Guides — LightBurn
How to Build and Use LightBurn's Material Library
LightBurn's Material Library lets you store tested cut and engrave settings — power, speed, DPI, passes, air assist — as named presets and apply them with one click on any future job. For a 10W diode laser engraving basswood, a well-built library entry means you never have to remember "was it 65% at 3,000 mm/min or 60% at 2,500?" This guide shows you how to build that library from scratch, organise it by machine, and use our free settings data as starting points.
- A typical diode-laser library covers 10–30 material entries — enough to handle daily jobs without getting unwieldy.
- LightBurn stores libraries as .clb files — keep them somewhere permanent (not your Downloads folder).
- One library per machine is best practice when you have multiple lasers.
- The library stores your machine's exact tested settings — not generic ranges. Our free settings data is a starting point; your own test results are the goal.
What is the LightBurn material library?
The Material Library is a panel inside LightBurn where you save presets. Each preset is a named combination of cut settings — mode (Cut, Fill, Fill+Line), power, speed, DPI, number of passes, Z offset, air assist on or off. You group presets under a material name (for example, "3mm Birch Plywood"), and can have multiple entries under the same material for different operations (cutting vs engraving, for instance).
When you open a new project in LightBurn and want to engrave basswood, you open the library, click your Basswood entry, click Assign, and your layer is set instantly. No hunting through old project files. No mis-remembering speeds.
Opening the Library panel
In a default LightBurn layout, the Library tab lives in the bottom-right corner, sharing space with the Laser panel. If you don't see it, go to Window → Library. If your layout is completely custom, Window → Reset to Default Layout will restore all panels to their original positions (this won't affect your projects, just the panel arrangement).
Creating your first library entry
Here's the step-by-step for your first entry. We'll use 3mm birch plywood as an example.
| Step | What to do | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Set up a layer in LightBurn with your tested settings | Speed, power, mode, passes, air assist — the settings you know work |
| 2 | In the Library panel, click Create new from layer | This copies the current layer's cut settings into a new preset |
| 3 | Enter Material Name | This is the folder grouping, e.g. "3mm Birch Plywood" — use something you'll recognise later |
| 4 | Enter Thickness (or tick No Thickness) | Enter the material thickness in mm. For surface engraving on anything, tick "No Thickness." |
| 5 | Enter a Description | E.g. "Cut — 1 pass, air assist on" or "Engrave — logo/text 300 DPI." This is how you tell entries apart within the same material. |
| 6 | Click OK | The entry now appears in the library panel under its material folder. |
Repeat for each material-and-operation combination you use regularly. For most hobbyists, 15–25 entries covers everything — one or two entries per material (cut + engrave) for the materials you actually use.
What parameters get stored in each entry
When you create an entry from a layer, LightBurn stores the full set of cut settings for that layer. For a diode laser, the relevant ones are:
| Parameter | What it is | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Mode | Cut / Fill / Fill+Line / Image | Choose the right mode first — it changes which other parameters matter |
| Speed | mm/min or mm/s | See the units gotcha below — this is the most common source of confusion |
| Max Power % | Power at cutting speed | Most important setting for cut quality |
| Min Power % | Power at corners and start/stop | Set lower than Max to reduce corner burns; most diode users set it equal to Max |
| Passes | Number of times the head traverses | Multiple passes add time but reduce heat per pass |
| Air Assist | On / Off | Store this! For acrylic engraving it must be OFF; for cutting it should be ON |
| DPI / LPI | Dots per inch (Fill/Image modes) | Only shown in Fill and Image modes |
| Bidirectional | Scan in both directions | Speeds up engraving but requires scanning-offset calibration |
| Overscanning | % overshoot at ends of lines | Diode lasers need 2–5% to avoid edge burns at higher speeds |
| Z Offset | Focus adjustment | Useful if you use a pass-focus to depth-cut; leave at zero for surface work |
The units gotcha — the #1 source of wrong settings
This trips up beginners more than anything else: LightBurn can display speed in mm/min or mm/s, and the default differs by device profile. If your xTool shows 50 mm/s and you enter 3,000 mm/min from a settings table, you'll get wildly different results.
