As a happy Bambu Studio user, I have long wondered why some users prefer to use OrcaSlicer for their 3D printing needs. So I did some digging, downloaded OrcaSlicer and found out for myself.
Dial-in printer and filament settings
OrcaSlicer as well as an extensive set of tools for calibrating your printer guide How to put your findings to good use. Depending on the operating system you are using, you can find it in the “Calibration” menu at the top of the window or in the menu bar at the top of the screen.
It is a one stop shop for all important tests. You can run and customize tests for nozzle temperature, maximum flow rate, pressure advance, flow rates, filament retraction, curl, inlet shape, and vertical fine artefacts (VFA). Having all of this in your slicer means you don’t have to hunt down models and print them by hand.
Select a test, make sure the parameters are within the limits you selected, and click OK create a model. From here, you can send the model to the printer and use OrcaSlicer’s instructions to fine-tune your results.
Deal with more print settings
Bambu Studio aims to be user-friendly
When I first started using my 3D printer (Bambu Lab P2S), Bambu Studio felt a bit big. There are a lot of parameters staring you in the face when cutting a model. I quickly learned that you don’t necessarily need to touch them (especially if the model author has already optimized the file), but now I feel very comfortable correcting things like stitch positionsline widths and supports.
If you thought Bambu Studio had a lot of options, OrcaSlicer managed to include more. Both slicers have an “advanced” settings toggle that you can use to hide many of these options, but when both modes are enabled, OrcaSlicer shows everything bare.
Some of this is related to the way OrcaSlicer plots the data, but there are some noticeable differences (such as extra sparse padding patterns) to use.
Wider selection of popular printers
One slicer for all your printers
Although Bambu Studio is naturally related the eponymous 3D printing giantOrcaSlicer takes a more platform-agnostic approach to 3D printing. Although OrcaSlicer is a fork of Bambu Studio, it is not designed with only Bambu printers in mind.
Bambu Studio supports additional printers, but doesn’t exactly go out of its way to add support for competing manufacturers. For example, the latest release still only has open support for the Prusa Mini and MK3S, with no Core One+ or MK4S to be seen.
In comparison, OrcaSlicer supports a huge number of printers (so much so that the list takes a second to load when you try to add a new one). If you want to use a printer like Bambu Studio with a non-Bambu printer, this is the best option for you. It’s also the perfect choice for anyone who has printers from multiple manufacturers and wants to use a single slicer for all their 3D printing needs.
Improved perceived print quality with OrcaSlicer
Worth a shot, right?
I can’t verify this myself, as I haven’t seen a huge difference in print quality between the two slicers, but some insist that OrcaSlicer provides print quality improvements over Bambu Studio.
For example, one Reddit thread shows an improvement in how the slicer handles overflows in default settings. Other Shows a 19-hour Batman figure print using Bambu Studio, where the figure is handmade but first printed perfectly in the OrcaSlicer.
You’ll probably find users who claim otherwise, so it’s worth taking these examples with a pinch of salt. But if you’re having trouble getting something to print perfectly in Bambu Studio, you’ve got nothing to lose by trying to slice it in OrcaSlicer instead (it’s free, after all).
OrcaSlicer works with Bambu’s cloud services
Thanks to the network plugin
One reason many people had to leave OrcaSlicer was because of Bamboo Labs the unpopular decision to lock cloud functionality behind a dedicated network plugin. This meant using your Bambu Lab printer offline and using the Bambu Handy mobile app first.
Thankfully, OrcaSlicer has implemented Bambu Lab’s networking plugin as an add-on. This means that Bambu Lab users who want to use OrcaSlicer can choose to download the plugin, and anyone who just wants to use OrcaSlicer can do so.
Why not both?
Personally, I keep Bambu Studio and OrcaSlicer is installed on my Mac. They both work using Bambu’s cloud services, and it’s nice to have options. New to the world of Bambu Studio? Check out seven features you may have missed.
