Hp B9180 @@@!!!

[butterfly]

There must be plenty of satisfied users of this printer out there, but I'm not one of them! I feel like throwing mine out of the window and going to Epson. Here are my problems, none of which HP have bothered to call me back about:

Leaving the printer on all the time as recommended, I try to print and the print queue just keeps stopping the job, forcing me to reboot the computer and printer before it will establish communication again.

Recently now each day I get error code 052B7727, so am forced to power off the printer.

Each time I do this the ink seems to drain away just by doing all this 'print head maintenance.

Lastly, the noise it makes and time it takes to do all of this stuff is just very wearing. I'm spending more time trying to get the damn thing to print than actually producing any work!

I tried to update the firmware but this would not flash the printer memory at the last stage (and yes, I followed all the instructions to the letter)

I really think this is a piece of junk, and I know I'm not alone. A few of my colleagues at work have the same issues.

My opinion is that there must be something programmed in to the printer to actually force the wasting of ink all the time so the user has to keep buying more cartridges!

I've called and mailed HP with zero response.

I'm using it until the last of my ink goes and then getting rid of it.

Rant over..

Any users of this printer having the same problems. Comments appreciated. Also, what are the Epson A3 printers like in comparision??

Regards

Steve

[Remigius]

I'm very happy with my Epson Stylus Pro 3800 (actually a bit more than A3). Printing quality is very nice (I print a lot of BW), it has an ethernet connection, I leave it on mostly all the time without any issues (and cleaning cycles). As I use mostly photo black, I had to run a few cleaning cycles once I switched to matte black, but other than that it did not show any issues with the nozzles so far (nock, nock, nock).

[Brian Ellis]

The lack of customer service on HP's higher end photo printers has been discussed a good bit in the Yahoo digital black and white printing group. www.digitalblackandwhite:theprint.com if you care to search there for a little "misery loves company."

I've been very happy with my Epson 3800 and with Epson customer service the one time I've called them. I've never had a problem with clogs or other malfunctions except that the printer likes to tell me there's been an alignment error, no big deal and easily fixed by a change in the default menu.

I turn mine off unless it's being used (which I've done with each of the four Epson printers I've owned) and never had a clog with any of them except when using MIS inks in a 1280. I print only occasionally, maybe once a week on average for an hour or so. I still have about half of the ink that comes with the printer from when I bought it about 8 months ago.

When I print b&w I use QTR from Roy Harrington (another nice thing about Epson printers, I don't think QTR supports HP printers though I could be wrong). The Advanced B&W mode with the 3800 worked well the one time I tried it but I've used QTR since it first came out years ago and have gotten used to it.

[Larry Menzin]

You may have gotten a dud. I leave my B9180 on all the time and it has been a reliable workhorse. Their tech support is very poor.

[Colin Graham]

I still love my 9180 after 7 months or so. I will say that I turned the auto-update off and got rid of as much superfluous junk that comes with the program as I could and still have it print. Man what a load of crap that comes with these things...One auto-update totally screwed everything up, I got serious bronzing, density issues, banding, etc- and that update was only supposed to be for 'security issues'. The drivers only retail install always worked great so I just stuck with that.

[Dave Moeller]

I've had my B9180 for well over a year with no problems. I waste a lot less ink than I used to with various Epson printers, running them through head cleaning cycles. I understand that the newer Epson models are much better in this regard.

Have you tried uninstalling all of the HP software and then reinstalling it? That's the first thing that comes to my mind. If you can do that, you might then be able to update the firmware. (I've got all auto-updates turned off for all of the software on my PC. I find life's much less complicated that way.)

Best of luck.

[nathantw]

Recently now each day I get error code 052B7727, so am forced to power off the printer.

Each time I do this the ink seems to drain away just by doing all this 'print head maintenance.

Hi Steve,
I just got the printer you despise earlier this month. I was having the exact same problems as you. I had print head problems, error codes and draining ink cartridges. I called HP and they were going to have me go through all these dumb routines that I already went through. I had emailed them earlier and the person who emailed me back was very, VERY helpful. I ended up getting a brand new printer and it's worked perfectly since.

It sounds like you already tried the routes I went though, but you might want to try again. It can't hurt.

Good luck.

Nathan

[kublix]

Maybe this printer is much les thirsty than older ones, but it still can "drink" up to a complete set of cartridges in 3 weeks, just by servicing the heads and making a few head cleaning.

Fortunately I found an excellent 3rd party ink on ebay (search for HP 38 refill kit). At 1/10 of the HP price, now I can afford this printer !

Of course, before I tried these inks, I was very afarid of the problems that may occur but now, after my second ink order, I am totally satisfied. The prints are as wonderfull as they can be with the HP Vivera. No clugging, and their refillable cartridges (with auto-reset chips) are so easy to use !

I just wanted to let you know, because I feel so comfortable with this printer, now that I don't stress each time a print is not to my taste... I simply reprint without doing nightmares !

Kublix

[Colin Graham]

Maybe this printer is much les thirsty than older ones, but it still can "drink" up to a complete set of cartridges in 3 weeks, just by servicing the heads and making a few head cleaning.
Kublix

This sounds odd. I've had mine 8 months and there are still carts I haven't replaced yet. Matte black, yellow and cyan are still the originals. I use mine fairly often for digital negatives and RGB B&W prints. I've never turned it off in this time, so it goes through the cleaning routines often.

I keep reading posts stating that the cleaning routines consume large amounts of ink. This hasn't been my experience at all. In fact I've been pleasantly surprised by the economy of the inks in general.

[kublix]

8 Months ???

You are a lucky man ! Few weeks ago, I had to buy four carts from HP, as I ran out of ink and I was late to order from my source. I was really angry when I saw the ink level going down so fast even if I did not print at all for 3 days. Now I prefer to power off the printer (maybe I should not...).

I have read on other forums that the ink consumption vary a lot when this "B" makes a printheads servicing. Somme people say that they where looking for a leak, while other lucky guys (like you ?) have not experience this at all.

One question : there are some kind of sponge underneath the printheads "ducking station". Should I clean these once in a while ? How ? I am wondering where all this ink goes...

Kevin