i will get me the saturn 4 when it comes out… as my first resin printer besides my p1s fdm printer…
i hope until then bambu will also come up with new stuff… i need a second fdm printer but i dont want to get me the x1c and then 2 weeks later find out they released a new model…
I think the amazing A1 mini was a “test” for their larger format (300x300x300+) bed slinger. I’ll bet you $$$ it’s what is coming out this year! I love my mini, best most capable printer ever…
Show us your nylon prints…
Between my X1C, P1S, and the A1 Mini, the mini is my favorite.
Why is the mini your favorite?
Yes, sure it does not have a contained environment for those materials. It’s still the best printer. It prints better than your $2500 bambu printer.
Interesting to think Creality looks to be close to bringing out out a real competitor with the Creality AMS, the K2+. So Bambu, could very well be close to sending their second gen machines out. I have to assume they will start with a X2, and slowly drip the lower priced options out. A two year cycle seems reasonable for the amount of development these machines see, and that would be Summer 2024.
Now… is the K2+ a real product, or just someone’s clever and clean render? Don’t know for sure, but I kinda think its legit. Details like the 3 chamber air filter seems like an odd thing for someone to just add in a render. The lower internal panel detail seems like more effort than most people would make when just trying to throw up a red herring. Same thing with the odd single screw placement on the side panel. In a fake I’d assume you’d make 4+ or leave them off. Largely, I feel like its legit.
To be fair, If I could only keep one, I’d probably keep my X1C.
I like the Mini’s form factor though, the design, the nozzle, the AMS lite. There’s a lot of what I print that fits comfortably on the mini’s bed, and because it isn’t enclosed, it’s a little faster doing all the in-between print task when preparing for the next print. I also find using external (aka not on the ams) spools to be a better experience. Not that the X1/P1 is anything bad, it’s just easier/quicker to setup on the A1 Mini. I usually disconnect one of the tubes from the AMS and just connect it to the connector on the printer, for the single spool.
All these printers rock my socks though. Even my Anycubic Kobra 2 Max puts some gusto in my step. I love printing big stuff, and that printer has been working well for me.
With Creality officially kicking the new season in to full swing with its K2 (as well as SOVOL’s new take of a Voron, Qidi’s new Q1, Phrozen’s Arco, and Peoply’s Magneto X), I’m thinking Bambu will be quick to follow. Let’s see if the guess of a new printer being released soon bears fruit. Personally, I’m expecting something like a X1E, with a few new features, but that’s just a guess.
Apparently Anycubic is teasing some sort of AMS thing too. Honestly, I’m interested in what Creality is doing. If they’ve got a 350 build volume with an AMS like system… hmmm. I’ve got a hand full of projects that’d be perfect for that, and I’ve been waiting. 
And? They still have some firmware issues to straighten out with the K1, after how long?
Every launch they’ve done in the last couple of years has been rushed. They have stupid construction issues that crop up (door on the K1 as an example), and they release new features with what is basically early beta software with the statement “coming soon” on the other features. Prusa did the same thing with the Mk4.
I no longer get excited about any Creality release, as they are typically broken in one way or another for the first 6 months.
Heated chamber, AMS-type filament system, 350mm cube volume, cleaned up kinematics, what looks to be a new filtration, but largely a bigger Bambu. So for those looking for an open source (or more open source) experience it looks like an option. I do expect the new BBL to be a little bit of a step ahead, but I don’t see it being massive. However, I’d wait till the end of summer to see what Bambu brings to the table.
Definitely less polished, but for some people, this is offering everything they need. A printer that they can root and mod, with a bigger build plate, and many of the amenities that BBL offer. After all, with access to the .CFG file I can make features that I feel makes sense and not wait for the manufacturer to do it.
So its different strokes for different folks. Personally, I’m OK with the BBL way, but the mod-able printers have a real value that many people will gravitate to, even if they are not as polished.
I’d prefer a more polished end product, personally. It’s part of what makes me wary of Creality, and has stopped me from ever purchasing their products. I want something that just works, and for the most part Bambu has been that.
This week in my life has exemplified those points, haha. Slammed with work, and what time I’ve had to dedicate to 3d printing, I’d rather focus on design than fiddling with the printer.
I’d prefer a Bambu offering, but can’t wait forever too, and can’t bank on speculation of what might come. I’ve got a backlog of larger designs 
I can appreciate that. Personally, I’ve owned two Creality printers, an Ender 3 and a resin printer and both were great. They have lost their way a little bit in recent past, but have been making a lot of efforts to fix that.
They relied on pricing to sell the K1 printers (and build volume for the Max), but this recent release will put them on equal ground with Bambu, I think. There’s no reason to believe they will not have fixed the obvious problems from the K1 printers. They will likely have some new ones, but this will be a very mature set of tech features, and as such, I’m not expecting any deal breakers. In all honesty, I could build most of this myself, now that others like BBL have shown the way.
