After installing all new ink cartridges, running Nozzle Check and Print Head Cleaning, I still get very poor quality photos, mostly smeared with streaks of black ink. Could this be happening because

If you are experiencing low print quality with horizontal strips on your Epson R300 printer, it is possible that the problem is caused by a clogged nozzle or an issue with the printer's print head. Here are a few things you can try to troubleshoot the issue:

1. Check the nozzle check pattern: Run a nozzle check to see if any of the nozzles are clogged. If you see any missing lines or gaps in the pattern, it could indicate a clogged nozzle.
2. Clean the print head: If the nozzle check pattern shows that one or more nozzles are clogged, try cleaning the print head. You can use the printer's built-in cleaning function or use a cleaning solution specifically designed for printer heads.
3. Check the ink cartridges: Make sure the ink cartridges are properly installed and that there is enough ink. If the cartridges are low on ink or not properly installed, it can affect the print quality.
4. Check the printer's settings: Make sure the printer is set to the correct paper type and print quality settings. If the settings are not appropriate for the type of paper you are using, it can affect the print quality.

If you have tried these troubleshooting steps and the problem persists, it may be necessary to have the printer serviced by a professional. A technician will be able to diagnose the problem and determine the necessary repairs.
I hope this information is helpful. If you have any further questions or need additional assistance, please don't hesitate to ask.

Purging Procedure - If you have just installed a new archival or Quadtone cartridge you must purge the Epson print head of all of the old, non-archival, ink before you can begin to print with the full archival effect. The print heads in the Epson 200/400/440/500/600/640/740/800/850/860/900/1160/1520/Photo/Photo 700/Photo EX/Photo 750/Photo 1200 printers hold about 3 to 5 pages worth of ink. Always run a Nozzle check before printing. Even if you get a perfect nozzle check on your first try after putting in a new cartridge, run at least one or two head cleaning cycles. This will prevent any excess ink from over filling the print head. After the cleaning cycles, use the purging test patterns below to purge your system of the old ink. After printing about 5 (8.5x11) pages of this pattern, 98% of the old ink will be gone. The rest will come out slowly and may take as many as 20 or more pages, but at the 98% point you will see good results. If you have an Epson 3000, 5000 or 9000. See below

Cleaning only helps if there is still ink in the cartridges.
If you print the nozzle check, you can see what colour is having problems to print.
And when you are sure there is still ink in the cartridge, you could try to remove the cartridge, and in the printer, where the cartridge was, you could put a drop of cleaning fluid in the nozzle on the bottom. Then try printing one or two pages on full colour, till the ink starts coming through.

Be aware, sometimes just a bit of dust is traveling wit the print head, blocking the ink too. But then you see smear on the paper.
Always be sure the underside of the print head does not have debris traveling with the head.
Almost impossible to see, but epson sometimes delivers special cleaning paper. It is a pice of paper, with a special pice of sticky tape. Sometimes it comes with the Ultra Glossy Photo Paper. Use it.

Cleaning the Print Head

Using the Head Cleaning utility
Using the control panel buttons

If you find that the printout is unexpectedly faint or some dots are missing, you may be able to solve these problems by cleaning the print head, which ensures that the nozzles are delivering ink properly.

You can clean the print head from your computer using the Head Cleaning utility in the printer software or from this product itself by using the control panel buttons.

Note:

• Print head cleaning uses both color and black inks. To avoid wasting ink, clean the print head only if the copy quality drops (for example, blurred printout, incorrect or missing color.)

• Use the nozzle check first to confirm that the print head needs to be cleaned. This saves ink.

• When the Error light is on and a message appears on the LCD panel to prompt you to replace the ink cartridge or to indicate the ink is low, you cannot clean the print head. In this case, replace the appropriate ink cartridge first.

Using the Head Cleaning utility

Refer to the appropriate section below to use the Head Cleaning utility.

For Windows

Follow the steps below to clean the print head using the Head Cleaning utility.

Make sure that A4 or Letter size paper is loaded in the sheet feeder.

Make sure that this product is on and the ! Error light is off.

Access the printer software.Accessing the Printer Software for Windows

Click the Maintenance tab, then click the Head Cleaning button.

Follow the on-screen instructions.

Head cleaning... appears on the LCD panel while this product performs the cleaning cycle.

Caution:Never turn off this product while Head cleaning... appears on the LCD panel. Doing so may damage this product.

