Support

Prices are net (B2B); the gross price incl. 19% German VAT is shown in brackets.

• Basic - EUR 19/month (EUR 22.61 gross) or EUR 190/year (EUR 226.10 gross), 1 seat. Models: Solid Body, Hollow Body, Slim Corner, Back Glow, Fullglow.
• Pro - EUR 39/month (EUR 46.41 gross) or EUR 390/year (EUR 464.10 gross), 1 seat. Basic plus Back Frame, Moss Letters, Sideholes, Low Poly, Sidelight.
• Premium - EUR 79/month (EUR 94.01 gross) or EUR 790/year (EUR 940.10 gross), 3 seats. Pro plus Bubble, Diamant and all upcoming models.
• Enterprise - individual quote on request.

Early-bird at launch: currently -50% on all plans. Annual billing additionally saves you roughly two months versus monthly billing.

For which features each plan includes, see "Which features are in which plan?".

It depends on which letter types you need:

• Basic covers standard signage with Solid Body, Hollow Body, Slim Corner, Back Glow and Fullglow.
• Pro covers the full signage mix: Basic plus Back Frame, Moss Letters, Sideholes, Low Poly and Sidelight.
• Premium is worth it if you need Bubble or Diamant, want multiple seats, or want all future models included.

When in doubt: start with the 30-day demo, all models are unlocked.

Beyond the letter models, the plans also unlock features:

• Basic - import of 2D templates, Text Designer, creation of printable 3D letters, STL export, milling/laser files, updates.
• Pro - everything in Basic plus: CorelDRAW/Illustrator plug-in, 3D preview of the complete lettering, day/night view.
• Premium - everything in Pro plus: facade tool, calculation, quote PDF, Model Manager (custom models), knowledge base, 3D-printing tips and prioritized support.
• Enterprise - everything in Premium plus custom adaptations and API interfaces.

In the app, locked features show a crown icon; a click reveals which plan unlocks them.

All prices are net, plus statutory VAT where applicable. 3D Letter Studio is sold B2B only. EU customers with a valid VAT ID are invoiced under the reverse-charge procedure.

Yes. 30 days free. You can try all models and tools and test the complete workflow. Important: the production data export is NOT fully unlocked in the demo - it creates an example lettering instead of your own, so no finished print files of your lettering leave the trial. The real export of your own lettering is unlocked only by a license key. PDF quotes are usable without a watermark. On first start, a one-time online registration runs automatically in the background.

Steps: download the installer from 3d-letter-studio.de, install, launch, choose Start demo.

After 30 days you need a license key so the export creates your own lettering (instead of the example lettering) and the print data is production-ready. See the plan overview under "Which plans are available and what do they cost?". Orders go through 3d-letter-studio.de.

If you need a few more days to evaluate, just reach out - we will find a way.

1. Launch the app
2. Menu Extras -> Activate license...
3. Paste the license key and click Activate

Verification runs online via lz.3d-letter-studio.de. On success the demo mode ends automatically and the export now creates your own lettering.

If activation fails, the cause is usually internet or firewall - see "Activation fails".

The most common cause is a blocked connection to the license server. Check in this order:

1. Internet is up.
2. Firewall / antivirus allows the app to reach lz.3d-letter-studio.de (port 443).
3. License key copied cleanly (no leading/trailing spaces).

If activation still fails, send us a screenshot of the error plus your hardware ID (Settings -> License -> Status -> copy Hardware ID).

Two steps:

1. Old PC: Settings -> License -> Deactivate
2. New PC: install the app, enter the license key, Activate

The license is bound to the hardware ID. Without prior deactivation, activation on the new PC is blocked. If the old PC is no longer reachable, contact us - we can reset it on the server.

Activated licenses work offline. The app checks the server every few days in the background - there is a 3-day grace period during which the license stays valid even without a connection.

For permanently-offline setups, go online a few times a week to keep the status fresh. The initial activation itself requires internet.

