Phrozen made one big change when we revisited its features. First 8K printer: Almost half the price. The new Sonic Mini 8K S is priced at $349.99, making it an affordable resin 3D printer well within reach of the average maker.
The Mini 8K S is about the same size as its predecessor and features the same great high resolution. Some notable changes have been made to reduce costs. The lid material has changed, there is now a single Z-rail, and the USB ports have been relocated. It still has some old flaws, like the model being ridiculously hard to pry off the build plate, but thankfully it’s now compatible with all popular third-party slicers.
The 8K resolution with 22 microns of detail is amazing, especially considering that a grain of salt is four times the size. The build plate is small for a resin printer, making this machine perfect for tabletop game pieces, jewelry and decorations.
Phrozen’s latest printers are certainly more affordable, but the quality hasn’t changed since the 2021 model. Despite his fantastic 8K resolution, it misses the point in being one of his in the world. best resin 3d printer This year’s.
Specifications: Phrozen Sonic Mini 8K S
| build volume | 165 x 72 x 170 mm (6.5 x 2.8 x 6.7 inches) |
| LCD Screen | 7.1 inch monochrome |
| light source | linear projection LED |
| X/Y axis resolution | 22 microns |
| normal exposure time | 2 seconds |
| interface | 4.5 inch touch panel |
| Connectivity | USB type A2.0 |
| machine footprint | 290 x 290 x 430 mm (11.4 x 11.4 x 16.9 inches) |
| machine weight | 10 kg (22 lbs) |
Included in the box: Phrozen Sonic Mini 8K S
The Phrozen Sonic Mini 8K S includes everything you need to start using your printer right out of the box. It comes with a heavy-duty logo-engraved metal scraper for the build plate, a cheap plastic scraper for the FEP film, a funnel, disposable gloves, an allen wrench, a power cord, and a 4GB USB thumb drive. Also included is 80-grit sandpaper to renew your build plate.
Our review unit came with a blank drive and no paper manual, but all instructions are available online at Phrozen3d.com.
Print safety with Phrozen Sonic Mini 8K S
The Phrozen Sonic Mini 8K S requires the same safety precautions as any other resin printer. Uncured resin is dangerous and solvents used to clean prints can irritate the skin. Use gloves and safety glasses when injecting resin or handling uncured prints.
Make sure the room where you use the resin printer is well ventilated to avoid smoke inhalation. If you spill or drip resin, clean it up immediately with 99% isopropyl alcohol. Always wipe the printer and bottle after printing to remove any uncured resin smudges. Always keep resin tightly sealed and safely out of reach of pets and children.
Assembling the Phrozen Sonic Mini 8K S
The printer is shipped fully assembled with both the vat and build plate screwed into place. After removing the bulk of the packing material, it was ready to be plugged in and calibrated.
Build plate calibration for Phrozen Sonic Mini 8K S
Like most 3D printers, the Sonic Mini 8K S requires calibration before your first print. Leveling the build plate is super easy, all you need is a piece of paper and the included hex wrench. The machine displays leveling instructions, so you don’t have to squint at the manual.
To level the machine, remove the bat and place a piece of paper over the LCD screen. Loosen the four adjustment screws on the sides (not the top) of the build plate. The build plate should move freely.
[ツール]on the touch screen, press[Z Calib]Press and wait until the plate lowers to the LCD screen.Apply light pressure to the build plate and work in a criss-cross pattern as you tighten the screws with the hex wrench. When done, the paper should fit snugly together.
Phrozen Sonic Mini 8K S design
The Phrozen Sonic Mini 8K S is a solid piece of machinery, weighing in at 22 pounds due to its mostly metal construction. It has the same heavy-duty build plate and metal butt as the 2021 model, but ditched the dual rails to keep costs down. Don’t worry. The prints from this machine are excellent.
I wish Phrozen had dealt with laser-etched build plates that were too sticky. Of course this can be fixed with the bottom exposure setting, but I lowered this setting significantly. The top of the plate still has a recessed screw that collects resin and requires a thorough cleaning when switching colors.