When Head cleaning... disappears from the LCD panel, click Print Nozzle Check Pattern in the Head Cleaning dialog box to confirm that the print head is clean.

Good: print head does not need to be cleaned yet.

Not Good: print head needs to be cleaned.

If the nozzle check page does not print satisfactorily, you may need to repeat the head cleaning and print the nozzle check pattern again. See Cleaning the Print Head.

Note:

• If the copy quality has not improved after repeating this procedure four or five times, turn this product off and leave it alone overnight. Then, perform the nozzle check again and repeat the head cleaning if necessary.

• If the copy quality still has not improved, one or both of your ink cartridges may be old or damaged and may need to be replaced. To replace an ink cartridge before it is empty, see Replacing an Ink Cartridge. If the copy quality remains a problem after replacing the ink cartridges, contact your dealer.

• To maintain good copy quality, we recommend copying a few pages at least once every month.

In most of htese cases it is good to have a reset to see if the driver software has errors. So remove your printer from the PC and uninstall the printer software. Now reinstall the printer software and then connect the Printer to be detected and installed. Check printer properties to see the ink levels.
Use head cleaning before a test is taken . It is possible that the head is not reacting to the need of the command , can be an issue with ink drying , can also be poor ink cartridge contacts

If the print has horizontal lines of 'missing print' do three head cleqans don't move the printer or switch it off, now leave it overnight - letting the head soak in fresh ink- in the morning, do one more head clean and then print the nozzle check.If it's poor photocopying it is most probably because the print quality for photocopy is set to a low setting. The manual will explain how to change photocopy print quality. Hope this helps

Hi there,
When printing becomes faint or colors are incorrect, even if ink remains in the ink tanks, the print head nozzles are probably clogged. Follow the procedures below to clean the nozzles.

Step 1 : Printing the Nozzle Check Pattern.
If white stripes are noticeable
Step 2 : "Aligning the Print Head"
If print quality is poor
Step 2 : "Print Head Cleaning"
if the problem remains
Step 3 : Print Head Deep Cleaning"
if the problem still remains
Step 4 : Replacing Ink Tanks.

Note : * If the ink tank replacement does not resolve the problem, contact the Customer Care Center.
* You will be alerted if low ink warning is enabled.
* When the Maintenace button on the operation panel is pressed, the maintenance mode is shown. Numbers and functions that can be selected on the maintenance mode as follows :
01 : Printing the Nozzle Check Pattern
02 : Print Head Cleaning
03 : Print Head Deep Cleaning
04 : Aligning the Print Head
05 : Reset the ink counter.
06 : "Display" or "Not Display" remaining ink volume.
07 : Date and order setting.

Printing the Nozzle Check Pattern : Print the nozzle check patterb to determine whether the ink ejects properly from the print head nozzles and to verify print head alignment. Use this function when printed results are blurred or the color is incorrect,
1) With the printer on, load a sheet of Letter paper in the printer.
2) Print the Nozzle Check Pattern.
a) Press the Maintenance button,
b) The Maintenance icon and 01 appear on the LCD.
c) Press the OK button. The nozzle check pattern is printed.
3) Examine the nozzle check pattern output by the printer.
a) Lines missing in this pattern indicate that the print head of black ink requires cleaning. Perform the Print Head Cleaning.
b) White stripes in this pattern indicate that the print head of color ink requires cleaning. Perform the Print Head Cleaning.
c) Uneven patterns indicate that the print head requires alignment.
Perform Aligning of Print Head.
d) Noticeable white stripes in this pattern indicate that the print head require alignment.
Perform Aligning of Print Head.

Print Head Cleaning : Clean the print head if you suspect that the nozles might be clogged. Cleaning the print head consumes ink, so perform print head cleaning only when necessary.
1) Ensure that the printer is on.
2) Start print head cleaning.
a) Press Maintenance button.
b) Press right arrow once to display 02 on the LCD.
c) Press the OK button.
Important : Do not perform any other operations until the print head cleaning finishes. This takes about 50 seconds.
Note : After the print head cleaning finishes, print the nozzle check pattern to verify that the print head nozzles are clean.
If the problem persists, perform printhead deep cleaning.