Via the Stripe customer portal:

1. Open the app
2. Settings -> License -> Status
3. Open Stripe customer portal
4. Section Invoices - all past invoices as PDF

You can also update payment method and billing address there.

Through the Stripe customer portal:

1. Open the app
2. Settings -> License -> Status
3. Open Stripe customer portal
4. Cancel subscription

Monthly subscriptions end at the end of the current month, annual ones at the end of the current year. The software stays fully usable until the expiration date.

Yes. Upgrade any time via the Stripe customer portal:

1. Open the app
2. Settings -> License -> Status
3. Click Open Stripe customer portal

Stripe handles prorated billing automatically - any unused time on the old plan is credited against the new one. The new plan is active on next app login. Downgrades take effect at the end of the current billing period.

Billing runs via Stripe. Accepted: credit card (Visa, Mastercard, AMEX), SEPA direct debit, and other common methods depending on region.

The app checks every 10 minutes. Force a manual check:

1. Settings -> Program -> Updates
2. Check again

If the download fails or no update bar appears, you can grab the installer manually: https://lz.3d-letter-studio.de/download.php

Update installation requires administrator privileges. When Windows UAC pops up, click Yes - otherwise installation aborts.

If the download itself fails: Settings -> Program -> Updates -> Check again, or download the installer manually: https://lz.3d-letter-studio.de/download.php

Everything under %APPDATA%/3D Letter Studio/:

• Profiles (parameter presets)
• Own models from the Model Manager
• Calculation settings
• License and printer list
• Model sort order
• Own thumbnails

When a built-in model gets new parameters in an update, those are merged into your customizations automatically - your pipeline stays unchanged.

Yes. You can install an older version any time via Windows Apps & features. Data under %APPDATA%/ stays compatible.

If you want to disable the auto-check: Settings -> Program -> Updates -> turn off auto-check.

No, this is not a virus warning. Microsoft Edge (and sometimes Chrome) occasionally show the note "... isn't commonly downloaded" for new programs. That is only a popularity hint: 3D Letter Studio is a young, specialised program and every new version is brand new, so the browser does not yet know the file from many other downloads. The file itself is fine and digitally signed.

How to download it anyway (Microsoft Edge):

1. Click the download icon in the top right (or press Ctrl+J).
2. Hover the "3DLetterStudio-Setup..." entry, click the three dots "..." and choose Keep.
3. In the following note click Keep anyway.

The installer is then in your downloads folder as usual.

No, this is not a virus or spam warning. 3D Letter Studio was published recently and is signed with a brand-new signing certificate. Until Windows knows this new certificate from many installations, a blue window may appear when the installation starts, stating that running was blocked. This disappears as the app becomes more widely known.

How to install it anyway:

1. In the blue window click More info.
2. The Run anyway button appears - click it.
3. The installation starts normally; just follow the steps.

The window shows the publisher Medienwerk 15 GmbH - the official vendor of 3D Letter Studio. That is how you can tell the file is genuine.

Import: DXF and SVG from all common vector apps (CorelDRAW, Adobe Illustrator, Inkscape, Affinity Designer).

Export:

• STL and 3MF for 3D printers
• SVG for laser cutters and CNC routers
• PDF for quotes and calculations

The CorelDRAW plugin lets you hand a lettering from CorelDRAW to 3D Letter Studio with a single click - no SVG export dialog.

One-click setup (from v1.32):

1. Close CorelDRAW completely (File → Exit).
2. In 3D Letter Studio: Settings → Program → Plugin bridge.
3. Click "Install CorelDRAW plugin…" → confirm.
4. Start CorelDRAW. A new toolbar "3D Letter Studio" appears docked at the top with the button "An 3D Letter Studio senden" (Send to 3D Letter Studio).

Usage: convert letters to curves (Ctrl+Q), select them, click the toolbar button. 3D Letter Studio comes to the front and shows the lettering in 3D - the app launches on demand if it is not already running.

No token copying, no hidden activation toggle - from v1.32 everything is pre-configured.

