My Tango printer stopped printing color

[Jeanne333]

I have an HP Tango (PN 2RY54A) which has always worked well but in the last couple of months it suddenly stopped printing in color. I have full ink cartridges, have confirmed that no settings are indicating grayscale, have tried printing from multiple applications/file types such as Microsoft 365, web pages, PDFs. The quality report shows all the colors printing very well and doesn't show any quality flaws at all. I did clean the printheads and align them more than once in my troubleshooting process. Finally, I have always confirmed that the print preview in my apps shows the color that I expect. 

This printer is well outside of warranty but it functions so well generally I have no reason to replace it and would hate to have to put up with never printing color again. What additional steps could I take to solve this problem?

[Raj_05 · Accepted solution]

Hi @Jeanne333,

Welcome to HP Support Community.

Thank you for posting your query, I will be glad to help you.

It sounds like you've already done a thorough job of troubleshooting with the settings, ink cartridges, printhead cleaning, and alignment. Since the printer's quality report is showing all colors printing well, the issue might be related to how the printer is processing color data.

Here are a few additional steps you can try.

Reset Printer Settings:

• Perform a factory reset on the printer. This can often resolve software-related issues. Check the printer's settings or the HP Smart app for instructions on how to reset the Tango.

Reinstall the Printer Driver:

• Sometimes outdated or corrupted printer drivers can cause issues. Uninstall the printer drivers from your computer, then download and install the latest drivers from the HP support site.

Check Printer Settings:

• Even though you've confirmed there's no grayscale setting enabled, double-check the print settings directly in the printer's control panel or app to ensure no color options are turned off.
• Make sure the color options in the print dialogue are set to "Color" and not "Black & White" or "Grayscale."

Print Using a Different Application:

• While you've tested various file types, try printing a document directly from a simple application like Notepad (text only) or even a basic image from Paint to see if the problem persists. This helps rule out any application-specific issues.

Clean Printhead Again (with Deep Cleaning):

• If you haven't already, perform a deep cleaning of the printhead through the printer settings. This will use extra ink to attempt a more thorough cleaning than the regular process.

Print a Test Page via Printer's Control Panel:

• On the printer's control panel or the HP Smart app, look for an option to print a test page or diagnostic page. This will help determine if the printer is recognizing all colors correctly when printing a non-document page.

Check for Firmware Updates:

• Ensure that the printer’s firmware is up to date. Sometimes, a firmware update can resolve issues that may not be fixed by standard troubleshooting.

Check Ink Cartridges Again:

• Even if the cartridges appear full, sometimes the ink can become clogged or there can be issues with the cartridge itself. Try removing the cartridges, cleaning the contacts with a lint-free cloth, and reinserting them. If the issue persists, it could be worth testing with new cartridges.

I hope this helps.

Take care and have a good day.

Please click “Accepted Solution” if you feel my post solved your issue, it will help others find the solution. Click the “Kudos/Thumbs Up" on the bottom right to say “Thanks” for helping!

Alden4

HP Support 

[Jeanne333]

Hi Alden,

Thank you for the reply and suggestions. When I was getting started with following your first 2 suggestions to reinstall factory settings and reinstall drivers, I decided to start by simply deleting the printer and reinstalling it. That accomplished doing both those 2 things and it solved the problem! Now I am back to printing in color! So I don't know if it was the factory settings or the driver but it was one of them. 

Thanks,

Jeanne