HP CP1515n - Red shadow when printing in grayscale

[TonyMahlony]

HP CP 1515n

I have read many reports of this same problem, but so-far I have not found any fixes that actually work. Perhaps someone can point me in the right direction?

Printer is set-up for grayscale-only printing

Computer is using Windows 7

Black prints ok, but with a magenta shadow 0.8mm below black imagery

The standard automatic printer calibration does not solve the problem - tried this 4 times

Toner cartridges have all been replaced with new ones

All Excel documents have the shadow

All CorelDraw documents have the shadow

All screenshots have the shadow

Word documents print without shadow normally. But if I copy words from the same document and paste them into the same document, the copy/paste words have the magenta shadow whilst all other words on the page remain perfect with no shadow. This discovery seems quite relevant to me and it may even point at a cure, although I have no idea why!

eBay labels print perfectly

Emails print perfectly

Thanks for looking,

Tony

[Kuroi_Kenshi]

Hi @TonyMahlony,

Welcome to the HP Support Community! 

Thanks a ton for the detailed info, it’s incredibly helpful in narrowing this down! 😊

Even though you’ve set grayscale-only mode, some apps (like Excel, CorelDraw) might still be embedding color profiles or vector elements that trigger color toner usage. The magenta toner may be misaligned, which is why it shows a "shadow" under black.

The fact that copy-pasted text in the same Word doc shows the magenta shadow suggests different formatting or embedded color rendering properties, which could force the printer to use composite black (mixing CMY to simulate black) rather than pure K (black toner only).

Suggested Fixes to Try:

1. Force True Black Only:

Go to Printer Properties > Color tab (or Advanced settings)

Choose “Print in Grayscale” > “Black Ink Only”

If this option doesn’t exist, check under Color Management (Control Panel) and assign a Generic Color Profile or disable ICC profiles.

2. Set Black as Pure K in Apps:

In CorelDraw, ensure the black used is 100% K, 0% CMY in CMYK mode.

In Word, select affected text > right-click > Font color > Choose Automatic or Black (Text 1).

3. Manual Cartridge Alignment:

Go to Printer Toolbox > Align Cartridges Manually.

This may help re-sync magenta if it's consistently shadowing in a certain direction.

One More Test:

Try printing a 100% black page (from MS Paint or a PDF) with no gradients or vector graphics. If the shadow still appears, it confirms hardware alignment or an internal optics issue.

Let me know how this goes!

I hope this helps.

I'm glad I could help! 😊 If this resolved your issue, please mark it as "Accepted Solution" and click "Yes" on "Was this reply helpful?" Your feedback not only keeps us going but also helps others find the solution faster! 👍✨

Take care and have an amazing day ahead! 🚀

Best regards,

[TonyMahlony]

Hi Kuroi_Kenshi. First of all, many thanks for picking up the gauntlet and addressing my problem. I know that in the grand scheme of things it is only a small problem, but I have to say that it does niggle me. However, I am fortunate in that I only use this printer for printing black and white. I never use it for colour work. Hence, perhaps we can bypass fixing the colour registration problem and zone-in on getting rid of the magenta shadow

You said: Even though you’ve set grayscale-only mode, some apps (like Excel, CorelDraw) might still be embedding color profiles or vector elements that trigger color toner usage.  And I have have made a start following your advice (starting with the last, and easiest, suggestion). I printed a .pdf file, and the print came out black and perfect

I also did as you advised by going into printer properties and changed the settings as directed. And in Microsoft Word and in Excel:  All "typed" words are now black and perfect - but screenshots of the same black type which I incorporate into the same documents always display the magenta shadow. I wonder if this means that FastStone Capture is somehow adding the unwanted magenta shadow? Copy and pasted words print perfectly in these two programs btw, but the same shadow appears when I copy and paste using FastStone and Microsoft Snipping Tool

Looking at Corel Draw - I have done as you advised, including setting the colour to 100% black, but the magenta shadow still appears on all imagery and type generated in this program, and also in anything I snip and paste atoo

Whilst doing these tests and checking the outcome, it has occurred to me that I can get-around this problem largely by: a) not using Corel Draw; b) by not using a snipping tool and: c) converting any problematic documents to .PDF files prior to printing.  What would work really well for me is if I could simply remove the colour cartridges and use the machine with black toner alone, but unfortunately the printer doesn't want to work without its colours in place . . . is there a way to make this work I wonder?

Thank for all your help Kuroi. It's been an interesting project and you have helped enormously by curing my problem with Excel and Word

Best Wishes,

Tony

[Kuroi_Kenshi]

Hi @TonyMahlony,

You're honestly doing a stellar job digging into this quirky HP CP1515n issue, and that detailed testing you’ve done? Super insightful. Let’s build on that, and see if we can squeeze the absolute most out of your monochrome-only printing setup. 

Here's What You Can Try Next

1. Convert Screenshots to True Grayscale Before Printing

Tools like FastStone and Snipping Tool might save images in RGB, which the printer interprets as needing color toner — even if they look black to your eyes.

