Muse M15 User manual

User Manual

Introduction and Safety
1.0 Support
1.1 Safety & Warnings
For Muse support, please go to
https://techsupport.signwarehouse.com/muse-vinyl-cutter-support-resources/
Please read the following safety guidelines regarding use of your Muse cutter:
Symbols inside triangles represent important notes that warrant your full attention. There are
dierent symbols denoting specic warnings. The symbol at left, for example, warns of a
possible danger of electric shock.
The cross-bar indicates activities that are prohibited because of risk of injury or possible
damage to your equipment. This particular symbol at left warns against the use of tools to
remove parts of the equipment.
Don't use with an electrical power source which doesn't meet the required voltage rating.
Using with substandard sources of electricity may result in re or electric shock.
Don't use your Muse if it begins to emit an odor or smoke.
Don't un-plug your Muse while powered on. Doing so may damage the equipment.
Make sure your Muse is grounded. Using your Muse without it being grounded may result in risk
of equipment damage or electric shock.
1
Thank you for choosing a Muse vinyl cutter.

Don't disassemble your Muse or attempt repairs unless directed by
SignWarehouse technical support.
Don't drop any liquids or metal objects into your Muse. Liquids or impact from hard
or heavy objects may damage the equipment.
Touching your Muse’s blade with your nger may result in injury.
Don't damage or replace the power cable supplied with the vinyl cutter. Don't
excessively bend, pull, or fold the power cable or place weight on it. Crimping
the power cable may result in risk of failure or electric shock.
If you're not going to use your Muse for a long time, unplug the power
cable from the outlet.
Placing your hands on the cutting platen during operation may result in injury.
Place your cutter on a stable surface. Operating the vinyl cutter on an
unstable surface may result in a fall that can damage the equipment or
internal components.
To unplug the power cable from a receptacle, always grasp the plug
instead of the cable. Pulling the cable may damage it and increase
the risk of re or electric shock.
Don't operate during an electrical storm where lightning is present. For protection
against power surges, a surge protector is recommended.
Don't physically move the cutting head while your Muse is powered on. Manually
moving the cutting head during operation may damage the main board.

11 1
1.3 Warranty
1.4 Muse Contents & Accessories
The Muse cutter comes with a one-year parts warranty. If you have any questions about your cutter’s warranty,
please contact SIGNWarehouse via our warranty claim form at techsupport.signwarehouse.com.
It is recommended that you keep your original box with the Styrofoam packing materials in case your Muse
must be shipped or returned to SIGNWarehouse.
Besides the cutter, your box should also contain the following items:
Accessories Box containing all of the
following except for the Cutting Mat
Power Adaptor
M15 M24 M60
Power Cable
USB Cable (white or blue)
30° Blade
45° Blade
60° Blade
Blade Holder
Test Pen
Engraving Tool
Creasing Tool
Cutting Mat
11 1
-1 1
11 1
11 1
1- -
22 2
-1 1
21 1
21 1
-- 1
1- -

