Hello! I have been on the fence about getting a printer for years. Now my wife is getting interested too, and I feel that now it’s the time.
What are the recommendations nowadays? I am trying to steer clear of Bambi Labs due to their controversies (I’m also a supporter of open source software).
I’ve seen a few mentions of Prusa in this community. Would that be a good start? I don’t want to get in at an extremely basic level and then need to upgrade in half a year.
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Yes, you are correct in avoiding Bambu. They have been pretty awful to their community, the open source community, and the media.
Prusa will be one of the most solid and reliable options you can get, reportedly amazing customer service and their machines are very repairable. However, if you have a tight budget, it won’t be as good “value” (at least purely based on performance), where Prusa is surpassed by printers like the Elegoo Centauri Carbon, Qidi Q2 (both CoreXY), and Sovol SV06 Ace (bedslinger). If you want multiple toolheads, Snapmaker’s U1 is neat and a lot cheaper than the equivalent Prusa XL.
Prusa has lots of great machines, but the “big dog” is definitely the Core One, which will later have the INDX tool changer upgrade path which is nest! If you’re okay with bedslingers, you have their MK4S as well as the Mini (which has a smaller build volume than most, check what kind of models you want to print first!)
TLDR: Elegoo, Qidi, Sovol, and Prusa all have great printers (many of which are far better value than Bambu machines to be honest, plus they will be more open too with better compatibility with third-party software), though Prusa is the most reliable and trustworthy. I believe Elegoo, Qidi, and Prusa all have their own versions of a multi material system, and Snapmaker (and later Prusa with the INDX) offer tool changers if that’s your jam.
pricing progression right now is sort of like this in my opinion:
- used market (e.g. older Prusa models)
- Sovol SV06 Ace (note: bedslinger!)
- Elegoo Centauri (no enclosure, CoreXY)
- Elegoo Centauri Carbon (enclosure, CoreXY)
- Qidi Q1 Pro or Q2 (CoreXY)
- Prusa MK4S (note: bedslinger!)
- Prusa Core One (CoreXY)
Sovol Sv08 is a corexy based around the voron 2.4 The Sovol zero is based on voron 0.2
I really wanted to build a couple of vorons, but the cost for a kit is more than a prusa core one, but the size of a core one L (300mm3 2.4 for instance) I just don’t know how I’m going to turn myself. I might go for a one L and wait for the multi head add on to come out. (INDX )
My first printer was way back when Prusa was but a set of instructions and suggestions. Prusa did a lot of the research that caused other companies to succeed. And seeing what Bamboo is doing with it, it’s important for me to support prusa as I detest closed ecosystems.
So when it was time to get back into the hobby last year, I went for a Prusa Core One, and I’ve had no regrets.
It’s an excellent printer that is easy to use, and it’s very versatile, so that’s my suggestion.
The price tag is a bit higher than the competitors, but I don’t mind - they floated the R&D bill for the entire industry, and that carries an interest.
Interesting to hear the history. So Prusa was the original trail blazer?
The origin of the hobby 3D printer is the RepRap project, a community open hardware project. Josef Prusa was actively involved. The first printer the company actively sold - the Prusa i3 - is still on the RepRap website.
They got a bit more restrictive with their licencing terms in the recent past which is both understandable and a bit of a slap in the face to where they came from, but they’re still the most open 3D printer manufacturer.
(Not the most open 3d printer though, that award has to go to DIY only models like the Voron)
If you want to ease yourself into the Voron life, Sovol makes the SV-08 which is essentially a Voron clone. I think they’re alsonthe biggest manufacturer in the game that doesn’t try to do a branded slicer. They’ll just tell you to use Orca. I have the SV08 Max (500mm^3 bed monster) l, and I’m enjoying it.
The Bambu printers I started with (A1 mini and A1) definitely have more polished experiences and WAY more print profiles available. Bambu is hard to beat in the “it just works” category, and I actually still recommend the A1 mini for someone who wants to print little things here and there and isn’t interested in 3D printing itself as a hobby.