Open the screenshot in Paint.NET, GIMP, or even IrfanView

Convert it to grayscale or black & white (1-bit or 8-bit grayscale) before inserting into the doc

Save it as .PNG or .BMP (avoid JPEG for high contrast/clean B&W)

This forces the printer to use black toner only.

2. Set a Custom Color Profile That Ignores CMY

Let’s trick the system a bit. On your computer:

Go to Control Panel > Color Management

Click the Devices tab and select your printer

Check “Use my settings for this device”

Add a Generic Gray ICC profile or sRGB profile

Click "Set as Default Profile"

You can also try removing all additional color profiles to make sure only grayscale is referenced.

3. Print via PDF Conversion Always

Since PDFs print fine, try this:

Finalize your documents, then go File > Print > Save as PDF

Print the PDF version only — this bypasses app-specific rendering issues that trigger CMY

This method is safe, consistent, and gives you peace of mind that you’ll always get crisp black.

5. Try HP’s Universal PCL5 or PCL6 Driver

Sometimes, the driver forces composite black unless it's explicitly told not to.

Download from HP:

HP Universal Print Driver (PCL5 or PCL6)

Install the driver manually and in Printer Preferences:

Set Color Options > Print in Grayscale

Look for “Use black cartridge only” or disable color rendering if available

You’ve pretty much cornered this issue into a neat box, all that’s left is to keep feeding it inputs that force grayscale, like PDFs and true B&W image formats.

And hey, you cracked the hardest part already, typed Word/Excel documents are perfect now. That’s a big win in.

If you ever feel like tweaking with firmware or want to explore custom print scripts, I’ll be here ready with my toolbelt

I'm glad I could help! 😊 If this resolved your issue, please mark it as "Accepted Solution" and click "Yes" on "Was this reply helpful?" Your feedback not only keeps us going but also helps others find the solution faster! 👍✨

Take care and have an amazing day ahead! 🚀

Best regards,

[TonyMahlony]

Hi Kurio,

Thank you so much for you reply, and thanks also for your continued interest in my printer's recalcitrance regarding my monochrome-only printing instructions

You said:

"Here's What You Can Try Next

1. Convert Screenshots to True Grayscale Before Printing. Tools like FastStone and Snipping Tool might save images in RGB, which the printer interprets as needing color toner — even if they look black to your eyes.

Open the screenshot in Paint.NET, GIMP, or even IrfanView

Convert it to grayscale or black & white (1-bit or 8-bit grayscale) before inserting into the doc

Save it as .PNG or .BMP (avoid JPEG for high contrast/clean B&W)

This forces the printer to use black toner only."

This sounds like a fix that I can really get behind, so: I downloaded and installed Irfanview (thanks for this!). Took a screenshot from this page and zoomed-in to see what colours have been captured - and you are correct in that both FastStone and Microsoft Snipping Tool add colour to what is really a monochrome image (when printed without screenshooting). I converted the screenshot to grayscale, as directed, and then printed a test sheet containing some original typed words, a screenshot of the same typed words, and also the same screenshot after converting it to grayscale and then converting to .pdf format. Unfortunately the only text without the shadow was the original typed words. All the rest had the magenta shadow (out of registration of course). I enlarged one word from the screenshots, and on my screen I could see that the raw screenshot shows magenta (in registration btw), whilst the .pdf converted image is definitely monochrome. So the printer is ignoring our efforts to force it to use only black toner

On to your second fix: 

2. Set a Custom Color Profile That Ignores CMY

Let’s trick the system a bit. On your computer:

Go to Control Panel > Color Management

Click the Devices tab and select your printer

Check “Use my settings for this device”

Add a Generic Gray ICC profile or sRGB profile

Click "Set as Default Profile"

You can also try removing all additional color profiles

to make sure only grayscale is referenced.

This was originally set to "Wide Gamut RGB" but, in-line with what you had said earlier I had changed it to Photoshop 4 CMYK (I was trying to offer the printer a solid black toner to choose from - which did not work). So: I added sRGB IEC61966 and set it as the default profile, and removed the Photoshop 4 CMYK profile

Onwards and upwards:

3. Print via PDF Conversion Always

Since PDFs print fine, try this:

Finalize your documents, then go File > Print > Save as PDF

Print the PDF version only — this bypasses app-specific rendering issues that trigger CMY

This method is safe, consistent, and gives you peace of mind that you’ll always get crisp black.

I have been using Microsoft Word for my tests and see no way to save documents as .pdf files. I tried saving a screenshot in BMP format, but the shadow is still there when printed. You said: "This method is safe, consistent, and gives you peace of mind that you’ll always get crisp black."  . . . . If only!  🙂

5. Try HP’s Universal PCL5 or PCL6 Driver

Sometimes, the driver forces composite black unless it's explicitly told not to.