1.5 Parts of the Muse Cutter
Parts of the Muse 15 and 24
1.5.1
Fig. 1.5.3
Fig. 1.5.4
Fig. 1.5.2
Fig. 1.5.1
Right Cover

Parts of the Muse 60
1.5.2
Fig. 1.5.5
Fig. 1.5.6
Fig. 1.5.7

1.6 Accessories
1.7 Pinch Rollers
The test pen is used in calibrating the Muse’s camera (Section 3.01),
calibrating the Scale (Section 2.07), and is also recommended for test
drawing while you are learning where shapes will cut based on various
software settings. Note that a small piece of wax needs to be removed from
the pen’s nib before use. You may also wish to cut o the very top of the pen
rell so that it more easily ts into your Muse:
Your Muse is designed for cutting rolls and sheets of adhesive-backed lms such as vinyl, stencil mask and
sandblast etching lms. It can also use the included cutting mat for non-backed materials such as paper,
cardstock, magnet sheets and Mylar.
Press down the lever on the back of your M15 or M24 to raise the pinch rollers. On the M60 model, there are
individual levers on each pinch wheel which are lifted instead.
Insert the media into the space between the pinch roller and grit roller and pull out the media far enough to
ensure that it is loaded straight. The edges of the vinyl should be parallel to the left and the right frame of the
cutting platen. (A ‘platen’ is the lower plate that supports the vinyl as it passes through the cutter.)
The 30° yellow capped blade (not shown) is well-suited for window
tint and fabric. It is included with the M60.
The 45° red capped blade is well-suited for cutting thinner materials such as heat transfer vinyl and
wall/auto/decal vinyl. Two of these are included with the Muse.
The 60° blue capped blade has a longer cutting edge and is well-suited for cutting thicker materials like
sandblast stencil, ock, craft foam, magnet sheets, light chipboard, rhinestone template materials, etc. It
is included with the M15 and the M24.
Installing the blades into the blade holder is covered in Section 2.01. Blade Oset is covered in Section
2.02.2.
1.
2.
3.
Test Pen
1.6.1
Muse Blades
1.6.2
There are two kinds of blades that came with your Muse (note that which two
kinds dier depending on the model you purchased).

1.8 Control Panel
When you rst power on the Muse, the following Main Screen
or Home Screen will be displayed after several seconds:
The functions of the buttons on this Main Screen are:
SET: Opens the SETTING menu with access to other functions,
such as CAMERA, WI-FI, ARRAY, ADVANCED SETTINGS, etc.
See Section 1.8.1.
RECUT: Recuts the last job which is stored in the Muse’s memory. Note that while the Muse is cutting, this
button will read PAUSE. Pressing it will pause the cutting process in case any changes need to be made.
Pressing again will resume the cut.
UDISK: Opens the UDISK window allowing access to les on a USB thumb drive plugged into the Muse’s USB
Flash Drive port. Files must be saved in .PLT format to appear in the menu (See Sections 1.10.6 – 1.10.8 for
details).
STOP: One-touch emergency stop button stops the cutter and cancels the cut.
SPD/FOR: This button opens the SPEED/FORCE screen where you can optionally set the cutting speeds and
force of the cutter, as well as access the stored presets (See Sections 2.2-2.5).
TEST: Press the TEST button to cut a small square. This is recommended to ensure a clean cut is achieved with
the current settings before proceeding with a cut job.
Slide the pinch roller assemblies left and right so that the pinch rollers are centered over the grit roller.
The positions of the exposed grit rollers in the platen are marked by white arrows above the platen.
You may raise the cover above the tool carriage to see the arrows more clearly. Be sure to close it
before cutting.
Once the pinch rollers are in position, lower them to keep
your media in place. When using the cutting mat, you
need at least two wheels near the outside edges of the
mat, thus center the mat inside the cutter (versus having it
all the way to one side).
Each pinch roller on the M15 and M24 has a little lever on
the back side. These levers adjust the amount of pressure
applied to the media. Increasing the pressure can help
with slicker or thinner media such as heat transfer lm. It
may be advisable to reduce the pressure to accommodate
thicker materials like glass etch stencil. For normal use, like heat
transfer vinyl and sign vinyl, keep the levers in the higher position:
Fig. 1.8.1

Arrows: The left-right arrows move the tool carriage while the up-down arrows move the grit rollers.
This allows you to start cutting anywhere on the media (i.e. set an origin).
Double Arrow: The double arrow button controls the speed of the tool carriage and grit rollers while
setting a new origin. The default setting is the faster mode. Pressing this button once will change the
color of the button from blue to red, which indicates the slower mode. This mode can be used for very
precise movement.
Setting Menu
1.8.1
The Setting menu provides access to seven additional
screens on two dierent pages:
These various functions and settings are:v
TO START: return the blade holder to the origin (the location immediately before the cut was started
TO END: advance the blade holder to the top of the completed cut with the option to move an additional
distance
To LEFT: advance the blade holder to the left of the completed cut with the option to move an additional
distance
ARRAY: Set up rows and columns of repeats with desired spacing (refer to Section 1.8.4)
ADVANCE SETTINGS: Refer to Section 1.8.3.
GENERAL SETTINGS: Refer to Section 1.8.2.
SYSTEM INFORMATION: Hardware and rmware versions, Baud rate, and other settings that should need no
adjustment unless directed by a SignWarehouse technical representative.
General Settings
1.8.2
Press SET on the Muse control panel and select GENERAL
SETTINGS. The optional settings are:
CAMERA: Opens the CAMERA SETTINGS menu.
Refer to Section 3.00.
WIFI: Connect the MUSE to your home or oce router for
wireless connectivity (refer to Sections 1.10.4 and 1.10.5).
ADVANCE MODE: Three options for where the blade holder goes at the end of a cut:
Fig. 1.8.2
Fig. 1.8.3

