Reset HP Color Laser? - No Hard Drive

[drosen123]

Hello to all:
I recently acquired 2 HP Color LaserJet printers - a 3800dtn and a CP4005n.
Both were previously used by a bank, which is required to remove any confidential information before sale. They may have been configured with hard drives because there is a place for them on the formatter board.

Both printers act the same. They power on and the fans run, and I can here them setting up. BUT absolutely nothing shows on the lcd - it is not lit, no memory counting, no initialization, nothing. I feel sure it is because of what the bank had to remove before sale.

How do I get these printers to initialize and run?

What am I missing, can't I run without hard drives, and if I need hard drives what kind do I need to buy?

Thank you very much - please help!!!!!

[Big Al]

Check the formatter boards and see if they have memory dimm's. Someone at the bank may have removed them thinking information was stored on them.

Al

[drosen123]

Thank you very much for the help, hope you can stay with me and see this through.

One of the printers had a DIMM, but as noted the printer didn't work. I tried it in the other printer, didn't make any difference it still didn't work. Maybe it was a bad DIMM, but that seemed unlikely.

I can buy another DIMM, just don't want to throw good money after bad and increase my loss, but DO want to try and get these things working.

1. Neither printer has any built-in memory, so we are sure they would not work even without this extra DIMM on the formatter board(s)?

2. A bad DIMM on the formatter board would produce the problem I described - printer turns on and makes noise like it is setting up, then it stops and becomes quiet, and throughout the lcd is unlit and blank?

Thank you so much for helping me......

[Big Al]

I have to ask some questions here to procede.Put the DIMM back in the printer it came out of. It is probably not interchangeable with the other printer. Did you do a COLD RESET? You can go to the Internet and download a free copy of the Service Manuals.
Find the IT person at the bank and see if the printers worked before they were sold?
You will need a DIMM for the printer that came without one.

When you turn it on does the memory count scroll across the display screen? Is there anything on the display screen?

Without a working printer to swap parts with your options are limited.

If you can get it to a READY state then you can try the Engine Test Switch.

Al

Al

[drosen123]

Big Al:
Thanks for staying with me!

1. When I turn either printer on, there is NO memory count, the screen is not lit up and it is blank. It stays that way the whole time, even though when turned on I hear the noise of what I suppose is the internal wheels turning as it sets up. The fuser gets hot.

2. I can't do a cold reset because there is no memory count and the lcd is unlit and blank.

3. I just bought a new memory stick of the right specification (both printers use the same kind). It did nothing on either printer.

[drosen123]

Forgot to mention - I can't get to the bank's IT guy because the bank failed and was taken over by the FDIC - that is how the auction came about. The bank's employees are all long gone...

[drosen123]

So sorry, I think I'm losing my mind.

I also neglected to mention that after inspection, I don't see any removable cards (except for the new DIMM I installed) in any slots on either formatter board - is there supposed to be a required, separate, removable firmware card on each formatter board?

[redcow]

Compact Flash Firmware card should be on the formatter.
CB399-67907 for the 3800.
Q7725-67942 for the CP4005

[drosen123]

Redcow, thank you so much.
Slowly but surely, I am directed to what is obvious to everyone else.

Looks like I was hooked by the seller, who said printers were working but removed the firmware card from each. I am assuming that it would be impossible for a private user's information to be on an HP proprietary firmware card, so seller's statement that they were required to remove only devices containing private information, and then removing the firmware cards, would be baloney - right?

Where does one buy such cards without breaking the bank?

[drosen123]

Thanks to everyone for their help.
The problem is that the firmware cards on both printers were removed.
I have some questions about that, but I think it would be better to now closed this thread.

[cs_steve]

PrinterTechs.com may have the firmware you are looking for call us @ 1.866.352.7108.

[drosen123]

I called, and even though both parts not shown on website both were actually in stock (Yea!!!!!!) and to be shipped today. Spoke with Steve, super nice helpful person. Reasonable prices, fast shipping, I am sooo happy. Hopefully by middle of next week I will have both printers working.
Will post a followup after parts are received.