The Elegoo Mars 2 Pro is the latest in Elegoo’s Mars line of small form factor resin 3D printers. Typical with all resin 3D printers in its class, the Mars 2 Pro boasts excellent print quality, perfect for miniatures and highly detailed models. Now equipped with a monochrome LCD, the Mars Pro 2 can print anywhere between 30-50% faster than the last generation resin 3D printers, with the only downside being replacement parts being more expensive and harder to source. Sharing the same internal hardware as the Anycubic Mono, Anycubic Photon Mono SE and EPAX E6, we recommend the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro as it retails lower than its competitors.
Co-Founder & CTO
Amazon.com Disclosure: As Amazon Associates, we earn from qualifying purchases.
In early 2020, Phrozen released the first affordable monochromatic LCD resin 3D printer. The monochromatic LCD promised enormous print speed increases, which led their competitors to scramble quickly to join this new generation of affordable resin 3D printers.
Elegoo entered the monochromatic LCD resin 3D printer market with their Elegoo Mars 2 Pro. Comparable to its well-reviewed Elegoo Mars Pro, the Mars 2 Pro comes equipped with a monochromatic LCD instead of the standard RGB LCD. At $329, it’s one of the most expensive monochromatic LCD printers on the market. Its competitors, like the Anycubic Mono, Creality LD-002H, Phrozen Sonic Mini and the EPAX E6, come under $260.
With such an expensive retail price, can the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro compete with all the other monochromatic LCD resin printers on the market? In this Elegoo Mars 2 Pro resin 3D printer review, we will take a look at all the pros and cons to help you decide if it stacks up against the competition.
With 3D printers on the rise, one of the important things to look for is the ease of setup. You don’t want to spend a significant amount of money on a new 3D printer if you need an engineering degree to set it up. This is why we love the Elegoo Mars Pro for newbies because it comes fully assembled from the factory, and you can get straight to printing! This is why we scored the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro a 9/10 for setup.
The next important thing to look out for is the print quality, which is why you bought a 3D printer in the first place, to print! The Elegoo Mars 2 Pro is equipped with a 2K LCD and can print details as small as 51um. We tested out its capabilities by printing a series of detailed tiles. When we look at the UV light distribution across the build plate, it was distributed evenly, which indicates fantastic quality!
You also want to be on the lookout for maintenance and repair. The Elegoo Mars 2 Pro replacements for the LCDs are usually out of stock and cost around $50 to replace after 2,000 hours of use which results in some downtime for maintenance. Despite Elegoo having a higher price tag for this printer, it has the cheapest replacement LCD cost out of all current monochrome LCD resin printers. However, I still hate the downtime due to a lack of stock, so we scored maintenance and repair at 6/10.
Lastly, you want to ensure there is great community support as you venture into the 3D printing world. The Elegoo Mars 2 Pro has a large community following due to the popularity of the Mars series overall. Buyers can get all kinds of information to resolve issues which is why we gave this printer a 9/10 for community support.
Overall Score
Ranked #1 of 10
SLA Printers
Learn more about our 3D printer review methodology.
The Elegoo Mars 2 Pro is part of a new generation of small-form-factor MSLA resin 3d printers specializing in highly detailed and quick 3d prints. These types of printers are well known for their small size, ease of setting up and large community support.
We put the Mars 2 PRO through a series of different test prints, subjected it to difficult print environments, dove deep into its support forums, timed each print to the exact second, attempted to print things beyond its capabilities, and more. To get a baseline, we compared it to other printers in its class, including the EPAX E6, Anycubic Photon Mono SE and Phrozen Sonic Mini.
With resin printing continuously evolving at a very fast pace, this is a must-have piece of research. Selecting the wrong small-form-factor MSLA resin printer can leave you with poor-quality prints, little support, poor set up and a running tab of repair and power bills. We will make sure that your hard-earned dollars go towards the best printers and the best features.
ELEGOO Mars 2 Pro printer is featured is also featured in:
The Elegoo Mars 2 Pro comes fully assembled from the factory and is ready to print straight from the box. The resin printer itself is well packaged with protective foam around the printer, build plate and resin vat. Users should make sure the resin vat and build plate are free from any particles of foam when setting up. The resin vat also has a protective film that is difficult to see and must be removed; otherwise, prints will fail.
Leveling the build plate to the LCD is the one thing users need to do before printing with the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro. All other budget-friendly resin printers require the user to level the build plate before use. For the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro, two large hex screws lock the build plate in place and must be tightened during the leveling process. Compared to previous generation printers, Elegoo had a much better leveling system. However, with the latest generation, most resin printers now feature 4 screws to increase the bed leveling precision. While the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro’s leveling process is more than adequate, competitors such as Anycubic have caught up with Elegoo.
Resin printers are capable of extremely detailed prints that FDM prints cannot dream of competing with. The limit of how much detail a resin printer can resolve is determined by the resolution of the LCD screen used.