LED: This option allows you to customize the platen lighting in your Muse.
On the M15 and M24, the default color is a cool blue. But if blue isn’t your cup of tea, you can change on this
screen. There are slider bars to help pick a custom color. You can also turn o the LED platen lighting if you
wish. Note: In case of an error during cutting, the LED platen lighting will immediately turn red to indicate an
alarm condition.
On the M60, you can change the intensity of the white light according to your personal preference.
.
Advanced Settings
1.8.3
Press SET on the Main Screen and select ADVANCE
SETTINGS. The optional settings are:
SHOW POINT: This feature shows the origin point
of your cut jobs. When toggled on, the Main Screen
will display an updated center button used to reset
the origin, as well as some location positions:
Absolute Location displays the current location relative
to the “power-on” origin point of (0,0):
!
Xis the position relative to the movement of the
cutter’s tool carriage from left to right across the
platen.
Yis the position relative to the forward and
backward motion of the media as it is fed by the
grit rollers.
Lis the straight-line distance from Xto Y.
ALARM: Enabling ALARM AFTER COMPLETED will produce an audible alarm of 5 beeps once a job completes.
Uncheck this box if you wish to turn o this feature. Similarly, enabling LED AFTER JOB COMPLETED will change
the LED color to blue once a job completes.
This feature is only on the M15 and M24 models.
SCREENSAVER: After a predetermined period of time, the cutter goes into standby mode to save energy and the
LCD screen will darken as the cutter goes to sleep. You can change the amount of time before sleep mode
begins.
UNIT: This setting allows you to choose the unit of measurement for all functions involving distance, such as the
spacing between repeats or position of the cutting head. The default setting is MILLIMETERS (mm). The other
option is INCHES (in). Because the SPEED and FORCE settings on a Muse are based on a scale versus units, they
remain the same whether you are in imperial mode or metric.
LANGUAGE: This screen oers a choice of three languages: English, Spanish, and Mandarin. You can choose one
of these for the language in which all settings and menu communication are displayed
Fig. 1.8.4
Fig. 1.8.5

Relative location displays a new location relative to the last origin you set. This will match the Absolute
Location until you press the origin set button:
Array Setup
1.8.4
This feature allows you to convert one cut job into multiple
copies and arrange them in rows and columns.
Tap the ARRAY button to open the ARRAY SETTINGS screen:
In FIG 1.8.6, the le sent to the Muse would be cut in a
pattern or array of eighteen copies, arranged in six rows and
three columns. The spacing between each row is set to 1”
and the spacing between each column is set to 0.5”. Note
that the units can be changed to metric, if desired (refer to
Section 1.8.2).
Y KEY MODE: This setting controls how the Muse cutter moves your media forward or backward (along
the Y axis), as you press the up/down arrow keys on the control panel.
GO RIGHT WHEN POWER ON: When this setting is enabled, the tool
carriage will move to the right side of the cutter when the cutter is
powered on. Otherwise, the tool carriage remains in its current position.
SYSTEM MODE: This screen is only needed for the M60 model in which
you can activate both heads to be used. Once the DOUBLE option is
selected, the Main Screen will update so that you can elect to use the
left side, right side, or both:
SCALE: This setting is used to input the sizing calibration. Refer to Section 2.7.
xis the current left-to-right distance moved from the last origin (how far you have moved the tool
carriage across the platen).
yis the current up-&-down distance moved from the last origin (how far you have moved the media
forward or backward in the Muse).
lis the straight-line distance relative to the last origin.
In the DEFAULT setting, pressing the up arrow moves the media forward and pressing the down arrow
moves it backwards.
Setting the Y KEY MODE to INVERSE will ip this so that pressing the up arrow will move the media
backwards.
Use the ARRAY feature to
set up repeats of a design
sent to the Muse
Fig. 1.8.6
Fig. 1.8.7
Blade holder at right
edge of platen

