Anet A8 3D Printer One Year Later | Is This Printer Still Cool Or Fire?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 เม.ย. 2018
- Printers I talked about in this video:
Creality Ender 3:
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Creality Ender 2:
amzn.to/2GDOaFe
Tevo Tarantula:
goo.gl/EW66vR
In this video I revisit the Anet A8 a once extremely popular 3D printer that still has love but has become a topic of controversy in the community these past months.
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![[007] Anet A8 3D Printer - Review, Upgrades and Experiments](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/37MsqteL3gk/mqdefault.jpg)
![[007] Anet A8 3D Printer - Review, Upgrades and Experiments](/img/tr.png)
I bought the Anet A8 as my first printer, and added MOSFETs and changes the firmware, and I like it. It hasn't burnt my house down so far.
3 years later, I'd assume you either got a new printer by now, or have used the A8 on/off and still have it. Or perhaps something else, but can I ask how it's held up? Or what happened in that time? Does it still work well enough for use? Did something happen to it, or maybe it became not-enough at a certain point and you upgraded? I'm totally new but I received an Anet A8 recently and wanted to hear from people who have said they had one sometime in the past
I think you need to water your pot plant.
Good video, but don't use Skynet, it is a dead project. Marlin now supports the A8.
Great video, I appreciate the updates. I purchased the kit from Gearbest back in December but have not had a chance to build. I’m looking forward to it. Thanks again.
Jeez you are one patient person haha. I suppose I have put kits off for a while myself. Looking forward to hearing you experience when you do get around to building it!
I'm loving my A8 because in the three months I've had it, it's taught me a heck of a lot about 3D printers, and it works great. It really was the crash course in 3D printing. You're right that this is not the ideal first printers for everyone, but it *is* the ideal first printer for some people. You have to go into it knowing that you are buying a DIY box of cheap parts and it's up to you to make it work, and make it work safely.
If you buy a kit "anything" whether it's a kit car, an aerofix, or a 3D printer the manufacturer's liability essentially ends when they put it in the box to send to you. You'd better know what you're doing or have the ability to come up to speed very quickly.
I think part of the problem is the way these things are sold - from what is mostly just a photo of the completed printer. The fact that it's a kit and the implications of this may not be immediately obvious to someone anxious to purchase their first 3D printer.
It’s pretty exciting to see how much the consumer 3D printing market has evolved as well as how this channel has turned out
Woww!! I adore your videos💗💗
I'm adding all of the safety features to my A8 as I build it. I chose a Thermaltake TR2 430W ATX supply as it has 2 +12V rails, 17 and 18 A. respectively as well as costing less than $40 new. To avoid cutting wires on the supply, I've purchased extender cables. In addition, I'll be fusing the Heated Bed and the Hot End separately, to protect the Arduino board.
I'll be building a power distribution board at some point, including the MosFETs for the heated bed and hot end. The low current +5v. and +3.3v. for circuitry will be passed to the Arduino board from the ATX connector, since both are provided and perfectly regulated.
I'm building the A8 to familiarize myself with the technology behind 3D printing, but I've also had a 40 year career working in Electronics, Computers and Networking and feel very comfortable in doing so.
If you've never soldered a wire or adjusted a critical mechanical assembly (even a spark plug :D) I'd skip buying a kit as a first printer.
Still using mine too, its awesome.
Anet A8 still going strong here. Love it. Bought a Tevo Tornado ages ago and haven't even set it up yet lol.
As well as the firmware, auto-level, mosfet and PSU upgrades, I would highly recommend up-rating the power cables to the bed to 14AWG, securing the connection with hot glue or direct soldering as you say. Also fusing the heated bed power line with a 15a car fuse and the hotend / rest with a 5a car fuse. Non-conductive washers between the heated bed and springs are a good idea as well (The traces can get pretty close to the springs and are only insulated by paint. Another reason for the fuse, although this is not specific to Anet but true with many cheap heated beds.
