Help! Problems with placed (.eps) logos in InDesign

[jamesmurphy]

Can anyone shed some light on a problem for me!

I have an ad which has been put together in InDesign. Within the ad is x4 logos all of which are the same bar a line of text at the base. Now each logo has a gradient (20% black to 10% black) running in the background.

I supplied the artwork using the PDFX1A setting to our printers, and when they sent a PDF proof back to us the logos don't all look the same! One of the x4 logos has the correct gradient in the background, however the other 3 just have a sold 20% black panel! All the logo files are illustrator.eps files set up as CMYK, containing the same colours/ artwork!!

Now to add yet more issues, the proof prints fine from our studio printer, the problem can only be replicated from the colour desktop printer the girls use down stairs. Maybe a level 2-RIP etc, however why does x1 of the logos come out fine!

I'm worried about how this will print! Thank you VERY much for any ideas±!

James

 

[jmgalvin]

You might check to see if the eps options from Ai were all set the same - like Transparency, overprint, and Compatible Gradient and mesh printing. This is assuming that you brought the gradient into the Id doc as part of the eps.

You could try just bringing in the logos and creating the backround gradient in ID. Make it once in ID and then clone that to ensure 100% sameness.

Lastly, if this is a grayscale ad, I always "print" a grayscale postscript file and then distill that through Acrobat Distiller - getting rid of all other color info. I do this because ID, at least my version 3, does not give the option to output grayscale pdfs.

Using OSX 10.3.9 on a G4

 

[jimoblak]

I would ask what the printer is using to impose and process the PDF files. PDF/X-1a does not guarantee compatibility with everyone.

Even QuarkXPress can choke on some PDF/X-1a files.