Adobe CS3, Mac & Epson 1400 Printing Color Issues

Question

So I've been reading the forums for some help on getting my new Epson 1400 to print colors properly and my attempts to send just PDF's to the printer also fail on color matching. Stuff sent to an actual press come out fine with the colors I'm working with through Illustrator, In Design and Acrobat, but when I try to print at home, I can't get a setting that works consistently from attempt to attempt. I have downloaded and updated the latest drives from Epson's site (but they are gibberish to me, GPHW? PSPP?) to no avail. It was suggested to print from Acrobat when all else fails, but I'm still having a heck of a time getting anything to remotely match a print done a week ago or more if the pantone colors are used.
So, I'm using 10.5.8 on a Dual processor, powerpc G5 with max memory and significant hard drive space. The printer is the Epson 1400. Any suggestions welcomed on how to get accurate color.. unfortunately it's critical because my own business collateral seems to shift to an awful color - the rest of my projects could probably get by, but not my business materials!
I believe I've tried every possible combination of settings on Acrobat and InDesign to try to get correct color with the supplied Epson printer profiles. What's funny is I used to have a low-end epson installed, like a 380 or something, and when I used those profiles, it got better color. I accidentally deleted them and can't figure out what might work better. I'm guessing some other printer's profiles might just work more effectively... And it sounds like upgrading to CS4 won't help (and might make things worse) .... is this a CS problem, or an Epson problem, or a mac problem???
Help!

Answer 1

I have been rather fortunate, I have been getting excellent color matching on my Epson.
I am wondering about your settings when printing to the Epson, since that can make a difference in how the color is translated when printing.
You say the prints come out accurately when sent to the printer - BUT, you have also stated that this is from an actual press. Pantone colors do not always look the same when printed out in process, there can be a HUGE color shift. If your printer has one, look at his Pantone solid to process book so you can see the differences in your chosen colors.
I did look at yours and there is only a slight color shift, have you checked your CMYK settings for your spot colors on your computer? I remember having that issue before. The CMYK value I have for 3155 in my Pantone Solid to process is C:100 M:0 Y:24 K:38 and 397 is C:10 M:0 Y:100 K:11. If your printer has these settings, then their colors will be more accurate if they are double checking to make sure the correct pantone formula is being used.
In your print settings, are you printing a proof? what are you choosing for the Color Handling? I have been using Document RGB - sRGB IEC61966-2.1 with good luck. You may need to try those and see which profile works best for you.
Hopefully this helps some.
Message was edited by: macgurl_70    I forgot to ask, it reads like you are having them printed on an offset press - the pantone colors will always be more vivid and correct since they are using a specially formulated ink and not a cmyk (or rgb) mix of colors. Also, when they are printing - the plates will print the spot color as one plate for that specific ink - and NOT four plates for the CMYK, giving them the most accurate color. No matter what printer you choose, it will not print EXACT pantone colors, so check on the shift in that pantone guide (I didn't see much of one, but they were definitely not as vivid).
Update: I just installed the Gutenprint drivers for my Epson, so my InDesign would print out correctly on large sheets of paper. I am working on color calibrating the output with that driver now.