Requires CorelDRAW 2020 or newer (recommended 2024+) and 3D Letter Studio v1.32 or newer.

The Illustrator plugin lets you hand a selection from Adobe Illustrator to 3D Letter Studio with a single click - no SVG export dialog. It works the same on Windows and macOS.

One-click setup:

1. Close Adobe Illustrator completely.
2. In 3D Letter Studio: Settings → Program → Plug-Ins (Corel/Illustrator). It shows whether the plugin is already installed.
3. Click "Install Illustrator plugin…" → confirm.
4. Restart Illustrator and open the panel via Window → Extensions → 3D Letter Studio.

Usage: select objects or text, optionally pick a model at the top of the panel, and click "An 3D Letter Studio senden" (Send to 3D Letter Studio). 3D Letter Studio comes to the front and shows the selection in 3D - the app launches on demand if it is not already running. The connection key is picked up automatically, no copying needed.

Requires Adobe Illustrator 2022 or newer.

• Export DXF as R14 or R2000 (newer versions can cause problems).
• Contours must be closed.
• Multiple letters: leave enough spacing, otherwise they merge.
• i-dots: disable in the import dialog or group with the main letter.

• Convert text to paths (Inkscape: Path -> Object to Path).
• Remove filters, gradients, transparency.
• When in doubt: export as DXF from the source app - that is the most robust route.

• Enable Keep counters in the import dialog.
• Inner contours must be closed and inside the outer contour.
• Otherwise they are interpreted as a separate shape rather than a hole.

Yes. On the very first start a short welcome assistant greets you and shows the workflow in five steps: import a template, choose a model and material, view it, calculate, export. With "Load example" you start instantly with a finished lettering. You can reopen the introduction at any time via Help menu, "Restart first steps".

That is what the facade tool is for (toolbar button "Preview / Facade tool"). Load a photo of the building facade as the background, place the finished lettering on it to scale and resize it until the proportions are right. With "Lock rotation" you move the lettering directly with the mouse. Your customer sees the result before the first letter is printed

• and the snapshot can go straight into the quotation PDF.

The Neon Bender turns a lettering, a logo or a drawn line into a 3D-printable LED neon sign (faux neon). Open it via the toolbar button "Neon Bender", load an SVG/DXF with centerlines or take a lettering straight from the Text Designer - or pick one of the 370+ ready-made motifs from the template gallery. There are three mounting methods to choose from: a 3D-printed channel, a groove milled into acrylic, or an acrylic plate with the tube on top. A bend-radius warning flags curves that are too tight, large signs are split automatically for the print bed, and you can combine neon signs and channel letters into one quotation. Available from the Pro plan.

The calculation takes the dimensions automatically from your template and uses your stored price parameters (material, labor, LEDs, substructure). You can add a customer discount in percent and free line items. From this, 3D Letter Studio produces a customer PDF (landscape, with your logo and a lettering preview) that you save or send directly by email.

In the calculation there is a "Share via link" button. It creates a web link your customer can use to view and rotate the lettering as a real 3D preview right in the browser - and, if available, mounted on the building via a facade photo. The quotation is attached as a downloadable PDF. Your customer can approve it online with their name and a note, in a binding way. As soon as that happens, the approval appears automatically in the app (notification bar at the bottom) and in the "My links" overview. The link is valid for 30 days, needs no login and is only reachable via the exact address; in the program you get the link and a QR code to pass on. Via "My links" you can deactivate any link at any time.

The share links are a Premium feature: with a Premium or Enterprise license you can use them without limit. In the free demo you can try the feature with up to 5 active links. With Basic or Pro an upgrade notice is shown instead.

The link works in any current browser without a login. If something does not work, these are the most common reasons: the link was copied incompletely (it is deliberately long and only reachable via the exact address) - best to pass on the QR code or the full link from "Share via link". Or the link has expired after 30 days or was deactivated under "My links" - in that case simply create a new one. The 3D preview needs an up-to-date browser; on very old devices the display may be limited, but the quotation PDF can always be downloaded.

