If cyan, magenta or yellow shadows appear around letters, lines and colored objects on an OKI C542dn printout, first check the color registration. The instructions below cover everything from simple automatic adjustment to checking the LED heads, paper path and belt unit.<\/p>\n
Where to perform the actions<\/strong><\/p>\n Test printing and adjustment are performed on the printer’s touch panel, while cleaning and component checks are performed inside the OKI C542dn. A computer, driver and additional software are not required to adjust color registration.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n This guide is intended for the OKI C542dn<\/strong>. This model has a touch panel, four separate image drums and four LED heads. Do not use menu paths for the OKI C332dn or C532dn instead: these printers have different operator panels and sequences of actions.<\/p>\n The touch panel labels below are provided in English exactly as they appear in the C542dn interface and documentation.<\/p>\n Start with the internal page: it is generated by the printer itself and does not depend on Windows 11, Windows 10, the driver, the USB cable or the network. Load plain white A4 paper in Tray 1, and then follow these steps.<\/p>\n Keep the printout for comparison. Examine the edges of the colored elements under good lighting. If separated outlines are also visible on the internal pattern, the cause is in the printer\u2014proceed to automatic adjustment.<\/p>\n If the internal pattern is printed correctly<\/strong><\/p>\n Do not disassemble the printer. Print the problematic file again from another application and, if possible, from another computer. A defect that does not appear on the internal page should be traced to the document, program, selected print queue or driver.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The OKI C542dn automatically adjusts registration after it is turned on and after the output tray is opened and closed. You do not need to change any color settings to force this check to run.<\/p>\n If the colored shadows have disappeared, no further adjustment is required. If the offset remains, perform the adjustment manually.<\/p>\n Do not change adjacent settings instead of adjusting registration<\/strong><\/p>\n Adjust Density<\/strong> and Color Tuning<\/strong> change the density and color balance. They do not move the cyan, magenta, yellow and black images relative to one another. Use Adjust Registration<\/strong> specifically for colored shadows.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n If the password Proceed to cleaning if registration adjustment did not help and faded areas, vertical white stripes or blurred letter edges are also visible. You will need a clean, dry, soft, lint-free cloth.<\/p>\n Before cleaning<\/strong><\/p>\n Turn off the printer using its power button, wait until it has shut down completely and disconnect the power cable. If the device has just printed, allow the fuser unit to cool. Do not use methanol, solvents, thinners or cleaning fluids.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Detailed cleaning steps for this model are also provided on the OKI C542 LED head cleaning page<\/a>.<\/p>\n A small scrap of paper, a label or another object in the paper path may interfere with paper movement and cause the color layers to become misaligned. Check the path while the printer is turned off and disconnected from the power supply.<\/p>\n If a scrap is under the image drums or near the belt unit but cannot be reached safely, do not try to pull it out without being able to see it. The following procedure allows the belt unit to be removed only if you are confident working with consumable units; otherwise, it is better to contact a service center.<\/p>\n An incorrectly installed belt unit may cause misregistration. Follow this section if the simple methods did not help, the printer was recently transported or disassembled, or the Belt Unit not installed correctly. Re-set the Belt Unit.<\/strong> message appeared on the panel. Error code 330<\/strong> may also be displayed with this message.<\/p>\n Caution: the image drums are sensitive to light, and the fuser unit may be hot<\/strong><\/p>\n Turn off the printer, disconnect the power cable and wait for the fuser unit to cool. Prepare a clean, flat surface and several sheets of paper. Do not touch the green image drum cylinders or the smooth working surface of the belt. Immediately cover the removed image drums with paper and do not leave them under room lighting for more than five minutes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nModels covered by this guide<\/h2>\n
Make sure that the problem is color misregistration<\/h2>\n
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\n \nWhat you see on the printout<\/th>\n What to check<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n \n A colored shadow is visible next to black letters or outlines; the edges of the cyan, magenta, yellow and black images do not align<\/td>\n Color registration<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n The outlines are aligned, but the entire printout is too red, blue, dark or faded<\/td>\n Color balance, density, toner or driver settings; this is not a registration problem<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n The entire printable area is shifted toward one edge of the page<\/td>\n Image position and paper settings; adjusting the registration of individual colors will not help<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n There are vertical white stripes, one color becomes faded or the edges of letters appear blurred<\/td>\n LED heads; they may need to be cleaned after registration adjustment<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n The defect appears only in one document or application<\/td>\n First print the printer’s internal pattern to distinguish a hardware problem from Windows and application settings<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n Print the internal color pattern<\/h2>\n
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Run automatic registration adjustment<\/h2>\n
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Adjust color registration on the touch panel<\/h2>\n
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admin<\/code> as the name and 999999<\/code> as the password.<\/li>\n999999<\/code> is not accepted, the administrator password was previously changed. Do not reset the device solely to perform this adjustment: a reset may delete network settings and other saved data.<\/p>\nClean the four LED heads<\/h2>\n
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Check the paper path<\/h2>\n
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Reinstall the belt unit<\/h2>\n
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