Poor Print Quality - HP Envy 6455e

[ThePad]

Last year I purchased a new HP Envy 6455e printer.  It never really worked right. 

I use it at the University at which I teach because the school does not provide me with a printer.  Because it could not handle the authentication required for the network I cannot use the wireless feature.  I called HP support when it was still under warranty and the tech helped me to set it up by USB alone.

I recently replaced the blank ink cartridge with a new HP one but the print quality is very poor.  Whenever I try to use the clean cartridge feature it says that the printer is in use and to try later.  I've restarted the computer and printer and I still get that message.  I tried the print alignment feature and that completes but doesn't improve the print quality.

When I try to print something that is only black text it may come out brown even though I check the box for print grayscale (use black ink).  Other times will print black text with the right color but parts of lines will be missing and the overall quality of the printout is substandard.  This has been a terrible product.

Can anyone help me?  Thank you.

[Nal_NR]

Hi @ThePad,

Welcome to the HP Support Community. 

I'd like to help!

Perform the following tasks in the order given. Use the printer after each task to see if the issue is resolved.

Run the automated printhead or ink cartridge cleaning tool

Clean the printhead and cartridges to resolve print quality issues including incorrect colors, streaks, and faded prints.

Load plain white paper in the tray.

Open the HP Smart app, and then click the picture of your printer to open the settings and management tools.

In Print Quality Tools or in Advanced Settings > Tools > Utilities > Print Quality Toolbox, select Clean Printhead to start the cleaning tool.

Review the Print Quality Diagnostic page that prints for defects and any instructions to resolve the issue. Run up to two more cleaning cycles, if necessary.

Check for ink smears on the back of printouts

Use an automated cleaning tool if there are smears of ink on the back of documents or photos.

Load plain white paper in the tray.

Open the HP Smart app, and then click the picture of your printer to open the settings and management tools.

In Print Quality Tools or in Advanced Settings > Tools > Utilities > Print Quality Toolbox, select Clean next to Clean Smear to start the cleaning tool.

Check for issues with the ink cartridges

Very low ink levels, using non-HP cartridges, and rough handling can cause print quality issues.

Replace any non-HP or refilled cartridges with genuine HP cartridges. HP supplies are available from the HP Store and local retailers.

HP cannot guarantee the quality or reliability of non-HP or refilled cartridges. Go to HP Anti Counterfeiting and Fraud Program for more information.

Check the ink levels and replace any low or empty cartridges.

NOTE:

The printer features a 'backup mode' that enables printing with one cartridge. Remove the low or empty cartridge to continue printing if a replacement is not available. Depending on the cartridge removed, blacks will not be as dark and color prints will be in grayscale.

Click here for the remaining steps. 

Update firmware 

Hope this helps! Keep me posted for further assistance.
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