HP CLJ5550 printer - nightmare!

[dgsmith]

Great printer and great quality prints, but damn are we having a nightmare with this at the moment.

 

Started with the paper jamming in the fuser with 54.18 errors and "toner remaining sensor" errors. We figured this was the sensor unit between the fuser and the black toner (as the paper wouldn't "jam" as such, just the printer would stop dead when the paper was ejecting and being picked up, leaving a piece also on the transfer belt).

 

We replaced this unit - this didn't help. It seems now we are getting calibration errors on all toners and the printer will print about 5-20 pages before throwing this error again.

 

What is worse, is that if you let the printer try and calibrate, the error will always appear and effectively render the printer unuable (it's a blocker error). I am having to resort to skipping the calibration on powerup (using the menu procedure when turning on), therefore we are using a printer that has not calibrated for some weeks - not good!

 

Errors are as follows and continue as far back as the error log goes:

 

50 20340 54.1E.08 Halftone calibration error

49 20340 54.1E.07 Halftone calibration error

48 20340 54.1E.06 Halftone calibration error

47 20340 54.1E.05 Halftone calibration error

46 20344 13.20.00 PRINTER COULD NOT AUTOMATICALLY EJECT PAPER

45 20344 54.18 Toner Remaining Sensor malfunction.

44 20340 54.1E.08 Halftone calibration error

43 20340 54.1E.07 Halftone calibration error

42 20340 54.1E.06 Halftone calibration error

41 20340 54.1E.05 Halftone calibration error

 

Toners are compatible, but have worked fine for over 10k pages. We can't afford to buy OEM toners but don't want to replace all compatibles, most of which are very full, unless there is a convincing case to do so (or if all else fails)..

 

Please don't say "compats are c**p, use OEM instead", as that won't really help us!!

[FN-GM]

I had a 5550 that had similar calibration problems as you. The printer was using original toners. I never got to the bottom of it. Someone gave us a replacement, a school that was closing. I just use this old one for parts now.

[dgsmith]

Well, unfortunately we neither have a local enough school with a spare printer nor one that uses this printer to loan OEM toners to us.

[bossman]

@dgsmith:

 

This is something that I found which relates to the 8000 series but may have something which helps:CLEAN DENSITY SENSOR or CALIBRATION ERROR .: Support

 

Also something here:http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bizsupport/TechSupport/Document.jsp?objectID=bpl12227&prodTypeId=18972&prodSeriesId=25470&locale=en_US

 

Take it you have this:http://www.scribd.com/doc/4191862/hp-color-laserjet-5550-users-manual-guide

 

Will carry on looking throughout the day

 

Good Luck:

Edited March 31, 2011 by bossman

[dgsmith]

Thanks bossman; first link dead?, 2nd I have been through before but couldn't see anything appropriate and 3rd is blocked by our county, though I suspect it's the standard user manual anyway?