If you really want to go the whole hog, I made this Arduino to monitor for temp and smoke independently and shut off the socket if there is trouble. Everything needed is linked including code, BOM, etc.
th-cam.com/video/n-JgQ3SaVME/w-d-xo.html
Still love my A8, It even printed another printer and a CNC.
Good luck. Subbed.
That second camera angle is great!!
thanks man still trying to figure out where I can use it but its pretty sweet
Greatly appreciate the advice. My buddy got the Anet A8 after he switched jobs. The list of parts needed "fine tune" the printer isn't horrible, but the entire setup is a real pain in the butt. I've been doing research and this video is a great resource. Now I'm looking at Ender 3 Pro. It's less expensive than the A8 after all the modifications. My biggest issue with the A8 is largely the tensioning and calibration. After showing my friend the Ender 3 Pro, he's kicking himself. Thanks again for a great video!
wow, did you got that ender 3 pro? show it
Good job. Actually, many customers said Anet A8 print quality can compare with prusa i3.
I have 3 and never had an issue with any.. all have mosfets and 30a psu.. auto bed level etc. good printers
You had me at fire starter.
My thoughts exactly....
My coworker is selling me this printer cause he hasn’t used it as much as he imagined definitely going to do my best to upgrade luckily my brother in law is familiar with electrical and I can definitely count on him to help if I need it but I’m pretty sure as far as most machinery goes, respect the machine and you’ve got nothing to worry about.
Sounds like the only anet a8 is the name. Mine has and still perform well as is, stock as it can be. Have printed nylon at 260 had no issue on the hot end other than gunking. Cheers.
i build fire boxes around mine. using concrete board for bathrooms or tile work. its awesome. and next system i might make a fire system that uses dust not liquid.
Great post. I have an Anet and it needs the upgrades you've done. So you have a list that you've complied?
Clarence McCray II MUSTS :MOSFETS PSU? SOLDER PRINT BED other than that look at forums and thingiverse for models to improve print speed and quality .down the line maybe look at an e3d hotend
I also have an Anet A8 for a year now. Did the Marlin upgrade, better power supply, fuses and added 2 mosfets for the bed and nozzle heater. Also quit a lot of braces and belt tentioners. Still running almost daily with a layer height of 0.1 or 0.2 mm in a enclosure.
are you printing a lot of ABS on it? Only asking since you mentioned the enclosure
@@ModBotArmy No. I mostly build it for the noise. I did print a few objects in abs, but rather use PETG or PLA.
Best upgrade going for the Anet A8? Prusa i3 mk3. Totally worth it and about the same cost as the insurance excess on burning your house down.
PS. You *really* want to fix that bed connector and strain relief.
Where did you get after market parts and also for the prints for upgrades ?
Well reasoned commentary.
Does anyone remember when Samsung phones were burning up in peoples pockets? Or Iphones before that?
Before my $148 A8 even arrived, I checked out every video and post I could find. The thermal runaway issue is WELL DOCUMENTED, easy (and free) to fix and exists in other printers--even better made more-expensive printers. The A8 is as generic a printer as can be gotten, and just about anything on it can be replaced and upgraded easily and cheaply. The same parts are installed in all sorts of other printers.
ALL PRINTERS use potentially dangerous chemicals, and have components that get to blistering/flammable temperatures. IT'S WHAT THEY DO.
So, OK--the A8 (like some other printers) had a safety feature turned off, and very likely represents a "perfect storm" of potentially dangerous cost cutting. But anyone who bothered to watch a couple YT vids, or check out a users bulletin board (Like the TWO that exist on Facebook,) should be well aware of any potential issues, and assuming they were able to complete the kit at all--understand how to easily correct the fairly minor flaws that it does have.
Well said! I´m planning to buy it too and I have watched a lot of Anet A8 reviews and upgrade vids until now and not just did I learn more about 3d printing in general but also as you said when I get it those 3 things he mentioned are gonna be the first things I´ll do with it. So you´re right and I completely agree with you.
