Help - HP 'Photosmart 6520' 'dead'.

[Yorkie]

A 'help' request, more in hope than expectation!

A chum has given me a Hewlett Packard 'Photosmart 6520' which was out of warranty and has failed.

Bascially, though the integral power supply green light is on, when pressing the 'power on' button on the printer, nothing happens - the printer is just dead. He needed his printer urgently so rushed out and bought another HP6520. He knew that I was considering buying one of these so gave the faulty one me to see if I could get it to work. He removed the integral power supply from the faulty printer to test it in the new printer where it works fine, so the fault doesn't rest with the integral power supply.

I've gone through all the points on the fault-finding pages on the HP Support site for this fault, for which most of the diagnostic checks and advice relates to the power supply, all to no avail. Seems a shame to just trash this otherwise pristine little-used printer if there is something simple but obscure that could be rectified. It's the usual 'catch 22' situation - a new printer, at a tad over £100 would probably be cheaper than paying HP to service it.

If only out of curiosity I'll take the bottom off to see if it gives access to any of the electronics to see if there is an internal fuse, or maybe a plug on a harness that's become disconnected, but I won't hold my breath! It would be nice to get it working, as unlike Epson printers such as my 'SX535WD', HP printers support printing onto transparencies so this HP 6520 would be ideal for PCB artwork for making UV masks. (Had I known that Epson printers don't support printing onto transparencies, I wouldn't have bought it, but I hadn't imagined that Epson's have this limitation).

Just clutching at straws really - any thoughts please before it goes to 'printer heaven?'

[ed731pdh]

I'd be inclined to take the cover off and check all the supply rails first to be honest. Although the power supply appears to work as such, there's no indication inside on the mainboard if there is any more supply splitting and conditioning.

Best bet, I suspect the logic has gone futt and you have a new door stop.

[Keithstv]

It's possible that the power on button or the cable that connects it to the processor has failed. If you can either short out the pins of the button or the equivalent pins where it connects to the processor board.

I've had a succession of Epson printers all of which have failed with either clogged heads or the waste tray was full and couldn't be recovered. I now have a Canon which, touch wood, has been fairly reliable so far.

I also have a networked laser printer which is more reliable than any of the inkjet printers. It just prints when asked to and only complains when it's out of paper or toner.

Keith

[Radio Fixer]

My 9 year old Epson R300 prints OK on transparencies. No probs with ink clogs but I always use Epson inks. Waste tray did fill and give an error but there is a mod for this to have an external bottle.

Very pleased so far with a Canon Pixma IX6500 that is an inexpensive, no frilsl, A3 printer. Its only 5 inks so quite a bit cheaper to feed than the Epson with LM and LC extras. Don't know how it does it, more modern technology perhaps, but the Canon produces as nice and almost indistinguishable prints to the Epson.

Garu

[Yorkie]

Thanks for reading my post and for your advice guys.

At least it's not my printer up the spout!

Current Epson printers do not support transparencies, and Epson 'customer helpline' confirmed that to me. The appeal of this HP 6520 - apart from the fact that it supports transparencies - is that set of four genuine Epson cartridges for my printer are £49.99, whereas a set of genuine HP 364 cartridges for an HP 6520 are exactly half the price (but not half the capacity), at £24.99.

In the 28 months I've had this Epson, it has consumed 31 cartridges. (12 black, 7 cyan, 6 magenta, 6 yellow), and another black and magenta are all but empty. So if Epson had there way, by now I'd have spent a ludicrous £400 on cartridges rather than the £112 I have spent on compatible ones, or had I bought an HP 6520 and used genuine HP carts, the £200 that I'd have spent.

If - as seems likely - I don't get this donated HP 6520 working, I think I'll have to buy a new one of those and pension off this Epson SX535 and put it down to experience.

Just relating the facts - not trying to start/re-start a pointless debate about the price of ink. I think we all know that printers are just loss-leader cash-cows.

When I get an hour to spare, I'll upend this HP jobby and get to work with whatever security bit I need to get the bottom off it.

Who know - it might just be a plug/socket that has worked loose? (daydreaming again!)

[Radio Fixer]

In your situation David compatibles is obviously the only way to go. You must print a lot more than me. Most of my stuff goes onto video DVDs.

Time wise the cartridges seem to last me ages ... maybe a set every 9 months possibly more, far enough apart that I don't even think about it.

I guess the A3 will use a lot of ink but I didn't buy it to do many pictures but mainly for colour line drawings. I had to try some A3 photo prints though and the results are superb. Some of these will go into existing frames with new mounts. Time to change some of the old ski ones now that we cant go any more. So possibly cheaper than having them made at a photo place and I like the control and being able to tweak. A set of 5 genuine cartridge for the Canon is £52.

Good technology to have under the bench though.

Everything costs ...

Hey Ho!

No tips with the printer. Good luck ...

Gary

[Skywave]

Dismantling an HP ink-jet printer, eh? Best of luck! Usually, I find that I end up with a pile of bits that, somehow, I can never quite figure out where they all go. And that is if I can work out just how to dis-assemble the damn thing in the first place!
I'm sure you'll let us know how you get on with it - or don't - as the case may be.

Al.

[Radio Fixer]

" A set of 5 genuine cartridge for the Canon is £52."

A correction here: This is actually 6 cartridge as the PG BK is a twin for £52.

So less on the pocket than the Epson..

I have printed an SLR large Tif picture at A4 on the Canon and the Epson, same Epson paper and straight from Corel Paint and they are remarkably similar. I really couldnt tell the difference if I hadn't marked them. Both excellent quality to me.

Gary

[Geaney]

I get the feeling that five years is a s much as one can expect from an inkjet printer these days. My Photosmart C5158 has been working away happily for about that long without incident when suddenly last week it decided to 'spray' dark blue ink all over it's insides making a complete mess.

Initially I thought it's a pain but I'll open it up and clean it. When I looked into what's involved, coupled with the fact that I don't know why this happened, I thought my printer is no more. I cleaned it up as best I could (what a mess) but even now the paper still comes out with ink blobs all over it and no red ink so I must assume some serious internal injuries have occurred.

Time to accept that it is headed for the scrap and time for a new one.

Oh well.

Cheers, John

[Refugee]

I have been known to throw them away due to the ink cartridges are too expensive.