The Elegoo Mars 2 Pro is equipped with a 2K LCD and can resolve details as small as 51um. The Mars 2 Pro has a slightly worse resolution than the original Mars, capable of resolving details as small as 47um. However, in our testing, we couldn’t see a noticeable difference between the two resolutions.
We tested the Mars 2 Pro in 3 major areas: the ability to resolve detailed models, z height consistency and consistent UV exposure across the whole build plate. To test the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro’s ability to print detailed models, we had it print several detailed figures, both large and small. When printing small details, the printer had absolutely no issues. We then printed a lot of models and figurines. The Mars 2 Pro had no issues printing each of these models, and the texture came out perfectly. However, we noticed a slight pixelation on the flat side of the figurine when using LCDs.
Next up, tested the Mars 2 Pro’s ability to print tall objects and exaggerate any issues related to the z-stepper motor, or with the linear rail on the z-axis. The Elegoo Mars 2 Pro had no issues printing out the small details in the tower and showed no issues with z alignment.
We finally printed a series of detailed tiles across the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro to test how evenly the UV light is distributed across the build plate. If the light distribution is uneven, then details on the edge will look different compared to the details in the middle. We found there was no difference between the tiles found on the edge and those found in the middle.
The Elegoo Mars 2 Pro outputs excellent quality prints and is on par with every other monochrome LCD resin printer in its class.
While the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro produces great prints, there are a few points we would like to address in regards to Elegoo’s claim of print speeds, as outlined below.
Print Speed
With the inclusion of the monochromatic LCD in the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro, print curing times have decreased from 6 seconds to 2 seconds. Anycubic claims that the Photon Mono SE has a 300% increase in print speed compared to the previous Mars Pro. However, print curing times are only a small portion of the time the printer needs to start the next layer. As most of the time is taken by moving the build plate to its next position, the actual speed increase is closer to 30-50%.
Slicer Compatibility
Elegoo has recommended and shipped Chitubox as its slicer of choice. We highly recommend the Chitubox to users due to its presets and support from Elegoo and the 3D printer community. However, the Elegoo Mars Pro is compatible with the Lychee slicer, which is a wonderful addition. The Lychee slicer also has good preset profiles for the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro.
Setting Up Prints
Elegoo ships their Mars 2 Pro printer with Chitubox slicer, an extremely popular 3rd party resin slicer. Chitubox has a number of features like model hollowing, hole generation and auto supports that are staples in resin 3D printing. The user interface is simple and easy to navigate, and Chitubox is one of our preferred slicers for resin 3D printing (alongside Lychee slicer).
Chitubox has preset profiles for the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro which makes getting prints ready extremely easy, allowing users to be confident that Chitubox will slice 3D models for reliable resin 3D printing.
Files are loaded into a USB flash drive which is inserted into the Mars 2 Pro’s USB port. The Elegoo Mars Pro features an easy-to-navigate and simple menu that allows you to select and start your prints. Users familiar with the original Mars, Mars Pro and the EPAX X1 will find that navigation on the Mars 2 Pro is identical.
Noise Levels
Unlike FDM printers, resin printers only have 1 stepper motor used to move the z-axis. As such, the Photon S is extremely quiet in operation. The loudest components of the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro are the cooling and vent fans that run continuously. While the Mars 2 Pro is in operation, we recorded about 40db of noise, comparable to a quiet office. This noise level is in line with every other small form factor resin 3D printer on the market.
The Elegoo Mars 2 Pro shares the same design and overall size as the previous version, and the Mars Pro at 200mm (l) x 200mm (w) x 410mm (h) and has the same weight of 7.5kg. It differs with a slightly taller build volume at 115mm (l) x 65mm (w) x 160mm (h), which is comparable to all other monochrome LCD resin printers in its class. As it shares the same design as the previous Mars and Mars Pro, the only differentiation between the Mars 2 Pro is the name inked on the front of the machine.
It is very important to pay attention to the max build volume of an individual printer. In Elegoo Mars 2 Pro’s case, the only objections you’ll be able to print are:
200mm (l) x 200mm (w) x 410mm (h) or 7.8′ (l) x 7.8′ (w) x 16.1′ (h)
Printing anything large than above requires the assembly of multiple smaller objects.
Similar to previous iterations, the Mars 2 Pro is constructed out of metal found in the base and equipped with a red acrylic top to access the build plate. Users would need to remove and store the acrylic top to access the build plate. We found this to be rather inconvenient to do in our small office. Some users may appreciate this feature as it grants them 360o access to the build plate; however, we prefer the gull-wing doors found on the more expensive Anycubic Photon Mono SE.
As the vast majority of affordable resin 3D printers utilize the same components, manufacturers have to differentiate themselves with construction, durability, features and price. In the latest generation of monochrome LCD resin 3D printers, nearly all printers feature the same construction of a metal base and acrylic lid, with the only differentiating feature being the colour of the lid. In the case of Elegoo, it features a red acrylic top, which looks very sharp.
MSLA resin printers are electrically safe compared to filament-based FDM 3D printers. Resin printers need very little power to drive an LCD screen, UV light source, and 1 stepper motor versus high-power heaters used to melt filament and heated beds found in FDM printers. As a result, MSLA resin printers, such as the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro, do not have the electrification or fire risks associated with FDM 3D printers.
