66 | Troubleshooting

Printing quality problems

If the inside of the printer is dirty or paper has been loaded improperly, you 
may notice a reduction in print quality. See the table below to clear the 
problem.

The printer 
selects print 
materials from 
the wrong paper 
source

The paper source 
selection in the 
printer properties 
may be incorrect.

For many software 
applications, the paper 
source selection is found 
under the Thin Paper tab 
within the printer properties. 
Select the correct paper 
source. See the printer driver 
help screen.

A print job is 
extremely slow

The job may be very 
complex.

Reduce the complexity of the 
page or try adjusting the print 
quality settings.

Half of the page 
is blank

The page orientation 
setting may be 
incorrect.

Change the page orientation 
in your application. See the 
printer driver help screen.

The paper size and 
the paper size 
settings do not 
match.

Ensure that the paper size in 
the printer driver settings 
matches the paper in the 
tray.
Or, ensure that the paper 
size in the printer driver 
settings matches the paper 
selection in the software 
application settings you use.

The printer 
prints, but the 
text is wrong, 
garbled, or 
incomplete

The printer cable is 
loose or defective.

Disconnect the printer cable 
and reconnect. Try a print job 
that you have already printed 
successfully. If possible, 
attach the cable and the 
printer to another computer 
and try a print job that you 
know works. Finally, try a 
new printer cable.

The wrong printer 
driver was selected.

Check the application’s 
printer selection menu to 
ensure that your printer is 
selected.

The software 
application is 
malfunctioning.

Try printing a job from 
another application.

The operating 
system is 
malfunctioning.

Exit Windows and reboot the 
computer. Turn the printer off 
and then back on again.

Pages print, but 
are blank

The toner cartridge 
is defective or out of 
toner.

Redistribute the toner, if 
necessary. 
See "Redistributing toner" on 
page 53.
If necessary, replace the 
toner cartridge.

The file may have 
blank pages.

Check the file to ensure that 
it does not contain blank 
pages.

Some parts, such as 
the controller or the 
board, may be 
defective.

Contact a service 
representative.

CONDITION

POSSIBLE 

CAUSE

SUGGESTED SOLUTIONS

The printer does 
not print PDF file 
correctly. Some 
parts of 
graphics, text, or 
illustrations are 
missing

Incompatibility 
between the PDF 
file and the Acrobat 
products.

Printing the PDF file as an 
image may solve this 
problem. Turn on Print As 
Image from the Acrobat 
printing options.

It will take longer to 
print when you print a 
PDF file as an image.

The print quality 
of photos is not 
good. Images 
are not clear

The resolution of the 
photo is very low. 

Reduce the photo size. If you 
increase the photo size in the 
software application, the 
resolution will be reduced. 

Before printing, 
the printer emits 
vapor near the 
output tray

Using damp paper 
can cause vapor 
during printing.

This is not a problem. Just 
keep printing.

CONDITION

SUGGESTED SOLUTIONS

Light or faded print

If a vertical white streak or faded area appears 
on the page:
•

The toner supply is low. You may be able 
to temporarily extend the toner cartridge 
life. See "Replacing the toner cartridge" on 
page 53. If this does not improve the print 
quality, install a new toner cartridge.

•

The paper may not meet paper 
specifications; for example, the paper is too 
moist or too rough. See "Selecting print 
media" on page 24.

•

If the entire page is light, the print 
resolution setting is too low. Adjust the print 
resolution. See the help screen of the 
printer driver.

•

A combination of faded or smeared defects 
may indicate that the toner cartridge needs 
cleaning.

•

The surface of the LSU part inside the 
printer may be dirty. Clean the LSU, 
contact a service representative.

Toner specks

•

The paper may not meet specifications; for 
example, the paper is too moist or too 
rough. See "Selecting print media" on 
page 24.

•

The paper path may need cleaning. 
See "Cleaning the inside" on page 50.

CONDITION

POSSIBLE 

CAUSE

SUGGESTED SOLUTIONS

Aa

Bb

Cc

Aa

Bb

Cc

Aa

Bb

Cc

Aa

Bb

Cc

Aa

Bb

Cc