Download from HP:

HP Universal Print Driver (PCL5 or PCL6)

Install the driver manually and in Printer Preferences:

Set Color Options > Print in Grayscale

Look for “Use black cartridge only” or disable color rendering if available

PCL5 driver was downloaded and installed. Colour options set to grayscale and also to black only. The magenta shadow is still there and out of registration by almost one millimeter. Bear in mind - all tests involved screenshots and also remember that the shadow is no longer appearing with typed and copy and paste text when using Word, so I am pleased that we made some progress.

Thanks for all your assistance and Best Wishes,

Tony

[Kuroi_Kenshi · Accepted solution]

Hi @TonyMahlony,

Thank you for the response:

Workarounds to Minimize or Eliminate the Magenta Shadow

Force Raster Grayscale Before Print (a deeper grayscale trick)

Try converting the image or screenshot to actual grayscale raster that avoids triggering CMY:

Open in IrfanView

Go to Image > Convert to Grayscale

Then go to Image > Increase Color Depth > 2 colors (black/white) (or try 256 grayscale for smoother)

Save as TIFF or BMP (not PDF or PNG, those still carry hidden color data sometimes)

Insert that into Word or another doc and print.

This “flattens” the color data and pushes the printer to treat it as pure monochrome. Screenshots, being inherently RGB, can mess with this, so a 2-color BMP or TIFF is your best bet.

Bypass Word/Apps Entirely, Use a Printing Utility

Try using IrfanView to print directly instead of Word. When you open the image and hit Ctrl + P, under Print Settings:

Choose Grayscale printing

Tick any options that say “Black ink only” or “High contrast”

Print from there. This often skips whatever CMY instructions Word tries to sneak in.

Deep Driver Hack, Use HP’s PostScript Driver (Not Just PCL)

You’ve tried PCL5 and PCL6, good call. Now, try:

HP Universal Print Driver – PostScript version

Once installed, go to:

Printer Preferences > Advanced > PostScript Options

Set "True Grayscale" or enable "Black text only"

PostScript drivers often treat monochrome differently than PCL, and may help isolate the use of just the K toner.

I hope this helps.

I'm glad I could help! 😊 If this resolved your issue, please mark it as "Accepted Solution" and click "Yes" on "Was this reply helpful?" Your feedback not only keeps us going but also helps others find the solution faster! 👍✨

Take care and have an amazing day ahead! 🚀

Best regards,

[TonyMahlony]

Hi Kurio,

I will try as you suggest:

Try converting the image or screenshot to actual grayscale raster that avoids triggering CMY:

Open in IrfanView

Go to Image > Convert to Grayscale

Then go to Image > Increase Color Depth > 2 colors (black/white) (or try 256 grayscale for smoother)

None of the above two options are available on my IrefanView  options are available (2 colors (black/white) (or try 256 grayscale for smoother))

Save as TIFF or BMP (not PDF or PNG, those still carry hidden color data sometimes)

Insert that into Word or another doc and print.

This “flattens” the color data and pushes the printer to treat it as pure monochrome. Screenshots, being inherently RGB, can mess with this, so a 2-color BMP or TIFF is your best bet.

I couldn't complete this test because of the Irfan View situation

Bypass Word/Apps Entirely, Use a Printing Utility

Try using IrfanView to print directly instead of Word. When you open the image and hit Ctrl + P, under Print Settings:

Choose Grayscale printing

Tick any options that say “Black ink only” or “High contrast”

Print from there. This often skips whatever CMY instructions Word tries to sneak in.

I'm sorry to report that the shadow still prints

Deep Driver Hack, Use HP’s PostScript Driver (Not Just PCL)

You’ve tried PCL5 and PCL6, good call. Now, try:

HP Universal Print Driver – PostScript version

Once installed, go to:

Printer Preferences > Advanced > PostScript Options

Set "True Grayscale" or enable "Black text only"

PostScript drivers often treat monochrome differently than PCL, and may help isolate the use of just the K toner.

Success at last! Thanks so much for sticking with me on this one. I was just beginning to think that there was no work-around . . . but this one works

Thanks Again,

Tony

[Kuroi_Kenshi]

Hi @TonyMahlony,

A huge thank you for marking this post as the 'Accepted Solution'! We're thrilled that we could help resolve your issue. 

If you have any more questions or need further assistance, please don't hesitate to ask. We're here to help! 

Thanks again for your confirmation, and we wish you an amazing day ahead! 

Best Regards,

[TonyMahlony]

Thanks for this Kurio. I really appreciate you sorting-out my problem for me. In these days of such shockingly poor customer service from lots of companies you have stood head and shoulders above the vast majority. I am very grateful. Best Wishes, Tony

[Kuroi_Kenshi]

Hi @TonyMahlony,

You're very welcome, Tony! 😊

Thank you so much for your kind words, they truly mean a lot. I'm really glad I could help sort things out for you. If you ever need anything else, don’t hesitate to reach out. Wishing you all the best!

Take care and warm regards,