Ender 3 S1 Pro Settings: Optimize for Every Material

The Creality Ender 3 S1 Pro represents a major upgrade over the original Ender 3 family. With a Sprite direct-drive extruder, all-metal hotend capable of 300°C, CR Touch auto-leveling, and a PEI spring steel build plate, it handles a much wider range of materials than its budget predecessors. But the right slicer settings are still essential for getting the most out of it.

This guide provides optimized settings for every common filament on the S1 Pro, using Cura or OrcaSlicer as the slicer.

S1 Pro Hardware Overview

• Hotend: All-metal, capable up to 300°C
• Extruder: Sprite direct-drive (dual-gear)
• Auto-leveling: CR Touch
• Build plate: PEI-coated spring steel (removable, magnetic)
• Max bed temperature: 110°C
• Build volume: 220 x 220 x 270 mm
• Firmware: Marlin (stock) or Klipper (community upgrade)
• Bed type: Bedslinger (Y-axis moves the bed)

The direct-drive Sprite extruder is the S1 Pro's biggest advantage over older Ender 3 models. It means shorter retraction distances, better TPU handling, and more reliable extrusion.

PLA Settings

Nozzle Temperature: 200-210°C
Bed Temperature: 60°C
Print Speed: 60-80 mm/s
Outer Wall Speed: 40-50 mm/s
Inner Wall Speed: 60-70 mm/s
Travel Speed: 120-150 mm/s
Acceleration: 500-1000 mm/s² (stock Marlin)
Retraction Distance: 0.8-1.2 mm
Retraction Speed: 40 mm/s
Cooling Fan: 100% after first layer
First Layer Speed: 25 mm/s
First Layer Temperature: 210°C
Layer Height: 0.2mm (standard)
Infill: 20% (general), 40% (functional)

Tips:

• The PEI sheet provides excellent PLA adhesion. Clean with isopropyl alcohol between prints.
• The S1 Pro handles PLA at 80 mm/s without quality issues. Above that, you may see minor ghosting due to the bedslinger design.
• For Hatchbox PLA, use 205°C. For Bambu Lab PLA, try 210-215°C.

PETG Settings

Nozzle Temperature: 230-240°C
Bed Temperature: 75-80°C
Print Speed: 40-60 mm/s
Outer Wall Speed: 30-40 mm/s
Travel Speed: 120 mm/s
Retraction Distance: 1.0-1.5 mm
Retraction Speed: 25-30 mm/s
Cooling Fan: 40-60%
First Layer Speed: 20 mm/s
First Layer Temperature: 235°C
Z Hop: 0.2 mm
Layer Height: 0.2mm

Tips:

• Apply glue stick to the PEI bed as a release agent. PETG bonds aggressively to PEI.
• The all-metal hotend handles PETG temperatures without concern.
• Start at 235°C and reduce to 230°C if stringing is excessive.
• The direct-drive extruder means you only need 1.0-1.5mm retraction, much less than Bowden Ender 3 printers.

According to Teaching Tech's retraction guide, the Sprite extruder's short filament path means retraction above 2mm is almost never needed.

ABS Settings

The S1 Pro's 300°C hotend and 110°C bed make ABS printing possible, but you need an enclosure for reliable results.

Nozzle Temperature: 240-250°C
Bed Temperature: 100-110°C
Print Speed: 40-60 mm/s
Outer Wall Speed: 30-40 mm/s
Retraction Distance: 0.8-1.0 mm
Retraction Speed: 30 mm/s
Cooling Fan: 0% (no part cooling for ABS)
First Layer Speed: 20 mm/s
First Layer Temperature: 250°C
Brim: Yes, 5-8mm

Enclosure is mandatory. Without an enclosure, ABS will warp on anything larger than a small calibration cube. Options:

• Creality Enclosure — purpose-built fabric enclosure
• DIY enclosure with an IKEA Lack table stack
• Even a large cardboard box over the printer helps

Important: ABS produces fumes. Print in a ventilated area and consider adding a carbon filter to your enclosure.

As All3DP's ABS guide notes, enclosure temperature is the single most important factor for successful ABS printing.

TPU Settings

The Sprite direct-drive extruder makes the S1 Pro significantly better at TPU than any Bowden Ender 3.

