Notable changes with Studio updates

Not really sure any more if it is just in my head or if I am confusing myself with those Studio updates…
The 1.9.7 something was rushed out as badly as previous versions and replaced with another update stating to not even try to use the previous one.
Shouldn’t those updates get proper testing before being rushed to everyone ?

I had perfectly fine working 3MF files and dedicated print profiles that just produced the expected results - all the time and with all models I sliced with them.
Then came the 1.9 update and made a total mess of things.
YES, out of the box the slicing and printing was a little bit better but still far from acceptable for me.
What a bummer when I realised some of my existing 3MF files no longer produced acceptable results.
Supports fully fused to the model, overhangs looking rough and more…
But ok, 1.9 is new, must be much better than the last 1.8 and so I applied required changes to my files when I had to print them again.

Then came the 1.9.3 - promising to fix all the issues we had and to make things much better.
More like much slower for complex models and messing up those supports once more and in really bad ways.
Not much more luck with the 1.9.5…
Promised to fix a lot of long standing issues while still not addressing the most pressing ones users kept complaining about here in the forum.
1.9.7 was a disaster with parts shifting and all.
And I still can’t use my old 3MF files and those I already adjusted to get them working properly need changes AGAIN.
This is not how 3D printing is supposed to work…
If the 3MF concept is so flawed and keeps staying in a mess it is far better to not use them for any print related things and to stick with the 3D model files.
At least then you know you have to get the setting right and won’t waste time and filament to find a ruined print the next morning.

I know Bambu does not read things in the forum unless forced to but in case someone from the support is reading this : Get your act straight will you please !?

Don’t get me wrong: I am all for improvements that make things easier or better.
But if that means I have to fix all my files and on top of that deal with issues I never had before then it becomes frustrating.
If I would have to rely on 3D printing to make a living I would have long moved away from Bambu.
For me the most frustrating part is that lately these Studio updates result in my profiles getting lost - literally.
I have well working profiles tuned for my E3D but despite being all there and in the right folders - after the update Studio ignores them and they won’t show up anywhere, can’t even import them for crying out loud.
This is not user friendly and certainly can’t be any good for those actually relying on their printers to produce parts of good quality.
Starting get fed up with those updates, having to roll back to get usable print result from my tuned files and to keep finding new issues with every release or ‘fix’ provided by Bambu.
We pay a big price for those machines, we provide the print setting that Bambu uses to update their defaults and we play the beta testers for their flawed release versions.
Don’t know why exactly but I am feeling ripped off here.

In my experience, not just with bbl, but with many years of software/hardware experiance, if when you have something ‘running’ good enough, there is no need to update it, unless ‘forced into it’. I have not knowingly updated bbl firmware or software, (I run in Lan mode, (and use Orca slicer, which is currently nagging me to update - I can and may cancel that message). Probably doesn’t help you now, but something to think about in future.

What debonr said - if things are working, especially if you are in the middle of a project, you may want to hold off. But you should also be able to roll back if an update causes issues.

I always put software issues in production software on management and on management above them. It’s basically guaranteed that upper management has no clue about software issues and is just looking at metrics. Ship it. Ship it now. We need to get working on this new x, y, z.

They love to run with skeleton crews, tend to not appreciate how much disruption adding pet features can be, cut corners on security and testing, etc. They should know if software is ready for prime time or not and act accordingly.

Can you tell I’m not a fan of clueless managers? But they are common enough to justify the trope.

2 Likes