Creality Falcon2 Pro 60 Watt Laser Engraver review: Deep cuts and fine engravings

The Creality Falcon2 Pro 60W is a fully enclosed laser engraver/cutter that features a variable-output laser module, which can be adjusted between 22W, 40W, and 60W to suit the task at hand. The 400 x 400 mm build area comfortably fits the commonly available 12 x 12 inch size for most sheet materials, and the 60W setting is advertised as capable of cutting through 22mm wood in a single pass.

The Creality Falcon2 Pro is an incremental improvement to the original Creality Falcon2 line of laser engravers, which do not include an integrated enclosure by default. By adding an enclosure and a laser module with adjustable output, Creality is going for a Swiss Army knife–style approach: a high-wattage laser capable of cutting through thick material while also creating delicate engravings, all neatly enclosed and designed to fit comfortably in a factory or in a garage workshop.

While we were impressed with the cutting speed of the high-wattage laser and overall operation of the Creality Falcon2 Pro 60W, the top enclosure is made of very thin acrylic and doesn’t give the same feeling of stability and protection that thicker enclosures like the xTool M1 or the Creality Falcon A1 Pro provide. In addition, light leakage was noticeable from a hole in the enclosure as well as a faint blue glow through the side panels during full-power cutting.

We tested the ‘Single Unit’ 60W package, which includes the 60W laser module and a 1.6W laser module for fine detail and is available for $2,699, currently on sale for $1,899. An accessory worth considering is the optional Creality Falcon Air Purifier, a highly effective smoke removal tool that is listed at $649, currently on sale for $519. Additional accessories include a rotary engraver, a honeycomb working table, and risers for larger engraved objects.

Creality offers the Falcon Design Space software for preparing and processing jobs for the Falcon2 Pro, and the engraver is also compatible with the free LaserGRBL as well as the more expensive LightBurn software. Falcon Design Space includes several design examples as well as a variety of editing tools to isolate images, convert them to grayscale, and even add offsets for cutting around the perimeter of a design. The Creality Falcon2 Pro 60W wasn’t added to our list of the best laser cutters and engravers, but if you’re looking for a fully enclosed 60W laser, it's an option worth considering.

Specifications of Creality Falcon2 Pro 60W

Creality Falcon2 Pro 60W: Included in the box

Image credit: Tom's Hardware

Image credit: Tom's Hardware

The Creality Falcon2 Pro 60W includes everything you need to start using the laser, but there’s some assembly required before you can start making your first masterpiece. The Falcon2 Pro 60W bundle includes both the 60W laser module and a 1.6W laser module for fine detail, an external air assist unit, safety goggles, and all of the bolts and hex keys required for assembly. Creality also includes a printed manual with comprehensive assembly instructions and troubleshooting steps, complete with picture diagrams and translations in multiple languages.

The product page for the Falcon2 Pro claims “Ready to go in just 10 minutes after unpacking,” which I found to be a fairly optimistic claim. I spent at least that much time fiddling with the acrylic covers for the enclosure, which need to be slid along a recessed path on the rails of the lid and will pop out if not inserted correctly. The assembly of the Falcon2 Pro took me just under an hour, with the lid being the most time-consuming and frustrating part of the process.

The external air assist has a hose for airflow as well as a cable for power, both of which plug into the side of the Falcon2 Pro. There is a recessed dial in the unit which allows for manual control of the amount of airflow during use, a nice touch that allows a user to make adjustments on the fly during a job. The air assist has four rubber feet which reduce the amount of vibration transferred to the engraver during use.

Design of the Creality Falcon2 Pro 60W

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The Creality Falcon2 Pro 60W has a unique sliding-lid mechanism that opens from the top, as opposed to a hinged or removable lid like the Mecpow X4 or WeCreat Vision Pro 45W (which is currently the best laser engraver for home business on the list). This sliding lid closes to create a fully-enclosed build volume (with a few caveats, more on that later), and the tray can be pulled out from the bottom for cleaning and removing small pieces of material that fall out during cutting jobs.

Noticeably absent from the Falcon2 Pro is any kind of LCD, touchscreen, or other interactive UI. Instead, the Falcon2 Pro has a microSD card which can be used to store jobs and several buttons to interact with the unit. This type of interface may be familiar for operators of large-format laser engravers, but first-time laser engraver users will likely expect some kind of screen with controls like the one found on the Creality Falcon A1 Pro. The front panel has connections for power, a microSD card for storage, and a USB port for communication with a computer in addition to the power switch, E-Stop, and keyed safety interlock. There’s no built-in Wi-Fi or network connectivity, so you’ll need to use either USB or microSD for sending jobs.

