My multiple P1 series printers from 2023 are almost bullet proof, no issues after thousands of hours on them. I plan to order a couple of H2S or H2D, but the users feedback on the 2nd gen printers from Facebook and Best Buy are a mixed bag.
I’m wondering it’s because the complexity of 2nd gen printers or high expectations from inexperienced users.
For those who operate both gen printers, what are your experiences?
I tend to think it’s a combination of several factors, among these being (1) complexity of the 2nd gen machines (maintenance and repair wise), (2) users level of understanding/knowledge (plenty of these users tend to think plug-and-play means just that and have no understanding or knowledge on what 3d printing and filament settings mean), (3) luck (whereby some get flawless workhorses, while others get … so unlucky)
I agree with drakko, it is extremely hard to quantify the reliability given how varied the user base is. That said, I think that the usability of the whole ecosystem drives the average output of the printers much higher since it does a great job of supporting new users, so the whole curve shifts towards a higher positive experience overall. I have had a few little blips with my H2D, but no significant issues to speak of yet. I think I am probably at 250 or 300 hours of printing, which is by no means statistically significant for determining reliability but the experience has been consistent thus far. There will always be lemons and victims of bathtub failure but for the most part it seems that they are pretty good. H2S probably the most reliable of them all given fewer moving parts, so if you have multiple printers that’s probably the best bet. Then one or two H2D / H2Cs for specific multi-material capabilities would be pretty good. I got an H2D for engineering purposes, but I wish I had gotten the H2C since even just being able to select different nozzle sizes from within Studio would have been nice. Not that changing the nozzle is a bother, I just feel like it would match my workflow and personality well.
A cynic might point to the A1 and say that: over time, the various revisions bambu produced have used components in the AC board that literally burn out and explode, and that’s “less reliable.”
/ and let users find those in the wild
// and refuses to issue a recall of known units with known defective boards
/// if the world’s govts were functioning right now, a regulator would annihilate them on this
Ah, I forgot to mention that I also have an A1. Absolute workhorse for sure. Again I don’t have a prodigious number of hours on it but I am pushing 900 so it has seen some stuff! Everything still functions perfectly and I haven’t had any experiences with the H2D which make me yearn for the A1 haha. I would say, so far (and fingers crossed), that both printers have struck me as equivalent machines with different purposes, and it is a joy to have them both available for different tasks.
Just my experience…
The P2S has been more reliable than both the P1 and X1. As in less failures and not needing as much maintenance.
And the launch of the 2nd gen machines have been smoother.
I tend to take reviews and feedback with a grain of rock salt. There is no way to judge the authors skills, abilities, or aptitude to actually run a machine. Any machine.
And then there are those who actually work for a competitor who go out and “hang paper” on a competitors equipment. So there is a lot to consider in feedback and reviews. Not something I use as a determining factor for my purchases. But not is warranties, either. Especially since I’ve been burned by the Chianese business model several times. They’d send you a part at a time for an entire item, rather than simply take something back and analyze it.
I have a P2S, and I’ve loved it from the start. But when it does do something “off” I try to figure it out and usually do find a way. I don’t expect the general population to be quite as analytical. But blaming a machine is not the answer. Any more than “wet filament” is an answer.
If I was to buy a second printer (fat chance of that), it would likely be another just like it. Because I’m just a happy old hobbyist with a daytime interest to off-set my nighttime interest.
Given that Bambu is striving to succeed in this market, I can readily accept they are going to continue to offer the new and improved.
IMHO, I do think a dual or multi head printer would capture my interest. Less poop and faster goop. But hard for me to justify a change in direction at this point in time.
If I was to, it sure wouldn’t be influenced by a bunch of unknowns opinions. Your milage may vary…
That definitely would raise the interest of many, me included.
As others noted before, I think complexity can bring more issues. The new printers bring new technology, more sensors, and less commodity hardware. So realistically, in my opinion, one would expect more issues.
To share my personal experience between my various Bambu printers: A1 Mini, A1, X1C, and H2C at home and H2D at work, I have had very little issues and none that required warranty work. So reliability for me has been pretty much on par. The biggest difference I see and experience, that’s not including new features, is that the amount of sensors on these newer machines makes for a lot more “sensed” failures. I get more errors during prints on the H2 series printers than the others due to various sensors picking up all kind of problems. Almost every time I can either restart or resume the print to get past the noted error. These errors are not all that often, but often enough to be more annoying than any of my other Bambu printers.
Hi Drakko, Yeah, the filament changes are a royal pain sometimes. I printed a small figurine once and it literally filled my poop can to the alarm point. 
But I’m very happy being dumb and not a collector. (Well, I do have a huge pile of filament spools. So there is that…) 
consider that at least half of the users writing “reviews” on facebook and other platforms are bots.
in some cases its 75…
there are a lot of “players” that would like to gain market share over bambu, that is seldom attempted by innovating
The H class is less reliable than the P1 generation, but I don’t own an X2 or P2. My guess is that the P2S is probably the most reliable of those newer ones.
One factor that hasn’t been mentioned yet is: It also depends significantly on your package delivery service provider and the region. Even the best quality won’t matter if your delivery person is throwing the printer around.
From what I’ve heard, it isn’t so much that the Bambu hardware has worsened, but rather the delivery service has in some regions.
It’s no wonder that, when someone gets a new printer, the standard question is, “Have you checked that the screws are tight and the belt tension is correct?”
I tend to agree with your assessment. I also think that the P2 is probably the most reliable printer among all 2nd gen printers… kind of “X1-type reliable”.