Printer comparison
Formlabs Form 4 vs Sovol SV08 Max
Compare hardware, build volume, printing specifications, dated prices and sources.
2 selected · all documented properties
Open these two in the interactive comparisonMore Formlabs Form 4 comparisonsMore Sovol SV08 Max comparisons
| Property | Formlabs Form 4RESIN | Sovol SV08 MaxCOREXY |
|---|---|---|
| Identity | ||
| Brand | Formlabs | Sovol |
| Class | RESIN | COREXY |
| Identity & Market | ||
| Manufacturer & exact marketed model name (verify the exact product identity first) | Formlabs Form 4 3D Printer[1][2] | Sovol SV08 Max 3D Printer[3][4] |
| Street price (USD; dated snapshot per entry) | Starting at $2,625.00 at GoEngineer, in stock, checked Aug 2026. Formlabs sells the printer as part of packages (Form 4 Complete Package etc.), so package prices are much higher than the printer-only figure[2] | $1,099.00 on sovol3d.com against a $1,299.00 compare-at price (15% off), in stock, checked Aug 2026[3][4] |
| Variants & sibling models — and how to tell them apart (spec-contamination risk) | Three machines share this platform and are constantly conflated. Form 4: 200 x 125 x 210 mm, 50 um pixels, 18.3 kg, 480 W, one resin cartridge, NOT biocompatible. Form 4B: identical hardware but validated for 38 Formlabs materials including 15 biocompatible. Form 4L: 353 x 196 x 350 mm, 46 um pixels, 58.5 kg, 900 W, two cartridges[1] | Much larger sibling of the SV08. Differences that matter in a spec box: 500x500x500 vs 350x350x345, 50 vs 30 mm3/s, TMC5160 XY drivers vs TMC2209, CAN bus, HDMI output, dual 0.4 mm nozzles in the box, and a separately sold chamber-heating module. A chamber heating module for the SV08 Max is listed at $69[3][5][6][4] |
| Physical & Frame | ||
| Build volume X×Y×Z (mm) — advertised vs actually usable | 200 x 125 x 210 mm (Formlabs quotes 5.25 litres)[1][2] | 500 x 500 x 500 mm advertised[3][5] |
| Machine footprint (mm) & clearance needed (cable/spool overhang) | 398 x 367 x 554 mm[1][2] | 700 x 710 x 750 mm excluding the spool holder. Shipping cartons: 810 x 820 x 360 mm plus a 775 x 728 x 155 mm enclosure-kit box[3][5] |
| Net weight (kg) | 18.3 kg[1][2] | Not documented |
| Frame construction & material | Not documented | Aluminium-extrusion CoreXY frame supplied as a kit; Sovol ships it in two cartons, one of which is an enclosure kit[3] |
| Enclosure: open / enclosed; panel material; door/lid | Enclosed cabinet with a hinged UV-blocking cover. Operating temperature 18-28 C[1] | Enclosure kit shipped with the machine (separate carton). A chamber-heating module is sold separately at $69[3][4] |
| Kinematics & Motion Hardware | ||
| Kinematics (bedslinger i3 / CoreXY / other) | Masked stereolithography (MSLA). Formlabs brands the engine Low Force Display; straight-lift peel[1][2] | CoreXY[3][5] |
| Stepper drivers (exact model e.g. TMC2209; UART/SPI; sensorless homing?) | Not documented | Z axis 4 x TMC2209; A axis 1 x TMC5160; B axis 1 x TMC5160. Toolhead communication over CAN bus[3][5] |
| Speed & Acceleration | ||
| Max print speed (claimed, mm/s) | Not documented | 700 mm/s maximum (manufacturer claim)[3][5] |
| Max acceleration (claimed, mm/s²) | Not documented | 40,000 mm/s2 maximum (manufacturer claim)[3][5] |
| Max volumetric flow claimed (mm³/s) | Not documented | 50 mm3/s maximum (manufacturer claim)[3][5] |
| Extruder | ||
| Type (direct drive / bowden) & design name | Not documented | Direct drive with auxiliary (assisted) filament feeding[3][5] |
| Hotend & Nozzle | ||
| Hotend design (proprietary/standard; quick-swap mechanism?) | Not documented | Ceramic heater. Two 0.4 mm nozzles supplied as standard; 0.4/0.6/0.8 mm optional[3][5] |
| Max nozzle temp claimed AND firmware max temp limit (both values) | Not documented | <=300 °C claimed[3][5] |
| Heated Bed & Surface | ||
| Max bed temp claimed AND firmware limit | Not documented | <=100 °C claimed[3][5] |
| Leveling & Z-Offset | ||
| Auto bed leveling: probe technology (inductive / strain gauge / load cell / touch probe) | Not documented | Not stated on the SV08 Max page; the SV08 family uses an inductive sensor plus pressure sensor[3] |