To check (and change) your unit setting: go to Edit → Device Settings (or click the machine icon in the Laser panel). Look for the "Enabled" toggle next to mm/min near the bottom. This is a per-device setting — if you have multiple lasers, check each one.
The safest approach: when creating a library entry, verify the speed unit shown in the Cut Settings editor matches the units your device is set to. If you ever notice your settings engraving wildly too fast or too slow despite a correct power reading, units mismatch is almost always the cause.
Assign vs Link — choosing how to apply a preset
When you select a library entry and click one of the application buttons, you get two options:
| Option | What it does | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Assign | Copies the preset values to your layer. The layer is now independent — future edits to the library do not affect it. | Most jobs. You want the settings now but might tweak them for this particular piece. |
| Link | Keeps the layer connected to the library entry. If you later update the library entry, every linked layer in every file updates automatically. | Repeat production work where consistency is critical and you might need to revise settings across all files at once. |
For most hobby use, Assign is the right choice — it gives you a reliable starting point with no surprises. Link is powerful for sellers who run the same file on the same machine every week and need settings updates to propagate everywhere at once.
One library per machine — the right way to organise
If you own two lasers — say, a 10W xTool D1 Pro and a 40W xTool S1 — you should build two separate libraries. LightBurn links each library to the active device: when you switch to the 10W machine profile, the 10W library loads automatically.
This matters because settings don't transfer directly. A cut that needs 80% power at 800 mm/min on a 10W laser might need only 25% power at 1,500 mm/min on a 40W — same energy per millimetre, very different numbers. See the LTEI section below for how to calculate this.
When you save a library file (Manage Library → Save Library), LightBurn saves it as a .clb file. The name you give it is up to you — something like xTool_D1Pro_10W.clb keeps it unambiguous.
Documents/LightBurn/Libraries/ works well. Back this up the same way you back up your LightBurn project files.
Loading, saving, and merging .clb library files
Everything related to library files lives in the Manage Library button at the top of the Library panel. Here's what each option does:
| Option | What it does |
|---|---|
| Create New Library | Starts a blank library — use this the first time, or when setting up a new machine |
| Load Library | Opens an existing .clb file — use this to load a library someone else made (e.g. from a community download) |
| Save Library | Overwrites the current .clb file with the latest entries |
| Save Library As | Creates a named copy — useful for archiving before making big changes |
| Merge Library With | Combines two libraries — useful if you want to absorb a downloaded library into your existing one |
You can have multiple libraries loaded at once and switch between them via the Select Library dropdown in the Library panel. For example: one library for your main machine, one downloaded from your machine's manufacturer, one from a community source. Use Merge to consolidate them once you've verified the settings.
Sharing libraries over a network
If you run LightBurn on multiple computers — say, a design machine and a machine-side laptop — you can share a single library via a network drive or cloud service (Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive). Load the library from the shared location on each computer. Note: if both computers edit the library simultaneously, changes from one won't appear on the other until LightBurn is restarted or the library is manually re-loaded.
Adapting settings for your exact machine using LTEI
Settings databases — including ours — list settings by wattage class: 5W, 10W, 20W, 40W. But your laser's optical output might sit between categories, or your specific module may engrave differently at the same nominal wattage. The Laser Tinkerer Energy Index (LTEI) gives you a principled starting estimate when your wattage differs from the published setting.
The scaling rule: if you want to match the energy per millimetre of a 10W setting on a 20W machine, keep the same speed and halve the power percentage (or keep the power and double the speed). Precisely:
This matters for your library because library entries are machine-specific. When you build your 20W library, use the LTEI-scaled starting point, run a test grid, and save your verified result. Don't just copy the 10W settings — they'll produce different energy density on a different machine.
See the full method: Laser Tinkerer Energy Index — cross-machine wattage normalization.
Free starting points for your library
Building a library from scratch means running a lot of test grids on day one. Our settings database covers 27 materials across four wattage classes, all sourced and LTEI-normalized — use them as starting points for your first library entries, then refine with your own tests.
