What is a slicer for 3D printing?
A 3D printer slicer is a key part of the printing process. See, a slicer is a piece of software for your PC or Mac that can convert a 3D model file – normally with the file extension .STL, .3MF or .OBJ – into a file that is usable by your 3D printer. A printer is essentially a sophisticated plotting machine that moves to certain coordinates told to it by the slicer in the programming language G-code. That’s why slicer software is so important.
A slicer does exactly what it sounds like. It cuts a 3D model into small “sliced” layers that are printed individually but stacked on top of each other. A slicer is also responsible for the following:
- How hot the printer should be
- How fast the printer should go
- Where to put the supports on the model
- How much infill is required for the model
- Where the print head should be at any given second
- How much material to extrude in each layer
- And many more settings that can be tweaked
Basically, everything that makes your printer useful is told to it by the slicer, so it’s the most important piece of software you can own.
Now that we know what a slicer does, we can talk about which ones are the best to use. The best slicers will be determined by what kind of 3D printer you have and what you use it for. Resin printers often require different slicers to FDM machines, so this article will tell you which is which.
3D printing slicer FAQ
Can I use any slicer with any 3D printer?
While a lot of slicers work with different machines, not all of them are compatible. It would be incredibly hard to write a universal slicer for every 3D printer in existence. That being said, most slicers will allow settings for a custom machine to be added manually. So as long as the slicer is available for the type of printer you are using (like FDM or resin), you should be able to use it.
Some slicers like PrusaSlicer and Lychee will work with both resin and FDM printers, so if you’re working with more than one printer in each medium they might be the best choices.
Why do you focus on supports so much?
When testing all the different slicers out there, I found that the way they handled supports had the most impact on the print quality. Most slicers have pretty much the same abilities, like infill patterns and speed control, but each one has a slightly different way of making supports.
Supports are the bane of any 3D maker’s life, so finding a slicer that can make them effortlessly is key.
Should I use the slicer that came with my 3D printer?
3D printers often come with their own branded slicer and, more often than not, they’re based on the open-source Cura platform. If you’ve bought a printer from Elegoo, Creality, Anycubic or Lulzbot you’ll have seen the branded slicer is based on Cura with some minor tweaks.
The problem with using a brand-stamped version of a slicer is that they’re normally slow to update. Cura is often updated extremely quickly and most 3D printing companies are not interested in spending the money to update alongside it.
While I always use the brand version when testing products, my own personal prints are normally done on PrusaSlicer or Cura. I like cutting-edge, and that’s what they give.