Designjet Z3200 Photo 44in

[Lance15]

Might be a no-brainer, but, thought I'd run it by the group.

Forward disclaimer.......this plotter has been sitting unused since the start of COVID.

Z3200 Photo 44in plotter that, initially, would always display "file format not recognized" (or to that effect) on the control panel with ANY print job. I suggested the user check the driver being used as it was installed as a network printer going through a printserver.

Customer E-Mailed again indicating the plotter was getting "stuck" at 17% booting. (After arriving onsite, I found it was just FSCKing the HDD). Found, Googling, this could be caused by a dead/faulty CR2032 on the formatter. Replaced the battery.


Arrived onsite and, as expected, 5 of the 6 printheads will need to be replaced as well as 5 or 6 of the ink cartridges.

However, what I found very strange was when I connected my laptop to the plotter via a crossover cable and installed the plotter using all three drivers (PCL3, HPGL2 & PS), it would not print AT ALL. My laptop (Windows 7 64-bit, 8GB RAM) kept acting goofy/explorer crashing/print spooler stopping, etc. When I connected via USB, it would print fine (seemingly using the PCL3 driver).

Has anyone seen anything like this? I haven't. I DID replace the formatter/HDD back in 2019, but, it was working fine afterwards.

Thanks for any insights!

Lance

[Lance15]

Some additional info:

This is a Rev A machine (Q6719A).

EWS access works perfectly fine.

Firmware has been updated to the latest available from HP (TR12-RB_16_00_00-1).

[Lance15]

Forgot to provide the error code that was showing:

61:01

System Error: 61:YZProblem Description: The file format is incorrect and the Printer cannot process the job.
Corrective action: Try the following:

• Switch the Power Off from the back of the Printer and disconnect the Power cord. Reconnect the power cord and power On the Printer.
  
• Check the compatibility of the selected print job's file format to what file format the printer supports.
  
• Check the graphic language setting of the Printer (Refer to the User's Guide).
  
• Resend the file to the printer.
  
• Check that the Printer has the latest Firmware version. If not, update the Firmware to the latest version.
  
• The Postscript™ fonts are missing. Upgrading the Firmware will re-install the fonts.
  
• The file cannot be printed because it is password protected. Resend the file without password protection.

[Kiran Otter]

If it prints using USB and not Ethernet, I would suspect the Ethernet port is is bad, despite the AWS working. That's an odd one.

I don't have one to look at but, I'm pretty sure you can disable the Ethernet port, and install another JetDirect card in the slot in the EMOD. I have a customer who did this when the Ethernet port died. It was cheaper than replacing the formatter. A n615 costs about $10 on ebay, would be worth it to test. Or if you have one on hand.

Kiran

[Lance15]

So some updates on this plotter.

Customer contacted me and told me the printer is requesting PMK#2. Okay. Ordered the service station and left spitoon (eBay from China). Both parts were easy replacements. After replacing both parts and powering on the plotter, the power LED and the status LED starting flashing alternating amber and green. Checked all my work. Made sure all connectors were seated firmly. Removed the JetDirect card. Reseated the formatter. Made sure the HDD cables were firmly attached on the formatter. Still same thing. I reinstalled the original service station. Same thing. The plotter does sort of boot. The printmech initializes. Carriage moves. Service station moved.

Here is a video I took:
20220601_120900.mp4 - Google Drive

I stopped it at 3 minutes, but, you can make out the carriage moving by the control panel twice and the service station noises.

I'm leaning towards formatter/HDD. I replaced the formatter/HDD back in 2019. Even then, I believe it was refurbished.

Ideas, suggestions, please? I've never seen this behavior before.

[Kiran Otter]

My guess would be the power supply or formatter, or both. Never saw that before.

Kiran

[MoochPage]

Are the lights on the formatter flashing? does that give a direction towards an error on a part?

[Lance15]

This is a Rev A machine. Rev B has the lights unfortunately.

[Kiran Otter]

Make sure you didn't pinch any of the ribbon cables when putting the left end cover on, if you did.

Kiran

[Lance15]

Yeah. I taped that cable up that runs underneath the electronics/power supply so it didn't get caught.