The Creality Halot-One Plus is the flagship printer within the Halot line of MSLA printers, providing 4K decision, a 7.9-inch mono LCD with a 3 second publicity time, and different high-end options in a bundle that retails for just below $400. The Halot-One Plus seems to have been designed for the prosumer market, with options like Wi-Fi connectivity, air filtration, and different options that don’t usually seem in printers on this worth vary.
Throughout testing, this printer proved to be a logical next-step in resin 3D printing, displaying how these options will be efficiently applied at a lower cost level whereas nonetheless sustaining performance. We had points with the Creality Cloud platform and the shortage of attribution on printed fashions, however the printer {hardware} itself locations this among the many finest resin 3D printers.
Creality Halot-One Plus Specs
Machine Footprint | 9.29″ x 9.57″ x 16.46″ (23.6cm x 24.3cm x 41.8cm) |
Construct Quantity | 6.77″ x 4.02″ x 6.30″ (172mm x 102mm x 160mm) |
Resin | MSLA Photopolymer Resin |
UV Gentle | 4,500 uw/m2 Integral Gentle Supply |
Masking LCD Decision | 4320 x 2560 |
Masking LCD Dimension | 7.9-inch |
XY Axis Decision | .04mm |
Interface | 5-inch LCD Touchscreen |
Included within the Field of Creality Halot-One Plus
The Creality Halot-One Plus ships with every part it’s worthwhile to get began printing, together with a set of Allen keys, plastic and metallic scrapers to take away components from the printer, a printed person information, and an influence cable, and a few paper funnels for pouring resin again into the bottle from the vat. The printer itself is well-packed and guarded, with a protecting plastic masking over the UV-resistant lid.
Not like with many different resin printers, together with the Elegoo Mars 3, the Halot-One Plus doesn’t embrace any consumables comparable to gloves, masks, or different cleansing provides. This isn’t a big omission, nevertheless it means first time customers will wish to make certain they’ve all the right provides earlier than they begin printing.
Design of Creality Halot-One Plus
One of many first options I observed on the Creality Halot-One Plus was the massive LCD display. The 5-inch display is brilliant, responsive, and looks like the kind of capacitive display you’d count on to see on a pill or cell phone. This display is simple to learn and use, and instantly units the Halot-One Plus other than equally priced machines that use smaller screens. The Halot-One Plus additionally contains an onboard ARM Cortex-M4 quad-core 64 bit processor, which provides it extra processing energy than different equally priced machines.
The Halot-One Plus has a darkish blue UV-resistant lid, one thing that stands out from the everyday crimson, orange, or yellow used on comparable printers. This lid is near opaque, and I can’t simply see by way of it throughout printing. The QR code printed on the highest of the lid results in the Creality Cloud web site the place customers should purchase fashions, 3D printers, consumables, in addition to a social platform for sharing prints.
The Halot-One Plus options an built-in 100W energy provide, so there’s no want for an exterior energy brick. The construct dimension, printer dimension, and different data is printed on a sticker on the again of the printer, in addition to a QR code that seems to include data particular to the printer. The bottom of the Halot-One Plus is heavy and dense, and feels very sturdy regardless of the plastic shell.
The built-in air filtration system on the Halot-One Plus is a welcome addition and labored very nicely all through our testing. The resin used within the MSLA printing course of can have an odor throughout printing, and the built-in air filtration system considerably reduces the quantity of odor from the Halot-One Plus. The air consumption is situated immediately behind the resin vat, and runs robotically all through the period of printing.
The Z axis on the Halot-One Plus makes use of a threaded rod with a captive nut for journey, and the twin linear rails permit for easy and constant motion. Most small format MSLA resin 3D printers use a single linear rail for journey, with twin rail programs being extra frequent on bigger machines just like the Elegoo Saturn or the Anycubic Mono X. The construct platform is suspended from a light-weight metallic arm and doesn’t deflect, even when printing giant and heavy components.
The Halot-One Plus has the Z endstop situated on the high of the Z axis, an uncommon design alternative for an MSLA resin 3D printer. Sometimes, the leveling course of entails dropping the platform to Z0 (the underside of the Z axis) and making certain the platform is planar with the LCD display. The Halot-One Plus requires the complete platform be delivered to the highest of the printer to outline Z0, after which lowered to the LCD display and leveled. It’s exhausting to say if it is a much less correct course of, nevertheless it’s undoubtedly a extra time-consuming one.
