the software for Windows 95 or Windows 98Follow these steps to install the printer software forWindows 95 or Windows 98:1. Make sure Window

Installing the software for Windows 3.1 Follow these steps to install the printer software usingWindows 3.1:1. Make sure Windows 3.1 is running and th

ContentsSafety InformationImportant Safety Instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0-1A few precautions . . . . .

Making diskettes of the printer softwareYou can make a diskette version of the printer software (driver,utilities, and online help) on your CD-ROM if

Chapter 3Starting to PrintLoading Plain Paper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2Accessing the Printer Drive

Loading Plain Paper This section describes how to load plain paper in the printer.You can also print on ink jet paper, transparencies, index cards,pho

2. Push down the left edge guide lock lever and slide the leftedge guide to the left as far as it will go.3. Load a stack of paper with the printable

4. Slide the left edge guide against the left edge of the paper;then push up the lock lever to secure the left edge guide. 5. Remove the stack of pape

Accessing the Printer Driver and Utilities There are two ways to access the printer driver: from theWindows Start menu or Program Manager, or from you

From Windows 95 or Windows 98Follow these steps to access the printer driver and utilities fromthe Windows 95 or Windows 98 Start menu:1. Click Start,

Getting Information Through Online Help Your printer software includes extensive online help withdetailed information and instructions about printer d

From Windows 3.1 Program ManagerTo access online help directly from Program Manager, open theEPSON program group and click the EPSON Stylus COLOR300 H

Chapter 4Printing on Special PaperProof Sign-off:Ohtera _______Nomoto _______Grady _______Setting the Paper Thickness and Adjust Levers . . . .

Chapter 3 Starting to PrintLoading Plain Paper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2Accessing the Printer D

Setting the Paper Thickness and Adjust Levers Before you start printing on special paper, you may need tochange the paper thickness lever and the adju

Setting the adjust lever When you print on thick paper such as envelopes or if inksmears on your documents, set the adjust lever to the “+”position. T

Loading Special Paper and Other Media You can achieve good results on most plain bond paper. Forbetter results, EPSON provides special media such as c

Photo Quality Ink JetCardsUp to 30 index cards. Always place the support sheet*beneath the cards.Photo Quality GlossyPaperOne sheet at a time.Always p

Loading Envelopes ❑You can load up to 10 envelopes into the sheet feeder.❑Set the paper thickness lever to “thick paper”, and theadjust lever to “+” p

Chapter 5Maintenance and TransportationProof Sign-off:Ohtera _______Nomoto _______Grady _______Replacing the Ink Cartridge . . . . . . . . .

Replacing the Ink Cartridge Your printer’s V ink out light tells you when it’s time toreplace the ink cartridge. A flashing V ink out light indicatest

3. Hold down the T cleaning button for three seconds. The P power light begins flashing, and the print head movesleft slightly to the cartridge replac

5. Lift the cartridge out of the printer and dispose of it properly.Do not take the used cartridge apart or try to refill it.wWarning:If ink gets on y

7. Lower the ink cartridge into the holder with the label face upand the arrow mark pointing to the rear. Do not push downon the ink cartridge.8. Pres

Chapter 6 TroubleshootingDiagnosing the Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2Error indicators . . . . .

Cleaning the Print Head If you find that printed images are unexpectedly faint or dotsare missing, you may be able to solve these problems bycleaning

Note:If the V ink out light is flashing or on, you cannot clean the head,and this operation will start the ink cartridge replacementprocedure. If you

Aligning the Print Head If you notice a misalignment of vertical lines, you may be ableto solve this problem from your computer using the Print HeadAl

Cleaning the Printer To keep your printer operating at its best, you should clean itthoroughly several times a year. 1. Make sure the printer is turne

Transporting the Printer To transport your printer, carefully repack it using the originalbox and packing materials as follows:1. Open the printer cov

Chapter 6TroubleshootingProof Sign-off:Ohtera _______Nomoto _______Grady _______Diagnosing the Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Diagnosing the Problem If you find something wrong with your printer, you may beable to solve the problem by:❑Checking the “Error indicators” (see bel

Printer operation checkPerforming a printer operation check (self test) can help youdetermine whether the problem comes from the printer or thecompute

4. Hold down the E load/eject button and turn on the printer;then release the button.The printer prints an operation check page including theversion o

5. Turn off the printer after it finishes printing one page.❑If the operation check page results appear as shown instep 4, the printer is all right an

Safety InformationImportant Safety Instructions Read all of these instructions and save them for later reference.Follow all warnings and instructions

Power supply The lights come on briefly but then go off and stay off.Cause What to doThe printer’s voltage ratingdoes not match the voltage ofyour ele

Operation The P power light is on but nothing prints.Cause What to doThe interface cable is notplugged in securely.Confirm that the cable is securelyf