One thing I kind of dont like is how the firmware safety features get front row center as a solution to the problem instead of what would have set off the safety feature in the first place. Make sure your cartridge heater and thermocouple are securely affixed to your hot end, The features are nice but im not going to put my faith in them alone especially if the cartridge flops out rolling around all the fresh plastic it just laid out. It probably wont start a fire but the thought alone is a little too close for comfort which is why it's never left unattended.
@Mozzman Firestone tires on Ford Explorers had a knack for blowing out while the vehicle was in motion giving the Explorer the nickname "Exploder" yet both Firestone & Ford are still in business & the Explorer is still in production.
Toyota (and other companies) had an issue with their electronic accelerators randomly make cars go full speed with the driver unable to do anything to stop it. Toyota still sells cars with electronic accelerators & people still buy them.
There were many vehicles of ALL makes that came with faulty air bags that would send out shrapnel & actually kill people or burn them severely. All cars still have air bags.
There are many instances of potentially dangerous or unsafe things happening ALL the time but we don't cut ourselves off from everything do we?
The point I believe many are making is this: If you have say 10,000 of these printers sold and there is a case where 4 have caused fires, while tragic this is only 0.0004% of the amount of these printers out there. You can see things like this everywhere.
During the H1N1/swine flue "scare" it was called a pandemic by many in the media & even president Obama. The CDC even began having a H1N1 vaccine added to the flu shots. The reality is that very few people died & only 300 or so were even infected with H1N1. This is roughly 0.0000009% of the population of the US which is in no way a pandemic.
Look at politics & violence. People think that "assault weapons" should be banned because they have been used in a few mass shootings. The reality is 34,000 are killed by guns every year. 23,000 of those are suicides & 1,000 are accidents. This leaves 10,000 homicides by guns. Homicide doesn't mean murder but simply that it was the act of someone dying un-naturally. This could be self-defense & cop related. Now, of these 10,000 homicides 295 are committed with rifles (only a fraction of those are done with AR15 & AK type rifles) making the percentage of deaths by "assault rifle" less than 0.02% if we use the homicide number or 0.008% if we use the total number of deaths. Hardly a number worth banning something protected by the constitution.
/endrant
Mozzman some people are able to correct these problems themselves cheaper then buying a more expensive printer
got mine used for $30 bucks its been good .I use it more than my other 3D printers no upgrades just as I bought it :] I 3D print machine parts gears before making them in metal no regrets.
I had a extra decent quality dell atx(350w) power supply lying around, so i swapped that in. which has greatly increased my confidence in the machine, as i have had some accidental shorts(Me fooling around) , and in each case the short circuit protection in the power supply kicked in before i even registered any sparks. afterwards i just had to reset the power to get it running again. To some extent i think lower watt rated, main brand, power supply is preferable. As the inbuilt protection would kick in earlier than for some 800-1000w unit. And the actual power draw at 12 volt isn't actually that much i think it was about 170watt max last i measured.
Nice video!
Thank you Isaac :)
I think the number one cause for a fire is the thermistor or heater falling out of the heater block allowing the heater to reach dangerous temperatures. A quick fix is to get some Kapton tape and wrap the heater block so that it holds the thermistor and heater so they can't fall out. Do this in addition to the Marlin firmware upgrade.
The firmware upgrade to Marlin will detect that the thermistor or heater has fallen out by monitoring the temperature and if it's not where it should be (rising or controlling at setpoint) it will shut down the printer.
You seem to have similar mods as my a8, the mosfet, braces, tensioners, and have hard soldered my heat bed with a wire support.i have rebuilt my stock hot end and use it without an extruder fan or heatsink. I have been printing petg and asa with it fairly well! I have been looking for the right bed probe.
Where are the links you mentioned?