| Filament Handling & Detection | ||
| Filament runout sensor (type, location) | Not documented | Filament runout detection plus filament tangle/clog detection. Sovol does not describe the tangle or clog mechanism[3][5] |
| Electronics & Power | ||
| Host computer (SoC, RAM, storage) if firmware runs on embedded Linux | Not documented | 1 GB RAM (512 MB + 512 MB), 8 GB eMMC[3][5] |
| Input voltage (110/220 V, switch or auto) | 100-240 VAC, 4.8 A, 50/60 Hz, 480 W[1] | Not documented |
| Total rated power draw | 480 W[1] | Not documented |
| Firmware & Openness | ||
| Firmware base & current version (Klipper fork / Marlin fork / proprietary) | Proprietary. Print preparation is PreForm; fleet management is Formlabs Dashboard[2] | Klipper (3DJake's table renders it as "Clipper"). OrcaSlicer is the supported slicer[3][5] |
| Connectivity, UI & Camera | ||
| Display: size, type, touch? | 7-inch interactive touchscreen, 1280 x 800 (control panel — not the masking LCD, see W1)[1] | Not documented |
| WiFi (band/standard), Ethernet, USB ports, SD/flash-drive | Dual-band Wi-Fi, Gigabit Ethernet (1000 Mbit), USB-C 2.0[1][2] | USB, Wi-Fi 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz, HDMI, Ethernet[3][5] |
| Power-Loss & Interruption Recovery | ||
| Power-loss recovery: mechanism (how is state saved? capacitor / eeprom / file on shutdown?) | Not documented | Power-loss resume printing supported; mechanism not published[3][5] |
| Materials Support | ||
| Officially supported filament list | Formlabs resins across rigid, tough, general purpose, flame retardant, silicone, elastic, ceramic and castable families. Biocompatible resins require the Form 4B, not the Form 4[1] | 1.75 mm filament; Sovol does not publish a per-material list on this page[3][5] |
| Independently Measured Performance | ||
| Dimensional accuracy measurements (third-party, with numbers) | XY dimensional tolerance +/-0.15% — a manufacturer specification, not an independent measurement[1][2] | Not documented |
| Resin & MSLA | ||
| Masking LCD | Low Force Display masking LCD with a 50 um pixel size and pre-tuned anti-aliasing. Formlabs does not publish the screen diagonal or pixel count[1][2] | Not documented |
| Light source | Backlight unit with 60 uniform-wavelength high-power LEDs behind collimating lenses, with integrated cooling[1][2] | Not documented |
| Vertical print speedmm/h | Maximum 100 mm/h; average 40 mm/h at a 100 um layer height (manufacturer figures — GoEngineer publishes both, which is unusually explicit about the basis). Formlabs separately claims most prints finish in under 2 hours[2][1] | Not documented |
| Layer height range | 25-200 um per Formlabs' own tech-spec page; GoEngineer's listing for the same machine says 25-300 um. Unresolved[1][2] | Not documented |
| Resin vat & feeding | Single next-generation resin cartridge; Formlabs claims 5-10x faster filling and 63% less waste. Resin tank rated for 75,000+ layers with any Formlabs material. No vat capacity published[1][2] | Not documented |
Manufacturer claims, independent measurements, packages and test conditions retain their source wording. FDM linear speed and resin vertical speed use different units and are not directly comparable. Unknown values are marked “Not documented”. Prices and source dates remain historical snapshots; check the linked guide for product details. Differences highlight text, not a universal winner.
Sources for this comparison
- Formlabs resin printer technical specifications (Form 4 / 4B / 4L) formlabs.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Formlabs Form 4 3D printer listing store.goengineer.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Sovol SV08 Max 3D Printer product page sovol3d.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Sovol 3D-printer collection product feed (live prices and stock) sovol3d.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Sovol SV08 Max technical data table 3djake.com · 2026-08 · vendor
- Sovol SV08 3D Printer product page sovol3d.com · 2026-08 · vendor