The resin vat on the Halot-One Plus is easy and straightforward to wash, with printed labels that point out 250mL, 450mL, and 650mL fill ranges. The vat additionally has a spout molded into the entrance proper and again left corners, which makes pouring resin out of the vat and again into the bottle a easy and mess-free course of. One of many screws that secures the vat to the body had some flashing on the molded thumbscrew, and this meant the screw couldn’t truly match into the mating gap with out being trimmed. Not a significant situation, however undoubtedly a QC situation that ought to have been caught earlier than the printer was packed and left the manufacturing unit.
The sunshine supply of the Halot-One Plus is what Creality calls the “Integral Gentle Supply”, which is a high-powered 4,500 uw/cm2 LED array that’s projected by way of the masking LCD by way of an angled mirror within the base of the printer. This mild supply generates a considerable quantity of warmth throughout printing, which causes the onboard fan to run constantly throughout printing.
The 7.9-inch masking LCD has a decision of 4320 x 2560, a decision that’s barely above the everyday 4K decision (4098 x 2560) used on comparable resin 3D printers just like the Elegoo Mars 3. This 4K decision interprets to an XY pixel dimension of .04mm (40 microns), which is excessive sufficient to seize high-quality particulars and texture when printing.
Picture: Creality
Construct Platform on Creality Halot-One Plus
The Creality Halot-One Plus makes use of a 4 bolt leveling system to make sure a planar relationship between the construct platform and the masking LCD. As a result of the Z endstop is situated on the very high of the printer, this course of entails loosening the construct platform connecting bolts, sending the constructed platform to the highest of the printer to set off the endstop, then reversing course and sending the platform to the underside of the Z axis. As soon as the platform is sitting flush on the masking LCD, the 4 bolts are tightened and the platform is leveled.
The Halot-One Plus has 4 upward-facing bolts that safe the construct platform to the gantry arm, and these bolts are likely to fill with resin throughout printing. It is a poor design alternative, as resin tends to pool contained in the bolt cap heads, within the knurling, and across the bolts, which may be very tough to wash and take away. Elegoo has solved this on their Mars 2 Professional and Mars 3 printers by utilizing a easy captive ball joint that may be leveled with solely two screws. These platforms are simple to stage and clear with out extra effort.
Printing Security with Halot-One Plus
The Creality Halot-One Plus makes use of 405nm UV resin, a fabric that it’s worthwhile to deal with safely when in an uncured state to keep away from damage. The resin will be dangerous when making contact with pores and skin, so make certain to put on gloves when pouring, cleansing up, or dealing with uncured resin. I additionally make certain I’m sporting gloves when eradicating the construct platform after a print, because the resin tends to pool on high of the platform and might drip off whereas the platform is being eliminated.
Ensure you use the Halot-One Plus in a well-ventilated room to reduce the hazard from inhaling fumes. Any spills or uncured resin caught to a floor needs to be cleaned utilizing 99% isopropyl alcohol and the container for the resin needs to be saved closed and secured when not actively pouring materials.
Printing the Included Take a look at Print on the Creality Halot-One Plus
The take a look at print included with the Creality Halot-One Plus is likely one of the finest demonstration prints I’ve ever seen. The 8 hour print is titled “Kholek Suneater”, and it fills almost the complete construct space of the Halot-One Plus from nook to nook. This mannequin comes pre-sliced utilizing the identical settings as in Halot Field (.05mm layer top, 3 second layer publicity time, 40 second base layer publicity time, and so on.), and is able to print immediately from the USB thumb drive.
Creality has apparently recognized one of many frequent purposes of resin 3D printing (tabletop gaming and miniatures) and has embraced this by together with an in depth miniature mannequin with the Halot-One Plus. My earlier expertise with Creality’s take a look at prints was poor; the Creality LD-002R (a finances MSLA resin 3D printer) included a take a look at mannequin that took over 19 hours to print and was not significantly spectacular.
This mannequin has a really dense help construction, which is required to help all the assorted high-quality options together with an extended hammer and tail. The help construction was eliminated simply and left minimal marks on the printed mannequin. Sadly, I broke the hammer throughout washing, however was capable of glue it again on with out a lot effort. The spikes on the armor, the skinny tail, and the opposite particulars current on this mannequin are sharp and in focus, and I consider that anybody who bought this printer to make miniatures could be instantly delighted to see such a high-quality mannequin come out of the printer with none extra preparation.
