Dont buy an Ender 3 or Prusa 3D Printer until you watch this video!
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 24 พ.ค. 2024
- Ask in online forums what 3D printer is best, and chances are someone will tell you to buy a Ender 3 or Prusa. But is that really the best option for you? What other options are there? In this video I will help you determine if an Ender 3 or Prusa is right for you, and help you discover options that might be better.
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Printers mentioned in this video:
Flashforge Adventure 3: amzn.to/32tWMfm
Ender 3: amzn.to/3khbNHs
Prusa Mk3: shop.prusa3d.com/en/3d-printe...
JGMaker: jgmaker3dofficial.com/
Kywoo3D: www.kywoo3d.com/
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All music by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
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0:00 Here's some things you should think about before you jump in and buy a 3D printer
0:47 Forgotten Printers
1:55 You have options
2:28 Who is doing the recommending? Can we trust their advice?
4:01 Do you want an Ender 3?
6:13 Other Creality printers
6:34 Do you want a Prusa?
7:56 Flashforge Adventure 3, my #1 recomendation
9:45 JGMaker
10:10 Kywoo3D may be the future
11:08 Resin 3D Printers
11:48 Conclusion
12:50 #WHATCHAMAKIN - บันเทิง
What 3D printer pitfalls can you think of? www.3dpprofessor.com/2020/11/10/dont-buy-an-ender-3-or-prusa-until-you-watch-this-video/
Been around resin printers and CNC machines for medical use for a bit(service tec and machine rep), have had to test print a few items after calibration(cleaning) and so.
My 5 cents on resin printers.
A good resin printer is the way to go(in the future), but the resin at this point and everything around it you need, well the cost an the MESS is just to high.
You need thousands one time gloves, ALOT of iso(alcohol), draft cabinet, ultra sonic cleaner (medical grade one), tools that you can throw away or all ss tools.
And i almost forgot, a uv, zapzapzapzapzapzapzapzap machine.
My biggest (don't like this shit) was trying to get rid of the waste, like iso used for bath and paper rags used for cleaning after printing. (toxic waste)
But Yes the print is fantastic, even at 1080p its light-years ahead of a regular 3dprinter. (in everything but print area)
As of this moment, well you should wait. 4k resin printers is still in my opinion to small(print area) for consumer use.
If you buy one, buy a small 1080p and go for dpi and life time of the display/projector and print small and fun stuff.
Remember, its extremely nasty stuff that gets everywhere when trying to remove the print.
@@mrfluffy8349 i have a friend, who switched from a Anet A8 to a Anycubic Photon, and he is more than happy with it. I started with a Anet AM8 too, and quickly bought a Prusa Mini. For every hobbyist use, except figurines i think FFF is the way to go. Not having to worry about toxic waste management and spilling toxic liquids is nice!
Totally missed the topic of the discussion 😅
So, pitfalls of FFF: time lost, dust in the room, hypnotic movement of the printer, time lost on thingiverse, designing things just cause I can, not because I (or someone else) actually needs them, misjudging scales, and having after 13h of print a plantpot that can fit only half the size of the plant I intended it to.
Oh, and: Passionately commenting on TH-cam while I actually need to do an assignment for university certainly is a pitfall too
One pitfall that’s to the ender 3 is the $200 of upgrades I spent on it. To me not that much of a pitfall cause I love doing that kind of stuff but still an economic pitfall and that could go to a good bit of society, they see the printers on TH-cam. They think it’s awesome, I should get one. They hop on the internet and buy something cheap and unreliable. Then are told they need to spend hundreds of dollars to fix it and leave it. They just give up and that’s the major pitfall. Dang I made a long comment but I did enjoy the video
One thing to warn about is when you don't know how to fix your printer if it's not working. For example, I tried to level my bed back when I bought my Wanhao IIIP but I kept having too much "lean" so that if I leveled one size, I would either be off the bed by 2-3 mm or crashing my head into the base. I finally learned I had to adjust my x-axis to be level. Once I got that going, it worked. That was back in February 2019 when I first got my printer.