Resin Health Concerns
Regarding health concerns, some risks are involved when dealing with 405nm UV resin. For example, 405nm UV resin is extremely toxic if ingested and can cause severe allergic reactions when it comes in contact with exposed skin. When handling, there should be several precautions taken. Luckily, the Mars Pro does a few things to address some of these safety concerns.
When handling resin, nitrile gloves should always be worn. Elegoo ships their resin printers with a few extra pairs of disposable gloves alongside a couple of face masks to help reduce fume exposure. Users should never operate without wearing nitrile gloves when dealing with any resin 3D printer.
Additionally, the 50w UV light source has the potential to harm one’s eyes and can be dangerous to look at it directly without safety glasses on. The acrylic top of the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro is tinted red to prevent UV light exposure. This serves as a double shield to prevent UV light from the environment from reaching the UV-sensitive resin within. It should be noted that the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro will continue operation even if the acrylic top is removed.
Built-in Charcoal Filter
405nm UV resin will give off strong fumes that are potentially toxic to breathe in. Even when the resin printer isn’t operating, it’s extremely important to properly ventilate the printer to avoid fume buildup. The Elegoo Mars 2 Pro is equipped with a charcoal filter that removes fumes coming from 405nm UV resin. Elegoo’s claim that this is an air purifier that creates a safer user experience since it has no HEPA rating on the filter is a bit misleading.
However, it does a good job of removing the resin smell. Unfortunately, Elegoo does not sell additional filters despite needing regular replacements. Instead, they sell entire new units for its resin printers. We highly recommend that users operate resin printers in highly ventilated areas or attach a HEPA-certified filtration system to their resin 3D printers.
Finding Replacement Parts
In resin 3D printing, the LCD and FEP sheet in the resin vat need to be replaced periodically. A major advantage the monochrome LCDs have over older RGB screens is their vastly longer lifespans. Monochrome LCDs are rated for 2,000 hours compared to RGB’s 400 hours, resulting in far fewer times the Anycubic Photon SE needs to go offline for maintenance.
Unfortunately, because monochrome LCDs are a newer printer technology, replacement screens are hard to come by and relatively expensive to get. Currently, replacement screens are $50 direct from Elegoo and are constantly out of stock. It should be noted that despite Elegoo having the higher price tag for the resin printer, the Mars 2 Pro has the cheapest replacement LCD cost out of all the current monochrome LCD resin printers.
Accessing the Control Board
Since there are very few moving parts on the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro, opening up the resin printer should be a rare occurrence. However, if the user needs to access the control board or any other internal components, it can be done by removing a few screws on the base and side of the machine, which removes the bottom and sides of the printer. This exposes the control board and other electronics, which provides users with a huge amount of room to navigate around the board. Users familiar with the Elegoo Mars and Mars Pro will find the process of accessing the control board identical to the Mars 2 Pro.
6 Inch Monochrome LCD
The latest generation of resin 3D printers, like the Elegoo Mars 2 Pro, set themselves apart with their monochromatic LCD panel. It stands out from the older RGB LCD panels found in older models by removing the red and green subpixels and leaving the blue subpixels. This results in 3 times the light transmission from the UV light source to the resin. Curing times are reduced from around 6 seconds per layer to 2 seconds per layer for most standard resins.
The Elegoo Mars 2 Pro enjoys a large community following due to the popularity of the Mars series of printers. Users can get information for issues on a variety of places such as forums, Facebook groups and subreddits. Some of them include:
Facebook: ELEGOO Mars
Reddit: ELEGOO Mars Reddit
Thingiverse: ELEGOO Mars Forum
During the beginning of affordable resin 3D printing, manufacturers sought various ways to differentiate themselves to win over new customers. This included different designs, additional features, community support and extended warranties.
However, in 2022, it appears that all the manufacturers have converged on one design revolving around the monochromatic LCD. This is disappointing; despite the excellent print quality and speed afforded by the monochrome LCD, there is little innovation in the current generation of resin 3D printers. As such, the only differentiation between resin 3D printers is the price, and the Elegoo is one of the most expensive options out there.
We recommend Elegoo Mars 2 Pro, Anycubic Mono, EPAX E6 and Prozen Sonic Mini; they are all excellent printers and are worthy of consideration due to their identical high-quality prints.
Disclaimer
3DGearZone.com is a professional review site that receives compensation from the companies whose products we review. We test each product thoroughly and give high marks to only the very best. We don’t guarantee, however, that our suggestions will work best for each individual or business, so consider your unique needs when choosing products and services. 3DGearZone.com is independently owned and the opinions expressed here are our own.
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
Sources
1. Elegoo.com, “Elegoo, INC.” Accessed July 26, 2022.
Share Article
We are dedicated to delivering honest and objective reviews. Our mission is to help you select the right 3D products for your specific needs, budget, and interests.
Amazon.com Disclosure: As Amazon Associates, we earn from qualifying purchases.