Suggested materials to set up first (most commonly used, real demand data):
- Basswood engraving — the best beginner material; crisp, predictable burns
- 3mm plywood cutting — most-searched cutting query in our analytics
- Birch plywood cutting — BB-grade, the standard for quality craft work
- Acrylic engraving — opaque and two-tone; air assist must be OFF
- Veg-tan leather engraving — high-contrast burns; confirm veg-tan before firing
- MDF cutting and engraving — dense fumes; extract aggressively
Each settings page lists the parameters you need for a library entry: mode, power (min/max), speed in both mm/min and mm/s, DPI for Fill mode, passes, and air assist on/off. You can also download our complete dataset as CSV and JSON for offline reference.
Common mistakes when building a material library
| Mistake | What happens | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Storing generic ranges instead of your tested result | The library becomes a lookup table, not a time-saver | Only save settings you've run a test on with your machine's actual material |
| Wrong speed units when creating the entry | Next job runs at 60× the right speed or 1/60th | Check Edit → Device Settings for mm/min vs mm/s before saving. See units gotcha above. |
| Saving the .clb in Downloads | Library is lost when Downloads is cleared | Save to a dedicated folder you back up. Documents/LightBurn/Libraries/ works well. |
| One library for multiple machines | Settings for the wrong machine are applied; quality problems | One library per machine, named by machine. LightBurn auto-loads the right one when you switch devices. |
| Vague descriptions ("Cut 1", "Engrave 2") | You can't tell what's what after a month | Include the key parameters in the description: "Cut — 2 pass, 80%, air assist on, 800 mm/min" |
| Copying settings from a different wattage machine without scaling | Under- or over-powered results; wasted material | Use the LTEI scaling rule as a starting point, then test. See above. |
| Forgetting to save the library after adding entries | New entries lost on LightBurn restart | Click Manage Library → Save Library after every session where you added or changed entries. |
Frequently asked questions
What is a .clb file?
A .clb file is LightBurn's Material Library file format. It's a JSON-based file that stores all your material presets. You can open it in a text editor if needed, but it's easiest to manage through LightBurn's Manage Library panel.
Can I share my library with someone using a different machine?
Yes — share the .clb file and they can load it with Manage Library → Load Library. However, your settings are tuned for your machine's actual optical power output. The other person should use the entries as starting points, then run test grids on their machine and save their own results. The LTEI scaling formula helps with the initial estimate.
Does the material library work in LaserGRBL?
No — the Material Library is a LightBurn feature. LaserGRBL does not have an equivalent built-in library system (though you can save project files with your preferred settings). If you're deciding between the two, see our LaserGRBL vs LightBurn guide.
Can I use downloaded .clb libraries from Etsy or the LightBurn forum?
Yes. Use Manage Library → Load Library (or Merge Library With to combine it with yours). Treat downloaded entries as starting points, not finished settings — the person who made them tested on their machine, with their specific material batch. Run a test grid on your material before relying on them for anything important.
How often should I update library entries?
Update whenever your real-world results change: after cleaning or replacing the lens (power output changes), after a firmware update that affects laser mode, when switching to a different material brand, or when a specific batch behaves differently. Don't update just to update — only when you've genuinely found a better setting.
Lasers commonly paired with LightBurn
LightBurn works with almost all GRBL-based diode lasers. These are among the most popular models in the community:
- xTool D1 Pro 20W — widely used with LightBurn; excellent GRBL compatibility
- Sculpfun S30 Pro — strong community, active LightBurn forum presence
- Laser honeycomb work bed — keeps material flat and lifts it off the base; improves cut consistency
- OD7+ 450nm safety glasses — required for any diode laser work session
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- Open the Library tab (Window → Library if not visible).
- Click Manage Library → Create New Library and save the .clb to a permanent folder.
- Set up a layer with the settings you want to save, then click Create new from layer.
- Name it clearly: material name, thickness, operation, key parameters in the description.
- Apply to future jobs with Assign (independent copy) or Link (auto-syncs).
- Save the library after each session with Manage Library → Save Library.
Last verified July 2026. LightBurn version reference: 1.7.x. If the UI has changed, the official LightBurn documentation is authoritative.