4. Printer, Media & Paper Feed¶
In the 1. Printer settings section (cf. EPL User Guide pp. 23–24, 38–42), LumaPrint controls all hardware parameters of the Epson SureColor SC-P900 & SC-P700 as well as generic CUPS printers.
1. Intelligent Media & Feed Logic (Constraint Engine)¶
As soon as a Media type is selected, LumaPrint automatically adjusts the following parameters:
- Black Ink (PK vs. MK): Glossy, luster, and baryta papers automatically use Photo Black (PK); matte fine-art, cotton, and Washi papers use Matte Black (MK) via the dedicated MK nozzle row of the SC-P900 (without ink-switching purge loss).
- Allowed Paper Source (InputSlot):
- Rear feed (sheet) — standard & (borderless)
- Front feed – Fine Art — for delicate and thick fine-art papers (0.3–0.7 mm)
- Front feed – Thick paper / Poster board (straight path) — for rigid media up to 1.5 mm
- Front feed – No eject roller (glossy) — prevents star-wheel roller marks on high-gloss papers
- Roll paper — standard & (borderless)
- Automatic ICC Output Profile: When ICC profile: Automatic is active, the matching factory profile (EE2NE_00..14.ICC or the ICC profile linked to a custom media entry) is selected immediately.
2. Detailed Settings (SC-P900 Special Features, User Guide p. 24)¶
Depending on the selected media type, LumaPrint displays the hardware options of the SC-P900 under Detailed settings:
| Option | Availability | Technical Effect |
|---|---|---|
Carbon Black Mode (Ultra quality 5760 × 1440 dpi) |
Premium Glossy, Semigloss, Luster, Photo Glossy, Baryta | Enables PrintQuality = 7 (1.5 pl ultra-fine PK droplets) for visibly deeper blacks (\(D_{\max}\)) on glossy and baryta papers. |
| Black Enhance Overcoat | Glossy, Semigloss, Luster, Baryta | Enables OverCoat = 2: selectively coats dark image areas with Light Gray (LGY), smoothing the surface and reducing scattered light reflections (bronzing / gloss differential). |
| Gloss smoothing mode | Glossy media | Reduces light reflections in black regions for a more uniform surface gloss. |
| Prioritize print quality at the bottom edge | All sheet media | Uses a finer paper feed and more print head passes on the last ~20 mm of the sheet to prevent banding at the bottom edge. |
| Apply app paper settings | All media | Overrides the paper type and paper size set on the printer's touchscreen with the selection made in LumaPrint. |
3. Custom Media Configuration (User Guide pp. 41–42)¶
For third-party papers (e.g., Hahnemühle Photo Rag 308, Canson Infinity Baryta Photographique II), custom media entries can be configured and stored permanently:
- Name of the paper
- Base media type (e.g., Velvet Fine Art for textured cotton papers, UltraSmooth Fine Art for smooth matte papers, Baryta for baryta papers)
- Associated ICC output profile (.icc / .icm)
- Paper configuration:
- Paper thickness (0.08 .. 1.50 mm)
- Platen gap (Standard, Narrow, Wide, Wider)
- Drying time per print head pass (0.0 .. 10.0 s)
- Ink duty / Color density (-50 % .. +50 %)
- Feed adjustment (-1.0 % .. +1.0 %) & Roll paper tension (Normal, High, Extra High)
Custom Media from the Printer (ep-media-installer)¶
Papers written to the printer's 30 custom media slots using ep-media-installer (epmi) are picked up automatically by LumaPrint once they have been installed on the local system via "Install for system" (just like on Windows/macOS, this needs to be done once per computer):
- Custom media list:
/etc/epson-p900-escpr-cups/custom_media.json - ICC profiles:
/usr/local/share/color/icc/epson-p900-custom/
Newly installed papers appear after clicking Reload the installed system printers (CUPS) without restarting LumaPrint. When printing, LumaPrint passes the base media type, slot ID, ink duty, and drying time to the driver.