Fast forward to two weeks ago when I finally fired up my printer again. Had the same problem - leveled the bed only to have it crash into the bed in another location when I homed the z-axis. Discovered the x-axis was out of alignment again. Needed a couple of TH-cam videos to remind me how to do it, but I was able to fix the bed again. Also learned how to make the printer print faster (with the sacrifice of a low-quality print). In my case, I use my 3D prints as fixtures for electronic components, and they don't have to be pretty - just functional.
Me watching this after buying ender 3 pro.
Update : It's already earn for itself and still producing super quality prints. One of the best buys of my life
Me watching this after ordering Ender 3 pro 5 hours ago :)
Don't let this video discourage you. Lots of people make the Ender 3 and Ender 5 work for them, and you've got very good odds. There's a reason they're a best seller.
@@3dpprofessor This is my first 3D printer and I hope it will do well.
@@3dpprofessor It's my first printer ever, so I guess some learning needs to be done anyway. First print some ready made STLs and then maybe I'll try creating something on my own.
Watch a lot of TH-cam videos and you'll be an expert in no time. There is a lot to learn no matter which printer you buy but the learning journey is worth it.
Just say it. Nerds. The intersectional demographic descriptor you're looking for is nerds.
NEEEEEERDS!
Lmao
dang it i fit the top demographic in all categories.. I'll go back to playing WoW while I wait for my Ender 3 to get here.
😂
Yeah. I'm Black. I'm a female. And I'm a str8 up nerd.
ROFL! If you want to pay money and get nothing there is a link to my paetreon... Hahahahaha awesome.
That was awesome. This comment needs more likes. He made me laugh out loud.
This guy is literally stupid. His way of thinking is kinda bidenlike. XD
I was thinking the same thing!
My joke rebuttal to his joke:
" Well, if your only offering nothing for my money on Patreon, I think Ill take my Patreon Business elsewhere!! I like the other guys nothing better!! "
It's under *$250* thats why I want the printer.
4:11
Right now. Ender 3 is under 175$ if you go to the right places. Got my pro for 200 and I love that thing
@@swankscabinet1625 Same!
@@swankscabinet1625 where can I buy one that cheap?
@@ludahfang559 I got mine from creakily direct. It was on sale at the time. I’m not sure what the price is now though. Link: www.creality.com
I'm currently looking to buy my first 3D printer and was considering a flash forge. After your video, that's definitely what I'm going to go with. Appreciate the video and heads up.
I just got into 3d printing with the Prusa MK3S+
I purchased it unassembled, assembly took me around 3 days working on it a couple of hours at a time while watching Netflix. I will say it was a much more involved assembly than I expected, but I actually really enjoyed it. I feel like it gives me a better understanding of how it works and how to solve problems I may encounter. On top of that, having the ability to print replacement parts with files they provide is pretty great. The prusa slicer software seems pretty intuitive as well. That said, I think you’re right, not everyone is going to be able to assemble it/want to. But having the hands on made me really appreciate the component quality. The self leveling is killer, my friend with a Creality printer wishes he had it and I love that it just seems to work.
I extremely intersted into getting into 3d printing, Thank you for your wisdom!
I got into 3d printing on an ender 3 learned a whole lot and now I'm getting a resin printer next. I think they are a good option to get started but definitely agree with you.
Because an Ender 3 is $155 and I guarantee it will print just as quality parts as a 5-600 printer. And it takes 10 seconds to level the bed. And ALL 3d printers fail during prints. Never spent a single dollar on any upgrades. On my 20th straight print currently without fail. But bottom line, low entry cost and if youre a tinkerer you can make it great.
Thanks buddy. Great piece of advice.
