Voxelab Proxima 8.9 Review

Voxelab has a large resin printer; the Proxima 8.9 4K. In this review, we’ll find out what this printer with a monochrome display can do.

Voxelab Proxima 8.9 Review

AVAILABLE ON VOXELAB | BANGGOOD

Voxelab Proxima 8.9 4K is a resin 3D printer with a 4K monochrome LCD screen. This high precision LCD screen boasts of a long service life.

The printer has an above-average construction volume of 192 x 120 x 200 mm, rectangular light sources for gentler and more precise printing, and a solid design with linear guides. This is a classic resin printer that ranks between the Anycubic Mono X and Elegoo Mars.

There are many new SLA printers with monochrome displays. Will the Proxima 8.9 can keep up with the big players; Anycubic and Elegoo.

For this review, we’ll use new, more consistent models (including our new printing mascot) and resins to highlight more specific differences and strengths of each printer. In the end, you’ll have a better idea on what to expect from this printer before you buy.

Technical Specs

General Specifications

3D Printing Specifications

Software Requirements

Dimensions & Weight

Technical Specifications

Here are the highlights of the Voxelab Proxima 8.9K resin 3D printer.

• Build volume: 192 x 120 x 200 mm
• 4K monochrome display (8.9-inch) with a resolution of 3840 x 2400 pixels
• A new rectangular light source that provides more even illumination and less heat on the LCD screen.
• Two linear rails that improve movement stability along the Z-axis
• Print speed increase by 50%: The improved 4K mono LCD screen improves light transmission, allowing for shorter exposure times. With a layer thickness of 0.05 mm, the printing speed is 17-25 mm/h.
• Integrated FEP film design: FEP film is fixed to the resin tray by 12 screws that are easy to replace.
• ChituBox and Voxelprint are included as the slicers.

As good as that sounds, what does that mean in practice? Here is our summary:
The pressure chamber of the Proxima 8.9 is larger than average. Only the Anycubic Mono X with 192 x 120 x 245 mm and the Elegoo Saturn with 192 x 120 x 200 mm have a comparably large installation space.

Display

In practice, the monochrome display offers a higher resolution and faster printing times. The service life is also better than that of RGB displays. According to Voxelab, the LCD screen has a service life of 2000 hours. For comparison, RGB displays often only last 500 hours.

The print speeds achieved by the Proxima 8.9 4k are decent and superior to SLA printers with RGB displays.

The 4K mono display, the 3840 x 2400 pixels resolution, and the double linear rail guide are good. However, they are almost standards for large-capacity SLA printers. The extent that the new rectangular light source distribution ensures better printing results can only be seen in practice.

Picture Series

The Proxima 8.9 4k is easy to set up and use. Unpack everything, connect the printer and adjust the construction platform done. This process takes about 10 minutes.

The supplied accessories include two spatulas, two pairs of gloves and five resin filters. There is also a USB stick that looks good and is really fast. Masks and resin are not included.

The printer tray system has a maximum mark and a practical guide for precisely inserting the container. After assembling the resin tub, we started our test with a resin provided by the manufacturer. Unfortunately, this resin was unusually reactive. Therefore, there were problems with the first prints due to overexposure.

Next, we tried black and transparent resin from Anycubic. This worked much better. The Proxima 8.9 4k processed the models we created without any problems and achieved good to excellent results. You can see the finished test prints below.

The print quality of the models printed using the manufacturer’s own resin were good after we found out the correct settings. We’ll talk more about this later on.

Slicer

The printer works with the Voxelprint slicing software. This software is good, logically structured and has a practical cleaner function. You can use it to harden residues in the tub so that they can be easily removed. Therefore, you won’t need to fully clean the tub in case of a misprint.
The slicer supplied on the USB stick is user-friendly and stable. You can also use the popular freeware Chitubox. The free software already has Voxelab printer profiles saved in it.
One of the special features of this printer is the maintenance interval reminder. which notifies the user when the FEP film needs to be changed. The printer also counts the exposures, similar to a camera’s shutter release counter.

Let’s now come to the criticisms.

Unfortunately, there is no supplied or pre-installed exposure test print with which one can find the perfect exposure settings. This means you have to carry out a time-consuming trial and error. By the way, so far, there are hardly and write ups that could be used as a guide.

Another criticism; while the manufacturer specifies a maximum print resolution of 0.025 mm, this resolution cannot be set with the Voxelprint. Also, the fans installed in the device are too loud, as is the case with most 3D printers.

We also cannot understand the design of the printing platform. There are four holes for the bracket in the middle of the construction platform. These holes are filled with resin during the prints and then remain as bumps on the bottom of the models.

This could have been solved much better. Even with budget printers we have never encountered this problem.

Print Quality

Voxelab Proxima 8.9 Price

The Proxima 8.9 is available at both Voxelab and Bangood for about $600. We feel this price is a bit high for the features and performance of the unit. If you have a smaller budget, get the earlier version, the Proxima 6.08, which comes with a 2K monochrome display. This unit is available for less than $200 (check current price).

Conclusion

The Voxelab Proxima 8.9 comes well package. The print quality is good, if you get the correct settings. Moreover, the performance is reliable. If you are looking for an SLA printer with a large installation space, this model should be in your shortlist.

However, the above-average price, the high noise level of the fans and the lack of an exposure test deduct some points. The drill holes in the pressure plate is also a negative.

Although the Proxima 8.9 4K performs well overall, we only recommend it with reservations. The price is definitely too high for us given its features and performance. On the same not, it’s only available on the manufacturer’s website and Banggood. It’s not on Amazon.

The Anycubic Mono X has comparable equipment, produces prints of the same quality, and has a similarly large print space.

If you can manage with a smaller installation space, there are even more cheaper options available. We recommend the Creality Halot One, which is available for under $200 (check current price).

AVAILABLE ON VOXELAB | BANGGOOD