DST
The universal one. Tajima's format, and the thing almost every commercial head made since the nineties will read. It carries stitches but not thread colours, so it always ships with a worksheet telling the operator the sequence.
Reference
Which format does your machine need?
Tell us the brand and model and we will work it out. Every order goes out with the whole set anyway — we have never understood charging twice to save the same design out again.
12Stitch formats
5Vector formats
$0Extra per format
Quick lookup
Find your machine.
EMB Wilcom sourceThe editable master. Ask for it if you ever want the design changed.
DST TajimaThe universal one. Reads on almost every commercial head made since the nineties.
PES Brother, BabylockCarries thread colours with it, so PR-series machines show the right sequence.
JEF JanomeMC series and the Elna equivalents.
EXP Melco, BerninaMelco EMT and Bernina Artista both take this.
VP3 Husqvarna Viking, PfaffThe newer Viking format. VIP on request for older heads.
HUS Husqvarna VikingOlder Designer machines that will not read VP3.
XXX SingerSinger XL and Futura.
CND Melco condensedCondensed outline format, still asked for by older Melco shops.
PDF AnyPrinted worksheet: colour sequence, stitch count, dimensions, thread notes.
JPG AnyFlat preview to send a client for sign-off.
PNG AnySame preview with a transparent background, for mock-ups.
The three that matter
If you only remember three, remember these.
PES
Brother and Babylock. Unlike DST it carries the thread colours inside the file, so a PR-series machine shows the right colour sequence on screen without anyone typing it in.
EMB
The Wilcom source — the editable master the design was actually built in. Everything else is flattened output. Ask for it if you might want the design resized or changed later, and keep it somewhere safe.
Vector art
Print and cutting formats.
Vector jobs go out as the whole set too — so the screen printer, the sign shop and the web developer are all working from the same master rather than three slightly different ones.
AI Adobe IllustratorLayered, live text kept as text, plus an outlined copy.
EPS Anything printWhat most print shops and screen printers still ask for.
SVG Web, cuttersClean paths, no stray groups. Also what your web developer wants.
PDF UniversalPress-ready, fonts embedded and outlined.
CDR CorelDRAWSaved down a version or two so older installs can open it.
Screen printing separations, spot-colour swatches named to Pantone, and a CMYK conversion are included when you ask for them. We do not charge extra to save the same artwork out again in another format.
What else is in the delivery
- A printable worksheet: colour sequence, stitch count, dimensions, thread notes
- A flat preview image you can forward to your client for sign-off
- A transparent PNG of the same preview, for mock-ups
- The editable source file, if you ask for it — it is your design
- Split files with registration marks, where the design is wider than the hoop
Still not sure?
Send us the make and model of the machine — "Tajima TMBP", "Brother PR1055X", "Melco EMT16X" — and we will tell you which file to load and which to keep as a backup. You do not need to know this to place an order; it is our job, not yours.
Next step
Ask for six formats. Get six formats.
No per-file charges, no upsell when you come back next month needing PES instead of DST. Send the logo and tell us the machine.
Or email orders@zbpunch.com — orders taken 24/7 — someone is on chat almost all day.