The Falcon2 Pro uses long, thin slats to raise the workpiece and prevent charring on the underside from cutting moves. These slats are flexible, and they don’t snap into place on the sides of the engraver. Instead of fitting securely with a friction-fit, they are loose, allowing them to move freely with a significant amount of play within the alignment slots. As opposed to a honeycomb tray or other cross-braced design, this slat-based solution is probably more cost-effective to manufacture, but it doesn’t have the same stability as a single-piece cutting insert.

Image credit: Tom's Hardware

Image credit: Tom's Hardware

The first test engraving I tried came out wobbly and distorted from all the movement during engraving. The slats would wobble and move due to the motion from the gantry, vibration from the air compressor, and other movements during operation. There are no fixtures to hold a workpiece against these slats, and there are no included parts to connect the slats to each other to prevent this vibration.

I found references to this issue in other reviews, and also found a 3D printable stabilizer on Printables by user etotheipi. I printed several of these in Conjure Black PLA and used them to stabilize the slats while also holding material in place during engraving. Creality offers honeycomb tables that are cross-braced and allow material to be pinned down, and it’s surprising that a machine in this price range wouldn’t include one by default. At a minimum, workholding fixtures or clamps should be included to securely hold the material against the slats.

The Falcon2 Pro uses a manual alignment process to adjust the focus between the laser module and the material. The included multi-level fixed focus block is used to manually set the offset between the laser module and material, and the two setscrews are tightened once the focus distance has been set. Similarly priced laser engravers like the WeCreat Vision Pro have auto-focusing functionality, which can save time and reduce operator intervention when processing multiple jobs with varying thicknesses of material.

The USB camera is integrated into the top of the lid, and faces directly down on the surface of the build area. The camera requires a separate USB connection to plug into a computer for use, which means you’ll need two USB-C ports available to operate the Falcon2 Pro while using the integrated webcam. The camera is used for visualizing part layout in the Falcon Design Space software and the integrated light bar in the front of the engraver provides plenty of light in the enclosure.

Safety Features of the Creality Falcon2 Pro 60W

Image credit: Tom's Hardware

Image credit: Tom's Hardware

The Creality Falcon2 Pro 60W has a magnetic interlock on the front lid of the unit, which will automatically cut power to the laser module if the interlock is broken and the lid is opened. The interlock has an LED which will change from blue (when closed) to red (when opened). This, combined with a keyed power switch and large resettable E-Stop makes it clear that this unit would be right at home in an industrial setting.

The enclosure of the Falcon2 Pro has a few issues, and it’s probably the weakest part of the entire machine. The most serious issue is light leakage, which is worth exploring a bit. The Falcon2 Pro is advertised as being a “Class 1 Laser Product”, which is a fully enclosed device that can be safely used without requiring laser safety glasses. However, the acrylic panels on the side are identical, which means there is an unfilled hole where the camera USB-C cable plugs in on the opposite side. The laser radiation can be clearly seen through this hole, which may have safety implications.

When cutting thick material using the 60W laser at full power, a slight blue glow can be seen clearly through the 2.7mm acrylic panels on the side. This is the first time I’ve seen laser radiation visible through an enclosure, and it is something worth noting if safety is a high concern. Putting on the included safety goggles completely filtered out this blue light, and I saw the typical yellow glow of a laser through the protective goggles. The material that this protective enclosure is made out of is thin and easily bent when touched, so long-term durability may be an issue for power users.

The 60W laser module has three LED indicators on the front of the unit: AIR, FIRE, and LENS. These three LED indicators give real-time feedback for airflow from the external air assist, the integrated flame detector, and a notification to clean the lens if it has accumulated too much smoke. Overall, the Falcon2 Pro has a level of safety consideration I would expect from a piece of industrial equipment, but I would have liked to see a more robust enclosure for filtering the laser radiation.

Smoke Purifier for the Creality Falcon2 Pro 60W

Image credit: Tom's Hardware

Image credit: Tom's Hardware

Creality also included the Creality Falcon Air Purifier, a $649 optional accessory which is used to pull smoke from the working volume of the Falcon2 Pro and pass it through a series of filters. The multi-stage filter is composed of three layers: a pre-filter, a honeycomb filter, and an activated carbon filter. The Creality Falcon Air Purifier has a rated airflow of 310m³/h and has a single dial to control the intensity. The 15.3 kg / 33.73 lb. unit has two large handles for lifting, and also has small swivel caster wheels underneath which make repositioning and moving an easy process.