My first printer was a Kossel kit. I snapped one of the erector arms shortly after plugging it in. I took a year off. Then I got a cube 3 (DRM trash), followed by 6 mini deltas and two i3 Megas. Been printing for 8 years and I love every moment of it. I don’t think I’ve ever been in the same room as an Ender 3 lol
My first was a monoprice select mini which I still use and love.
If you bought a ender from the start you would still have it
I think the most important question before buying a 3D printer is: Do I want a consumer product out of the box or do I want a project where I can tinker with it an add features and mods....?
Based on this answer you will find a variety of good products that will fit your intents.
Btw, I own a CR-10 for more than 2 years and I love it, as I have added many mods, made it much more silent and so on....It's fun and I love it. The CR-10 is definitely not a product which will work flawless right out of the box for the next 4-5 years of usage. But that wasn't my intention, as I wanted an ongoing pimp project (I am currently adding a second z-axis spindle this weekend...) Hope this helps other to make a better decision before buying a 3D printer.
Thank you Joe for this video!
We got an Ender3 for christmas. 1 kids in jr high, another in grade school. Youngest likes making 3d in spore, the other loves lego, robots and mechanics. This sounds like the perfect gift to unlock hidden talents
Keep in mind, 3D printing legos is challenging, especially with a cheap 3D printer. But, "making" in general will translate over, I'm sure. Be sure to introduce them to tinkercad.
th-cam.com/video/GUz4YCnuNOQ/w-d-xo.html
I liked the approach you took here.
I am a very satisfied Prusa owner (haughty voice). No seriously, the reason why I forked up the extra cash was because I wanted to get a printer with multimaterial capability, ie the MMU2S from Prusa where you can print with 5 different materials in one print (or 4 colours + soluble support). The MK3s from Prusa is a printer that just prints, out of the box (unless you buy the kit, than of course its assembly time first). The MMU2 on the other side is a hobby, a project. It might work right away, but chances are it won't and then you have to dive into the whole thing and really get to understand it. It took me a few weeks to figure it out and get it to print reliably. But now it does and while it is slow and wasting filament like nothing, the results are fantastic and offer you so many additional possibilities even dual extruder can't offer you.
I got the ender 3 pro because it had a huge community which means tons of support and it was cheap. The amount of community made upgrades and people willing to help makes it amazing. Looking at an Anycubic Resin printer for the same reasons atm.
Yay finally a video for me. it seems like most of the community is more into their printers than their actual printed products lol
Your expressed observation is gold! Falling in love with a printer or make money with what’s printed...?
Very well laid out and informative Video!!
Thank you for making this video. I’m searching all over for any recommendation that isn’t an ender 3 and I’ve been coming short until now!
Perhaps get the BIQU B1 . Based on the ender so you get much of the support of it's community, but has better features for the money. It is not a classroom model though without someone around who knows how to fix things should they break. Not that I think it will be unreliable, but there is still some thought and learning needed to use it.
@@court2379 I’ve just settled on the ender, I found I’ll need a large third party support for polycarbonate and nylon with any printer so why not just get the one with the biggest aftermarket
@@civicsr2cool What hot end are you looking at swapping it to for that application? I have been looking at the BIQU H2, but even it would need an all metal heat break for those temps.
@@civicsr2cool After having the E3 for a while now, I am ready to add direct drive, and dual extrusion.
If looking for a basic printer, it would be a tough call for me right now between the B1 and the E3. Only due to the E3 being less expensive.
It's $209 for an ender 3 pro. Great entry point into the hobby.
I bought an ender 3 almost a month ago and I'm a tinkerer. Its s perfect fit for me, but yeah I agree it's not for everyone.
gonna order mine today. and like you, just a tinkerer lol, but I have lot of cool files already downloaded
Exactly. If I weren't for a fondness for swearing at machines, I'd have trashed my Ender 3 a couple months in.
ibinoor thank you for the advice 👍🏼
I'm also a tinkerer. Putting it together looks like 1/2 the fun.
Thanks for your insights professor!
Thank you for making this video
Good work, have a Ender 3. Have used it for a couple of years.