You know mosfet boards and such.
this comes with a LED switching power supply, ATX power supply is also a switching power supply, Watt Rating is most important
I just got my anet a8 and they have upped the safety. The wires are now 14awg for the hotbed, the connection is now newer type and has a thermal glue holding the pins in place, the mainboard has a fuse now, and the psu has been updated.
I have the Tronxy P802Ma which is the same printer as the Anet A8 for almost a year now. Same issues, same problems, same solutions. The problem is people setting the printer to print and then walking away without making sure it is printing. Something like a 3D printer you do not walk away from.
True, there are larger printers out there that can print HUGE items that take more than 24 hours, these you can walk away from for most have the safety features on. But not the stock Anet and Tronxy.
Yup...even a Lamborghini Aventador can suddenly go up in flames.
Oh look another Troll.
It's one thing if a design has a deadly flaw, and it's another if users are stupid enough to not care about the risk. I do care, yet I'm still using this printer with full knowledge of what can go wrong. All that "don't buy or you'll burn your house down!!!!" is just bulls**t. Anyone with some basic electronic knowledge knows how to prevent that
@I IS THE DUM!!!! why fuck you?
Even so I’m still going to have a Lamborghini Aventador lp 640-4 SV roadster
Thanks for making this video. It is a very important issue. I've had mine for almost a year and have only added two mosfets, and installed heavier 14 gauge wire soldered directly to the heat bed. Since you replaced the X carriage, didn't that change the x and y position on the nozzle relative to the heat bed? If so, how did you correct this? I am thinking about doing a major body part upgrade on my printer, but I am a little apprehensive about changing the firmware. All I need is to do is fry the mother board. Do you have step by step instructions on how to make those changes? I would also like to add a BL Touch. Any help will be greatly appreciated on any of these questions. Thanks again for making this safety video.
Yes my Anet is not running the default firmware I installed Skynet to it (I made a tutorial) and had to do some editing of the firmware for things like the auto level and for the x/y position you mentioned. It is all in the config.h file and is relatively simple. It may take some tweaking to get right but all of the code has english comments so you know what it is that you are editing the value to. I do not think you have much to worry about in the case of frying the board. I would recommend looking into skynet firmware and there are wikis on how to edit the firmware.
I was considering the Anet A8 for my first printer. Largely because of the purchase price of $140 that you can get it for on Gearbest right now. However, after seeing all the changes and money I'd need to invest to make it safe, I've decided to look at other models. Anything I should know about the Enders?
I agree...I have 2 anet a8..laser mod and cnc router.....I plan on buying 2 more
Individual One CNC router?LASER MOD?
t4teeee absolutely awesome!
Individual One what are they?
I actually have not seen those mods either. It has been some time since I have looked at mods available. I will have to check those out!
t4teeee I'm using 500mw laser...i use inkscape to generate g code...and I'm using a Dremel with flex ext...quip swap carriage from Thingiverse ...Easel for Gcode
why do i think of Rivington III when i see you lol :D
No 3D printer should be left alone while printing, they are designed to melt stuff with high temperature. All cables should always be checked where there are a high current. Changing the Firmware, as it is easy to do and you get a better software, and safer.
Yes, there are some must modifications that you can print out. Like stabilization parts and the the cooling fan hose. The one with the machine is crap. And with auto leveling, it works great.
I do agree though, there are other machines out there that are more modern, for the same price as this one. But my have served me well.
> There are other mahines out there that are more modern, for the same price as this one
Could you be more specific, please? Which printers in the same price range do you consider more modern?
I am still trying to orientate in the vast spectrum of 3D printers.
@@sustmi ik I'm late but same :/ did u find anything out?
@@gnomilius Today, I would rather buy Creality Ender 3.
See a comparison here: tobuya3dprinter.com/anet-a8-vs-creality-ender-3-comparison/
And a discussion here:
www.reddit.com/r/3Dprinting/comments/8w2or8/anet_a8_vs_ender_3_vs_tronxy_i3_vs_etc/
I have random question about the anet a8, where can i find replace throat for it? I have no idea what the specs are for the part and don't know if the ones i found online would fit.
