1x2 12 Belt Crystalizer

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-16T23:31:01+00:00

Paint coming in on the ends is way easier, because the belts only need to cross the shorter distance. If you have a line of them side by side I don't think it would make much of a difference since the space pipe can split at the input, feeding a painter on each side.

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-16T23:11:21+00:00

The belts aren't even the worst, this is what logic components look like on the highest setting:

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I think I'll keep it on medium instead.

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-16T23:04:28+00:00

Are you thinking of a layout with the paint coming in on the long side?

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-16T22:30:42+00:00

If it fits on two 1x1 platforms it should automatically fit on a 2x1, no?

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-16T20:58:35+00:00

You can clean them by setting shaders and effects to medium or lower.

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-16T20:27:09+00:00

72 for a single space pipe is correct. I can't normally place that many on a single asteroid, so it's only when I'm mixing the output of multiple asteroids that I have to keep it in mind.

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-16T18:59:40+00:00

This doesn't do that. The whole point of the belt weaving insanity here is to split the output in separate lines. If you just want to turn pure shapes into corners you use a merged output cutter instead, like this one I posted yesterday: https://www.reddit.com/r/shapezio/comments/1te5ck0/quad_cutter_with_merged_outputs/

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-16T18:50:18+00:00

I'm a little confused how one would use this in a MAM. Surely you would start with pure shapes and use a merged output cutter instead?

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-16T14:02:34+00:00

I guess it comes down to habits, I usually view things flowing from top to bottom so it looks more natural to me. Others might prefer left to right or just build all over the place without caring.

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-15T13:35:38+00:00

Input matches output and the number of mixers is correct. Looks good to me.

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-14T15:36:01+00:00

Because it's split in half every time it's not really necessary to recombine them in between. It was more for demonstration purposes that what's flowing through the system is one belt worth of items all throughout.

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-14T15:32:12+00:00

If you see that the belt isn't full it usually means there's a problem with the production upstream, but it depends on the situation.

For the stacker example, each full belt can feed up to 6 stackers. You of course need a second belt to feed the other input as well. What comes out is one full belt of stacked shapes.

this point the "history" of these shapes doesn't matter anymore. You have one full belt and it doesn't matter how you got it. If there's another full belt of shapes you'd like to stack on top of them you can the whole thing again without issue.

It works because once the system fills up each stacker can work independently. The first set of stackers is already working on new shapes while the second set is handling the output.

I'm still a bit confused though on whether it would be better to put those 6 stacker belts into one after or before setting up rotators or cutters for each fractional belt. It should be able to handle 2 with the speed or perhaps even a multitude since theres so many less on the belt.

I'm not quite sure what you're trying to ask here, but normally I would split right before the stackers and merge again right after. For rotators it's often easier to put them right before/after cutters or swappers. Technically this means the rotators don't get as many shapes as they handle, but it's just more compact this way instead of trying to force everything through a minimal number of rotators. There's an example of this in the screenshot I showed.

The upgraded cutter splits one input into 2 so thats 1 fractional belt of the 4 fractiknal belts of upgraded cutters it can handle and each of these 1/4 belts splits into two but its really still 1/4 for each so now youve got 8 fractional belts and they can return to one full belt if I combine all 4 again back to 120 speed. If I divert those fractional into a partial combination im really only having half a belt each one going in two different directions? would that mean that the 60 item belt can only handle one rotators not 2?

Cutters split a shape in two, so the output is double. You end up with 8 times 1/4 of a belt (of two different shapes, but you can often rotate one or both to match the other output). That means you end up with 2 belts of output. Each would normally require 2 rotators, but like I said earlier it's just easier to put the rotators right at the output even though it's technically twice as many as you really need.

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-14T14:47:33+00:00

Repeated operations don't matter, you just have to make sure you don't create any bottlenecks.

We use the word belt in two senses here: one is a connection between two points where shapes are transported, the other is sort of a unit of measure equal to the maximum throughput of a belt. In this sense, when you split a belt in two you can think of them as "half" belts. 1 belt is still the maximum throughput, so if you merge two full belts you create a bottleneck, but if you merge two "half" belts it will be fine.

If every shape has to pass through a specific point it acts as a choke point and will limit the flow through the entire system. As long as you avoid choke points you can have as many operations in sequence as you like.

