More often than not, the simplest things will be the cause of the problem. That is why it is always important to start by checking the basics first.

• Perform a head test to confirm all the heads on the printer are working as expected? How you do this varies between different printer models so you may need to refer to the manufacturer's documentation on how to do this.
• Check that the correct printer profile set in the AVA CMS Controller for the printer you are printing to.
• Check that you are using the correct printer preset / printer settings, these should be the same as when profile was made.
• How old is your printer profile? If the match has suddenly gone off then an old profile is probably not the cause, it doesn't mean we could not recommend re-profiling. If the match has not been good for some time, then we would recommend re-profiling.
• Check that the Rendering in the AVA CMS Controller is set to Best.
• Overprint setting in AVA, should be set to Reflectance 3 or 16 (unless using a custom Overprint), Soft Proof should be on.

• How long has the colour match been off and more importantly what has changed in your setup in this time?
• Has the substrate changed, do you have a new batch of media?
• In what way is the match off, I.e., is the print brighter than the screen... how the match is off can help indicate what is wrong, for example if the print bright but too washed out it could indicate that the printer settings are incorrect.
• Has the room lighting changed recently.
• If you have a new display or new Mac® the display will need to be calibrated.
• Is the match good / bad on other AVA systems, if the match is only poor on your system you need to start looking what is different to others, using the list above should help with this.

Is it time to re-profile the printer and display?

We understand that this can seem like a lengthy process but it is often necessary. We do generally recommend profiling standard printers around once a month to help keep your prints consistent. The profile is like a finger print of the printer, so even if you don't end up using the new profile it can often be the fastest way to identify what the problem is. See some examples below.

	The profile to the left is from a new Epson, this is correct / typically of how the profile shape 'should' look in Printer cal.
	This is from the same printer, but there was either a measurement error or something wrong with the print or printer, it could be that the light cyan head is not working well, this would give many colour issues. The target should be re-measured, you could just read the target again, if you get the same result, reprint the target and read again (after running a head test).
	This profile is from an Epson where colour management was on.  While AVA's Colour matching would work in this state it will mean you will be getting a smaller gamut than you potentially could, it will mean you will struggle to print dark tones and possibly have problems matching older CAD prints, if older prints were done with better settings.

If you have gone through the above and are not sure what to do next, please contact AVA Technical Support and we will help you further.  We may request that you run accuracy tests on your print. This helps to determine whether the problem is with the printer, display or room lighting.