To unbox and set up the machine you received, please refer to First Time Setup-Machine. After that, you will need to connect the laser machine to your computer and learn to set up the software correctly. Please get yourself familiar with the steps and the necessary parameters in the software to avoid any operating mistakes.

1. How to Connect the Machine (Only for 50W and Larger CO2 Laser Machines)

The machine can be connected via USB or Ethernet cable. Note that when connecting via USB, a driver is required. RDWorks has a built-in driver installation option that you can choose to install. You can download the program and the driver here: Download RDWorks and Driver.

If you use LightBurn Software but cannot connect to the machine via the USB cable, you can refer to this troubleshooting guide:
LightBurn USB Connection Troubleshooting.

If you want to connect the machine with an Ethernet cable, you need to modify the IP address of the computer and the software. For reference, please watch the video below:
Ethernet Connection Failure Troubleshooting.

2. Introduction to the software's various parameters and setting requirements (For All CO2 Laser Machines)

Origin: This is the location of your laser's Origin or home. If this is set incorrectly, the orientation of your laser's output will be mirrored or inverted. For help with troubleshooting your laser's Origin, please refer to the guide below:
LightBurn Troubleshooting: Mirrored or Backwards Output.

The origin of OMTech machines is generally located at the rear left or rear right, please refer to the home position after the machine starts up and returns to its default position.

LightBurn Parameters - Screenshot 1

RDWorks Parameters - Screenshot 1

Job Origin: The setting of this option determines the processing position of your pattern on the material. For more information on the work's origin, you can refer to this article:
Understanding Coordinates and Origin in LightBurn.

LightBurn Parameters - Screenshot 2

RDWorks Parameters - Screenshots 2 & 3

Scanning Offset Adjustment in LightBurn (Scanning Reverse compensation in RDWorks)：

This setting helps correct slight delays in the laser's firing point, which can occur when scanning back and forth at high speeds. It compensates for these delays to ensure accurate placement during operation.

A common issue caused by a wrong setting of the parameter is ghosted, fuzzy, blurry, or overblown edges, please refer to Scanning Offset Adjustment to adjust the parameter and correct the issue.

If the lines are correctly positioned but look 'blocky' or staggered at the edges, please see Troubleshooting: Blurry Edges for more adjustments.

The Add, Delete, Import, and Export buttons allow you to create, edit, import, and export your Scanning Offset settings. You can use this to import settings provided by your machine's manufacturer, share adjustments with other users, or back up your settings before making changes.

LightBurn Parameters - Screenshot 3

RDWorks Parameters - Screenshot 4

The Power Rate Settings

Max Power sets the power at which your laser will engrave the lines once it reaches the speed you've set.

Please set the max power just high enough to mark your material – if the power is set too high, the laser may char or cut through your material, making it challenging to determine which Z height was the optimal focal height.

Min Power sets the power at which your laser will begin engraving the lines. As the laser accelerates, power will increase until the laser reaches maximum speed, and power. If the minimum power is smaller than the laser's threshold for emission, there may be incomplete processing or even no processing of the pattern. If the minimum power is too high, there will be excessive burning at the corners of the pattern. Therefore, the minimum power value needs to be chosen through actual engraving tests to select the most appropriate settings.

Here is a chart of the average power/speed settings for different materials on different cabinet CO2 lasers: Average Parameter Settings. If production is not ideal, we would suggest you set the maximum power and the minimum power to be the same and try again. Should it turn out to have no improvement, please reach out to the OMTech customer support team at support@omtechlaser.com.

Other Machine Settings

If you want to learn more about the parameters in LightBurn, you can refer to this article: Configuring Ruida. Despite using different names in RDWorks, these parameters will lead to the same effect.

You can start to create your project once the parameters are set correctly. For detailed instructions on creating a project in LightBurn, please refer to LightBurn Basics. We also have a YouTube channel where you can find more helpful resources. Please do not forget to follow us for the latest updates: OMTech Laser.