Getting ready Recordsdata for Printing with Creality Halot Field
Whereas resin 3D printers are usually rather more mechanically easy than filament FDM 3D printers, the software program usually requires extra setup work and the half preparation is a vital a part of the method. Creality features a copy of Halot Field with the Creality Halot-One Plus, which is the slicer design for the Halot sequence of printers.
Halot Field gives two separate menus for slicing components: Fundamental Choices and Superior Choices. As anticipated, Fundamental Choices accommodates parameters like layer thickness, publicity time, construct platform elevate top, and extra which customers will possible modify probably the most typically. These choices are pre-populated with parameters which might be extra targeted on success versus pace, with a 3-second layer publicity and a 40 second preliminary layers publicity. Superior Choices accommodates extra sophisticated parameters, comparable to shrinkage compensation for X, Y, and Z axes, anti-aliasing, and different parameters.
Halot Field is a totally featured slicer and is able to importing fashions, hollowing them for resin printing, including help constructions, and much more superior options like including textual content, slicing a mannequin into items, and measuring between two factors. These options make Halot Field simply as feature-rich as ChituBox and Lychee slicer, each of that are additionally appropriate with the Halot-One Plus.
I ready this mannequin of a dragon utilizing the default Halot Field settings, together with a 5mm shell after hollowing, medium help settings, and default slicer settings. Sliced with a .05mm layer top and a 3 second publicity time, this print took simply over 12 hours to print out utilizing Anycubic Water Washable Aqua Gray resin. The method of importing a mannequin, hollowing, including drain holes, including help, and slicing took about 5 minutes and was intuitive and straightforward.
Comparability of the Creality Halot-One Plus vs. Elegoo Mars 3
The 4K decision mono LCD on the Creality Halot-One Plus makes it a pure competitor to smaller resin printers just like the Elegoo Mars 3, however the bigger construct quantity and Wi-Fi capabilities assist it to edge out most competitors. As an alternative of specializing in Z top, the Halot-One Plus has a big floor space on the construct platform, offering extra house for printing a number of components.
Creality Halot-One Plus | Elegoo Mars 3 | |
---|---|---|
Masking LCD Decision | 4320 x 2560 | 4098 x 2560 |
Masking LCD Dimension | 7.9 inches | 6.7 inches |
XY Decision | .04mm | .035mm |
Construct Dimensions | 6.77 x 4.01 x 6.29 inches | 5.64 x 3.52 x 6.89 inches |
(172mm x 102mm x 160mm) | (143mm × 89mm × 175mm) | |
Construct Quantity | 170.76 cubic inches | 136.79 cubic inches |
Printer Dimensions | 9.29 x 9.57 x 16.46 inches | 8.93 x 8.93 x 17.28 inches |
(23.6cm x 24.3cm x 41.8cm) | (22.7cm x 22.7cm x 43.85cm) | |
Printer Quantity | 1463 cubic inches | 1378 cubic inches |
Construct / Footprint Ratio | 11.70% | 9.90% |
(greater is best) | ||
Worth | $399 | $299 |
The Halot-One Plus has a considerably squat look in distinction with the taller and narrower Mars 3, and the massive LCD display on the entrance provides it an look that’s nearer to an equipment than a 3D printer. The construct quantity is someplace between the Elegoo Mars 3 and the Elegoo Saturn, and the value additionally sits between the 2.
The Halot-One Plus is barely bigger in dimension than the Mars 3, however the variations in construct quantity and X/Y space are clear when evaluating the 2. As well as, the built-in air filtration system, giant LCD, and twin Z axis linear rails give the Halot-One Plus a extra industrial look. The front-facing USB port makes swapping out USB drives simple on each printers, however the energy button on the Halot-One Plus is situated on the again of the machine versus the front-mounted energy button on the Mars 3.
The construct platform of the Halot-One Plus has a frivolously textured floor, which provides printed components a extra advanced floor to bond to throughout printing. Inserting the platform of the Halot-One Plus and the Mars 3 side-by-side highlights the distinction in construct space, with the Halot-One Plus being a full inch longer within the X axis and just below half an inch wider within the Y axis. The distinction in construct space is complemented by a rise in pixel decision, which makes the Halot-One Plus XY pixel dimension .04mm, a 5 micron distinction from the .035mm decision of the Mars 3.
