Epson DFX-900 User Manual

9-pin Dot Matrix Printer

User’s Guide

English

This manual explains how to set up your printer and provides basic product information.

For detailed information, see the on-screen Reference Guide (which is installed when you install the printer software). It describes all the printer’s functions, optional products, printer software, troubleshooting, and detailed technical specifications.

Chapter 1 - Setting Up the Printer

Chapter 4 - Troubleshooting

Using the Error Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Clearing Paper Jams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Where To Get Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Unpacking the Printer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Choosing a Place for the Printer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Installing the Ribbon Cartridge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Connecting the Power Cord . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Connecting the Printer to Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Installing the Printer Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Installing and Viewing the Online Reference Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Installing and Using the Remote Configuration Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Chapter 2 - Loading Paper

Using the Two-Tractor System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Supported Paper Types and Sizes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Loading Paper On the Front Tractor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Loading Paper On the Rear Tractor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Switching Between Front and Rear Tractors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Changing Paper. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Chapter 3 - Using the Control Panel

Buttons and Lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Selecting a Font and Pitch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Changing the Printer’s Default Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Using SelecType Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Default-setting Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Locking the Control Panel Buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Chapter 5 - Product Information

Printer Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Electrical . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Environmental . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

ENERGY STAR Compliance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Safety Instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Hot Parts Caution Symbol. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Important Safety Instructions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

FCC Compliance Statement for United States Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

WARNING. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

For Canadian users. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Declaration of Conformity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

EPSON AMERICA, INC., LIMITED WARRANTY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

2Contents

Chapter 1

Setting Up the Printer

Unpacking the Printer

Choosing a Place for the Printer

❏ Place the printer on a flat, stable surface. The printer will not operate

properly if it is tilted.

If you use a printer stand, make sure it can support at least 75 lb (34 kg). Never use a stand that tilts the printer.

English

WARNING

The printer weighs 75 lb (34 kg), so do not try to lift it alone.

Make sure you have these items:

34kg

ribbon cartridge

❏ Keep the printer away from direct sunlight, strong light, heat sources, or

excessive moisture or dust; or places subject to rapid changes in temperature and humidity, or shocks and vibrations.

❏ Keep your computer system away from potential sources of electromagnetic

interference, such as loudspeakers or the base units of cordless telephones.

❏ Place the printer near a wall outlet where you can easily unplug the power

cord.

Placez l’imprimante près d’une prise de courant où la fiche peut être débranchée facilement.

❏ Position the power cord and interface cable so they do not interfere with

paper feeding.

❏ Avoid electrical outlets controlled by wall switches or automatic timers, or

outlets on the same circuit as large motors or other appliances that can cause voltage fluctuations. Power interruptions can erase your printer or computer memory.

❏ Use a grounded power outlet; do not use an adapter plug. ❏ Do not block, cover, or insert objects into openings in the printer cabinet.

printer

printer software screwdriver power cord

Remove and save the protective packing materials as described on the

Notice Sheet.

Setting Up the Printer 3

Installing the Ribbon Cartridge

1. Make sure the printer is turned off. (The switch should be in the O position.)

2. Open the top cover and slide the print head to the position shown, marked by the symbol.

4. Holding the sides of the cartridge, place the notch on each end onto the metal posts inside the printer. Then tilt the cartridge down into the printer until it clicks into place.

3. Unpack the ribbon cartridge and remove the black plastic separator.

4 Installing the Ribbon Cartridge

5. Lift up the black plastic ribbon guide and slide it down behind the print head until it clicks into place. Do not twist or crease the ribbon.

6. Slide the print head back and forth to make sure it moves freely. If not, lift up the ribbon guide and try again.

ribbon tightening knob

7. Turn the ribbon-tightening knob to remove any slack.

8. Close the top cover.

English

Note:

For safety reasons, the printer will not work if the top cover is not closed completely.

Installing the Ribbon Cartridge 5

Connecting the Power Cord

Make sure the printer is turned off. Then plug the power cord into the AC inlet on the back of the printer and connect the other end to a properly grounded electrical outlet.

