What would it be like to take a few pieces of Creality, put them together and build an entirely new printer? That is the concept behind Sovol’s SV01 Pro, a 3D printer that is not just an imitation. Sovol is a company that buys parts from Creality and puts them together in new and interesting ways. The SV01 Pro costs $329 and has direct drive, CR Touch Auto Level and a print area of 280 x 240 pixels. These features create it comparable to a Creality. These features make it comparable to Creality Ender 3 S1, with a larger build volume, for about $70 less.
The Sovol SV01 Pro has a color touchscreen with a dancing astronaut mascot and feels more user-friendly than many of the best 3D printers. The SV01 Pro is an evolution of the SV01, a direct drive 3D printer, with many new features, including a self-leveling sensor (CR-Touch type), a silent 32-bit motherboard, a flexible magnetic plate, belt tensioners on the X and Y axes, and a color touchscreen. The complete technical file can be found on sovol’s Web site.
Design
The Sovol SV01 Pro looks strikingly like an Ender 3 v2, with a smooth frame and blue accents. It proudly displays the Sovol brand name on the top crossbar, so you won’t forget where it came from. The power supply and processor are located at the base of the machine, while the touch screen is on the side. The touch screen is an improvement over the one on the Ender 3 S1 Pro and offers a bright, easy-to-use and, we must say, very nice GUI. It offers a day mode and a night mode, something we have not seen before. The day mode features bright primary colors, while the night mode is completely dark.
The printer has two Z-axes, but they are not belt-synchronous. There is some concern that the X axis is not properly aligned, but we wouldn’t worry too much. The printer has quiet stepper motors, relatively quiet fans, and belt tension controls on both the X and Y axes. The build board is not my favorite a dull PC magnet with a slightly textured surface. While it is a reasonably grippy surface, it is difficult to clean and easy to pierce with a scraper or crashed nozzle.
If the nozzle gets too close to the bed, there is a risk of permanently etching the filament on the surface. It has a PTFE-coated hot tip that can reach 260 C, a temperature sufficient for most consumables. Don’t be fooled by the label “all-metal extruder,” which refers to the unit and not the hot tip. On the model we tested, the extruder gears were loose and could slip back and forth during filament loading. This made loading annoying, but did not seem to affect the quality of the prints.
Features
With an aluminum frame, decent build size and a heated bed, the SV01 has a number of strengths – despite its relatively affordable price tag. Plus, since the SV01 comes partially pre-assembled, it’s easier for novice 3D printers to get acquainted with it. But can the Sovol SV01 pro compete with the already established brands in the same price range? Let’s take a look at what this machine has to offer. A recurring problem with fused deposition modeling (FDM) 3D printers is inconsistency in the surface of the print.
The Sovol SV01 pro is equipped with two Z-axis stepper motor drivers, with dual screws. This is increasingly common on printers in this price range, but is still a welcome sight. Combined with the printer’s sturdy aluminum frame, this feature can reduce vibration, and thus less Z-wobble gives a smoother finish to prints. Sovol deliberately left room for some DIY improvements. In the printer’s original state, leveling must be done manually by turning knobs under the build plate. However, there is a spot on the head to add a BL-Touch bed leveling sensor, allowing the user to easily upgrade the printer.
Printing
We usually start with the pre-cut test model and the filament provided. This one came with a 3DBenchy, so we went with that. It had some low lines and some strands, but this was printed before we discovered that the CR Touch was not accurate. Pre-cut, 1 hour and 54 minutes. We printed my favorite Flexi, the Flexi-Unicorn from Benchy4Life, at 150% in the PLA sample provided. This one also printed very cleanly, despite the uneven bed.
Unfortunately, the skirt of this unicorn is still broken in the construction sheet. Print time: 6 hours, 51 minutes at 0.2 mm reduced height and 65 MS speed. The latest calibration tool in the 3D printing community is McGybeer’s new Cali-Dragon. It too is printed in sample PLA and is incredibly smooth. Although it is a simple print, it is possible to evaluate filaments and small horn contours, as well as shading, protrusions, and small details. This is an achievement. Print time: 42 minutes with a layer height of 0.2 mm and a speed of 65 mm.
Software
The Sovol SV01 Pro comes with Sovol Cura, with profiles for all their machines. This is a modified copy of the regular Cura: if you have already downloaded Ultimaker Cura for another machine, you will see that the SV01 profile is included. The profile for the SV01 and SV01 Pro is the same, since both are direct-drive machines with the same build volume. If you want to try PrusaSlicer, you will have to create a profile from scratch.
Conclusion
The Sovol SV01 Pro costs about $330, a little more than the Anycubic Kobra, currently one of our favorite cheap 3D printers. But it is also cheaper than the Creality Ender 3 S1, one of the best 3D printers around. Given the price and extra print volume of the Sovol SV01 Pro, we think it is worth the price, but only if you are willing to accept some of the compromises Sovol made with the Z axis and print area.
If they had added G34 support or a Z-sync band and a better print area, the SV01 Pro would have been the best buy in this price range. Sovol support seems to be good from what we have seen online and considering that Sovol has invested some time to get the firmware working properly with useful features such as linear feed and M600 filament change support, it might weigh a bit in the purchase decision in favor of the SV01 Pro.