The plastic cover has switched to neon yellow. I suspect that cheap materials are used here as well. However, he kept the model on the plate for two days, and the resin in the tank for longer, and had no problem with UV exposure.
Keeping the cover clean from resin drips is impossible and annoying if you want to keep the image of your device perfect. After the print is complete, the build plate may be raised a little too high, causing excess resin to splash onto the vat.
Slicer compatible with Phrozen Sonic Mini 8K S
The Phrozen Sonic Mini 8K S is compatible with both ChituBox and Lychee Slicer right out of the box. Both are free third-party slicers. I used ChituBox to slice all test models.
Both slicers can hollow out models, add drainage holes to save resin, and add supports.
For Frozen, Useful webpages with profiles Instructions on how to use test prints of various resins and their exposure finders.
Washing and curing prints
Before viewing a print, you should: Clean with isopropyl alcohol and cure with UV light.. I like to hand wash my prints in a container of 95% isopropyl alcohol for 30 seconds and then water him for 2 minutes. wash and harden The station is sold separately and retails for $219 on Anycubic.com.
Dry the print completely with a cold hair dryer. Any IPA left on the print will turn white. You can also let the prints air dry out of the sun.
Supports are very soft and should be removed before the print is UV cured. Remove the support using side cutters and tweezers. Always wear gloves when handling uncured prints.
Then put the print in: UV curing station Leave it for a few minutes or hours outside in bright sunlight.
IPA should never be flushed down the drain, especially after it has been contaminated with uncured resin. Instead, use it until the resin is dirty, then leave the container open to let it evaporate. Leftover sludge can be UV or sun cured before being discarded.
Supports should also be cured before discarding.
Phrozen Sonic Mini 8K S sample print
Phrozen provided a sample of 8K formula resin for testing, which brings out the details of the high-resolution printer. The low odor resin has a higher viscosity and he only needs 2 seconds of exposure time per layer compared to 3 seconds for normal resin.
The biggest problem is finding good quality models to showcase 8K printers.
printed wexter rocket The bust has become my go-to model for testing resin 3D printers. There are a lot of small details that go into actually using the printer. Below are two rockets. One is 12K Anycubic Photon Mono M5 I recently reviewed it, and I have one for the Sonic Mini 8K S. Can you tell which is which?
A Sonic Mini 8K S is printed on the right side, and the grain pattern on the teeth and baby groot are similarly finely detailed. Using Mini 8K Sprint Frozen aqua gray 8K With a layer height of 0.05 and an exposure time of 2 seconds, it takes 7 hours, 5 minutes and 47 seconds.
We wanted to see how the Sonic Mini 8K S handled non-standard resins, so we made this Butterfly Dragon with Inland Blue resin. Frozen aqua gray 8K. It was printed in 9 hours and 25 minutes with a layer height of 0.05 and an exposure time of 2 seconds. Not using 8K to its fullest extent softens the details a bit, but it’s still a very smooth print with no trace of layer lines.
Print your tabletop gaming miniatures on the Phrozen Sonic Mini 8K S and you’ll see great detail. Even small details such as buckles and fabric creases are crisp. The image shown below was printed using his 8K resin from Phrozen with a layer height of 0.05 and an exposure time of 2 seconds, which took him 4 hours and 36 minutes to print.these miniatures Available for free at printables.com.
Conclusion
The Phrozen Sonic Mini 8K S is a great machine that delivers incredibly detailed prints at an affordable price. His Sonic Mini 8K for 2021 was the first to adopt this level of resolution on the market, but despite more companies aiming for 8K and higher resolutions, Phrozen’s Sonic Mini still holds its own. I’m here.
The small build plate of the Sonic Mini 8K S makes it the perfect printer for miniatures and small art pieces. It’s also great for beginners because the smaller vat requires less resin to fill, saving you money and not worrying about ruining a lot of expensive resin.
The Phrozen Sonic Mini 8K S is currently priced at $350. If you’re interested in a cheaper starter resin printer, check out 4K. Anycubic Photon Mono 2, available at a bargain price of $230. If you are more interested in high speed and high definition, Anycubic Photon Mono M5s Both come in full buckets and retail for $499.
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