Enjoyed this video. I own an Ender 3 Pro with the Creality V1.1.4 board. I'm about 2 months shy of owning it for 3 years. It's VERY reliable and even survived a leaky pipe in my basement dripping over it. You have to be willing to spend some time tinkering with it and also plan on replacing some parts on occasion and there are kits on places like Amazon and others that sell these upgrades together. Upgrading the springs for the bed and using a glass bad will pretty much make bed leveling a couple times of the year event as long as you remove the glass bed (it's easy as you just use clips to keep them on) before using your scraper to remove prints. Both springs and glass are less than $20 each. For $10, you'll want to upgrade the plastic extruder to an aluminum one -- about $10. I have yet to use the Ender 3 Pro V2, but it seems to have many of the necessary upgrades I'd want on my Ender 3 and a 32 bit board. For $279, it's a solid choice. However, if I were to buy a 3D printer today, I'd go with the Prusa MK3s or Mini. That doesn't mean I'm recommending the Prusa for your first printer. Even if you buy a Prusa, you still need to learn how to use it and tweak it and I'd rather beat up an ender 3 learning about 3D printing than start pulling apart a more expensive machine.
Thanks, this is exactly the video I needed!
This is the best video for beginners for sure. Subscribed
lol its almost like you had me in mind when you gave that ender3 description, after 3 months of research i got the e3 mostly as i wanted a project to play with more than i wanted a printer.. I got to assemble it, get it printing well then make an upgrade, get it printing well then next upgrade. Much cheaper than a project car, at least that's how i sold the idea to my wife :)
But not less time consuming, and it does not work as well as a bragging thing than a sportscar.
TH-cam always knows, just bought an Ender 3 v2 5 minutes ago
You will do great things with it.
I ordered one lest night
Thank you for this video! I am strongly interested in buying a printer for the first time and this is helping me expand my search for the best printer for me. :)
Subscribed! Loved your video!
I bought a Prusa Mk3S this summer (when they were still on a 7-week backorder, eck) and I have to say, it has been an extremely reliable relatively simple machine to use. Once together, it just works. That said, yeah...I wouldn't buy the kit if you aren't at least a little mechanically inclined. It took me the better part of 16 hours to build (Prusa says it should take about 8, but that seems like an underestimate to me, at least on the first go around) and I have been building R/C cars and computers and the like for decades now, so I would say I have quite a lot of skill with this sort of thing. Now I did work really slowly and read every bit of the instructions at least twice as I was going through the build, so it really shouldn't take anyone longer than me to build, but it isn't trivial.
That said thanks for your help 3D Printing Professor! I used your blender tutorials to figure out how to 3d model and the company I am founding with some other folks is selling items I made with the skills I learned from your channel to make money. Thank you!!!
i bought an ender 3 sure i watched some videos online reviewing it but i very well knew what i was getting myself into and in fact is one of the reasons i bought it. ( i wanted to tinker with it)
I like your honesty. I subscribed
Thank you for your video.. Im thinking of getting into 3d printing and this video is great... I like how well you explain things and how you share your experiences and knowledge.. Once again thank you for your video. You got one more sub.
I've been through three, 3D printers. My first was a Flashforge which bricked itself after a firmware upgrade attempt (bed stopped reaching max temp after a single PETG print attempt with correct nozzle). My second was a Creality CR 200B which arrived broken from the factory (warped door and a bed that never stayed level). Seeing how customer support with Chinese printers is few and far between I caved in and got a Prusa Mini+. Yes, they seem to be the Apple-equivalent in the 3D printer world; a tad overpriced for what they are and what you get. But reliability and support were paramount in my decision. That and I'm not the type to fuss over trivial upgrades for marginal returns. I will admit that I was more gutted when the Flashforge died compared to the 200B. They are neat little printers with a lot of character when they're working right.
