Most of the day-to-day design work happens on a small filament printer. FDM makes it trivial to print a part, assemble it, build on the idea, and modify it again the same day, which is what actually makes fast iteration possible rather than theoretical.
At the same time, we’re sourcing out the parts headed toward production: laser-sintered pieces, metal parts, CNC-machined parts. But everything gets mocked up in FDM first, before committing to any of those slower, pricier outside processes. A given part typically goes through six or seven real variations before the design actually settles.
Once it does settle, it gets packaged into an actual cassette or player and carried around for about a week: in a pocket, in a hand, used, tested with real cartridges. That’s where new things actually reveal themselves. Holding a solid piece, watching the mechanism move, hearing what it sounds like, none of that comes through on a screen or a render.
FDM’s role stops there on purpose. It’s a prototyping tool, not a production one: real parts move to other materials, SLA specifically, which gives a much better surface finish and a genuinely more integral structure, no visible layer lines the way FDM leaves behind, and real longevity as a result.