DentaFab Sega 3D Printer Review – Is the this the Fastest 3D Printer on the Market?

As the dental industry continues to evolve and embrace digital workflows, 3D printers will play a larger role in dental technology.

Dentafab and its Dentafab Sega 3D printer are well-positioned to contribute to the 3D printing revolution in digital dentistry.

With its advanced features, user-friendly design, and commitment to innovation, the Dentafab Sega 3D printer is a powerful tool that can help dental professionals streamline their workflows, enhance the quality of their restorations, and ultimately improve patient satisfaction.

About the DentaFab Sega 3D Printer

Founded in 2013 in Istanbul, Turkey, Dentafab is a company that specializes in providing 3D printing solutions for the dental industry with 3D printers and 3D printing resin materials.

One of their flagship products is the Dentafab Sega 3D printer. 

This 3D printer is specifically designed to cater to the unique needs and requirements of dental laboratories and clinics, enabling them to produce a wide range of dental restorations, including crowns, bridges, implant abutments, and dental models, with unparalleled precision and speed.

Print Speed of the DentaFab Sega

If there is anything this printer does well, it’s speed. It is hands down one of the fastest dental 3D printer on the market. 

Temporary crowns can easily be printed at 100 micron layers within the 10-15 minute mark. Models can also be printed consistently at 100 micron layers in less than half an hour.

Depending on the print orientation, I have been able to perform an intraoral scan, design a splint chairside and support, print, wash and cure and issue it comfortably within a 60-90 minute window.

How Easy is it to Use the DentaFab Sega?

The Dentafab Sega isn’t terribly hard to use – however it’s not the easiest printer either.

Leveling can be a bit of a chore. It is quite easy to slot vats in and out, although not as straightforward as some of its fellow DLP competitors.

Reliability of the DentaFab Sega

Over the testing period, in general few failures were encountered. 

Splints and temporary crowns seemed to fit well. I had no issues fitting crowns onto dies printed on the Dentafab Sega. Not 100% but definitely above average. 

What Software does the DentaFab Sega Use?

This is a tricky one.

The Sega is unique in the sense that the slicing is done internally in the printer itself. However, you will need to prepare whatever you want printed with supports and then export that as an STL, which is subsequently uploaded onto the printer via USB connection.

While Dentafab does have its own proprietary software, the manufacturer has actually recommended to support the prints using CHITUBOX first. CHITUBOX is relatively simple to use, but it’s certainly not dental-specific and does lack the shortcuts that other dental-specific slicing programs have.

The support settings tab can be certainly overwhelming for those who are completely new to 3D printing.

DentaFab Sega’s Material Options and Availability

The Dentafab Sega is completely open and the company has a significant list of many dental resins which have printer settings worked out for it. These can be uploaded onto your printer using Wi-Fi. 

You can even send your resins to Dentafab’s HQ where they will work out the print settings for you. They have a wide range of dental resins available through PowerResins their sister company which also makes OEM resins for other companies.

What is the Price for the DentaFab Sega?

The Dentafab Sega costs $9000 USD. So, while the printer itself is just as pricey as many of its other fellow dental DLP competitors, the resin vats are substantially more affordable.

Also note that the price of $9000 includes:

• Free Remote setup and training

• Finish Kit(tools for post-processing)

• 8 resin tanks

• 2 kg silicone A+B material to renew the resin tanks - meaning you can use each resin tank 40 times over.

The ability to change the silicon lining in the vat is always good, but it is a slow and slightly tricky process.

Overall, the ongoing running costs of the Dentafab Sega are surprisingly low.

Printer Technology of the DentaFab Sega

The Dentafab Sega is a DLP 3D printer with options to use 385nm / 405nm light source wavelength options.

DLP, or Digital Light Processing, is a type of 3D printing technology that's becoming increasingly popular in dentistry. The technology essentially uses a digital projector to expose a liquid resin to light, causing it to harden layer by layer until a 3D object is formed.

DentaFab Sega’s Build Platform Size

The build platform is 120 mm x 68 mm.

This means it will fit 2-3 full arch models orientated direct to the print bed.

It is definitely more suited to printing 1 or 2 items at a time and nothing super high volume.

How Difficult is it to Set-Up the DentaFab Sega?

Leveling the print bed is very annoying. While it’s very straightforward to do, it does require loosening 4 screws, followed by an additional 4 hexes.

It’s a far cry from other DLP printers which have much easier slot in systems. Once the build plate is loosened, levelling is no different to other consumer-grade printers – not a fast process, but straightforward to do.

Connectivity of the DentaFab Sega

I had no issues connecting the Dentafab Sega to the internet. It was a very simple process and I didn’t encounter any Wi-Fi connection issues. 

Printing files can be sent to printer via WIFI - it just needs to be updated to the recent printer firmware and software. As prior to this it was not possible - great to see the company improving the system.

Otherwise you can also start prints via USB. You will need the STL of the supported prints uploaded on a USB and inserted into the printer. 

Is there a Heater in the DentaFab Sega?

The Dentafab Sega has an internal heater which works very well and very quickly, heating from room temperature to 30 degrees within 10 minutes of operation.

Does the DentaFab Sega include Washing / Curing Machines?

Dentafab sells washing and curing units from MEDIFIVE. These are optional purchases but not hugely promoted.

These are imported directly from the manufacturer - and are the same wash and cure units that Ackuretta uses but are OEM in that case. MEDIFIVE is a company from Korea. Being that same as the Ackuretta units, they therefore work well as we described in the SOL and DENTIQ review. 

DentaFab Sega - The Bottom Line

If there’s such a thing as a one-trick pony when it comes to dental-specific 3D printers, the Dentafab Sega is pretty close to being it.

While it does lack some of the polish and finer quality of life features that are part and parcel of more popular DLP printers on the market, where it excels is in its printing speed and completely open nature.

If you plan on printing same-day or even same-appointment restorations, there are very few options out there on the market that can come close to this speed demon.