The left mouse button rotates the view, the mouse wheel zooms, the middle mouse button pans. Above the viewer there are buttons for front, back and 3D view plus visibility toggles per part (front plate, body, back panel). For multi-part models the "Merge" slider pulls the parts apart for inspection. See the help sections "3D viewer" and "Control panel" for details.

The light menu opens via the slider icon next to the lighting button. There you set a display preset, the light direction and the brightness, and you can save your own light looks. In lighting mode there is also a "Light color" slider from warm white (3000K) to daylight (6500K) and a "Contact shadows" switch for soft shadows at edges (off by default; leave it off on slow graphics).

The "Lighting" button enables a lighting test with a glow effect - it simulates the night-time glow in the chosen LED color. In addition there are four light presets (Standard, Contrast, Studio, Soft) for the material appearance. This works especially well in customer meetings to show the finished impression.

That is what auto contrast is for: the background of the 3D preview adapts automatically to the letter color so that even dark letters stay visible. If you prefer to keep your fixed background color, turn auto contrast off under Settings, Program, 3D preview.

The fast preview shows the 3D model instantly while you adjust parameters and looks exactly like the finished result - depending on the model many times faster than the exact rendering. It is on by default. If you prefer the exact (slower) rendering, turn it off under Settings, Program, 3D preview. Export, calculation and production always compute at full precision.

Yes. Via the Model manager (Tools menu, Model manager) you assemble your own models from ready-made building blocks - no code required. You pick the desired steps, bind parameters and see the result instantly in the live preview. Custom models are saved separately and are preserved across updates.

The software automatically splits large letters into multiple parts so they fit your bed. Splits include alignment features for reassembly and place reinforcement plates across the seams.

Configure your bed:

1. Settings -> Production & printers
2. Enter your bed size

On export, auto-split kicks in automatically when a part does not fit. On the template SVG, split lines are marked as orange dashed lines.

Exported 3MF files carry two materials (floor in one color, walls in the other) and are interpreted correctly by every modern slicer:

• Bambu Studio
• OrcaSlicer
• PrusaSlicer

Plain STL files work with any slicer. Recommended materials: PETG for the body, acrylic for the face plate (laser-cut or CNC-routed from the exported SVG).

With "Open in slicer" in the export dialog, all parts of a complete lettering are arranged automatically on the print bed - whatever does not fit on one plate goes onto additional plates.

Two ways:

• Holes from your own template: Circles you draw yourself in your DXF/SVG template are detected and drilled automatically ("Use holes from template" is enabled by default).
• Holes calculated by the app: If you want the app to calculate the positions for you, enable the matching checkboxes in the "Holes" parameter section - these are OFF by default so the app never touches holes you already drew yourself. Available options: 2 mm mounting holes in the corpus corners, a 7 mm LED cable hole at the same height on every letter, and 7 mm drainage holes at the lowest point of each disconnected region.

ASA is the standard for outdoor use because it is UV- and weather-resistant. For extra stiffness there is ASA-GF (glass-fibre reinforced), which requires a hardened nozzle. PETG is an affordable, robust alternative for many applications.

ASA-GF is ASA reinforced with glass fibres. It is considerably stiffer and more dimensionally stable, but the fibres make it abrasive. A hardened nozzle (e.g. steel) is therefore strongly recommended, as brass nozzles wear out very quickly.

Technical materials such as ASA and ABS tend to warp and crack between layers without a stable ambient temperature. An enclosed chamber keeps the heat inside the print area and produces dimensionally accurate, weather-resistant letters.

When exporting production data you can also output a job sheet as a PDF - a checklist with one box per letter and part. You can tick off the same list directly on screen via File menu, Production status; it is saved in the project. The exported 3MF files can be handed straight to your slicer (Bambu Studio, OrcaSlicer or PrusaSlicer) - as an option in the export dialog, as a button in the success message, or via Tools menu, Open production in slicer.

ASA is typically printed with nozzle temperatures of about 240-260 °C and a bed temperature of 90-110 °C. An enclosed chamber is strongly recommended for consistent results.

