Build Volume

With a build volume of 218 x 123 x 235 mm, the Phrozen Sonic Mighty 8K is definitely not short on space to create. This volume puts it on the larger side of resin 3D printers, though it is a long way off troubling the largest of its kind.

Similar-sized printers include the likes of the Anycubic Photon Mono X 6K at 197 x 122 x 245 mm and the Elegoo Saturn S at 196 x 122 x 210 mm. Though neither of these rivals can quite match the largest resin printers available to consumers, in particular Phrozen’s own Sonic Mega 8K.

8K Monochrome LCD

This is where things start to get really interesting. Phrozen has stuffed a 10-inch 8K monochrome LCD screen into the Mighty 8K packing 7680 x 4320 pixels, meaning that the print resolution in this larger resin 3D printer works out as a low, low 28 microns.

That puts it among the more accurate resin 3D printers consumers can buy, and should leave it capable of ultra-fine detail despite the large build volume. A 90% light uniformity score from the source below the screen should also assist in keeping things consistent across the build area.

It’s really this combination that will have rez-heads salivating, as it’s pretty unusual to see such a roomy printer come with the promise of such fine detail. When it comes to 3D printing figurines, buildings, or jewelry, this printer should produce some seriously impressive results. Whether it actually will or not, remains to be seen of course. But, the potential is most certainly there.

Metal Vat

Now, there’s no real reason to turn your nose up at a plastic resin vat, but there are some people out there who swear blind that a plastic resin vat is inferior and troublesome, the lowest of the low in the resin vat world, pretty much.

Those people will be delighted to see Phrozen including a full metal resin vat for the Sonic Mighty 8K. It’s really just a feel thing, we’ve never witnessed any advantage or disadvantage here during our countless number of hours using a wide variety of resin 3D printers, but metal feels a bit better than plastic in the hand, doesn’t it?

Wi-Fi, and other inferior connection methods

Wi-Fi is obviously the best connection method. Unless of course, you’ve got a patchy Wi-Fi signal in your work area, then it’s a complete pain in the rump. Luckily, Phrozen has a few connection options for the Sonic Mighty 8K though. Yes, there’s a Wi-Fi connection, but there’s also an Ethernet connection and a USB 2.0 connection (on the front of the printer) too, so you’ve got some flexibility on how exactly you want to tell the Mighty 8K to get on with its job.

Laser Engraved Build Plate

It’s been fairly common practice for build plates on resin printers to be smooth, but 3D printer manufacturers like Phrozen are beginning to engrave the build surfaces in a bid to boost adhesion and reduce the odds of print failures happening. In larger 3D printers like this Mighty 8K, it seems to be a bit more common.

The pattern etched into the surface of the Mighty 8K’s plate was done by an unspecified laser, and it looks like a whole bottle of cool. Not that you’ll see it much of course.

All that truly matters is whether it helps your prints adhere to the plate, and hopefully, that etched texture will be a little more grippy for the larger, heavier prints this machine is capable of. That print plate does look super cool though…

Dual Linear Rails

235 mm dual linear rails should keep things strong and stable in the Z-axis, and they’ll need to be if you’re making full use of the Mighty 8K’s tall print volume.

Larger resin prints can be pretty heavy, so the extra stability in movement up and down the Z-axis is likely to be very helpful in those particular cases.

Camera, Action

Phrozen isn’t making a huge deal about the inclusion of a camera in the Mighty 8K, but it could be a fantastic little tool to have. The in-built camera gives you the possibility to connect with your smartphone and monitor the printing process remotely.

How exactly this will work isn’t 100% clear right now, but Phrozen has told us an app of sorts is on the way and currently in development with a test version due to be ready by the close of May 2022. Full release is expected in July of the same year, a little later than some pre-orderers might actually get their printers, so this feature might not be ready to go by the time printing begins.

Further Features

The Phrozen Sonic Mighty 8K also has a couple more tricks up its sleeve.

• Third-party compatible software: Phrozen seems to favor ChiTuBox the most, but the Mighty 8K is compatible with other slicers too, such as the also-very-poplar Lychee.
• UI: Packing a 5-inch color touchscreen, the Phrozen Sonic Mighty 8K should respond quickly and intuitively to your inputs. It’s a touchscreen, you know the drill by now. For the Mighty 8K, Phrozen appears to have a fresh-looking UI, it certainly appears differently to previous UIs.