Resin MSLA~$179Elegoo · released 2024
Elegoo Mars 5
Entry point to resin printing, and the machine that shows why the marketing number is the wrong one to shop on: a 4K panel over a 143 mm-wide area gives a 35 µm pixel, nearly twice the pitch of the 18 µm machines a step up. For miniatures at 28 mm scale that is visible in the faces. What the Mars 5 does have is a mechanical resin sensor that detects residue on the film before it damages the LCD — a $179 printer protecting its most expensive consumable is a sensible piece of engineering — plus automatic levelling, which removes the four-screw ritual that used to define the first hour with a resin printer. Take it as the machine that teaches you whether you can live with the washing, curing and isopropyl alcohol, before spending more.
- Approx. price
- ~$179
- Build volume
- 1.9 L
- Per litre
- $93
- XY pixel
- 35 µm
Best forFinding out whether resin printing suits you before committing real money.
Specifications
- Build volume
- 143.43 × 89.6 × 150 mm
- Volume
- 1.9 L
- Motion
- gantry
Optics and handling
- LCD resolution
- 4098 × 2560 px
- LCD size
- 6.6 in
- XY resolution
- 35 µm
- Layer height
- from 10 µm
- Release film
- FEP
- Vat capacity
- 350 ml
- Multi-material
- None offered
- Firmware
- proprietary
- Cloud
- Optional
- Camera
- No
- Assembly
- Pre-assembled
- Weight
- 6 kg
- Footprint
- 227 × 227 × 401 mm
Features
- 6.6-inch 4K mono LCD, 4098 × 2560 pixels
- Mechanical sensor that detects residue before it damages the screen
- Automatic levelling — no four-screw tramming
- COB light source with 92% uniformity
What it does well
- Lowest price of entry to resin, with automatic levelling rather than manual tramming
- Residue sensor protects the LCD, which is the expensive consumable on any resin printer
- COB light source with good uniformity for the price
- Small enough to fit on a shelf in a ventilated space
Where it gives ground
- 35 µm pixel pitch is roughly twice that of the 18 µm machines above it — visible on miniature faces
- Small 143 × 90 mm plate limits batch printing
- Standard FEP film rather than the faster-releasing ACF used higher up the range
- Resin printing needs ventilation, gloves, a wash station and a cure station whatever the printer costs
The points above are read off published specifications, not from owner reports.
What owners report
No owner discussion has been collected for the Elegoo Mars 5 yet. Everything on this page comes from the manufacturer’s published specifications and the sources listed under how we compare. We would rather say so than write sentiment we have not read.
