HELP PLEASE! blurry BLACK text printing PIXMA MG7120

[JIMBENDER]

My Pixma MG7120 Printer is printing all black text in blurry fashion.  I have cleaned in every way and even replaced the black ink.  Not sure what I am doing wrong or how to fix.  

[Mike_M]

Hi Dimitris_kak,

It's true that changing the paper settings to matte photo paper solves the problem, but I think it does use more ink - it certainly takes a lot longer than normal printing. Perhaps when you change the setting to photo paper it automatically uses a finer print quality.

[southgirlchic]

Where do you change the paper setting to Photo Matte?

[Mike_M]

It may be different in your printer, but for mine I go into 'Printer Settings', then in the Printer Settings window I change Media Type to 'Matte Photo Paper', then Print Quality to 'High'.  If you leave the Media Type as 'Standard', you don't get the High option in Print Quality.

[dimitris_kak]

Dear friend,

Since it solves the problem, the slightly increased ink consumption and printing time are secondary..

[Mike_M]

Hi Dimitris_kak,

Some contributors to this thread have expressed concern about the fact that after working fine for some time, Canon Pixma printers develop a fault where normal standard printing on plain paper no longer produces sharp black type, while colour printing remains clear and sharp as expected.  The suggested workaround (to change the print or paper quality) does not address the fact that there is a fault somewhere, and raises the additional concern that the workaround is much slower and uses more ink.  The contributors to this thread suggest that the problem seems widespread, and would like Canon to address this issue.  Their problem is not the blurry print itself (which, as you and others have pointed out, can be fixed by changing the print specifications), but that the printer no longer works as it did originally.

So while you have indeed provided a workaround, I would hesitate to say that the problem is solved.

[dimitris_kak]

Hi Mike,
first of all, I totally agree with all above mentioned points.
The "problem solved" tag refers to a diy action that will keep my printer working without problems until I finish my work, since I cannot afford the time needed to service it through Canon's service department.
Please keep in mind that in Greece, the Canon's service point is in Athens and my hometown is 400km away, so I have:
1) to pay courier services to send it
2) to wait at least two - four weeks
3) pay for service cost, which is very high.
With all above mentioned points, I was frustrated and considered in buying a new one. But this is not an option for me who bought it a few years ago, lost the guarantee and will end with a practically new and useless printer.
It's definitely Canon's fault and should be more concerned. In addition, I 'm sure that a lot of consumers have the same problem but did not use this forum.

PS: the printer cost me 95EUR three years ago and the printer's head costs 55EUR plus services cost (?EUR) plus 30EUR courier service

[Mike_M]

Hi Dimitris_kak,

I fully understand your position - as you say, in those circumstances a little extra ink or printing time is not an issue.

I'm sorry if my post was too pedantic!  I guess I was just dismayed to find that what I thought was a simple problem was, in fact, a known issue that didn't appear to have a simple solution.

Good luck to you!  I have fond memories of Greece.  I hitch-hiked from London to Athens in 1965 (yes, I'm that old!) and lived in Athens during the summer - the city was under martial law and there were riots every night, but to a student from England it was a great experience!

[Disgruntled]

This problem has been reported over a number of years.  Canon KNOW why it is happening and how it can be resolved - they can, apparently, 'repair' any printer that starts doing this, but nowhere will you find them explaining just what the problem is.  Why can't they just be open and honest about it in the interest of customer service?

I've tried all the "solutions" that have been posted all over the internet and none of them works.  Given that the blurred printing only happens with standard black text, which uses the large black pigment cartridge, choosing matte photo paper as the paper option results in print that is not blurred because it uses the small black dye cartridge.  A work-round, indeed, but it's slower and disables double-sided printing.

I was very happy with my Canon printer until it suddenly started doing this, and not surprisingly I'd just like a solution that allows me to use the printer 'normally', including double-sided printing.  So I emailed Canon support and asked them what to do.  They gave me details of how to send the printer to have it 'repaired'.  I emailed back to say that having it repaired would cost far more than buying a new printer.  They emailed back and gave me details of how to send the printer to have it 'repaired'.  I emailed to ask if they'd read the bit where I said it would cost more to have it repaired than to buy a new printer and they emailed back to give me details of how to send the printer to have it 'repaired'.

Canon know what the problem is.  They're just not prepared to tell anyone.  Such a shame - I hope I'll be happy with my replacement printer.  It just won't be a Canon.

[mikpet]

We have two identical MG5750 printers, one working badly and the other working well. I tried swapping the heads to see where the cause of the problem is, whether the head or the printer. Well, I shouldn't have done that! Because I transferred the same problem to the second head. Now they are both working badly. Even after returning the heads to the original printers. I don't understand it, I only printed one single test page and good head broke down. I am adding my experience here because no one has tried something like this. Maybe someone will find a solution.

[vanzanten]

I have 2 MG5750. The first one stopped functioning a year ago. It looked like the nozzles were clogged. I've had this with other Canon printers in the past, but with this one I couldn't fix it. Luckily I had the 2nd one, but that started to print every black texts double. I found this community and also this work-around, which helps indeed. But it isn't a solution like others already mention. Not only does it require more ink and does it take a lot more time to print, for me the biggest issue with the work-around is that it's no longer possible to use the double sided printing option. Because I started to be really annoyed with being forced to replace Canon printers every few years because of problems, I decided to buy an Epson Workforce WF-2840DWF. But I have to admit that I missed my Canon from day 1. The Canon can auto shutdown, but wake up automatically too, which I find great. The Epson has to be powered on by hand every time I want to use it. But the worst part is that it hasn't worked like it should from day 1. I guess there's a problem with the paperfeed mechanism, which makes use of the ADF impossible. Also double sided printing is impossible. After struggling for 6 months I decided to send it back for a repair and yesterday I reinstalled the MG5750. Again: I think everything about this thing is superior to the Epson (even assuming that the Epson didn't have a problem), but it's a shame that Canon doesn't want printers to last longer than a couple of years.