ZE500 Print Engine Print Quality

Symptom

ZE500 Print Engine Print Quality Adjustments and Configurations

Applies To

ZE500 Zebra Print Engines

Cause or Overview

There are several causes to print quality issues.  Many are addressed below.

Solution

A printer self test label can be used to determine if the given print quality issue is seen from the printer itself and to test any changes made on the printer as you are troubleshooting the issue.

To print a self test label to check the print quality, use the Pause Test   Read More>>

Print Head Cleaning:

A dirty print head can result in poor heat transfer and a poorly printed image. Click the following link for print head cleaning procedure  Read More>>

Media and Ribbon Combination:

• The type of labels and ribbon (if used) impacts the quality of the print. Consult with your supplier for details.

The darkness level can be set directly on the printer, through the printer's LCD, Read More>>.   The Zebra Setup Utility can also be used to change the printer's darkness setting.  See the following link   Read More>>

• If your application is printing through the Zebra Designer Driver Read More>>
• If your application is printing through a 3rd party driver, contact that vendors technical support.
• If you are using ZPL code in your application see Read More>>

Adjusting the Print Head Pressure:

The print head pressure can affect the printed image quality.

• not printing evenly across the label - unbalanced print head pressure
   
• ribbon wrinkle - unbalanced or excessive print head pressure
   
• light print - too little pressure 

Print head pressure adjustment details  Read More>>

The printer operates at the selected speed in terms of inches/mm per second.  Because print quality is effected by print speed, media, ribbon ( if thermal transfer ), and printer operating modes, it is important to run tests for your application to choose the optimal print speed setting.  Slowing down the print speed can also help if the print is too light.

The print speed can be set through the printer's LCD display.   The Zebra Setup Utility can also be used to change the print speed setting   Read More>>

Software and driver settings can over-ride the darkness level set on the printer:

• If your application is printing through the Zebra Designer Driver  Read More>>
• If your application is printing through a 3rd party driver, contact that vendors technical support.
• If you are using ZPL code in your application  Read More>>

To view the printer's current ZPL configuration  Read More>>