I’m looking to buy an intermediate level printer to upgrade from a MK2, and I’m deciding between a P1S vs a MK4.

I have never considered getting anything other than a Prusa, since I’ve had such good experiences using mine, however I heard that recently they’ve switched away from their open source model(?)

That and being made in the EU was the main differentiating factor for me, however I do hear really good things about Bambu printers.

Does anyone have experience with either?

Edit: Found a lot of the information I was looking for here: https://lemmy.world/post/9500502

  • ShepherdPie@midwest.socialEnglish
    6·
    6 months ago

    I’d go with the P1S. What are you really getting from the Prusa for $1200? A bed slinger with old stepper drivers that just barely got an upgrade from their old 8-bit control boards. Prusa made sense 4-5 years ago, but at their current price point, they’re getting beat in features by printers half their price. The P1S CoreXY construction is a major improvement for print speed and quality and its ready to go for AMS if you decide you want it at some point.

    I do support the open source and customer service of Prusa, and Printables is my preferred site to find STLs, but at the end of the day their printers are just too damned expensive for what they are and I suspect Prusa is going to have a major wakeup call within the next couple years. Previously, they’d only been competing against stripped down Chinese copycats but now they have some serious competition that makes them nearly irrelevant.

    • bigredgiraffe@lemmy.worldEnglish
      6·
      6 months ago

      Yep definitely agree with all of this here, my friends and I have been saying the same things about Prusa too, they need to innovate or drop their prices in 2024.

      I am also a big oss supporter but the user experience of the Bambu ecosystem is really great, lately it has basically become the same argument as iPhone vs Android.

      To sum it up, I usually tell people that while both work, if your interest in the hobby is in the things that come off the printer then get a Bambu, if your interest is in tinkering and optimizing the printer then get a Prusa or something.

      I have a mk3s that is modded and an X1C and I always reach for the X1 because prints basically always work in any material without changing settings beyond infill/strength etc, I don’t even calibrate anything on it anymore, their auto calibrate function is extremely good and I have used it with PLA,PETG,ASA,ABS, PA/Nylon, PC, PLA/PETG/PA-CF, PLA+wood, and even TPU. The Prusa does well but it is definitely more finicky but I’m definitely a core-xy convert now so my next printer will be a core-xy because the accuracy is so much better for tall and square objects especially.