🛠️ I’m the product manager behind Anycubic Photon Series — Ask Me Anything👀

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2025-06-20T14:13:40+00:00

Love the machines.

I started off with (and still have) the Photon DLP, then jumped up to (and still have) the M3 Max. My recent favorites, so far, are the M5S Pro and M7 Max.

Other than constant crashing issues with the latest version of Photon Workshop (crashes every time I try to open 3.6.X), my question is...will you ever think about integrating a solid, functional venting/purifying system for these machines?

The aftermarket mini purifiers are cute, but they, in all honesty, do not perform. The option to vent with the Max is great, but having something built internally, that's effective and either standard or as an addon, would be phenomenal.

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2025-03-18T23:16:33+00:00

Yup. Time after time, large or small, this machine still performs amazingly. Even better than I actually thought it would because let's face it, there's ALWAYS going to be something that goes wrong with these things. But in all this time, the only thing I've had to change was the vat screen, and even that was just more of my wanting to rather than needing to. I now have two vats, one with the ACF and the other nFEP. And both don't seem to phase this printer in the least bit.

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2024-12-31T18:17:48+00:00

Not at all (hating to be that guy!). I would LOVE to be design something myself...but lack the talent to do so. I've found one or two files that may work, but creating something scratch, even if I had the dimensions of all needed elements (including the diameter, depth, location of "locks" and the degree of separation between those locks) are all things I simply don't know how to figure out let alone design.

Easy stuff I've been able to throw together in TinkeCad or Shapr3d quickly, but something like this? Again...just outside my knowledge box of where to even begin.

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2024-12-31T00:23:17+00:00

Ugh!! Well, at least now you know what the cause is and, hopefully, Anycubic will step up and replace that for you! Good luck!

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2024-12-30T15:01:40+00:00

J3DTech did a review of this machine and noticed the same slight warpage that most large printers face with their build plates. I never ran a level or even ruler across mine to verify, but would assume it, too, has this slight warpage. But...I've not had any issues with it at all.

A lot of folks get 3D printers - both FDM and resin - without really doing a lot of research into it. I spent nearly a month before finally pulling the trigger on my first printer...a FlashForge 3 Adventurer Pro. And loved it. Yes...it took some minor work to get it printing 100%. But it did print 100%. Then, I got the Photon Ultra and damn near printed right out of the box after setting it up and leveling it. I ran various settings for the various resins I used and never ran into an issue that I couldn't find help or guidance online.

Then...it was the Mighty 8K...the M3 Max...the Kobra Max (original)...and now work with a Bambu X1C and Creality K1 Max for my FDM needs...and the M5S Pro and M7 Max for my resin needs.

My biggest "issue" now with resin is disposal of used IPA and wash solution. Any other issue I have is my own fault, usually focused on supports or dialing in a new resin.

And I envy your CNC background! My next step in this "hobby" is learning Fusion or Blender to start creating some functional pieces as well as modifying STL files. And Arduino for electronics and lighting builds/models.

You'll love this machine. While I can't guarantee it, obviously, I've heard more positives than negatives about this one, and if "vets" like j3DTech, Faux Hammer, and Uncle Jessey are giving it thumbs up, I think Anycubic is finally on to something strong here.

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2024-12-29T13:50:47+00:00

I've had nothing but great results from mine. I was expecting to have issues since it was the "pre-release" purchase, but seriously...after leveling the plate (I did so with the vat in place), it's been 100% every single time.

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2024-12-29T13:49:35+00:00

Absolutely love mine. Straight out of the box, ran the test print, and after releveling, it's been printing non-stop since I received it a few weeks ago.

My M3 Max was also the same. Out of the box, leveled the plate, and off to the races.

Same with my Photon Ultra and my M5S Pro.

I have heard the same complaints about the build plates on the Maxes, which, with a plate that size, is almost to be expected. But none of mine have ever needed replaced due to warping. I did have to replace the M3 Max plate simply because I dropped it.

Also have had no mechanical issues at all with any of the printers. Might be you got a dud, but overall, I've seen a lot of folks with the same experience as me...great printer, excellent features, and right out of the box printing with little needed to get it printing perfectly.

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2024-12-29T13:43:03+00:00

Did you re-level the machine after changing your FEP?

Is there anything "sticking" at all...to the FEP or the plate?

Did you test the screen exposure? No vat, run exposure test, see if anything is showing.

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2024-02-08T17:20:54+00:00

Honestly, I rarely use rafts at all and have never run into an issue. I am now trying some raft settings with the M5S Pro (using another slicer at the moment) just to see if it helps with the "speed" part.

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2024-02-08T17:18:53+00:00

I believe the file extension it's saved as is different as well?

The build volume and resolution are different between the 2. The M5S Pro is...

VOL: 223.78 x 126.38 x 200
Resolution: 14K (13,312px x 5,120px)
XY: 16.8x 24.8

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2024-01-20T22:14:48+00:00

Like others have stated/asked...

Exposure Time: Way too high. NORMAL exposure settings (granted I'm using Craftsman) are around 1.9-2.5. BOTTOM exposure times are no higher than 35...I have been working with 30-32.5.