Connecting the Printer to Your Computer

You can connect your printer using the following interfaces:

❏ IEEE-1284-compatible parallel interface (use a shielded, twisted-pair

parallel cable with a 36-pin Centronics

❏ USB (Universal Serial Bus) interface (use a shielded USB cable) ❏ RS-232C serial interface (use a null modem cable) ❏ Type-B optional interface (see the Reference Guide to install an optional

interface card)

Note:

You can connect to multiple interfaces simultaneously; the printer switches interfaces automatically when it receives data.

compatible connector)

3. Use the appropriate cable to connect the printer to your computer.

USB

IEEE1284 (PARALLEL)

1. Make sure your printer and computer are turned off.

2. Open the printer’s interface cover.

6 Connecting the Power Cord

RS-232C (SERIAL)

Installing the Printer Software

The Epson® printer software on the CD-ROM supports Windows® 95, 98, Me, 2000, XP, and NT

1. Make sure the printer is connected to your computer, but turned off.

2. Turn on your computer and wait for Windows to load.

3. Insert the printer software CD-ROM. You see this screen:

If it does not appear, double-click

4. Select

Install Printer Software and click . You see the software license

agreement.

5. Read the license agreement and click

4.0.

Setup.exe on the CD-ROM.

Accept. You see this window:

6. Turn on your printer.

Caution:

Before turning on the printer, be sure you have removed all protective materials or you may seriously damage the printer. (See the unpacking instructions provided with the printer.)

After a moment, the software begins installing. Follow any on-screen instructions until you return to the Installation screen.

Note:

❏ If the New Hardware Found screen or any other wizard appears when you

turn on your printer, click

❏ If you’re asked to insert a Windows CD-ROM, insert it and click OK.

Cancel.

Close the Windows installer screen to continue installing the driver.

7. When the installation is complete, follow the instructions below to install the Reference Guide and the Remote Configuration Manager utility.

English

Installing and Viewing the Online Reference Guide

Select Install Reference Guide on the Installation screen and click . The

DFX-9000 Reference Guide icon appears on your desktop.

To view the Reference Guide, double-click the or click

Guide > Reference Guide

Start > Programs (or All Programs) > EPSON > DFX-9000 Reference

DFX-9000 Reference Guide icon

Installing the Printer Software 7

Installing and Using the Remote Configuration Manager

The Epson Remote Configuration Manager provides an easy way to change your printer’s default settings in Windows. Follow these steps to install it:

1. Select

Install EPSON Remote Configuration Manager on the Installation

screen and click .

2. When you see the InstallShield window, click

3. Click

Next and follow the on-screen instructions.

4. When the installation is complete, click

Yes. You see this screen:

Finish. (You may need to close a

window on your screen to see the final installation screen.)

To start the program, select

Configuration Mgr > Epson Remote Configuration Manager

To open the program’s on-screen

Programs Manager User’s Guide

)

> Epson Remote Configuration Mgr > Epson Remote Configuration

Programs (or All Programs) > Epson Remote

User’s Guide

, select

Programs

(or

All

Note:

If you are using the serial port, you need to switch the printer driver to COM2 before you run the Remote Configuration Manager. Switch it back to COM1 when you’re done.

8 Installing and Using the Remote Configuration Manager

Chapter 2

Loading Paper

You can print on continuous paper from 3 inches (76.2 mm) to 16.5 inches (419.1 mm) wide. Your printer senses the paper width automatically.

The printer automatically adjusts to the thickness of the paper loaded when the platen gap setting is set to

Auto in SelecType mode. See “Using SelecType

Mode” on page 18 for details.

English

Using the Two-Tractor System

Your printer can load paper from a front tractor and a rear tractor. Be sure to leave enough room around the printer for the two stacks of fresh paper and for the printed stack. Align your paper supply so the paper feeds smoothly into the printer.

front tractor both tractorsrear tractor

Place the paper supply lower than the printer to avoid a paper jam. Make sure that your stack of printed pages does not interfere with the rear tractor’s paper supply.

Supported Paper Types and Sizes

Note:

❏ Make sure your paper matches the specifications described in the on-screen

Reference Guide.

❏ When the optional perforation cutter (part number C81507X) is installed, the

printable width is from 4 inches (101.6 mm) to 16 inches (406.4 mm).

Loading Paper On the Front Tractor

1. Lift up the front cover until it locks in place.

2. Release the right and left sprockets by pulling the lock levers down.

sprocket lock lever

You can use the following types of continuous paper with either tractor:

❏ Single-sheet ❏ Multi-part ❏ Labels ❏ Continuous forms with labels ❏ Overlapping multi-part forms

Loading Paper 9

+ 19 hidden pages