Online Labels Forum

If you have extensive experience with a specific printer model and you've been happy with the print results there, it can sometimes be a little jarring moving to a different printer model. It's difficult to exactly replicate print performance between two different printer models, especially when moving from inkjet to laser or vice versa. With that being said, there are a few additional steps to try that may improve the print quality with the HP Color LaserJet Pro M454dw.

It sounds like you're already using appropriate paper type settings for the weatherproof polyester laser material. I haven't used the HP Color LaserJet Pro M454dw, but I have a couple similar HP models available and I've never felt the need to move up to the heavyweight designation when using this material. I typically stick to one of the standard photo or glossy material types, but labels or heavyweight glossy should definitely work as well.

There are a couple of more advanced troubleshooting techniques that you can use that may improve your print results. These are detailed in the manual for the printer model, which I've linked to below:

HP Color LaserJet Pro M454dw Manual

You're going to want to take a look at the "Troubleshoot Print Quality" section that starts on page 105. There is a pretty expansive selection of troubleshooting methods detailed in this section, but based on your the feedback you've provided I'd recommend looking at:

- Calibrate the printer to align the colors (page 111)
- Print and interpret the print quality page (page 111-112)
- Check the EconoMode settings (page 112-113)
- Adjust print density (page 113)

The whole section is worth skimming through, as there may be some other suggestions that are applicable, but the topics listed above seem like they'd be the best to focus on initially.

I hope this helps. If you need any additional information please just let us know.

I'm sorry to hear about the issue you're experiencing. Does your printer model have a paper type setting similar to HP Matte Photo 200g? I haven't had an opportunity to use the HP Color LaserJet Pro M454dw, but I have used the M452dn model which should be very similar functionally. When using the M452dn, I've had a ton of success using the HP Matte Photo 200g paper type setting with our weatherproof polyester material. It provides excellent color duplication and strong durability to abrasion. Performance can differ based on the design you're printing, as well as your end-use application, but I've always been very pleased with the results using that setting.

Some of the troubleshooting options listed from the manual in my original response may help improve your results as well. The EconoMode setting found on HP printers can result in loose toner that's easy to scratch away, especially when using specialty material types. If it's currently enabled, I'd definitely try disabling it. Reducing the print density could potentially help as well, since too much toner output can result in a weaker bond between the toner and the surface of the sheet.

I was able to locate your account in our system, and it seems that you've used our weatherproof polyester and white gloss laser materials in the past, but not the weatherproof vinyl. I do see that you recently placed an order for the weatherproof vinyl material that is currently in transit to you. The white gloss laser material is a glossy paper-based material. It's not weatherproof and not intended for direct contact with moisture. The weatherproof vinyl material is probably the most durable material option we offer for laser printing. It's commonly used for chemical drum labeling and carries BS5609 Section 2 compliance for long term maritime shipping applications.

I hope this helps. Please just let us know if you need any additional information.