The elephant in the room will be, how much did they clone from BBL? And being they plan to make theirs open source, that means much of BBL’s coveted code will likely be laid bare for others to use. That could mean BBL will be locking down its printers for nothing. We’ll see. Maybe Creality did their own thing and just used BBL as inspiration, but I doubt that. I really think Creality is going to force BBL’s hand.
I’m not sure I follow you on this one? I really doubt that Creality has Bambu’s source code so I don’t know how Bambu’s source code will be “laid bare”.
There is one other aspect which the Creality falls short on, and it may not be so important to some, but it’s certainly a factor I think about.
Bambu has full integration across their ecosystem, and it’s something I rather like. How the printers are closely connected to Makerworld, the whole print profile system, Bambu Studio, and the app for that matter (It’s much more functional and useful than what I’ve seen on offer from other companies). When talking about Bambu’s products, THOSE are the products that keep me here. I like too that the printers can keep track of successful prints, so I get a gauge on how many people are actually printing, vs just downloading.
I mean, just from a designers perspective. Granted, it may be different for others, but I like it. The way Bambu Studio is, Makerworld, and the Handy app. It gives me a lot of tools to package my work for the consumer, to make it easier and quicker for them to grab it and start printing. I mean, all the time I print stuff from other designers and that system allows me to go from the website to printer in minutes, or even less! Since I don’t have to fiddle with all the setup steps to prep it for the printer.
I don’t know that enough appreciation is always given to that side of things when getting into these sorts of discussions. We often talk about the printers in a vacuum of sorts, but there’s a lot more to it than just the hardware itself, and all of that can play a factor, depending who you are and what you want out of the printer.
I do have a Kobra 2 max. I like it a lot, but because it falls outside of the ecosystem, and it’s lack of AMS, it doesn’t see nearly as much use. I mean, I don’t have much in the way of crazy prints that’d even need an AMS, but I would like to be able to print with the PLA Support material for a few of my bigger projects. That K2 looks interesting, because it can get me there, but it still leaves me short in some ways.
Since the X1Plus firmware release, Bambu’s code has been decrypted. If that small group of programmers doing it on their time off opened it up, I’d be willing to bet Creality had people working on the same thing. Even the Biqu Panda screen for the P1’s likely came from decrypting the code to make that available. The X1Plus folks went out of their way to not release the decrypted work, but I doubt the other manufacturers will care about protecting the competition’s IP. So if Creality has used BBLs methods, they will likely be sharing the secret sauce with the rest of the industry in an effort to bring the startup giant back in to their reach.
But like I said, maybe Creality did it on their own and will only be sharing their way of copying BBL… don’t know.
I think BBL does the software the best in this segment of the business. And that has a value, but software is easy to copy. Features like you mention can be duplicated. Again I’m not saying Creality will be better than Bambu, but there comes a point where you don’t need to be better to outsell someone. Just need to be close enough. Personally, I like Android, but that doesn’t mean I think iPhones are garbage. I think the same applies here.
I like MakerWorld, but thought it was a little clunky. The only good thing was the quick print profiles. Now, after updates and time using it, its pretty easy to navigate and use but not really untouchable. Creality could easily match MakerWorld and Printables if they want to ditch the ad filled apps they currently peddle. Will they… I’d bet no, but I see the potential is there.
They don’t have the source code, so whatever magic is going on is still shielded to some extent. You can decrypt things, but you can’t uncompile.
There’s some truth to this, but I don’t think it’s so clear cut. I mean, I’ve seen people for years make the argument that Gimp is as good as Photoshop, but with using Photoshop professionally for nearly my whole life, I can tell you very much that Gimp never managed to become what Photoshop was, and had no chance of replacing it.
The thing is, other manufactures, they mostly miss the point of what makes Bambu special. You can see it in all of these competing products. They manage to capture elements of what Bambu is, but they fail to actually see Bambu as a whole, so every attempt they make always falls up short.
It’s why some movies hit gold, but when they try and make squeals to capitalize off the popularity, they tend to never be as good, or capture that same level of magic. The people making money don’t understand what made it magical, so their efforts are just money grabs vs industry changers.
And that’s the thing. They don’t. They live in the shadows of others. They copy others. Bambu may have used some of these things as the base for their products, but they added their own elements and vision to everything along the way. They transformed those products, not merely copied them. Creality could be Bambu, but they need to change their mindset and what drives them.
I would enjoy playing with all of these printers though. If I had more time, I wouldn’t mind getting to check them all out and see what I can make 'em do!
I didn’t mention source code, but X1Plus was VERY clear, they promised Bambu they would open up everything they found to the public, protecting Bambu’s IP. I believe this was said in the 3D Printing Nerd interview with the X1Plus team. That was one of the requirements (as I understand it) for Bambu’s blessing.
Also, I think you are under the impression that I think Creality’s way is better than Bambu’s. Aside from opening up the printers to modification, that’s not my take. I’m not arguing you should like something, I just mentioned it was here.