I’ve used several air purifiers in the past, and this unit is easily my favorite to date. The audible volume is a little high for a home office, but the overall airflow and filtration more than makes up for the noise. Unlike smaller units like the Desktop Smoke Purifier included with the Creality Falcon A1 Pro, the Falcon Air Purifier was a good fit for a laser of this size, and was more than capable of handling the large amount of smoke generated when making deep cuts through thick material. The handles and casters make the purifier much easier to reposition than smaller, box-style units.

Software for Creality Falcon2 Pro 60W

The Creality Falcon2 Pro 60W is compatible with Creality Falcon Design Space, LightBurn, and LaserGRBL. LaserGRBL is a free and simple Windows-only tool. LightBurn is an advanced paid application for both Windows and Mac. Creality Falcon Design Space is a free app for Windows and Mac that sits somewhere between the two. Offering a good compromise between advanced controls and an intuitive workspace, Falcon Design Space is my preferred software for controlling the Falcon2 Pro.

When you’re just getting started with laser engraving, finding designs to test and master can be a daunting experience. Falcon Design Space includes a library of designs that can be easily imported into the active canvas and prepared for engraving or cutting. This feature alone makes Falcon Design Space worth learning for beginners, and even experienced users will likely find something interesting in the ‘Inspiration’ tab in the software.

For users without photo editing software like Lightroom, Photoshop, or GIMP, preparing an image for engraving or cutting can be a frustrating process. Falcon Design Space offers a robust selection of photo editing tools, including AI-assisted cutout, filters for dithering, and shape manipulation tools. These are useful for isolating a subject from a background, grouping curves into a single selection, and assigning specific shapes to specific layers.

Falcon Design Space includes a camera calibration utility that not only calibrates the image of the build area but also checks the functionality of the motion system and laser. After taking several pictures of the calibration board in various positions around the build area, the included sheet of basswood plywood is engraved with a series of numbers and shapes. The calibration utility then takes a picture of this engraving and the user is able to complete the feedback loop between camera and laser.

Falcon Design Space has a variety of materials and thicknesses available as presets, and Creality has also included a comprehensive matrix of presets for the 22W, 40W, and 60W laser settings in PDF format. These documents outline recommended default settings (speed and power percentage), tailored for various material types, thicknesses, and corresponding laser power combinations. While final results may vary depending on the application, these starting points are usually a good way to reduce the number of trials before arriving at the ideal settings.

Engraving / Cutting with the Creality Falcon2 Pro 60W

Using Falcon Design Space, setting up a build for the Creality Falcon2 Pro can be done in only a few clicks. First, I uploaded an SVG (the ‘Snowflake Ornament Bundle’ by d.bang.199 on Makerworld), selected a material (walnut board in 3mm thickness), and set the order for the line cuts. Once the build is prepared, the job can be sent over USB to the Falcon2 Pro where the status can be monitored in real-time. I had a piece of 3mm walnut wood that had a little bit of space left on it, so I used the camera to position the snowflake in an unused area.

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The 60W laser creates fast and clean cuts on 3mm walnut plywood, with minimal charring or discoloration to the material. The default line cutting settings for 60W (850mm/min speed, 100% power) took an impressive 47 seconds to cut the ornament out from the plywood sheet, and the air assist module blowing on the workpiece prevented any smoke or char from discoloring the finished ornament.

When using the 60W laser, the 850mm/min cutting speed directly translates to quick cutting jobs when making small and intricate designs. The ‘28 Hanging Snowflakes’ model designed by STL - Factory on Makerworld contains exactly what it says in the title: 28 intricate and unique snowflakes designed to be hung. Bringing these into Falcon Design Space and cutting them out of a sheet of 3mm basswood plywood took 15 minutes. At roughly 30 seconds per snowflake, covering a tree in laser-cut ornaments can be accomplished in a short amount of time.

Image credit: Creality

Image credit: Creality

With Christmas right around the corner and Secret Santa lists starting to fill up, creating personalized gift tags is a great example of something you can easily make with a laser engraver. Falcon Design Space includes a Smart Fill tool which allows you to duplicate a design across multiple workpieces. The duplicated design is automatically aligned, which makes it easy to toss a handful of parts into the build area, sketch out a design on one of them, and use the Smart Fill tool to automatically duplicate, populate, and arrange the files.

The Falcon2 Pro took 11 minutes to fully engrave all six tags with the design, and I was happy to see the text was lined up correctly on all of them on the first try. This is a pretty simple application of the Smart Fill tool, but it illustrates how useful it can be for anyone producing multiple copies of the same part in a single job. Not just for gift tags, the Smart Fill tool will duplicate any design you select, so you can even populate a job with a stock message while leaving a blank space to add in a personalized name, number, or other piece of information.