Couldn’t agree more. A lot of my friends want to print like I do... but they don’t want to hear about the nitty gritty of calibration, filaments, firmware, main boards, the wind in the room, the humidity, the temperature.... hahahah... I think we can all relate. I always recommend it only to people who I know have time (no kids) and are capable of learning.
The Flashforge Adventure 3 honestly addresses a lot of those very issues. It's the closest to 3D printing in easy mode that I've found.
The problemes yuo sais , are totally comon because this is Not 3d "printing", no,thats its an anology from the paper printers, but this is FDM , Fuse deposition modeling, and yuor making things made of some material, plastic in this case.All the machines have there own issues, and that the way it is
Ok yeah I’m looking for a first 3D Printer and want to be printing, not looking for another project! Sounds like the Ender 3 isn’t for me... hmmm
I mean, this guy has kids and swings it so I don't think kids are really the end of life people act like it is.
If it really was, you'd think a lot less people would have them.
@@mtruncale check out the CR-6. It's an ender 3 basically but with a really short 2 part assembly where you put the top on the bottom and with all of the mods people usually add to ender built in.
Its got auto bed leveling, a decent touchscreen, a modern version of Marlin out of the box, silent stepper, filament run out, and is popular, which means it gets its kinks found out by other people which gives the company the free R&D they require to fix them 😛.
Good info! Thanks! :D
Thanks for creating this video
I got an Ender 3 for Christmas. After I got it to print (3rd try) my wife looked at the stuff I was printing and said, "You can print very light earrings! Buy another one to print your long jobs so I don't have to wait!'
So I did.
I love the Ender 3. Both of them...
That is awesome!
@@3dpprofessor
My wife is very supportive. That makes me a lucky man. And in May it'll be 44 years with her pushing me towards success...
@@KLP99 does she have a sister ??
I printed for several years with an A8, back before the ender came out. I’ve gotten some experience with the cr-10 at work and will almost always recommend an ender to a newcomer to the hobby. However, I saved up and bought a Prusa mk3s and a lot of the nuance of printing has really gone away. Haven’t leveled a bed (like at all), it tells me when I need to update the firmware, the slicer is fully tuned for the machine, they vet their filament suppliers, and have a 24 hour support line if you truly need it. I’m a Manufacturing engineer and even took the build instructions to work to show my boss because I liked them so much. Personally, I think this guy should really own a Prusa and use it next to all these other printers before suggesting a printer to people. If it’s feasible for you, get the Prusa. It’s that good.
Darn it!!!!
Thats really difficult for us in the UK
Brexit rubbish.
Would love to get a Prusa
But no ones supplying at the moment
I till have my two anet a8's well m8's they've been upgraded.
@@gmhack7996
Not even prusa itself?
@@sandertu8366 you probably can to be honest but looking around a £1000 or so
@@gmhack7996
Even the mini+ or you specifically need the MK3S?
Thank you for making this video.
I will still do the research on my part; but, to see options removes anxiety. I bought a prusa a year ago (by recommendation) and I love the reliability. That being said, the price prevented me from purchasing another. Subscribed and looking forward to your next video.
Great video, just started considering to maybe get a 3d printer. This is the video I usually find after I order something, lol.
Glad I could help! Just keep in mind, Prusa and Ender are still great options, just be aware what you're getting into. (I highly recommend if you get the prusa to spring for the assembled kit. Well worth the expense to save you the trouble.)
@@3dpprofessor Just ordered the Voxelab Aquila, from what I've read and seen on TH-cam it's the same as the Ender 3 V2 for the standard Ender 3 price.
Basically, a Prusa is a printer that just works very well for a long time and despite it's initial cost compared to Chinese clones I found it well worth it. I learned the hard way having bought two of the popular $300-$400 range printers first and then finally buying a Prusa (kit). The others worked of course but had issues I had to deal with and lack of features that are super handy. It's why I always recommend it if you can afford it, buy the Prusa Mk3 as you can then focus on printing and not the printer.
