Epsom 4880 printer marks not lining up

[Rockers]

For some reason the regi marks on our films don't line up 100%. In most cases the films are out by up to 0.1mm. In rare cases more. It's always one of the four marks that is out. I just can't figure out what the problem might be. The printer is just 6 month old now but we noticed it from the first day of using it. Or maybe the problem is the Wasatch RIP? Even though I think that is unlikely.

[Frog]

Is this on films all sent through the same direction (and all the same type of film)?

[Rockers]

It's on all films sent through the same direction. They are all the same films, bought them from Fixxons. The problem was worth before I started to extend the crop marks around the whole of the image.

[Homer]

my 4800 does this too. not all the time though. I use roll film so I belive that has something to do with it. are you using sheets or roll?

now that I think about. my 4800 was printing way out of reg when I first got it. under the left side cover, there is a wheel/dial looking thing that is attached to the main spindle/shaft. that is an encoder strip. mine was filthy, maybe take some rubbing alcohol and a Q-tip and clean it up. I may have to clean mine again...

[Rockers]

my 4800 does this too. not all the time though. I use roll film so I belive that has something to do with it. are you using sheets or roll?

now that I think about. my 4800 was printing way out of reg when I first got it. under the left side cover, there is a wheel/dial looking thing that is attached to the main spindle/shaft. that is an encoder strip. mine was filthy, maybe take some rubbing alcohol and a Q-tip and clean it up. I may have to clean mine again...

We use both but it seems to be worth on roll film. Thanks for the advise to clean the encoder strip. Will give it a go.

[Evo]

Try to run a set of films through the stock Epson driver, then run the same through Wasatch, just to eliminate if it's a driver issue or not. If the films turn out the same, it might be a mechanical issue, or it might mean that the Wasatch RIP uses the stock drivers.

I switched from stock drivers and Ghostrip to Accurip, and Accurip gave WAY better registration results.

Also, if using roll film, unroll it a bit and let it run through the printer with some slack. Also, check that the roller spindle moves freely.

[ebscreen]

Also, if using roll film, unroll it a bit and let it run through the printer with some slack. Also, check that the roller spindle moves freely.

This.

I would never ever trust a printer to pull film off tensioned roll accurately. Even with the software
fix that some RIPs have. The tension changes as the film on the roll decreases! How does the software
know this?

Epson's, they're awesome/horrific, but they certainly aren't made specifically to do what we want them to do.