No. With 3D Letter Studio you turn a vector file directly into print-ready channel letters - no CAD required. The software exports ready-to-use STL/3MF files for almost any FDM printer.

It depends on the printer's build volume. Standard printers such as the Bambu Lab P1S produce letters up to roughly 25 cm in one piece; larger ones are segmented and glued. Large-format printers such as the Mingda AD-F4 or the Modix range print letters over a metre without segmentation. 3D Letter Studio automatically splits oversized letters to match your configured bed (see auto-split).

For most models, yes. Body, back panel and - where present - base plate are STL/3MF anyway. Most models with a front plate and/or LED inlay also offer a printable STL alternative in the production export alongside the SVG cut file ("Front plate (3D print)" or "LED inlay (3D print)"). For models whose front plate also acts as the light diffusor (Back Frame, Back Frame XXL, Slim Corner, Ruffy 5S, Sideholes), the app suggests testing a translucent filament for even light transmission - FDM layer lines can otherwise show as a faint banding effect when backlit. Solid Body and Matrix Front instead have their own "Front plate type" toggle (milled/printed).

Currently 15 models are available - depending on your license plan:

Solid Body, Hollow Body, Slim Corner, Back Frame, Back Frame XXL, Side Light, Back Glow, FullGlow, Moss Letters, Sideholes, Low Poly, Bubble, Matrix Front, Diamant and Ruffy 5S.

A few more models appear in the selection dialog with a "Coming soon" badge (e.g. Cover Cap) and will be unlocked in a later update.

Which models belong to which plan is in "Which plans are available?".

Yes. Custom models from the Model Manager live under %APPDATA%/3D Letter Studio/custom_models/ and are never overwritten during updates.

When a built-in model gets new parameters in an update, those are merged into your customizations automatically - your pipeline stays unchanged.

Contours below 3 mm are ignored for printability reasons. For very small letters, check face plate and contours up front.

Yes. On the Solid Body, Hollow Body, Side Light, FullGlow and Back Glow models the front can be shaped in depth - as a dome (convex), a trough (concave) or a wave, either across the width or the height. For the wave you also set the wave spacing. You find the setting in the parameter area of the respective model.

So the deformation stays cleanly printable, it is output differently per model: on the hollow-body models (Hollow Body, Side Light, FullGlow, Back Glow) the curved front is created as a separate, flat-printable add-on part - it prints without supports and is then glued onto the flat front (the gluing step is included in the calculation). On the Solid Body (a solid letter) the curve stays part of the letter; with deformation active it is automatically printed upright so the curve forms without supports. On Back Glow the rear acrylic plate stays flat.

On Matrix Front (perforated front) you can optionally place an acrylic diffuser behind the front. It scatters the LED light so that, when lit, you get an even glow instead of individual shining LED dots. You choose between "Laser cut" (opal acrylic as a separate cutting file) and "3D print" (as a second, translucent color directly in the body print part). Enabled under LED, with adjustable thickness.

• Windows 10 or 11, 64-bit (ARM64 supported too)
• At least 8 GB RAM (16 GB recommended)
• Modern GPU recommended for fluid 3D preview
• Internet connection for license activation

The app also runs on older machines, the 3D preview is just a bit slower. The 30-day demo lets you verify on your own system risk-free.

Currently Windows 10/11 only (64-bit, ARM64 included). A macOS version is planned and will likely ship with one of the next updates - let us know if you are interested and we will add you to the notify list.

A Linux version is not currently planned.

3D Letter Studio is a product of Medienwerk 15 GmbH based in Tostedt, Germany. The software is developed from hands-on signage practice - for the German-speaking market and for professional use in signage and 3D printing.

Under Settings, Program you adapt the interface to your way of working: language (German/English), units of measurement (mm, cm or inch - consistent across preview, dimensions and PDFs), currency for the calculation, the appearance (light/dark mode with picker images) and the interface font size. You can also keep several letterings open at the same time in tabs and back up and restore your settings.