Depending on which software you purchased with your Muse vinyl cutter,
there are two ways to set it up:
1.
2.
Place your Muse on a sturdy horizontal surface. Keep the area around the Muse free of clutter and
unnecessary items. This will prevent other objects from obstructing normal feeding of media through the
cutter. Impacts with items around the cutter can cause a material to lift o the platen or feed incorrectly.
Either of these can negatively impact cut quality and/or tracking.
To turn on the power for the M15 or M24, press the power button on the right end cap. For the M60,
ip the switch up on the left end cap.
The Muse will take a few seconds to power up. The LED light will come on and the tool carriage will engage.
REMEMBER: Once the cutter is on, do not move the tool carriage manually. This can damage
the tool carriage and/or main board. Use only the arrows on the control panel to move the tool carriage.
To power o your M15 or M24 cutter, press and hold the power button until the cutter powers down. On the
M60, ip the power switch down.
There are 3 ways that you can connect your Muse to the computer:
You may choose any one of these three connectivity options. You can also change from one to the other at
will, but for best results use one at a time. Here are the benets of each connectivity option:
You’ll nd complete step-by-step instructions on our Product Support
Blog for LXi. Please click here to access the setup tutorial or go to
https://techsupport.signwarehouse.com/
To install Create Space, download the software from the following
link (note there are separate links for Mac and Windows users). You
will also nd a video to assist you with installation and activation of
your registration number:
https://techsupport.signwarehouse.com/create-space-software-support-resources/
1.
2.
3.
1.
USB Cable
Wi-Fi
USB Flash Drive
The USB cable is the simplest and most reliable connection. Setup is quick and easy. See Sections 1.10.1
or 1.10.2 for instructions.
1.9 Registering and Installing the Design Software
1.10 Connecting the Muse to Your Computer

USB Connection in LXi
1.10.1
Turn on the Muse before connecting to your computer. Using the USB cable that came with the cutter, plug
the wider end into your computer’s USB port and the squarish end into the cutter’s USB port which is on the
right end cap (see FIG. 1.5.4).
Open LXi Production Manager. If this is your rst time opening LXi, a popup screen will request a Brand and
Model selection. Otherwise, select Setup and from the drop-down menu, click Add Setup.
From the pop-up window, choose MUSE as the Brand. Find and select M15, M24 or M60 in the Model
window:
Click Next. The setup window will ask how your Muse is connected to the computer. Open the drop-down
menu and select the largest available option for USB_Printer_X where Xwill be 0, 1, 2, etc. For example, if you
see both USB_Printer_0 and USB_Printer_1 then you would select USB_Printer_1 because it is the higher of
the two. It is not recommended that you select USB001 or USB002 (or other) from that menu. They may work
for basic functions but may not adequately support contour cutting.
Click on Finish at the bottom of the Add Setup window.
2.
3.
Wi-Fi takes a little more time and care to set up but oers a wireless environment in which the cutter
can be used without being connected to the computer on which the software is installed. See Section
1.10.3 and Section 1.10.4 or 1.10.5 for detailed instructions.
The USB ash drive option allows you to use the cutter without being connected to the PC. Files can be
saved from the design station computer in .PLT format and transferred to the cutter using a USB thumb
drive. See Sections 1.10.6 - 1.10.8.
Fig. 1.10.1
Fig. 1.10.2

Turn on the Muse before connecting to your computer. Using the USB cable that came with the cutter, plug
the wider end into your computer’s USB port, and the squarish end into the cutter’s USB port which is on the
right end cap (see FIG. 1.5.4).
Open Create Space and select New Project.
Go to Cutter>My Cutter>Manage Cutters and a new window will open (FIG. 1.10.3).
A new window will open. On the right side, under Company/Brand select MUSE and under Model select M.
Click Add to list. Click Done to apply and close the window.
Once you are ready to cut, click the Cutter icon on the Toolbar at the top of the screen. The Cut Settings
window will open and, in the Connection drop-down menu, select USB. You can change the port or leave it
on Auto Detect. If you click on Test Connection, it should move the blade carriage back and forth one time.
This does not send a cut, just a signal to the cutter.
USB Connection in Create Space
1.10.2
For initial setup using the Wi-Fi option, you may need to place the Muse in the same room or in close
proximity to the Wi-Fi router. This will create a stronger connection and faster Wi- network conguration.
Once the connection is set, you can move the cutter around within the limits of your router’s coverage area.
Connecting the Muse to a Wi-Fi Network
1.10.3
Fig. 1.10.3
Fig. 1.10.4

