A single pass and multi-pass 2-in-1 digital print machine is one machine that can produce in either production mode: multi-pass scanning for flexible short runs at 700–1,500 m/h, or single-pass direct output for long runs at 45–110 m/min — switching between the two as the order mix demands. In practice, that means a box plant can keep one footprint, one ink system, and one operator skill set while serving both the high-mix, short-run market and the high-volume contract market on the same press.
This is the GJ series concept in our lineup — the "multi-pass and 2-in-1" family — and it is the machine we recommend to a specific kind of buyer: the plant that has already outgrown a single-mode machine but is not ready to commit to two separate presses. In this article I will explain how the two modes differ, why the 2-in-1 configuration exists, the honest trade-offs, and the three buyer profiles that get real value from it.
In one sentence: a 2-in-1 machine runs on the Epson head platform in five colors, and lets you use multi-pass for the jobs that change every hour and single-pass for the jobs that run all day — without buying two presses.
What the Two Modes Actually Do on the Factory Floor
Before talking about the 2-in-1, it helps to be precise about the two modes, because the names get thrown around a lot:
| Mode | How it works | Speed range | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multi-pass | The print bar scans back and forth across the board | 700–1,500 m/h | Frequent job changes, short runs, mixed board types |
| Single-pass | The board moves under a fixed print bar in one continuous pass | 45–110 m/min | Long steady runs, contract volume, linked production lines |
A single-pass and multi-pass 2-in-1 digital print machine is not a machine that guesses which mode you want — it is a machine where the mode is part of the job setup, the same way resolution or color profile is. The operator loads the job, and the machine runs it in the mode that fits. The two-mode structure is detailed on our multi-pass and single-pass 2-in-1 series page.
Why the Single Pass and Multi-Pass 2-in-1 Digital Print Machine Exists
The 2-in-1 exists because of a pattern we see in box plants all over the world: their order mix is not neatly "short-run" or "high-volume" — it is both, and the split shifts month to month. When we visit a plant considering two machines, the math rarely works out cleanly:
- Two machines, two skill sets — different head platforms, different ink, different operator habits, double spare-parts stock
- Two machines, two footprints — floor space in a converting plant is never free, and a second press often means reorganizing the whole line
- One machine, one mode — fine for now, but the plant loses the flexibility to chase the other market when the mix shifts
The 2-in-1 answers all three: one platform, one operator culture, one machine — with the mode selected per job. The machine variants are available at 600 DPI and 1200 DPI, and in a five-color CMYK + White version, which we will get to in a moment. See the configurations on the 600 DPI product page and the 1200 DPI product page.
Who Actually Needs the 2-in-1: Three Buyer Profiles
After years of helping customers pick between our multi-pass, single-pass, and 2-in-1 lines, we can narrow the genuine 2-in-1 buyer down to three profiles:
Profile 1 — The growing plant with a split order book.
Short-run custom work today, a retail contract tomorrow, back to custom work next week. A single-mode machine forces them to refuse one of those two markets; the 2-in-1 refuses nothing.
Profile 2 — The plant that wants one platform, not two.
They value the simplicity of one ink system, one head-maintenance routine, one spare-parts list, and one set of trained operators. For them, "two modes in one machine" is the whole point.
Profile 3 — The converter upgrading from flexo.
They have been running plates for years and want plate-free flexibility, but they also carry steady volume that needs the higher continuous speed. The 2-in-1 lets them make one investment instead of planning two.
Five Colors Change What the Machine Can Sell
The five-color variant of the 2-in-1 prints CMYK plus white, and that single channel changes the addressable market. On brown kraft liner, white goes down first as a base so the CMYK sits on a bright surface — the difference between printing "on kraft" and printing "on white over kraft." The second option is where premium brand work lives, and it is available in both modes on the same machine. The five-color 2-in-1 is covered on our five-color product page.
The platform also carries the operational advantages of the whole Goking range: no plates, one-minute job changeover, CMYK color matched on screen via computer color mixing, no need for a professional plate-making operator, low power consumption, and the ability to connect to high-speed printing, slotting, and automatic stacking units and to ERP systems. All of it applies in both modes, because it is the same machine.
From Our Experience: When the 2-in-1 Paid for Its Flexibility
We have commissioned 2-in-1 machines in plants where the week looks like this: Monday through Wednesday, dozens of small custom orders for local brands — classic multi-pass work. Thursday, a repeat run for a retailer that wants 10,000 identical boxes — classic single-pass work. Before the 2-in-1, that plant either ran everything on one mode and accepted the inefficiency, or it turned work away.
One customer described the change simply: the machine stopped being the bottleneck in their sales conversation. Their sales team no longer had to check "which mode" before quoting — they quoted the job, and the press ran it in the mode that fit. That is the practical effect of the 2-in-1: it moves the flexibility decision from the boardroom to the job file, where it belongs.
There is one habit we encourage in every plant that buys a single pass and multi-pass 2-in-1 digital print machine: keep a written mode log for the first month. Every job gets a line — mode chosen, board type, run length, changeover time — and after thirty days the log shows which mode each part of the order book actually needs. In our experience the split is rarely what the buyer predicted on paper, and that is exactly why the 2-in-1 is the right tool for the middle: the machine adapts while the log teaches the plant its own patterns. We also point out that the 600 and 1200 DPI variants cover different quality tiers — 1200 DPI for detail-heavy brand work, 600 DPI for high-volume utility printing — and plants usually end up assigning modes and resolutions together. Because both modes share the Epson head platform and five-color CMYK + White capability, operator training is a single curriculum, which keeps the spare-parts list and the maintenance routine identical across the whole machine. The result is a press that behaves like two machines to the order book but one machine to the maintenance crew.
FAQ — 2-in-1 Questions From Packaging Buyers
Is the 2-in-1 digital print machine harder to operate than a single-mode machine?
No — the mode is part of the job setup, like resolution or color. One operator skill set covers both, which is one of the main reasons buyers choose the 2-in-1.
Which board types can it print?
A, B, C, and E flute corrugated, honeycomb paperboard, kraft paper, and coated paper — the full Goking range, in either mode.
Do I lose anything compared with a dedicated single-pass machine?
For plants with a balanced mix, the trade-off is minor. A dedicated single-pass machine only makes sense when almost all volume is long-run — that is the profile where the 2-in-1 adds little.
Can the 2-in-1 connect to finishing lines and ERP?
Yes — the full range connects to high-speed printing, slotting, and automatic stacking units and integrates with ERP systems, in both modes.
Final Word: One Machine That Refuses to Pick a Lane
A single pass and multi-pass 2-in-1 digital print machine is not for everyone — and that is the honest part of this article. If your order book is 90 percent long-run volume, buy the dedicated single-pass. If it is 90 percent short-run custom, buy the multi-pass. But if your plant lives in the middle — the way most growing box plants do — the 2-in-1 is the machine that lets you say yes to both markets without betting the floor plan on two presses.
The practical test is simple: send us a week of your real job mix — the short runs and the long runs — and we will map it to the 2-in-1 configuration that fits, with the mode decision shown job by job.
Map a week of your real job mix to a 2-in-1
Send us your order list and board types — we will show you how each job runs in multi-pass or single-pass mode on one machine.
Get a 2-in-1 Mode Mapping
