# Sublimation colours not dark enough



## RHG (Nov 2, 2020)

hi guys, I am having issues sublimating 100% polyester t shirts, I am using a brand new sublimation Epson ecotank 15000 with inktec sublinova ink, I have installed the ICC profile provided by them, I am printing in a Windows 7 PC using a portable version of Photoshop CS5, printing mugs is fine, colours are beautiful but when printing t shirts colours are not bright enough and specially the blacks are very dull, almost a dark grey, I would say that is not a dense, rich black colour, even compared to other items sublimated that my friend has my black colours are not black enough, in general not to vibrant, is there anything wrong that I am doing, should i adjust the CMYK colours on my photoshop, should I use a different software for printing, a different PC with a differen OS, how can the mugs be beautiful and the t shirts not, I am printing t shirts with a HR sublimation paper, after the transfer I can see the all the ink has been released int the t shirt but still not good enough, can anyone please help me, this is driving me crazy, thanks a lot guys.


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## splathead (Dec 4, 2005)

You should be using RGB colors, not CMYK. CMYK will give you a dull black.


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## RHG (Nov 2, 2020)

splathead said:


> You should be using RGB colors, not CMYK. CMYK will give you a dull black.


hi, thanks for your answer, do you mean like converting the image that I am going to print to RGB, how do I go about this, I am new to this, thanks again.


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## TABOB (Feb 13, 2018)

If your mug prints are good, then your problem is in your heat pressing settings.
Watch this video... It's a bit hard to follow, but he knows what he's talking about. 





Just to clarify... using RGB is recommended, because it is what printer drivers use.
Using CMYK means that the job will be converted it to RGB and then back to CMYK.


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## PatWibble (Mar 7, 2014)

Inktec Sublinova will give you very good rich blacks, with the correct settings and paper. Far better than many inks, including Sawgrass.
CMYK is a large part of your problem. Converting to RGB will make a big difference.

What print settings are you using? You should be on 'matt paper' setting and 'best photo'. Plain paper settings will result in less ink. 
A paper that works well on mugs doesn't always work so well on fabric. Fabric sublimation needs more ink than hard substrates, and the fact that you say all the ink has been released suggests to me that you are not putting enough ink onto the paper.
Texprint XPHR is a very good fabric paper for Epsons, but I find S-race to be better. With Inktec I print for 40 seconds at 205c, low pressure.

Simply installing the ICM profile is not enough. Have you turned ICM off ( no colour adjustment ) on your print driver? Have you set photoshop to handle colour management, using your inktec profile?


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## RHG (Nov 2, 2020)

PatWibble said:


> Inktec Sublinova will give you very good rich blacks, with the correct settings and paper. Far better than many inks, including Sawgrass.
> CMYK is a large part of your problem. Converting to RGB will make a big difference.
> 
> What print settings are you using? You should be on 'matt paper' setting and 'best photo'. Plain paper settings will result in less ink.
> ...


thanks a lot, I really appreciate your help and everyone's help in here i have tried all of what you have mentioned above, I will try to convert to RGB and I will post the results, I will also give textprint and S-race a shot, can i ask what program do you use to print, what version of photoshop if you use it, my settings are paper to plain paper, quality high, with the paper I have if I set to matte the priting paper comes out all scratched, I will keep trying and let you know my friend, I know the inktec sublinova is good I have seen people getting incredible results with it and with the same printer I have just out of the box, thanks again I ll keep you posted take care and stay safe.


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## designpal (Jul 25, 2013)

Just curious, having been printing on T-shirts using DTG printers, is there a process to using a heat press for sublimation prints. For DTG, i have to hover 20 seconds over the t-shirt before pressing for 40secs. Or do i just press immediately after the print on the paper is dry?









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## RHG (Nov 2, 2020)

designpal said:


> Just curious, having been printing on T-shirts using DTG printers, is there a process to using a heat press for sublimation prints. For DTG, i have to hover 20 seconds over the t-shirt before pressing for 40secs. Or do i just press immediately after the print on the paper is dry?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I am brand new to this my friend, but I think you press for 50 or 60 seconds, every t shirt comes with the pressing time and temperature, if not you could ask those details to the t shirt supplier you get your t shirts from, hope this helps a bit, take care.


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## weaim2tees (Jan 2, 2021)

RHG said:


> thanks a lot, I really appreciate your help and everyone's help in here i have tried all of what you have mentioned above, I will try to convert to RGB and I will post the results, I will also give textprint and S-race a shot, can i ask what program do you use to print, what version of photoshop if you use it, my settings are paper to plain paper, quality high, with the paper I have if I set to matte the priting paper comes out all scratched, I will keep trying and let you know my friend, I know the inktec sublinova is good I have seen people getting incredible results with it and with the same printer I have just out of the box, thanks again I ll keep you posted take care and stay safe.



I would like to know did you ever get the problem fixed?


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## RHG (Nov 2, 2020)

weaim2tees said:


> I would like to know did you ever get the problem fixed?


hi, what I did was to buy a custom ICC profile and the paper to match the ICC profile but what I really think that fixed the problem was that I changed the brand a t shirts and now colors are vibrant also I find that sublimation in 100% polyester I do not find it as great in 65% - 35% polyester - cotton, hope this helps.


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## weaim2tees (Jan 2, 2021)

Ok great thanks for your quick response I have learned quite a bit myself from this thread thanks once again.


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