Xante Ilumina 502 Envelope Press
- Thread starter littledog
- Start date
SlaveToTheMan
Well-known member
We've had an Illumina GS installed since end of last year, it's basically been used for non-variable envelope jobs. (I know they advertise that it can do sheets up to 47" or something but that wasn't ever our intended use.) Here are some observations:
The Good:
•*Handles most stocks well, including some metallics & translucent material
•*Speed is decent, we've done quantities up to 2500 although it requires near constant attention to load/unload the stock
•*Color fidelity is tolerable, within a run it doesn't stray once you are on target
•*Overall operation is simple enough, and it's a quiet, compact unit that can occupy office space without being too bothersome
The Not So Good:
• We've had some scumming & marking that Xanté has some weird workarounds for, taping pieces inside the press & bending metal brackets. Xanté says they are constantly tweaking the setup to address these issues, but it can take some trial & error in the mean time
•*Variable jobs can only be sent as full record lists, if you lose an entry or several pieces you have to isolate them in prepress & resend just those records.
•*There's no "true" Pantone matching. It converts PMS colors to its own numbered system and you can make adjustments from there, and at least you can tell the RIP always remap certain builds once you have them dialed in.
•*Every size of envelope needs its own Preset in InDesign, not sure about Quark or others. So you can conceivably have a few dozen presets in your Print dialogue
• Installing the Xanté driver on our Mac workstations (running 10.6.8) completely ruined our ability to send to another device. The Xanté HAS TO have rosetta installed on Macs according to the tech that put our unit in, so if you're on an OS that’s unable to have Rosetta, not sure how you print to the device. Unsure about Windows machines.
That's mostly it, we use their consumables purchased from a local reseller. We're not doing enough volume to warrant trying 3rd party materials or risk voiding the service contract. Any questions, ask away & I'll try to answer!
The Good:
•*Handles most stocks well, including some metallics & translucent material
•*Speed is decent, we've done quantities up to 2500 although it requires near constant attention to load/unload the stock
•*Color fidelity is tolerable, within a run it doesn't stray once you are on target
•*Overall operation is simple enough, and it's a quiet, compact unit that can occupy office space without being too bothersome
The Not So Good:
• We've had some scumming & marking that Xanté has some weird workarounds for, taping pieces inside the press & bending metal brackets. Xanté says they are constantly tweaking the setup to address these issues, but it can take some trial & error in the mean time
•*Variable jobs can only be sent as full record lists, if you lose an entry or several pieces you have to isolate them in prepress & resend just those records.
•*There's no "true" Pantone matching. It converts PMS colors to its own numbered system and you can make adjustments from there, and at least you can tell the RIP always remap certain builds once you have them dialed in.
•*Every size of envelope needs its own Preset in InDesign, not sure about Quark or others. So you can conceivably have a few dozen presets in your Print dialogue
• Installing the Xanté driver on our Mac workstations (running 10.6.8) completely ruined our ability to send to another device. The Xanté HAS TO have rosetta installed on Macs according to the tech that put our unit in, so if you're on an OS that’s unable to have Rosetta, not sure how you print to the device. Unsure about Windows machines.
That's mostly it, we use their consumables purchased from a local reseller. We're not doing enough volume to warrant trying 3rd party materials or risk voiding the service contract. Any questions, ask away & I'll try to answer!
SlaveToTheMan
Well-known member
One more to add to the Not So Good list - misregistration of colors. I've got a 2c logo we finally nailed the build down on, but the cyan is hanging and there's NO way to shift it on the machine. It has an Auto-Calibration setting for Color Registration, but it really isn't helping. 
arossetti
Well-known member
One more to add to the Not So Good list - misregistration of colors. I've got a 2c logo we finally nailed the build down on, but the cyan is hanging and there's NO way to shift it on the machine. It has an Auto-Calibration setting for Color Registration, but it really isn't helping.
Your drum basket might be bent a little. Two "pins" ride up and down on the back of the machine when you close the basket, if those are bent it will destroy your color registration. Bending those pins is very easy to do, doesn't take much.
SlaveToTheMan
Well-known member
Interesting, I actually recall Xanté telling us to bend some pins to move the drum basket away from the paper path, to alleviate smudging on certain stocks. I'll ask around & see if anybody made that "adjustment" or not - thanks!
wordcenter
Member
We use toner refills from lasertekservices.com. for our Illumina 502
Buy bottle of dry toner with replacement chip. Once you get the hang of the refill process (comes with directions) it's easy. Half the price of OEM and works great in the 502.
Buy bottle of dry toner with replacement chip. Once you get the hang of the refill process (comes with directions) it's easy. Half the price of OEM and works great in the 502.
wordcenter
Member
We are having registration problems...can't figure out what the "drum basket" is and where the pins are...I think it's the cradle that holds all 4 imaging units..my hubby thinks you are talking about each individual drum...Is it possible to take a picture of what you are referring to and send to my email... [email protected] I'd REALLY appreciate it!
gogogingrich
New member
In response to the registration issues, this worked for us: When you get to registration mode, press enter, then execute will appear, then press enter. Then display will say adjusting. Remember magenta, cyan and yellow register to black. If registration is still bad you need to remove the four drums and transfer belt. At the left side, you will see a white plastic cover just before the fuser under the left side of the transfer belt. Move it to the left and you will see two sensors, one at each end of the plastic piece. This clear plastic gets dirty and then you have bad registration. Clean it with a Q-tip or blow the toner out with air. Fixed.
I know I'm a bit late to this thread. I've had the Illumina for a year now. I've had good results mostly. Right now I'm having a marking issue with the Magenta even though I'm printing only Black. I've put in a service ticket to Xante and got a reply within the hour. Not the usual reply time so I'm impressed.
I've tried third party toners and I have an issue with the Magenta. Had to have it replaced but it took a few days to get it back. Not sure I will attempt to "save" money again at the expense of late delivery. If anyone has a reliable source please let me know.
While this unit works for what I intended, printing envelopes and letterhead, it does cost more per piece than if I print on our Xerox 550. So I pick and choose what jobs I run on it. The reason I chose this was I can print envelopes and letterhead and my customer can run them back through their laser writer without a problem.
I have the IQ RIP but most times I just print from my Mac. It is an older Mac running OSx 10.5.8. I have a template set up for #10 envelopes in Illustrator and I just print from there. Works perfect every time.
I've tried third party toners and I have an issue with the Magenta. Had to have it replaced but it took a few days to get it back. Not sure I will attempt to "save" money again at the expense of late delivery. If anyone has a reliable source please let me know.
While this unit works for what I intended, printing envelopes and letterhead, it does cost more per piece than if I print on our Xerox 550. So I pick and choose what jobs I run on it. The reason I chose this was I can print envelopes and letterhead and my customer can run them back through their laser writer without a problem.
I have the IQ RIP but most times I just print from my Mac. It is an older Mac running OSx 10.5.8. I have a template set up for #10 envelopes in Illustrator and I just print from there. Works perfect every time.
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