MFC-290C

FAQs & Troubleshooting

FAQs & Troubleshooting

Improve poor print quality.

Brother strongly recommends that you do not refill the ink cartridges provided with your machine. We also strongly recommend that you continue to use only Genuine Brother Brand replacement ink cartridges. Use or attempted use of potentially incompatible ink and/or cartridges in the Brother machine may cause damage to the machine and/or may result in unsatisfactory print quality. Our warranty coverage does not apply to any problem that is caused by the use of unauthorized third party ink and/or cartridges. To protect your investment and obtain premium performance from the Brother machine, we strongly recommend the use of Genuine Brother Supplies
> Click here for more information about Genuine Brother Supplies.

Cleaning the four color print heads (black, cyan, magenta and yellow) and/or adjusting the vertical alignment may improve the print quality. To determine if the alignment needs to be set and to identify which print heads need to be cleaned, print the Print Quality Check sheet and the Alignment Check sheet.


Below are instructions for improving the following:

  • Horizontal lines in text or graphics

  • Blank text

  • Blurred or faded text and images
Please follow the instructions that apply to your issue.


Section 1: Checking the print quality and cleaning the print head

  1. Print a Print Quality Check Sheet.

    1. Press Menu.
    2. Press the UP OR DOWN ARROW key or the dial pad to choose Ink or Ink Management and press OK.
    3. Press the UP OR DOWN ARROW key or the dial pad to choose Test Print and press OK.
    4. Press the UP OR DOWN ARROW key or the dial pad to choose Print Quality and press OK.
    5. Press Color (Colour) Start. The machine begins printing the Print Quality Check Sheet.

  2. Closely examine the Print Quality Check Sheet. Each of the four colors is represented by a slanted square pattern made up of individual blocks. The colors should appear in the following order from left to right: Black - Yellow - Cyan - Magenta.

  3. Compare the print quality of the Check Sheet you just printed with the three examples listed below:

    (A) One or more complete blocks of colors are missing:

    image

    (B) Most of the short diagonal lines are missing from one or more color blocks:

    image

    (C) Some parts of the short diagonal lines are missing from one or more color blocks:

    image

  4. The display will then ask you if the print quality is OK for black. Press the DOWN ARROW key or 2 to choose No for black with the problem.
  5. The display will then ask you if the print quality is OK for Color. Press down the arrow key or 2 to choose No for color with the problem.
  6. The display will then show Start Cleaning? Yes No.
    Press the UP ARROW key or 1 to choose Yes and the machine will start cleaning the color ink cartridges.
  7. When the machine completes cleaning the print head, press Color (Colour) Start. Another Print Quality Check Sheet will print.

  8. Repeat the cleaning and the quality check process following the Step 4-7.

  9. Compare the second or third Print Quality Check Sheet with the first one you printed in Step1:

    • If the print quality on the first Check Sheet matched Example (A) or (B) and you do not see any improvement on the second or third Check Sheet, please contact Brother Customer Service from below.

    • If the print quality on the first Check Sheet matched Example (A) or (B) and you see some improvement on the second or third Check Sheet but it's not perfect, repeat the cleaning and the quality check process three more times (totally five times). If you do not see any further improvement after that, please contact Brother Customer Service from below.

    • If the print quality on the first Check Sheet matched Example (C) and you do not see any improvement on the second or third Check Sheet, repeat the cleaning and the quality check process three more times (totally five times). If you still do not see any improvement, please contact Brother Customer Service from below.

      • In USA
        If your unit is still within warranty, please click here for more information.
        If your unit is out of warranty, please click here for information on contacting an Authorized Service Center near you.

      • In Canada, Europe, Asia/Oceania
        For the Brother Customer Service telephone numbers for assistance, please click here.

      • In Latin America
        For the Brother Customer Service telephone numbers for assistance in Latin America, please click here.

  10. Press Stop/Exit.

Section 2: Checking the Print Alignment

  1. Press Menu.
  2. Press the UP OR DOWN ARROW key or the dial pad to choose Ink or Ink Management and press OK.
  3. Press the UP OR DOWN ARROW key or the dial pad to choose Test Print and press OK.
  4. Press the UP OR DOWN ARROW key or the dial pad to choose Alignment and press OK.
  5. Press Black (Mono) or Color (Colour) start. The machine begins printing the Alignment Check Sheet.
  6. By reviewing this Check Sheet, you can determine if the alignment needs adjustment.
  7. Examine the 600 dpi and 1200 dpi test prints on the Alignment Check Sheet. If the number 5 sample of both the 600 dpi and 1200 dpi most closely matches the 0 sample, press the UP ARROW key or 1 to choose Yes.
    If one of the other samples is a better match for the 0 sample, press the DOWN ARROW key to choose No. The display will then prompt you to choose the sample that most closely matches the 0 sample for 600 dpi and then 1200 dpi.
  8. Press Stop/Exit.

If the print quality continues to be poor, go to Section 1 to clean the print head.

Related FAQs

If your question was not answered, have you checked other FAQs?

Have you checked the manuals?

If you need further assistance, please contact Brother customer service:

Related Models

DCP-J125, MFC-250C, MFC-255CW, MFC-290C, MFC-295CN, MFC-J220, MFC-J410, MFC-J615W

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