Kubuz launches 3dsynth, a browser-based tool for designing FDM toolpaths
The free web-based workspace lets users build procedural and parametric prints directly as toolpaths and G-code, while still supporting STL workflows when traditional slicing is needed
Belgian company Kubuz has launched 3dSynth, a browser-based workspace for procedural and parametric FDM print design. Users can build a stack of effects, and the application automatically generates the toolpath and G-code based on it, without the need for a slicer. When a project requires conventional slicing, 3dSynth can export the mesh as an STL file. The basic version is free, runs in a browser, and does not require an account.
The application’s creator, Dennis from Kubuz, describes it as a tool for situations where the toolpath itself is the design. This applies primarily to vase and spiral prints, where the shape of the object and the nozzle’s path are part of the same design decision. In a typical workflow, a designer models a solid, saves it as an STL file, and sends it to a slicer, which then determines the machine’s movements. With some of its modules, 3dSynth allows users to skip this intermediate step and work directly with the nozzle’s movement.
Effect stack and toolpath preview
The main workspace in the application is based on a stack of modulators, or named effects applied sequentially to an object profile. Each modulator has its own label, making the entire stack read like a recipe. The order of operations can be changed by dragging them, while all parameters remain in a single panel without nested dialog boxes.
The result is displayed in real time in the 3D preview. Users can move to any height and check what the nozzle will do on a specific layer, see where the seam will appear, and trace travel moves before they show up as stringing on the finished print. Printer, material, and nozzle settings are saved with the project and apply across all modules.
The application includes hundreds of machine profiles and generates standard G-code for FDM printers. When the nozzle diameter is changed, the toolpath is recalculated automatically. A separate setting determines the type of process. In addition to filament, there is a mode for clay and pastes that disables cold extrusion warnings, as well as a plotter mode in which the G-code contains no extrusion values.
Nine design modules
The most important of these is G-code Sculptor. Designers draw a profile curve, apply a stack of effects, and generate ready-to-print G-code in vase or spiral mode, while an optional Layer Mode adds infill. Node Sculptor takes a node-based approach, using a graph to control both geometry and G-code. SynthBlocks achieves a similar goal through blocks based on the Scratch programming language, allowing users to build path logic without writing code.
Two modules work with meshes and export STL files. Mesh Sculptor applies effects to the vertices of a solid, while Texturize displaces the surface of any mesh, including imported models, while leaving the original shape intact. Custom G-code accepts an existing file and allows users to analyze, edit, and view it in 3D. Fabric Sculpt converts line generators and filters into extrusion paths, Hex Grid turns painted hexagonal tiles into a vase-mode toolpath, and Predefined Models provides a library of parametric parts for users who want to skip building a graph.
Where 3dsynth fits alongside a slicer
A slicer transforms a complete mesh into printer movements, determining perimeters, infill, and supports, as well as arranging multiple objects on the build plate. 3dSynth is a generative environment for creating toolpaths and meshes, so it bypasses the slicer only when it generates the complete toolpath itself.
Supports, multi-object build plates, variable line widths calculated from a mesh, and features specific to printer manufacturers’ software remain the domain of slicers.
Kubuz gives two examples. A spiral lamp can be designed in G-code Sculptor, checked in the preview, and sent directly to the printer as G-code. A textured box requiring tree supports, on the other hand, can be processed through Mesh Sculptor or Texturize and then exported as an STL file for a conventional slicer.
Kubuz also emphasizes that it is not affiliated with any printer manufacturer. The machine profiles are used only to generate compatible G-code.
Free version and Premium license
The free version includes all nine modules in the browser, toolpath preview, documentation, and tutorials. It does, however, have several limitations. G-code Sculptor exports are limited to stacks containing a maximum of two effects, SynthBlocks is available only in preview mode, and projects in the .3dsynth format cannot be saved. Node Sculptor exports remain available at no cost.
The Premium license costs $39 USD as a one-time payment and is sold through Gumroad. It removes the effect limit, unlocks SynthBlocks exports to G-code, STL, OBJ, and glTF, enables project saving, and adds an inspector for analyzing G-code line by line, as well as publishing to the library.
The license also includes a desktop application that works offline on Windows, macOS, and Linux, along with commercial use rights.
The public library collects projects created with G-code Sculptor, Mesh Sculptor, Node Sculptor, and SynthBlocks that users have printed on their own machines. Each project can be loaded into the application and used as a starting point for further modifications.