The printer sounds like it is printing, but nothing prints.Cause What to doThe print head nozzles areclogged.Clean the print head. See page 5-6. Ifthi

For Windows 95, choose a lowerresolution setting as the Color Palettesetting. To access the Color Palette,click Start, point to Settings, andchoose Co

Printing starts too high or too low on the page.Cause What to doMargins are set incorrectly inyour application.Check that the margins are setcorrectly

The New Hardware Found screen appears even though theprinter software has already been installed.Cause What to doThis error may occur in theWindows 95

Paper handlingPaper does not feed properly from the sheet feeder.Cause What to doThe paper may have beenloaded too deeply into theprinter.Remove the p

The printer loads more than one sheet at a time.Cause What to doThe paper may have beenloaded too deeply into theprinter.Remove the paper and gently r

Paper does not fully eject.Cause What to doThe paper is too long. Press the E load/eject button to ejectthe paper. Use paper that meets thepaper requi

Printing qualityThe printed image has gaps or faint areas.Cause What to doThe paper thickness lever orthe adjust lever position maynot be set correctl

❑Except as specifically explained in this guide do notattempt to service the printer yourself.❑Unplug the printer and refer servicing to qualified ser

Printed image is smeared.Cause What to doThe paper thickness lever orthe adjust lever position maynot be set correctly.Make sure the paper thickness l

White horizontal lines appear in the printed image.Cause What to doThe print head nozzles areclogged.Clean the print head. See page 5-6.The ink cartri

Printing quality is not what you expect.Cause What to doThe paper loaded is not thepaper selected in yourapplication or the printerdriver.Make sure yo

The Media Type setting doesnot match the paper loaded.Change the Media Type setting inyour printer driver to match the typeof media you have loaded, o

Color dots are missing in printed characters or graphics. The printed color image has gaps or faint areas.Cause What to doThe color print head nozzles

Increasing the Print Speed Just as printing at a high resolution requires more processingtime, printing in color takes longer than printing in blackbe

Print speedFaster SlowerHardware resourcesSystem speed Fast SlowHDD free space Large SmallMemory free space Large SmallSoftware statusRunning applicat

2. Hold down the E load/eject button for three seconds, theprint head moves to the replace position. The P powerlight begins flashing.3. Lift the ink

AppendixPrinter SpecificationsProof Sign-off:Ohtera _______Nomoto _______Grady _______Printing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Printing Printing method: On-demand ink jetNozzle configuration: Monochrome (black) 31 nozzlesColor (cyan, magenta, yellow) 33 nozzles(11 (each color)

❑Under normal circumstances, ink will not come out of inkcartridges. If ink gets on your skin, wash it off with soapand water. If it gets in your eyes

Envelopes:SizeNo. 10 9.5 × 4.1 inches (104 mm × 240 mm)DL 8.7 × 4.3 inches (110 mm × 220 mm) Paper types Plain bond paper, air mailThickness 0.006 to

Printable areaSingle sheets/index cards/adhesive sheets/transparenciesEnvelopesA: The minimum top margin is 0.12 inch (3.0 mm).When loading multiple s

Ink Cartridge (S020138) Colors Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and BlackPrint capacity* 220 pages (A4, 360 dpi, 5% duty each color)450 pages (A4, Text, monochr

Mechanical Paper feed method: FrictionPaper path: Sheet feeder, rear entrySheet feeder capacity: About 100 sheets at 17 lb (64 g/m2) paperDimensions:

Environmental Temperature: Operation: 50 to 95°F (10 to 35°C)Storage:*–4 to 140°F (–20 to 60°C) 1 month at 104°F (40°C) 120 hours at 140°F (60°C)Humi

GlossaryThe following definitions apply specifically to printers.applicationA software program that helps you perform a particular task, such as wordp

dpiDots per inch. The dpi measures the resolution. See also resolution.driver A software program that sends instructions to a computer peripheral to t

monochromeThis means printing with only one color of ink, which is generally black ink.parallel interface See interface.printable areaThe area of a pa

spoolThe first step in printing. The printer driver converts the print data into codes thatyour printer understands. This data is then sent to the pri

IndexAAdjust lever, 1-2, 4-3Alignment, print head, 5-8. See alsoonline helpBButtonscleaning, 1-3, 5-2–5load/eject, 1-3, 6-3–4, 6-22–23CCables. See Int

Chapter 1Getting to Know Your PrinterProof Sign-off:Ohtera _______Nomoto _______Grady _______Printer Parts and Control Panel Functions . . . . .

IIndex cards, 4-2–3, 4-5, A-3Ink cartridge, 1-5clamps, 1-2installing, 2-6–10problems, 6-22–23replacing, 5-2–5, 6-22–23specifications, A-5Interface cab

RReplacing an ink cartridge. See InkcartridgeResolution, 6-21, A-2. See alsoonline help Required system, 1-4Reverse Order, 6-21. See alsoonline helpSS