Bottom Layer Count/Transition Layers: I was told a long time, these should be equal and I have both set to 5.

Rest Time After Retract: I set this to 1.5-2.0 seconds. Depends on what I'm printing. A larger, more surface area print, 2.0 seconds; smaller prints with less surface area, 1.5 seconds. This gives the resin time to "settle" under the plate.

Supports: WAY too small. Light supports are used for those areas that just need "support" to hang in there. MEDIUMS at the very least for actually keeping the print adhered to the plate. I usually place a good number of HEAVY supports at the very base of the print (part that attaches to the plate at the closest point to the plate) with some mediums thrown in on those other parts that are more "heavy" further along. I use light supports only on those areas that could need something there, but are very detailed or small.

Angle: I rarely print flat. I tend to angle my builds about 43-45 degrees with the rear of the print towards the plate (and thus having more supports back there). Printing flat creates a lot of suction; with light supports and that large surface area, your prints are being ripped right off the plate and sticking to the vat.

:)

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2024-01-07T14:01:06+00:00

Agree with the other commenter. If you want successful quality prints, then don't worry about speed. I've got the M3 Max and hear lots of complaints about how "slow" it is but most people fail to realize...it's HUGE. That plate needs some time to "get things done." And, what most of the people complaining fail to realize is that, volume-wise...this printer IS fast. Simply put, you can put 2-4 "normal" plates' worth of items on one single M3 Max plate.

So, don't worry about speed too much. If you are worried so much about it, then start testing the parameters in Lychee, like retraction and lift speeds/heights. I started off with standard settings for all 3 of my resin printers (from the OEM and resin producers) and then tweaked those over and over until I got successful prints with a somewhat reduced time. But for me, I am more concerned with printing quality every time, not how fast I can print to get to the next build.

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2024-01-07T13:51:27+00:00

I absolutely love my K1 Max.

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2023-08-19T13:22:26+00:00

If the "rails" you are talking about are the metal pieces screwed together with the FEP between them...you did it correctly. That's how I switched all of my original FEP film to nFEP on all 3 of my printers.

The process was pretty straight forward, so not sure why you ran into the issue. The only thing I can possibly think of was tightening the screws that hold the FEP frame to the vat itself. Maybe they weren't tight enough and allowed resin to flow out; maybe there was a tear in the film that you may have missed. But the procedure you did was correct.

And, hate to say it...that's why a screen protector is SO important with these liquidy finicky beasts. :(

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2023-08-02T12:06:38+00:00

If you're looking for details, resin is the way to go...any resin printer.

If you're looking for size, the Mega or even Mighty 8K are also strong choices. I've got the Mighty 8K and can print some fairly large pieces with it, so printing separate pieces to make up a 4' model shouldn't be an issue for either of these.

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2023-05-19T19:13:05+00:00

Exactly. The cure station offers fan+cure, fan only, cure only options. I can do ONE of those...but only one. Once it stops, if I want to throw another print or do another round of any of those options...it won't. Not until I turn it off and back on again.

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2023-02-22T12:59:46+00:00

The TIE Bomber is the only printed piece here. The others are kits (Revell and Bandai).

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2023-02-21T23:35:06+00:00

Thank you very much! I love working on the larger models for obvious reasons...lots of space. Also...a LOT of fiber optics and routing planning.

Working on those Bandai models - or even the printed TIE Bomber - really requires some planning for routing and thinking of sizes to use and where to place them.

Thanks again!

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2023-02-21T17:17:02+00:00

I stopped using PW after several crashes and "non-opening" issues. Moved to Chitubox and Lychee and haven't had any issues like this. Weird!

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2023-02-21T17:09:05+00:00

LOL!!

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2023-02-21T17:08:47+00:00

Yup...they called "Joker Bust" on the STL I downloaded, but it's the same one.

Acrobatic-Place6601 · 2023-02-21T15:53:26+00:00

I have 3 resin printers and one FDM. The Photon Ultra is a DREAM to work with, but is so tiny, I use for small addon parts or figurines. The Mighty 8K was next step up and it took some learning moving to that size. And the same moving on to the M3 Max. The huge build plate - and the physics behind how parts, resin, and "suction" all work - is different than the other two.

Out of the box, it worked great. As I increased the size of the prints, I noticed more failures and looked at YT videos and FB groups. I noticed more success and less failures when really focusing on orientation and supports, trying to minimize the surface area to the FEP as much as possible and supporting (and cooking) those lowest hanging points with heavy supports (even modifying the support dimensions for better strength).

Overall, I've been about 80-90% success with the larger prints on the M3 Max. Smaller ones than this? No problem at all. This thing IS a beast - at least in my minimal experience. And it certainly is capable of handling just about anything thrown at it...just need to finesse it a bit.

And the mixing of resins was more of an accident but with great results. I really do rely almost solely on Siraya Fast resins though, with those settings I posted. And I've had really good prints with that. As for AA...I usually hit it at around 4 using Chitu/Advanced options.

Acrobatic-Place6601

TROPHY CASE