I had a prusa i3, and then I bought flashforge. Don’t buy the Prusa over flashforge. Rarely do people compare prusa to makerbot.
I actually like to build things and upgrade them and am good at tinkering so I think the ender 3 is a good printer for me, also I don’t have a ton of money lmao. I mean I’ve built my own drone from parts. I think I’m up to the challenge. Thanks for the video 👍👍
Thumbs up. Thanks for the info, and using a mic with a soothing voice. I can't stand channels that record their videos in an echo chamber and shout the entire video, and/or have too loud background music. I subscribed to your channel.
Great vid sir!
My first printer was an ender 3 absolutely loved it and now I'm going for an ender 3 max! Had a great experience using creality
Thank you
If I had seen this 2 years before, my ender 3 would not be idle in my garage scrap
I am new to this and after assembling it printing did not work
After long months I found the issues are,
1. Aluminium plate of bed is curved and there was 1 mm sag in the middle, which is not visible easily
2. Sag in belt of bed, I could not realize
3. While I resolved these 2 and hoping to print, thermister had an issue, hot end will never go beyond 180 deg
At this point I lost hope and kept it away without even making single print
I am not dumb I am good at DIY projects with many sort of tools but 3d printing is new to me
Now I am using bibo2, quite a good printer for the money, first print with ABS worked. I have used PLA and PETG also
ty for this !
I am watching this because I always liked building stuff, and tinkering..thank you for explaining all this.
Nerds unite! My prusa has been going strong for almost 3 years. Have not replaced anything other than a nozzle.
Had I known how much frustration I was going to have the first 6 months I owed my prusa, I probably would have never gotten into 3D printing. Now that I have it figured out and everything tuned in it's a dream (despite some lingering stringing I can't seem to eliminate). I tell people to save up their money and buy a high end printer if they want to focus on printing right away instead of figuring out their printer.
I started with a creality CR-20 Pro, not very well known, but basically a slightly better ender 3 I assume. It's a great printer. Then I got my Prusa MK3S. It is a much better printer in my opinion. I bought the kit, took my time (a relaxing Saturday) to put it together and it just worked right away. And it keeps working. It's print and forget. It will print. I don't know about other printers, but given the reliability I experience, and results I have seen from a makerbot I used in college, I think the Prusa prints better. Older makerbot maybe. Putting it together is not hard, but I don't think it's for everyone. You can buy it assembled if you want to spend a bit more. I did want to build it though. Would I recommend it? Absolutely! I love it! Can you get something that prints with similar quality for less money? No doubts. But people in europe make decent salaries and Prusa is putting the R&D in to then share it with the word. That comes at a cost that people need to understand. Support Prusa if you can. Get a decent 3d printer if you want to get in the hobby and can't afford the price of the Prusa. Above all, have fun!
@@altairjb, I don't know what the deal was with the two prusa printers I got, but I had all sorts of problems even though everyone else had such good experiences. I started with the kit, and after putting it together three times I couldn't get it to work. Thankfully they let me return it, and I bought an assembled one. I ended up replacing the hot end several times times and struggled with bed adhesion. Then one day I realized I had gone six months without any problems, and it's been great since then. I'm very open to the idea that a lot of the problem was user error though. I'm the kind of person that has to make lots of mistakes on the way to getting it right.
@@KrisRyanStallard To be completely honest I did have a minor hiccup on the day I built it. So minor I actually consider it part of the building process. During the self check, I got an x axis error. It turned out it was a zip tie head hiring the power supply. Super simple. It looks like you built it yourself as well and you know that with so many parts there's always the potential for something to go wrong. Throughout the process I kept thinking that it would be a miracle if it worked perfectly. But it did, and it still does. I agree, and I am no Prusa fanboy. Lots of room for user error but very likely to have some units not as perfect as they should. But looks like the customer service is good. As far as bed adhesion goes, I started with the textured sheet. It's great for TPU. I then got the smooth PEI one and it's my go to for PLA. It is amazing even with parts that have very small, narrow and long areas.
