This is a research guide based on cited documentation. It is not a report of firsthand testing. Our editorial method
How to use this glossary
The first four tables define 60 generic terms in the order a beginner meets them: hardware, slicer settings, calibration and speed, then materials. Where a definition depends on a specific vendor fact, the source is cited. The last table decodes brand names into the generic term so you can compare spec sheets across Bambu Lab, Creality and Anycubic.
If a term is missing, search your slicer’s documentation for it. Many slicers share setting names, and OrcaSlicer’s wiki documents many of them [6][7].
Hardware terms (1 to 20)
The parts you will see named on a spec sheet.
| Term | Plain meaning |
|---|---|
| FDM (FFF) | Fused deposition modeling: melting plastic filament and laying it down line by line. Bambu Lab lists it as the P1S printing technology [9]. |
| Extruder | The motor and gears that grip filament and push it into the hotend. |
| Direct drive | Extruder mounted on the print head, directly above the hotend. The K1C lists a direct extruder [17]. |
| Bowden | Extruder mounted on the frame, pushing filament through a long tube to the hotend. Lighter head, harder with flexible filament. |
| Hotend | The heated block, heat break and nozzle that melt filament. All-metal hotends tolerate higher temperatures. |
| Nozzle | The brass, stainless or hardened tip that sets line width. 0.4 mm is the usual default [9]. |
| Hardened steel nozzle | A wear-resistant nozzle. Bambu Lab marks it required for carbon- and glass-fibre filled filaments such as PLA-CF [8]. |
| Heat break | The narrow section between the cold and hot parts of the hotend that keeps filament solid until it reaches the melt zone. |
| Heated bed | The heated platform under the build plate that keeps the first layer warm enough to stick. |
| Build plate | The removable sheet you print on. The P1S supports textured PEI, cool, engineering and high-temperature plates [9]. |
| PEI | Polyetherimide, a plastic coating on many build plates that grips warm plastic and releases it once cool. |
| Part cooling fan | The fan that blows on freshly printed plastic so it sets before the next layer. |
| Auxiliary fan | A side fan for extra part cooling; the P1S lists one [9]. |
| Enclosure | Walls and a door around the printer that hold heat in and keep drafts out. |
| Heated chamber | An enclosure with its own heater rather than relying on heat from the bed. |
| Filament runout sensor | A switch that pauses the print when filament runs out; listed on the P1S [9]. |
| CoreXY | A layout where two motors share belts to move the head in X and Y while the bed moves only in Z [3]. The K1C is CoreXY [17]. |
| Bed-slinger | Informal name for a printer whose bed moves front to back under a gantry that carries the head. |
| Filament cutter | A blade that cuts filament at the head before a colour change; listed on the P1S [9]. |
| Purge chute and wiper | Where flushed filament exits and the nozzle is wiped clean during colour changes [5]. |
Slicer and print-setting terms (21 to 42)
Settings you will meet the first time you open a slicer.
| Term | Plain meaning |
|---|---|
| Slicer | Software that turns a 3D model into printer instructions. |
| STL | A common model file that stores only the surface shape. |
| 3MF | A model and project file that can also carry colours, settings and plate layouts. |
| G-code | The instruction list the printer executes: moves, extrusion amounts and temperatures. |
| Layer height | The thickness of each layer. Thinner layers look smoother and take longer. |
| Line width | How wide each extruded line is, usually close to the nozzle size. |
| Wall (perimeter) | The outline loops of each layer. More walls make a part stronger. |
| Infill | The internal pattern inside the walls, set as a density percentage. |
| Top and bottom shells | Solid layers that close the top and bottom of a part. |
| Skirt | An outline printed around the models, mainly to stabilise filament flow before the part starts [4]. |
| Brim | Extra lines attached to the base to increase first-layer area. Prusa recommends it for tall objects with a small base or many small objects [4]. |
| Raft | A disposable platform printed under the part, used when a brim is not enough. |
| Supports | Temporary structures under overhangs, removed after printing. |
| Seam | The point where each wall loop starts and ends, often visible as a line. |
| Retraction | Pulling filament back slightly before a travel move to reduce oozing. |
| Stringing | Thin hairs of plastic left between parts by oozing during travel. |
| Overhang | Part of a model that leans out over empty space. |
| Bridge | A horizontal span printed across a gap between two supports. |
| Prime tower | A sacrificial tower printed beside multicolour parts to stabilise flow after each colour change [5]. |
| Flushing volume | How much old filament is pushed out at each colour change. Bambu Studio calculates it by colour and material and lets you scale it with a multiplier [5]. |
| Flush into infill, support or object | Slicer options that spend flushed filament on hidden infill, supports or a sacrificial object. OrcaSlicer says they only work with the prime tower enabled [6]. |
| Purge | General term for filament extruded to clean the nozzle, including flushing and the load line [5]. |
Motion, calibration and speed terms (43 to 52)
The terms that explain why two printers with the same top speed print at different real speeds.