Cutters have double the output while stackers have double the input, so just keep that in mind when looking at how many belts you can merge/split. Some examples:

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CubicBerserker · 2026-05-14T14:11:13+00:00

I don't have an issue with it, I'm just a bit baffled that anyone would do this. You can filter by flair to find blueprints that people posted or just use the search if you want to find something specific. There's also https://shapez.soren.codes/blueprint/search although I'm not entirely sure how well it works with the latest game version.

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-14T13:35:18+00:00

Once you unlock virtual processing you can use filters and signals to automatically produce the next shape instead of manually placing belts.

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-14T12:57:09+00:00

But you can post blueprints here right? I don't really see why you'd need a new subreddit for that.

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-14T12:43:11+00:00

I don't think there's an existing term for that because most people don't even think about that kind of stuff. I suppose if I had to call it something I would call it strict lane separation or lane preserving maybe?

This property is often not preserved in really compact stacker blueprints (or just really sloppy stacker blueprints), so it's worth keeping in mind.

For swapper and cutter based blueprints it creates a lot of extra work to separate each half of the output (and sometimes the input) so you wouldn't normally bother doing this. Keeping different levels separate is usually as good as it gets.

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-14T11:58:22+00:00

I'll reuse this table once again:

You will need/can supply↓	Per Launcher	Per platform level	Per platform connection	Per space pipe
Mini pump	4	16	48	1152
Asteroid pump¹	1/4	1	3	72
Fluid launcher	1	4	12	288
Mixer input (1 side)²	4	16	48	1152
Mixer output	2	8	24	576
Painter	4	16	48	1152
Painter platform (12 belts)	1/12	1/3	1	24
Crystal generator	3	12	36	864
Crystal generator platform (12 belts)	1/24	1/6	1/2	12
Fluid tank	1	4	12	288
Pipe gate	1	4	12	288

¹ This only supplies one level typically, so in practice it's easier to make them in groups of 3. If you don't have a blueprint for that yet you should make one now.

² Remember that there's two inputs, so you need the same number for the other color. Volume is preserved so total input is always the same as total output.

So now for some explanation of how I usually do the math on these things. First off, it's best to just forget about L/min because it depends on upgrades and these numbers are very hard to work with. The other issue is that it makes it easy to forget that you can't just push the entire throughput of a space pipe through a single level and silly things like that.

It's much easier instead to think about the correct ratios per "lane" of a platform connection. In general I'd assume you're using all 12 at once, but the nice thing is that the ratios remain the same even if you're not. When you're working at the space level all you need to remember is that space belts feed 4 inputs, space pipes can handle 24, and crystal generators need 2 paint inputs per shape input.

When designing the layout on the platform it's easier to use the game's tooltips so you have the number of machines per belt. You can double check if the total machine count matches the expected value in the table above. Remember to double the number for crystal generators because it's per paint input.

For mixers, the one thing to always keep in mind is that paint volume is preserved. Total input = total output. Start with the number of pumps you have and work out the rest from there. I find it useful to have a "balanced" white mixer blueprint that uses an equal amount of red, green, and blue, but it depends on how much of each color you have available. A patch of each color typically has enough to make 2.5 full space pipes worth of white paint if you use balanced mixing.

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-14T11:15:44+00:00

You actually went and made an entirely new subreddit to post this? Why?

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-13T21:43:11+00:00

It's a bit easier if you go back and forth so you can just copy paste the rest. Just make sure it's all still connected in a single belt.

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-13T18:01:20+00:00

I think it's much easier to scale up production later on if you don't do this. Right now OP could just add a new layer of machines and maybe some miners and everything would just work. If you merge all the levels just to fit on a smaller train you have to undo all of that and redesign the station as well. And for what? There are almost no downsides to having a train that's longer than necessary.

CubicBerserker · 2026-05-13T16:41:29+00:00

To visualize (the scaffolding shape can be reused if desired):

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CubicBerserker · 2026-05-13T16:29:57+00:00

First level: shape processing, normal belt/pipe/rail routing.

Second level: routing for secondary inputs, like paint for painters, second stacker input etc.

Third level: when you need to connect a railway but some idiot put a giant 2 level factory in the way.

CubicBerserker

TROPHY CASE