Printing a Massive Mannequin on Creality Halot-One Plus
The construct platform on the Creality Halot-One Plus is giant sufficient to suit busts from Loot Studio, so I printed the bust of Korut The Mechappilian. The mannequin prints in 5 items: the bust, left arm, proper arm, base, and minigun. I used to be capable of match the bust and each arms onto a single construct platform, and printed the minigun and base individually. Processing these information in Halot Field was simple, and simply concerned dragging the fashions into the window, clicking “slice”, and exporting. No extra steps have been wanted, and I used Anycubic Gray Craftsman Resin (opens in new tab) and the default publicity settings.
The primary stuffed construct platform printed flawlessly, and the extent of element was unbelievable. The lizard-like texture on the mannequin appeared lifelike, and the sleek armor parts had a constant and even look. The three-second publicity time appeared like an ideal match for this resin because the help materials snapped off simply and with out leaving main pockmarks on the mannequin.
After washing and curing the mannequin, the final floor high quality was nonetheless very spectacular. The graceful surfaces have a good look and there are nearly no layer strains current, owing to the .05mm layer top and the .04mm X/Y decision. The nubs left by the help construction detach simply, and will be eliminated by merely working a pair of tweezers over them.
The ultimate assembled bust appears to be like extra like a resin collectible than a 3D print, and the final high quality was nearly as good as any resin 3D printer underneath $2,500 that I’ve used. The joints match along with easy peg and gap finding options, and so they have been an ideal friction match. You’ll be able to clearly make out the lizard pores and skin texture on the mannequin, and the high-quality detailing on the armor is simple to see with out magnification.
Printing Fashions from Creality Cloud
Creality has applied Creality Cloud into its Halot Field software program, which permits customers to obtain fashions immediately from the web into their slicer. This function has come underneath scrutiny because of the widespread abuse enabled by the power to mass add fashions, no matter their copyright or designer intent. YouTuber Bryan Vines made a superb video discussing this matter, which reveals how the platform was supposed for use versus the present utilization.
For instance, on the entrance web page of the Creality Cloud, I noticed the chainmail mannequin by Agustin “Flowalistik” Arroyo. This mannequin is presently accessible with a Inventive Commons Attribution license, which suggests attribution is required when sharing the mannequin or derivatives. The mannequin on Creality Cloud has been uploaded by “user3265593031”, and options the image from Printables in addition to filenames with “flowalistik” in them, additional proving they have been uploaded by somebody aside from the creator.
The chainmail mannequin was simply downloaded, sliced, and despatched to the printer with none extra steps required by way of Halot Field. Whereas this does make looking for and downloading fashions a easy course of, it’s troubling to see that the unique creator has no efficient recourse for limiting this kind of piracy. On this case, I used to be conscious of the unique creator however it will be utterly comprehensible that the majority customers could not, and should even suppose the mannequin was being offered by Creality immediately.
The Halot-One Plus can be capable of obtain fashions from Creality Cloud immediately from the printer interface with out utilizing Halot Field or some other slicer software program. Whereas it is a handy function, it’s nonetheless topic to the identical points as downloading fashions from Creality Cloud by way of Halot Field. For example, I downloaded this Minion file from the printer interface, however don’t have any simple method to decide who the unique designer was, what copyright license they used, and their intent for the printed mannequin. As well as, the mannequin printed utterly stable and used considerably extra resin than I used to be anticipating for such a small print.
Backside Line
The Creality Halot-One Plus is a modern, good, and well-performing printer that labored nicely throughout our testing and left me impressed with the standard of prints made with minimal to no adjusting of the default settings when utilizing the Halot Field slicer. The 172mm x 102mm x 160mm construct quantity is bigger than different equally priced printers, and the 4K decision of the masking LCD gives sharp element and high-quality options.
The Halot-One Plus sits within the awkward spot between small and enormous format resin 3D printers, and it’s exhausting to see if there’s a place available in the market for this machine. The massive onboard LCD and built-in Wi-Fi connectivity are one thing you’ll count on on a dearer printer just like the Prusa SL1S, however are customers presently on the lookout for these options over construct quantity and print pace? That’s a tough query to reply, and solely time will inform if the Halot-One Plus turns into a preferred mannequin.
If decision isn’t your major concern and also you’re on the lookout for probably the most construct quantity in your greenback, the Elegoo Saturn (on sale on Amazon for $369) and Elegoo Saturn 2 (accessible as a pre-order for $550) present bigger construct volumes for the same price ticket. If you wish to go within the different course and discover a printer with a better decision and aren’t fearful in regards to the worth, the Phrozen Sonic Mini 8K gives an eye-watering .022mm XY decision at an $899 price ticket.