My A8 works very well but it says I've printed 436m of filament and I'm still on my first 1kg reel which I think usually only holds 330m, and I've still got 1/3rd of the reel left. I don't think it's under extruding so something is wrong with the log in the printer. Not really a problem, I just can't rely on it to estimate how much filament is left on the reel
A year late, but just thought I'd add, my Anet A8 caught fire
Twice now
First time was the heat bed connector, so yeah, solder the cables. Learn to solder if you have to. Second was it shorted a fan and melted it then caught the wire casing on fire. suffice to say, I have a new mainboard on order. Fun printer to tinker with, but if you want safety it's not the first choice without basically rebuilding the entire thing
I just purchased this. Brand new for $40 a guy bought it & never built/used it. I need resources. I definitely have budget for upgrades. I’m average at tech. Never printed anything though.
I got an A8 that the motherboard shorted out. I got a new one but do I need to install the software back on it. I have not even started to print anything yet. I had a bad hot end when I got it. Then I got the motherboard problem.
i custom sourced an Anet AM8 cheaply, and purposely got zero Anet parts. (thats the safe way to go)Just get an AM8 frame, mks board and marlin and go for it
i like this design BUT question
should there be not 1 zaxismotor with a belt driving 2 zaxis screws
to keep them timed / alligned
now if 1 zaxis motor is out of position, does it allign itself with 2 zaxis home switches?
84.106.2.21:8888/forum/index.php?action=view&id=265
I am new to 3d printing I have a Anet A8 printer Skynet v2.3.2 cura 3.4.1 software, my turbo fan is not working , I got a new one plugged it in and it does not work is it a setting I am missing or something on the mother board help thanks Paul
You didn't put a link to your mini arcade in the description...
Hello,
I am looking for ur help.
I have bought anet a8 3d Printer. But y and z axis motor fixed plates are missing in the package.
It will be nice if you can share the parts picture with dimensions. I'll be able to manufacture the parts on my own.
Thank u.
check thingiverse.com, or just google Anet A8 printed parts/motor mount or sth. like that.
Hey Dan, can you provide the actual names or amazon links for the other printers so you get the commission... I'm going to buy some printer soon .
Tom, sorry for the late reply I was away working on a business trip and didnt get home until midnight last night. I went ahead and found amazon links for two and one link for tevo from gearbest. If you can afford the 240 go with the Ender 3 hands down best bang for your buck right now. I have one and will be getting another. Cheers!
Any recommendations for something that's slightly less work/less to replace if I'm willing to pay a bit more?
The creakily ended 3 highly recommend
Creality ender 3 lol autocorrect
Ive used all kinds of 3d printers, makerbots, ultimakers, etc, It sounds stupid, but I prefer my A8 to all of them, if anything goes wrong its simple to fix and cheap, and the quality of the prints is usually better on the A8. Just out of the box, marlin, tension upgrades and mosfets.
If you try to go above PLA bed temps you will get shut down, Marlin will shut it down due to runaway in the bed above 65 degrees.
the 38k people need to come back and like this video not just out of respect. but cause im sure he mentioned something you didnt know about.
You don't have your threaded Z-rods installed correctly. You need to loosen the bottom screws on the couplers (the silver cylinders at the edge of each Z-motors) and lift the entire assembly up about 2cm, the threaded rod should fit into the hole in the frame above it: 3dprint.wiki/reprap/anet/a8/coupler
have u actually had it to burst into flames?
lol Ender 3 is not "equaly priced", it costs three times as much and Tevo Tarantula four times as much?
Huh? You can grab an ender 3 pro for $188 on banggood usa right now. Isn't that just a few bucks more than this? I grabbed the Ender 3 pro at this price and love it, best christmas gift I've got in a while, for sure :)
@@RADERFPV yes, while I got anet a8 for £69 with postage :))
@@TheFantasticFreak Oh wow, that's dirt cheap.