| Term | Plain meaning |
|---|---|
| Print speed (mm/s) | How fast the head moves while extruding, once up to speed. |
| Acceleration (mm/s²) | How quickly the head reaches speed. Short moves may never reach full speed [3]. |
| Volumetric flow (mm³/s) | How much plastic the hotend can melt per second. OrcaSlicer’s calibration caps it so the printer does not exceed the filament’s maximum flow [7]. |
| Input shaping | A firmware technique that reduces ringing by commanding motion that cancels its own vibration [1]. |
| Ringing (ghosting) | Faint echoes of sharp edges repeated on a surface, caused by vibration [1]. |
| Pressure advance | Firmware compensation for nozzle pressure that reduces ooze on travel and blobs at corners [2]. |
| Flow rate (flow ratio) | A multiplier that corrects how much filament is pushed compared with what the slicer planned. |
| Mesh bed leveling | Probing many points on the bed and adjusting height during the first layers to follow its shape. |
| Z-offset | The exact gap between nozzle and plate at layer zero. |
| First layer | The layer that bonds the part to the plate; most failures start here. |
Materials and build-plate terms (53 to 60)
The words that decide which printer and plate you need.
| Term | Plain meaning |
|---|---|
| PLA | The default beginner filament. Bambu Lab says it is not prone to warping and fine on open or enclosed printers [8]. |
| PETG | Tougher than PLA. Bambu Lab recommends an enclosure to protect interlayer strength in cold rooms [8]. |
| ABS and ASA | Heat-resistant plastics that need higher bed and chamber temperatures; Bambu Lab recommends an enclosed printer [8]. |
| TPU | Flexible filament, easier on direct-drive extruders. |
| CF and GF filled | Filament with carbon or glass fibre; needs a hardened nozzle [8]. |
| Warping | Corners lifting as plastic shrinks while cooling. |
| Interlayer strength | How well layers bond; reduced by cold air and drafts. |
| Hygroscopic | Absorbs moisture from air. Wet filament strings and pops; drying fixes it. |
Vendor-name decoder
Each brand names the same features differently. This table maps the branded term to the generic one above, using only the vendor’s own page.
| Brand term | Brand | Generic meaning | Detail from the vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| AMS lite | Bambu Lab | Automatic filament feeder | A1-series printers connect to one AMS lite [12] |
| AMS 2 Pro, AMS HT | Bambu Lab | Automatic feeder with drying | Listed with a drying state drawing 80 W and 170 W [18] |
| CFS | Creality | Automatic filament feeder | One CFS handles four colours; four units reach 16 [14]; RFID spools recommended [13] |
| ACE Pro | Anycubic | Automatic filament feeder | Four tubes, auto load and unload, switches to the next spool of the same colour and material [15] |
| Strain gauge leveling | Creality | Force-sensing bed leveling | Four gauges in the bed corners on K1 series, one on the hotend on K2 Plus [14] |
| Eddy current sensor | Bambu Lab | Nozzle-pressure and leveling sensor | Located in the A1 tool head [16] |
| Active Flow Rate Compensation | Bambu Lab | Live flow correction | Listed on the P2S with an eddy current pressure sensor that drives live flow-rate adjustment [19] |
| Auto Flow Dynamics Calibration | Bambu Lab | Extrusion pressure calibration | Uses an eddy current sensor on the P2S [19] |
| Vibration compensation | Bambu Lab | Input shaping | Part of auto calibration with bed leveling and motor noise cancellation [11] |
| Micro lidar | Bambu Lab | Laser sensor for AI detection | Bambu Lab names it as an X1C feature when explaining how the X1C differs from the P1S [20] |
| Max Volumetric Speed | Bambu Studio and OrcaSlicer | Volumetric flow limit | Flushing runs at this speed [5]; calibrated per filament [7] |
Questions before you decide
Are AMS lite, CFS and ACE Pro the same thing?
They do the same job, feeding and switching filament automatically, and each is sold for its own maker’s printers, so check the vendor’s compatibility list before buying. Bambu Lab limits A1-series printers to one AMS lite [12], Creality’s CFS listing names the K2 series and Creality Hi [13], one CFS handles four colours [14], and ACE Pro feeds four tubes [15].
What is the difference between input shaping and pressure advance?
Input shaping cancels frame vibration that causes ringing [1]. Pressure advance manages nozzle pressure to reduce ooze and corner blobs [2]. Bambu Lab’s A1, for example, calibrates vibration resonance and nozzle pressure automatically for every print [10].
What does volumetric flow mean on a spec sheet?
It is how many cubic millimetres of plastic the hotend can melt per second. It caps real speed regardless of the top speed figure; OrcaSlicer calibrates it per filament [7].
Do I need a hardened steel nozzle?
Only for abrasive filaments. Bambu Lab marks a hardened nozzle as required for carbon- or glass-fibre filled materials and not required for plain PLA [8].
Sources & verification
Product details and prices can change. Check the linked provider before buying.
- Klipper documentation: Resonance compensation Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Klipper documentation: Pressure advance Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Klipper documentation: Kinematics Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Prusa Knowledge Base: Skirt and brim Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Bambu Lab Wiki: Reduce waste during filament change Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- OrcaSlicer Wiki: Multimaterial flush options Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- OrcaSlicer Wiki: Max volumetric speed calibration Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Bambu Lab Wiki: Filament guide - printer, nozzle, build plate and parameters Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Bambu Lab Wiki: Unboxing P1S (includes P1S specification table) Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Bambu Lab US store: A1 product page and specifications Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Bambu Lab Wiki: Printer calibration guide Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Bambu Lab Wiki: AMS lite FAQ Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Creality store: CFS Creality Filament System listing Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Creality store blog: K2 Plus and CFS FAQs Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Anycubic Wiki: Notes for ACE Pro Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Bambu Lab Wiki: A1 homing and leveling failure Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Creality: K1C support page and parameters Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Bambu Lab Wiki: Printer and AMS power parameters Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Bambu Lab US store: P2S product page, specifications and FAQ Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Bambu Lab Wiki: P1 series FAQ Accessed 30 Oct 2026
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