You will need the name of the network and the password.
Carefully complete the following steps:
1.
2.
On the Control Panel, press the SET button to access the SETTING menu:
Press the WIFI icon:
3.
4.
5.
In the next screen, press the SCAN button and a list of wireless networks will appear. Select your network
and press APPLY.
Press the SET button and enter your network password. Press OK.
An IP address (IP ADDR) will appear. The rst three sets of values will be obtained from your network. Use
the + or – buttons to set the last digits of the IP ADDR that you wish to use:
Fig. 1.10.5
Fig. 1.10.6
Fig. 1.10.7

6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
Press APPLY to set the changes and add the Muse to your wireless network. This can take up to a minute or
longer.
Note the complete IP address at the top of the window (FIG. 1.10.7). You will be entering this same IP
address in the software you use for cutting.
If you need to reset or change networks, press and hold the DEFAULT button for 3 seconds. This will reset
the settings and enable you to change the network.
Before connecting the Muse to your computer using a Wi-Fi connection, you must verify that your
computer is also connected to the same network. To do this, locate and launch the network icon for your
computer:
A menu of available networks will appear. Select the network used for the Muse setup and, if needed,
enter the network password. Wait a bit for the connection to be made and the menu should indicate
you are now connected to that network.
Proceed to either the next section (if using LXi Production Manager) or Section 1.10.5 (if using Create
Space).
On a PC: On a Mac:
If the APPLY button on the Muse WiFi screen changes to CONNECTED OK, you have successfully
connected!
If the APPLY button changes to PASSWORD ERR, check your settings, and enter the correct values.
Click on the Network icon.
(usually in lower right corner)
Click on the Network icon.
(usually in upper right corner)
If you are connected via
Ethernet, your network icon
may look like this.
Wi-Fi Connection in LXi
1.10.4
Open LXi Production Manager. If this is your rst time opening LXi, a pop-up screen will request a Brand and
Model selection. Otherwise, select Setup and from the drop-down menu, click Add Setup.
From the pop-up window, choose MUSE as the Brand. Find and select M15, M24 or M60 in the Model
window:
Fig. 1.10.8

Click Next. The setup window shown in FIG. 1.10.9 will ask how your Muse is connected to the computer.
Select TCP/IP. A small window will appear in which you can type in the cutter’s IP Address from Step 7 in
Section 1.10.3 (FIG. 1.10.7)
Below TCP/ IP address, you will need to enter the
correct Port number which is 8080. Enter this
value and click Test. If you have a successful
connection, LXi will indicate success. Click on OK
to close the Communication window. Click on
Finish at the bottom of the Add Setup window.
If Test fails, check the Muse again to verify the
network name and the IP address. If you change
settings, it may be necessary to wait a minute
and start from the beginning of the process in
order to allow the computer time to reset and
recognize the Wi-Fi connection.
Wi-Fi Connection in Create Space
1.10.5
Open Create Space and select New Project.
Go to Cutter>My Cutter>Manage Cutters.
A new window will open. On the right side, under Company/Brand select MUSE and under Model select
M. Click Add to list. Click Done to apply and close the window:
Once you are ready to cut, click the Cutter
icon on the Toolbar at the top of the
screen. The Cut Settings window will open
and, in the Connection drop-down menu,
select TCP/IP (FIG. 1.10.11)
In the IP eld, type in the IP Address from
Step 7 in Section 1.10.3.
Once you type in the IP address, click on
Test Connection, it will move the blade
carriage back and forth. This does not
send a cut, just a signal to the cutter. If not
connected, you may need to change the
IP address to a free number on your
system.
Fig. 1.10.11
Fig. 1.10.9
Fig. 1.10.10
Fig. 1.10.11

