SVG images prints "rasterized" with jagged edges

[yoggo]

Hello,

When exporting a pdf/X4, the svg images comes out with jagged edges and looks "rasterized" when printed by professional printers. The svg was made in inkscape with a transparent background. The magazine printed is in black and white without background color, som I'm not sure creating the image with a background color would solve the problem.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[toyotadesigner]

You wrote »images«. Do you mean images or graphics, i.e. vector graphics? If there is a bitmap in a vector graphic, everything will be rasterized when generating the PDF.

[yoggo]

Yes I mean vector graphics. There is no bitmap, it is purely vector graphics.

[toyotadesigner]

OK, is there is bitmap behind the vector graphic or on top of it? Are there any fonts embedded (i.e. some characters, words)?

When you open the SVG with an associated software (Inkscape, PhotoLine?), will it print flawlessly? If not, the SVG export format might not be compatible for printing.

If the file contains fonts, you might try to re-open the SVG and convert text to curves before you save and import it again.

If you can post the SVG, we could try it in different Scribus environments to check if the problem persists.

I've attached a clean SVG, which you might place in Scribus and check the PDF.

[yoggo]

Thanks for replying!

The vector graphics looks fine in scribus, but prints jagged or kind of "rasterized". My svg has no text, it's just a vector graphic.
I don't have a printer, the pdf (a newspaper) was printed by a printshop, so I can't test your graphics, unfortunately.

I have attached the svg and a picture, albeit a bad one, of the printed result.

[toyotadesigner]

Somewhat pixelated 

How does the corresponding PDF/X-4 look — does it display the same pixelation/rasterize graphic? If not (smooth lines in the graphic), the RIP (Raster Image Processor) of the printshop does have a problem. If yes, something in the import went wrong or the svg does have some settings which PDF/X-4 doesn't support.

[yoggo]

The graphics are smooth in the pdf, so I guess that means I have to ask the printshop what went wrong. We have been meaning to change printshop anyway, I just wanted to make sure the problem didn't originate from my end.

Thanks for helping me narrow down the source of the problem!