Lexmark 4270 issue with Dell E521 WinXP SP2

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coach

I have been having this really weird problem with the Lexmark 4270
printer working well with my newly purchased Dell Dimension E521 PC
running WinXP Media Center SP2.

the Dell comes with 2 front USB2.0 ports and 4 rear USB2.0 ports. when
the printer is connected to any of the front 2 ports, it will work
perfectly. however, if it's connected to any of the rear 4 it will have
print head alignment problem. no matter how many times i tried
uninstalling and reinstalling with the printer connected to front or
back or disconnected, the same problem occurs.

i noticed somebody posted a similar problem but the resolution calls
for a unmarked USB hub that comes with the printer. i don't recall
having that USB hub in my printer...i even had it replaced once in Q3
2006 under warranty and there was no USB hub included as well.

tried using different USB cables and problem remains the same. i've
also seen a suggested resolution for another Lexmark printer model
which indicates one MUST use the front USB ports. i'm getting Dell to
change the motherboard but i doubt it's gonna make any difference after
scouring the web to get a resolution.

i'm at my wits end and i really do not know what else i could do. it's
pretty annoying to think that there is such a significant difference
between front and rear USB ports to cause issues...having a permanently
connected printer to HAVE TO USE front port is really waste of
available ports. :(

any other pointers towards resolving this most weird problem are
welcomed.

Ko-chi
 
I've had this same problem over the past two years. I've recently found out
that the USB ports on the back of my Dell PC are renamed to USB 2.0 ports
from 1.1 (full speed). The front ports are enhanced USB 2.0 ports, but not
high-speed. See below article pertaining to USB 1.1 ports. The Dell Tech Rep
recommended that I purchase a 4 port USB 2.0 high-speed card and insert it
in the empty PCI slot on the Mobo (motherboard), to solve the problem.
Universal Serial Bus (USB)
http://www.knoppix.net/wiki/USB
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thanks Byte for the reply.

do you mean that the front 2 USB port is USB2.0 full speed (i.e.
USB1.1), and the 4 back ones are USB2.0 high speed? if so, how would
adding a 4 port USB2.0 high-speed card into the PCI slot solve the
problem if it works fine with the front ports (which are USB2.0 full
speed), but not with the rear 4 (USB2.0 high speed)? or do u mean it's
the other way round, i.e. 2 front are USB2.0 high speed, while 4 rear
are USB2.0 fullspeed?

rgds,
Ko-chi
 
oops Byte, after reading ur reply again i realize u meant the back 4
are USB2.0 fullspeed whereas the front 2 are USB2.0 enhanced (not
fullspeed, not highspeed).

anyway, i called Dell tech support regarding this, and they claim that
all 6 (2 front 4 back) are USB2.0 highspeed supporting 480Mbps. looks
like USB port data transfer rate difference is not the cause.

sigh...back to square one.
 
It may be due to the ports not supplying enough power via some of the USB
ports. (Hence the recommendation to try an external powered USB Hub.)
If that in fact does cure the problem, and the computer is under warrenty,
I'd be considering sending it back, or forcing a warrenty motherboard
replacement.
 
hi Chuck,

i've actually had the motherboard replaced under warranty and it still
does not work. i'm not too keen in getting a powered USB hub just to
test if it will resolve the problem. however, i might try to borrow one
for testing though.
 
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