USB Flash Drive Setup in LXi
1.10.6
If you are new to LXi, follow the rst few steps in Section 1.10.1 to add the Muse to LXi Production Manager.
Using the UDISK (USB thumb drive) option involves saving a .PLT le containing the cut design and some
or all of the cut settings. This le can then be opened directly onto the Muse and cut. Remember that with
this option, once the le is saved to the thumb drive, the design is locked in and cannot be edited, other
than setting up an array of repeats.
Once your le is ready to cut in LXi, insert a USB ash drive into the design station computer.
Click on OK and LXi Production
Manager will open.
The Cut/Plot window will also have opened. On the General tab, select SAVE to FILE from the Send
mode drop-down menu:
When you have made any necessary changes to the le size, copies, rotation, etc., click the Send button at
the bottom right of the Cut/Plot window.
A window will open prompting you to select the desired location to save the .PLT le. Browse to the
installed ash drive and save the le after entering a new name. Go to Section 1.10.8.
Change the Port connection by right clicking on the Muse in the Production Manager list, and
selected Change Port (as shown in FIG. 1.10.14)
In the Change Port window, select FILE and then complete other options, as preferred:
Go to File>Cut/Plot or click the Cut/Plot
icon . A window will open and you will
need to select the location of the LXi
Production Manager in relation to your
design station computer:
NOTE: if you will continually be using the USB Flash Drive as your method of sending les to the Muse:
Fig. 1.10.12
Fig. 1.10.13

If you are new to Create Space, follow the rst few steps in Section 1.10.2 to add the Muse to Create
Space.
Using the UDISK (USB thumb drive) option involves saving a .PLT le containing the cut design and
some or all of the cut settings. This le can then be opened directly onto the Muse and cut. Remember
that with this option, once the le is saved to the thumb drive, the design is locked in and cannot be
edited, other than setting up an array of repeats.
In the Cut Settings window, verify you see the design in the Preview as shown in FIG. 1.10.15, and choose
either Origin Point (move shapes to cut at the origin) or WYSIWYG mode (leave shapes in location on
virtual mat in main window) depending on which you prefer.
Mark the box for Use Software Speed and Pressure, if you want those included in the le. Otherwise, leave
the box unchecked and you can set those values on the Muse’s control panel. The other cut settings
including Blade Oset,Overcut, and Multi-cut
(Passes) will always be included in the .PLT le:
Once your le is ready to cut, insert a USB ash drive into the computer. Click on Save to File at the bottom of
the Cut Settings window. A new window opens where you can browse to nd the USB ash drive, name the
le, and mark the box for Add registration marks, if this is a contour cutting application.
USB Flash Drive Setup in Create Space
1.10.7
Fig. 1.10.14
Fig. 1.10.15

Loading and Cutting a .PLT File from the USB Drive
1.10.8
Insert the USB ash drive into your Muse cutter’s USB Flash Drive Port (see FIG. 1.5.4).
On the Main Screen, press the SPD/FOR button and change the FORCE and SPEED settings if you did not
elect to send them within the .PLT le (refer to Section 2.02.1). Perform a test cut, if needed.
Press the UDISK icon on the Main Screen. Press OPEN to access the les on the USB ash drive. The Muse
will browse the contents of the installed USB thumb drive and display all readable .PLT les (Note: If there
are folders on the drive, you may have to use the touch screen to open the correct folder to nd the saved
.PLT le).
Locate the le you wish to cut and double tap it. The le will then be loaded into the U DISK PORT FILES
screen:
Press START CUT to cut the .PLT le. Note that if you want to cut repeats refer to the Array function covered
in Section 10.8.4.
1.11 Maintenance
All Muse cutters are made with high-quality internal lubrication to protect all mechanical components.
Therefore, there is no need to oil or lubricate any of the components, ever! Daily care consists of cleaning the
platen and blade holder to prevent buildup of dust and material debris. Dusting the platen with a soft brush
will get the job done perfectly. Debris inside the blade holder can be removed using a can of compressed air
and a nozzle. Also, make sure the pinch rollers and grit rollers are kept clean and free of any stickiness.
Fig. 1.10.16