Method of margin alignment and plane-to-plane registration in a tandem color electrophotographic machine

A method of setting a plurality of margins in an electrophotographic machine includes setting a top margin for a reference color black by establishing a first time delay between a vertical synchronization signal and a first line. A right margin or a left margin for the reference color black is set by establishing a second time delay between a horizontal synchronization signal and a start of printing. The other of the right margin and the left margin is set by adjusting a scan speed of a laser beam across a photoconductive element and adjusting a process speed in the cross-scan direction including the speed of the photoconductive element, image accumulation member, and print medium. A bottom margin is set by adjusting the process speed. The other three color planes, cyan, magenta and yellow are then registered or aligned to the reference color plane, black.