Image credit: Tom's Hardware

Image credit: Tom's Hardware

Creality also included a box of acrylic sheets, a colorful, glossy material frequently seen in signage and other custom products. Using default settings for acrylic, this large plaque took about 25 minutes to engrave and cut from a solid sheet. The resulting part looks clean and consistent, and would be right at home in a trophy case at a school, office, or even at home. It’s important to use a smoke purifier when cutting through acrylic, as the released fumes are not safe to inhale.

Image credit: Creality

Image credit: Creality

The ‘Frog Coffee Coaster’ by 3D Prints with Shin on Falcon Design Space is a great example of how the included library allows users to download designs and apply them to their own projects. Originally designed for a wooden coaster, I used this design on a slate coaster instead. After loading the project in the active canvas, I changed the material to “Square Rock Coaster” and used the 60W setting (10,000mm/min, 25% power) and engraved the coaster in only 11 minutes.

Image credit: Tom's Hardware

Image credit: Tom's Hardware

The stone coaster has a mostly-flat surface, but the outermost ring of engraving crosses over a few irregular areas. Though the circle looks consistent when viewed from directly above, the distortion is noticeable around the edges when seen from the side. The 60W laser didn’t seem to have any issues engraving on these non-planar surfaces, and the overall quality of the engraving looks like what I’d expect from a laser engraver in the ~$2,000 price range.

Faux-leather patches are a great fit for laser engravers: they are small, inexpensive, and easy to customize with designs and text. Using the 60W laser at 6,000 mm/min speed and 15% power, the Falcon2 Pro engraved this patch in 4 minutes. The fine inset line on some of the text was partially removed by the more powerful laser setting, but I was satisfied with the quality for a first pass. The fine detail is a better fit for the 1.6W laser module, which is designed specifically for fine-detail engraving.

Engraving with the 1.6W Laser Module

Image credit: Tom's Hardware

Image credit: Tom's Hardware

Creality includes a 1.6W laser module with the 40W and 60W versions of the Falcon2 Pro which is intended for fine detail engraving. This laser module is also sold as an optional accessory for $88.88 and is compatible with the Falcon2 as well as the Creality Ender 3 S1 Pro and the Ender-3 V2 Neo. The 0.06mm x 0.06mm spot size of the 1.6W laser is also smaller than the 0.08mm x 0.15mm spot size of the 60W laser module, allowing for more detailed engraving. The lower wattage means that it’s not ideal for cutting, so it’s best to save this laser module for engraving projects that need fine detail.

Using the default settings, I engraved the same image three times: once each with the 22W and 40W settings on the primary laser module, and once with the 1.6W laser module. The engraving on the 22W and 40W took about 9 minutes each, but the 1.6W laser took 33 minutes to complete the same engraving. The 1.6W created a much deeper engraving from the slower speed, and the fine details on the feathers can easily be seen. While the result is impressive, the process of swapping out the modules takes a few minutes and serves a narrow use case of “high-detail engraving”, which may not be useful for all users.

Bottom Line

The Creality Falcon2 Pro 60W is available in two packages: the $2,699 Single Unit (currently on sale for $1,899) and the $3,112.98 All-in-One Kit (currently on sale for $2,399), which includes a rotary engraving kit and risers, a honeycomb working table, and a variety of starter materials. These accessories are also sold individually, and the $649 180W Creality Falcon Air Purifier (currently on sale for $519) is the last piece you’ll need if you currently don't have a ventilation solution in place.

As sent, the Creality Falcon2 Pro 60W is a mostly complete package: a 60W laser for cutting through thick material, a 1.6W laser for fine engraving, air assist, optional smoke filtration, and other features all come together to offer serious capabilities for most users. Being able to toggle between the various laser wattage settings is a plus for users working on various projects, and the sliding tray is easy to clear out and clean between jobs.

Unfortunately, my experiences with the delicate acrylic top cover and wobbly thin slats make it hard to recommend this machine to anyone looking for a professional, out-of-the-box experience. The Creality Falcon2 Pro didn’t quite make the list of the best laser engravers, but it’s still worth considering if you need a higher-wattage laser capable of cutting through thick material.

The Falcon2 Pro 60W makes the most sense for experienced users who prioritize cutting speed and power over polish and an integrated UI. If you’re new to lasers or want a more turnkey, living-room-safe solution, the $799 Creality Falcon A1 Pro could be a compelling choice. If space is a concern and you’re looking for something that can comfortably sit on a desk and also travel with you, the $1,099 xTool F1 (one of the best laser engravers) might be a better fit.