Nozzle Temperature: 220-230°C
Bed Temperature: 50-60°C
Print Speed: 25-40 mm/s
Outer Wall Speed: 20-30 mm/s
Travel Speed: 80-100 mm/s
Retraction Distance: 0.5-1.0 mm
Retraction Speed: 15-20 mm/s
Cooling Fan: 50-80%
First Layer Speed: 15 mm/s
Acceleration: 500 mm/s²
Layer Height: 0.2mm

Tips:

• Keep retraction short (0.5-1.0mm). The direct-drive Sprite handles this well.
• Reduce acceleration to prevent the flexible filament from buckling.
• NinjaFlex TPU (85A) is printable but challenging — start with stiffer 95A TPU.
• Disable "combing" in Cura and rely on retraction instead — combing creates excess travel over the print surface that leaves marks on flexible material.

ASA Settings

ASA is UV-resistant ABS, ideal for outdoor parts. Needs an enclosure.

Nozzle Temperature: 245-260°C
Bed Temperature: 100-110°C
Print Speed: 40-50 mm/s
Cooling Fan: 0-15%
Retraction Distance: 0.8-1.0 mm
Brim: Yes

Same enclosure requirements as ABS. ASA has slightly less warping tendency than ABS but still needs a warm, stable environment.

Nylon (PA) Settings

The all-metal hotend enables nylon printing, though nylon is demanding.

Nozzle Temperature: 250-270°C
Bed Temperature: 70-90°C
Print Speed: 30-50 mm/s
Cooling Fan: 0-20%
Retraction Distance: 1.0-1.5 mm

Critical: Nylon must be dried before printing. Use a SUNLU FilaDryer S2 at 70°C for 8+ hours. Print from the dryer if possible.

According to Polymaker's nylon guide, nylon absorbs moisture faster than almost any other filament and should be dried before every printing session.

Speed Optimization

The S1 Pro is a bedslinger, which means the heavy bed moves on the Y axis. This limits practical speed more than the extruder or hotend.

| Speed Target | Settings | Quality | |---|---|---| | Quality-first | 40-60 mm/s, 500 mm/s² accel | Excellent | | Balanced | 60-80 mm/s, 1000 mm/s² accel | Good | | Speed-first | 80-100 mm/s, 1500 mm/s² accel | Acceptable with minor ghosting |

Klipper upgrade: Installing Klipper firmware with input shaper dramatically improves speed capability. With an ADXL345 accelerometer and input shaper enabled, the S1 Pro can print at 100-150 mm/s with quality comparable to 60 mm/s on stock Marlin. See the Klipper documentation for installation guides.

First Layer Calibration

The CR Touch handles auto-leveling, but fine-tuning the Z-offset is still your job:

1. Home the printer and auto-level.
2. Start a first-layer calibration print (print a large single-layer square).
3. While printing, use the Z-offset adjustment in the printer menu.
4. Adjust in 0.02mm increments until the first layer is slightly squished but not transparent.
5. Save the offset.

Tip: Re-check Z-offset when switching between filament types or after cleaning the build plate, as even small changes in plate thickness (glue stick vs. bare PEI) affect the offset.

Retraction Calibration

The Sprite extruder's short path means retraction is easy to dial in:

1. Print a retraction test tower (search 3DSearch for "retraction tower").
2. Start at 0.8mm retraction distance.
3. Test at 0.6, 0.8, 1.0, 1.2mm.
4. Choose the shortest distance that eliminates stringing.
5. For most filaments, 0.8-1.0mm is the sweet spot.

Recommended Upgrades

The S1 Pro is good stock, but these upgrades help:

1. Klipper firmware — faster prints, input shaper, pressure advance
2. Better cooling fan duct — search 3DSearch for S1 Pro fan ducts
3. Enclosure — for ABS/ASA/PA printing
4. Capricorn PTFE tube — lower friction for the short Bowden section above the heatbreak
5. Yellow bed springs — better than stock springs if bed leveling drifts

Final Thoughts

The Ender 3 S1 Pro is a versatile printer that bridges the gap between budget and mid-range. Its all-metal hotend and direct-drive extruder remove the material limitations of older Ender 3 models. PLA and PETG print beautifully with minimal tuning, ABS and ASA are achievable with an enclosure, and TPU is genuinely usable thanks to the Sprite extruder. Start with the settings above, calibrate retraction and flow rate for your specific filament, and you will get excellent results.