It is difficult to follow these days, but entry level resin 3D-printing company Elegoo announced a new printer. Named the Elegoo Saturn 8K! Previously it announced various versions of the Saturn already. But with this new announcement its product offering is getting more difficult to compare. A few months ago Elegoo announced the Elegoo Saturn 2 also with 8K LCD screen and quite similar specifications, why would Elegoo launch another machine with similar specifications?
Elegoo Saturn 2 8K vs Elegoo Saturn 8K.
You really have to look at the small letters and details to see the differences between these 3D-printers. To make it easier, we compiled a table below to compare the technical specifications. next to looks, there is one specification that is different between the Elegoo Saturn 2 8K and Elegoo Saturn 8K.
| Elegoo Saturn 8K | Elegoo Saturn 2 8K | |
| System | EL3D-3.0.1 | EL3D-3.0.1 |
| LCD Screen pixels | 7680*4320 pixels | 7680*4320 pixels |
| Pixel size | 28,5 micron | 28,5 micron |
| Build size | 123 x 218 x 250 mm | 123 x 218 x 250 mm |
| Printing speed | 30 – 70 mm/h | 30 – 70 mm/h |
| LED’s | 28 Matrix UV light source | 48 LED’s with Fresnel lens |
| Wavelength | 405 nm | 405 nm |
As you can see with the LED system used, the Elegoo Saturn 8K uses a matrix light source with 28 single LED’s. This technology is quite standard amongst the latest monochrome resin 3D-printers. With its new system the Elegoo Saturn 2 8K, the only differences that we can see are the looks of the machine and the new type of light source. this printer uses an arrey of 48 LED’s with fresnel lenses.
What are fresnel lenses and is it worth to upgrade to an LCD printer with fresnel lenses?
Well, a fresnel lens is a different type of lens. instead of the standard lens, it is a lens manufactured with grooves in it so the light path is changing from a single point which exposes to all sides, to a straight light path as you can see below.
Image by Edmundoptics.eu: Light Collimation of a Point Source with a Fresnel Lens
What are the benefits for resin 3D-printing when using fresnel lenses? We have to see these type of printers in action before we can give a hands-on experience. In theory it is helpful if the light beams are perfectly straigth before hitting the masking LCD. this will give the least distortion and best accuracy. But the Matrix UV light build in in the previous models was already doing that. Time will tell if these lenses will make a big impact in resin 3D-printing. See the video below to learn more about these type of lenses explained by an expert.
Elegoo working together with LCD manufacturer Innolux
Another interesting news from Elegoo’s latest releases, is that it is working together with LCD manufacturer Innolux for their LCD screens.
Elegoo Saturn 2 8K resin compatibility
Some Liqcreate resins have been optimized on the Elegoo Saturn 2. You can find Elegoo Saturn 2 parameters and compatible resins in the link. As most resins are not tested yet, this does not mean that Liqcreate resins are not compatible this printer. If you want to try, contact us at info@liqcreate.com and we can provide starting settings for experimenting. Happy printing if you happen to be the first lucky few to get your hands on the new Elegoo Saturn 8K 3D-printers!
Support
Do you need any help with 3D printing our SLA, DLP or LCD resins? We can help you! Just look for the question you have below. If you can’t find it, let us know by contacting us!