What 3D printer should have a beginner get
If you have any interest in building things or technical knowledge, I'd really suggest the Anet A8. The building process lets you understand a lot about how a 3D printer works, and how to repair it if things go wrong. I'd immediately print belt tensioners and frame supports, other than that its up to you. I would NOT suggest using ABS as it is hard to print unless you have an enclosure or really dial in your temp settings. PLA prints fine at about 190'C extruder and 67'C bed temp on my A8. For the AUD$200 I spent on this I'm pretty happy, and yes I am planning to upgrade the software and add a mosfet.
Good vid. Might need to re-calibrate that printer bed after you been manhandling it so much throughout the video. :)
Funny my board caught on fire and burned the plastic together, not on fire fire. But it was kinda scary and a hassle, but i still got my house and printer ready for ww3
How it going my friend
Pretty good man! How's it going with you??
Ok
sage advise
Update to a mosfet and better power supply and no fireball hazzard... remove hazzard and warning labels off everything amd let the idiots weed themselves out...
They burn cause the solder joints on the power conectors are shit and the mosfets were to small they have since fixed the issues
Highly recommended not install Bowden.
Alan Xu why do u think this?
Also wondering why?
Long tube means not so accurate extrusion. Direct means batter extrusion control. Especially when there are a lot of retractions. The benifit of Bowden is the speed. But printer like this can't do fast print anyway. (A8 was my first print as well, I did upgrade to Bowden as well. Then I build hypercube evo. Always though Bowden was superior than direct. But that is hardly the case now. As least for me, I now value more about my extrusion percisoin) I am planing getting titan areo as my finally upgrade.
Hello what was again the name 3d printer you recommend with price tag up to $250 or price near anet8
DarkrickNetwork anet A8 is the best in its price range no doubt
STOP STOP STOP There are many 10 cents thermal cutouts - two terminal series temperature cutouts on the market select one for just above the maximum temperature you ever need bond to the plate. Well below the fire point, HOWEVER I use a 10 dollar PID temperature controller which overrides the mechanical (bimetallic wide histerisis ) old-fashioned oven temperature knob, with a small cpu containing software that accurately learns the temperature profile of the oven and maintains within a couple of degrees the food oven temp to cook. These are really simple to implement, use both in series - one for safty one for absolute control.. Sorry dude, to actually suggest a firmware update IMHO is total and utter nonesense as you are simply dangerously putting the danger back to the controller's already prven bad firmware, (which can crash anyway with mains spikes and other f/w fails) - an independent temperature controller is totally required IMEO, The small 10cent two terminal ones can be obtained from anywhere and they are ubiquitous, being the "ALL ELSE FAILED SO STOP" ---, so put "THERMAL CUTOUT" into google right now. For the more sophisticated ones you can select an accurate temperature too. (PID is = Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) control is the most common control type algorithm used and accepted in the furnace industry). Put both in a series circuit.... 10 cents and 10 USD saves a life or house or just your printer. PLEASE do research as above and get a techie to wire in the simple safety device and/or (preferably both) a proper independent controller. Every house oven has these worst case cut outs and many other appliances why this si not on aprinter is BEYOND me as a 70 year old engineer. totally stupid design.....
Bottom line stay away from Anet! If you have pocket change to eternally modify your lousy printer, may as well buy one that works well to start with. Just don't be so cheep on your initial purchase.
God Bless.
I haven't bought one of these yet, but to me it wouldn't be about being cheap, I would probably enjoy building it together and modifying it myself more than using the printer! To me it's worth getting for any one who enjoy DIY projects.
2023 here; ender 3 is cheaper
cheaper then a 135 euro anet a8? with all the upgrades already done to it?
I US producer would not be able to put a dangerously-defective product onto the marketplace. This printer does not belong in the US market.