Print Head Deep Cleaning : If print quality does not improve by standard print head cleaning, try print head deep cleaning, which is more powerful process. Print head deep cleaning consumes ink, so perforn this procedure only when necessary.
1) Ensure that the printer is on.
2) Start Print Head Deep cleaning.
a) Press Maintenance button.
b) Press right arrow twice to display 03 on the LCD.
c) Press the OK button.
Important : This process takes one or two minutes to complete so simply wait until the Power lamp stops flashing.
Note : After printhead deep cleaning finishes, print the nozzle check pattern to verify that the printhead nozzles are clean.
If the printhead is still not clean after the second deep cleaning, replace the ink tank.
If ink tank replacement does not resolve the problem, the print head may be worn out. Contact the Customer Care Center.

Hope this helps.
Please rate my response.
Thanks.

Have a good day.

Cleaning your head might resolve your problem. Perform the below steps to clean the head:

Print Head Cleaning / Head Refreshing If the printed nozzle check pattern is broken, missing, or a specific color is not printed, clean the print head (Cleaning) or print head deep cleaning (Deep Cleaning). Note:

1. Cleaning the print head consumes a small amount of ink. Cleaning too often reduces the amount of ink in the ink tanks.
   
   
2. Print head cleaning is performed when you connect the power cord. Your machine may perform print head cleaning periodically to avoid clogging.
   

Overview:
Step1:
Print the Nozzle Check Pattern.
To check whether the print head nozzles are clogged, print the Nozzle Check Pattern.
If the print quality is poor, perform print head cleaning.
Step 2:
Perform print head cleaning.
This unclogs the print head nozzles
Print the Nozzle Check Pattern again.
To check whether the print head nozzles are clogged, print the Nozzle Check Pattern.
If the print quality is still poor, perform two print head cleanings.
Print the Nozzle Check Pattern again.
Step 3:
Perform deep print head cleaning.
This is a more powerful cleaning.

Displaying the Maintenance screen

1. Ensure that the printer is powered on.
   
   
2. Press the <Menu> button.
   
   
3. Press the left or right cursor to select [Maintenance/settings], then press <OK>.
   
   
4. Press the left or right cursor to select [Maintenance], then press <OK>.
   

Print Nozzle Check Pattern

1. Press the Open button to open the output tray.
   
   
   
   
2. Load letter-sized plain paper in the auto sheet feeder (ASF) or the cassette.
   
   
3. Display the Maintenance screen on the printer.
   
   
4. Press the up or down cursor to select [Nozzle check], then press the <OK>.
   
   
   
   
5. Press the up or down cursor to select [Yes], then press <OK>. (The nozzle check pattern is printed.)
   
   
6. Confirm the nozzle check pattern.
   

< 1 > The normal nozzle check pattern
< 2 > The abnormal nozzle check pattern
< 3 > Some black ink lines are broken.
< 4 > White lines are present in the color ink pattern.
< 5 > Both black and color inks are not present.

Note:

1. When all patterns are printed normally, press the up / down cursor button to select "All A" and press the OK button.
   
   
2. When any patterns are printed abnormally, press the up / down cursor button to select "Also B" and press the OK button.
   

Print Head Cleaning:

1. Display the Maintenance screen on the printer.
   
   
2. Press the up or down cursor to select [Cleaning], then press <OK>.
   
   
   
   
3. Press the up or down cursor to select [Yes], then press <OK> to start print head cleaning.
   
   Note:
   Do not do any other operations until print head cleaning is completed.
   
   
   
4. Print the nozzle check pattern and check the print head status.
   

Deep (Print Head) cleaning:

1. Display the Maintenance screen.
   
   
2. Press the up or down cursor to select [Deep cleaning], then press <OK>.
   
   
   
   
3. Press the up or down cursor to select [Yes], then press <OK> to start print head deep cleaning.
   
   Note:
   Do not do any other operations until print head deep cleaning is completed.
   
   
   
4. Print the nozzle check pattern and check the print head status.
   
   Note:
   If the printed result does not improve even after doing print head deep cleaning, turn off the printer. Then, after 24 hours or later, do print head deep cleaning again. (After a given time interval, ink could dissolve itself, resulting in ink unclogging.)
   

I hope this information allows you to resolve this issue. If you need further assistance, please post back with a comment to this thread.
If I've managed to answer your question or solve a problem, please take just a moment to rate this post....thanks!

Dear louis,
You have done right thing by cleaning the print head. If the print head still clogged after repeatedly cleaning, It seems that the print head need to be replace with new one. Make it sure by printing nozzle check pattern. Is it good or not?.
Regards,

Source:
Canon Inkjet Printer Forum

do you have the canon print management software installed? it's located in the maintenance tab on that software.

www.canon.com has that by model number