This was Atomstack’s star model and had a large user base. With this model, Atomstack established itself as a leader in laser technology later on.
- New eye protection design
- 410x400mm Large Carving Area
- Upgraded High-quality Laser
- Full-metal Structure
- Quick Assembly Design
- 5W of laser output power
- Weak cutting ability
The Atomstack A5 Pro comes with a 445nm blue diode laser with up to 5W real power. It thus belongs to Cat IV and is absolutely no toy, even its scattered light is dangerous for skin and retina. When lasering, toxic gases can be produced, an exhaust system is strongly recommended. The operation of such a laser may be subject to restrictions or may be illegal, please inform yourself at the appropriate authorities before you get a laser of this power class.
Frame
Unspectacular aluminum profile frame, V-slot wheels with a maximum working area of 410x400mm, as we have seen umpteen times. The Y-motor acts via a shaft on both sides at the same time, so the beam can not bend. So Atomstack does this better than the Aufero 2 I had on the table the days.
End stops have once again been omitted, instead small screw-on stoppers are used to enable a purely manual stop at 0/0. That’s better than nothing, but it’s not great either.
The assembly is relatively simple, can be done even by inexperienced users in half an hour, despite the rather poor instructions, which omits an important point: the correct arrangement of the right side profile. The hole for the stopper on the profile in the picture “back” must point to the right here in the photo, the manual does not mention it with a syllable, I noticed it then only at the end…. Thanks also. I leave it now like this
Belts are clamped with hammer nuts in the profile, which holds quite well, you can tighten reasonably – too much tension must not on the belts on it. The X-axis is completely pre-assembled, so there is no work with it. Praiseworthy, the manual points to the eccentric sleeves, if the slides should be a little loose.
We have seen the mounting of the laser module on earlier Atomstacks and also on the Sculpfun S9 and a few other manufacturers, here in the Pro model they have added 2 wing screws, which makes it a bit more convenient to loosen and tighten the screws to adjust the focus.
Electronics
No endstops again is bitter, especially since the used “Atom Box 1.5” board would support the endstops. Z-motor would be supported, the board can do more than Atomstack uses here. Otherwise we find an Atmel AtMega 8bit CPU, CH340G USB and socketed A4988 steppers.
We now have an on/off switch in this revision of the A5 Pro, a USB jack for connecting directly to a PC, and offline operation is not provided. That’s all there is. We use 12V, the power supply delivers up to 5A.. And yes, 24V would be better for me, but nobody asks me.
No software is included, so for use we recommend again LaserGRBL or the shareware LightBurn. The Atomstack A5 Pro is automatically recognized by LightBurn and works without problems. If I manually set the laser to 0/0 before switching it on, I can work with absolute coordinates in LightBurn.
Atomstack A5 Pro Review
Summary
The Atomstack A5 Pro is an affordable laser with a decent 5W module. It does what it is supposed to do without any problems. With the 5W you can do a lot. I find the price reasonable. However, I don’t find any outstanding features. There is nothing against buying an A5 Pro in this price range. Okay, if you like to buy such a laser and are aware of the dangers.
