Submitted 3 hours ago by Knossos@lemmy.world to 3dprinting@lemmy.world
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.
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.
Prusa mini is a good starter printer, had mine for 4 years before the core 1 came out. If you have the room for a core 1, you won’t regret it. It’s a much more modern platform and will continue to be upgraded
Bluewing@lemmy.world 55 minutes ago
Prusa is a good choice if you are willing to spend the money. My Mk3s has been and will always be a tank to print with. These days the Core 1 is what you want from them. But multicolor printing is going to cost a noticeable amount more. If you set on multicolor prints, this is a hang up for many.
If you decide you can’t/won’t spend Prusa money, then maybe look a Qidi. A bit rougher around the edges, but seems to have decent hardware. They really lean into being able to print high temperature engineering filaments. My next printer will be the Q2 as soon as management, (Grandma), OKs the funds. I probably won’t get their AMS because I already have a Bambu A1 mini with AMS lite. But Qidi has their own version of AMS that won’t set you back as much as Prusa will.
Not that it matters too much, but Prusa runs on Marlin firmware and Qidi runs on klipper. Marlin is more beginner-friendly, but klipper is a lot more adaptable and changeable in the hands of someone that knows what they want. While still being very approachable to beginners.