3D Printer Question

[dafrca]

Hello;

With the small printers prices dropping down, I have been toying with the idea of buying one for me.

As I have been doing my research one spec I do not understand is the difference between a "Mono LCD" and one that is not a "mono LCD"?

Other than price I am not understanding what is the difference and what does the mono do for me that makes it more costly?

Understand I am trying to get it but guess it is flying over my head right now.

[Peelee]

Monochrome LCD screen (eg a calculator) vs full color LCD screen (eg your computer monitor). Full color screen will cost more, most likely. I'm not familiar with any printers that use color screens, but I can't imagine any reason that would be useful other than looking nicer.

[gomipile]

In the context of MSLA resin printers, mono LCD printers use a monochrome LCD mask, which allows the printer to use the UV light source more efficiently and provide better detail and slightly faster per-layer cure times than printers that use a repurposed color LCD to mask the UV light source.

Cheaper and older MSLA printers use color LCDs originally designed for phones or tablets because they were easy and cheap to source. Once the resin printer market got big enough, there was enough demand for monochrome LCDs to make economic sense to produce them at a reasonable cost.

[Peelee]

Oooh, that's a good point. It shouldn't make any difference for FDM printers but I am not familiar with resin. Sounds like this is for MLSA printer, then?

[dafrca]

Oooh, that's a good point. It shouldn't make any difference for FDM printers but I am not familiar with resin. Sounds like this is for MLSA printer, then?

Sorry, yes I was looking at the resin printers. So much for me to learn. LOL

[Tyndmyr]

Hello;

With the small printers prices dropping down, I have been toying with the idea of buying one for me.

As I have been doing my research one spec I do not understand is the difference between a "Mono LCD" and one that is not a "mono LCD"?

Other than price I am not understanding what is the difference and what does the mono do for me that makes it more costly?

Understand I am trying to get it but guess it is flying over my head right now.

Anycubic makes a fairly popular brand called the Mono, so that may be what you have seen.

It's a resin printer, which prints via UV lights, and is quite good if you want to print out D&D minis and such. Plastic filament printers have a number of advantages...generally less touchy material, cheaper to run, and no toxicity worries, but plastic doesn't have quite the detail that resin does.

I *highly* suggest that if you get a resin printer, you invest in one of those enclosed turntables with additional UV lights for baking the final model. They're not bad, like $50, but the texture is much improved, and if you wish to print and paint miniatures, you'll want it.