This tutorial is for the EPSON ColorWorks 3500 and will show you how to properly calibrate and align the sensor to your media using the EPSON print driver. For the CW3500, these settings can only be changed through the driver. As such, the printer must be turned on and connected to a computer to make any changes.
To avoid a "Media Form" error, clear any remaining jobs from the print queue and remove any media that may be loaded in the printer before calibrating.
Step 1 - Feed Your Media
Pull the dark gray release lever to lower the front carriage door. On the inside of the door, adjust the feed shutters to fit the width of your media. Use the chart below to determine the shutter configuration that will work best for you.
For rolled media, lift the blue lever to release the media guide and insert your roll with the print surface facing upward. Then lower the lever back down to secure the roll in place. Leave enough label material outside of the printer for it to feed through, and lift the front carriage door to close it.
If you are using fanfold material, as we are in the above video, open the paper cover on the back of the printer and remove the clear media guide piece. Attach this media guide at the base of the front carriage door as shown below.
With the front carriage door closed, gently push your labels through the rear feed slot until you feel the printer grab and feed them the rest of the way. Your printer may read a "Paper Out" error at first. This is normal as you have yet to calibrate it to your labels, and it will be resolved through your computer.
Step 2 - Printer Profile
The printer's driver communicates information between the printer and the computer. We will use this connection to check the current media settings for the printer profile. If you are using a Windows operating system, the easiest way to access this is by searching the bottom left corner for "Control Panel." To locate the printer's driver, go to...
Control Panel > Devices and Printers > Right-click on the EPSON printer > Printer preferences
From there, a new print dialog box will open. Under the "General" tab, double-check that the settings match the media you are currently working with. If any of these settings are incorrect, it will result in an error message when you go to print.
Media Form
The option selected for Media Form will depend on what kind of tag or label you are working with. This setting lets the printer know what kind of sensor feature it should be looking for—if there is a feature—and is crucial to avoiding calibration errors.
Gap - Tags with notches or labels with gaps between each label.
Black Mark - Tags or labels with a black bar that goes across the paper.
None - Continuous tag or label material that has no sensor features.
Labels with an exposed liner will be "Die-Cut Labels" while "Continuous Label" and "Continuous Paper" are used for media without an exposed liner. In the above video, we used die-cut labels with the gap of an exposed liner in between each label, so our "Media Form" is set to "Die-cut Label (Gap)."
Media Coating Type
Depending on how sensitive your printer is to your labels, you may need to specify the "Media Coating Type." Because the CW3500 is an older printer model, it may not calibrate to some stocks as easily. Once you have made the necessary changes, click "OK" to save these settings as a preset for that printer profile.
Step 3 - Calibrate Your Printer
Now that the printer knows what media it has, we will run the calibration. Through the print driver, navigate to the "Printer Utilities" tab and click the "Printer Settings Utility" option. Under the "General" drop-down menu, select "Media Settings" to specify your source and detection settings. These must match the settings you applied in the "Printing Preferences" menu, otherwise, the sensor will not calibrate to the media. Select "Apply Settings" to run the calibration and wait for it to prompt you when it is completed. You can test if it was successful by pressing the feed button. If only one label comes out of the printer, then it is calibrated to your media.
Troubleshooting
Sensor Alignment
If your initial calibration test fails, you may need to realign the sensor to the stock. Depending on the labels you are using, some printers may have trouble sensing the subtle variation between the liner and the label. To fix this, clear the printer of its immediate error by removing the labels from the carriage. Then, reload the media through the back slot to start the adjustment. From the Epson driver, go to the "Printer Adjustment" drop-down menu and select "Sensor Adjustment". Click "Start Adjustment" for the option that fits your sensor type. It will then prompt you once it begins. Make sure it completes the adjustment process successfully before closing out of the "Printer Setting Utility" driver. Now you should be good to print!
You can also check if the sensor alignment and calibration was successful by going into the application you are printing from to see if the settings changed. It's common for the printing application to override the settings made in the print driver, causing errors. Double-check that they match and run a few test prints before resuming your full print jobs.
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