Kris, just out of curiosity have you changed Z-hop to 0? That fixed all stringing issues I ever had on my Prusa. For PLA, not PETG, I can't get PETG to not string, but that's something you get with PETG afaik.
@@voiceoflogic1107, I have. I've managed to get the stringing to a point that it's super easy to clean up, but it took a while to get my settings right.
I can second the recommendation of the Flashforge Adventurer 3 - its the closest to a 3D appliance you can get for that kind of money. I've had mine for 18 months and what is nice is that the firmware updates over the air, as does their Slicer and Print tool (I use on Mac and PC). Its as easy as it gets! The other printers I use do require a bit of fettling from time to time, which is part of the hobby at that end of it.
Do you recommend as my first 3D printer to get a ender 3 pro or just the ender 3. If just the ender 3 should I get a glass bed or any other upgrades? Just need a little of help on what to get. Love the video!
I say get the most printer you can afford. The pro is definitely better than not. But don't upgrade until you get it printing stock. That way when it breaks you can be sure what caused it.
My first printer was the Monoprice Mini V2, it was great. Pulled it out of the box, leveled the bed and was printing in less then 30 minutes. I did mod it (bed wire) within the first month and highly recommend It to learn 3d printing on, biggest gripe ended up being the build size. Ended up selling it to a friend to start up 3D printing and bought a Ender 5 as I liked the style of printer instead of the bed slingers. Now 3 years later I have recently purchased the Voxelab Aquila for it's cheap price and gives me second printer with similar bed size as looking to start selling prints for upcoming tradeshow. If I had the extra money I would have probably looked at getting one of the new ender 5's but we kind of needed something quicker and the Aquila was coming recommended. I'll probably be including some of your models for sale as well since both the low poly dinosaurs and chibimals were a hit with the kids and I have ideas for the chibimals.
While I'm not a backer yet I will make sure I'm backing you on patreon at the correct level.
Mi first 3D printer was the TronXY X1, a $99 kit printer and I used it for a couple of years. This year I got a Prusa Mini and the main reason the Mini won over other contenders in the same price range was the mesh bed levelling. I wanted a printer that can just start printing and does the rest by itself. That was well worth the extra money. So in general I would perhaps suggest to divide the options into "Do you mind/like fiddling with the printer?" vs "Do you just want a printer that works?" and then you can look into makes and models. There are people that enjoy spending half a day under their car before a drive and others will drive to their dealer just to replace a light bulb.
Very good car logic here
A great video, Joe! Ender 3 is so far my go to printer, steppting out of Anet A8 which I gave away and Tronxy X5S which is rotting in the corner not working.. It is hit and miss. Even with the Ender 3 that I got it is certainly not all perfect, I'm having jams quite often and because of that I don't dare to print a 24h+ print. The frustration is still there and I would love to have a printer that just works.
I'm really interested in the Ender 6 (coreXY not CR), but none of the popular 3D Print channels have reviewed it. It came out 6 months ago and supposed to print 3 times faster. Any clue?
As a person who owns many 3d printers, I see 3D printing Professor has his point. His point of view is the point of view for the average. Our community is VERY small and most of us are geeks. So fixing the machines is no big deal for us.
Anyway, this is a valuable video before someone decide to get these printers as a gift for Christmas
sir i want to buy one....can you advice me please...is it harmfull and all????
just ordered an ender 3 pro, and I cant wait to get my project going, nothing better than wasting hours tinkering with tech!
I think the best thing about 3d printing is the community we have trying help each other. There are reddits for almost every printer and people are willing to help. I got a used ender 3 as my first printer and man I had to go through some trouble to get it to work. My problem was my prints were coming out super weak breaking as you breathe on it. Turns out I was under extruding, and at the time I had no idea what extruding even meant and I had to do a lot of research to finally figure it out but now it seems so trivial. I wish I knew I could just take a picture put it on reddit and someone would tell me what was wrong 😅 but it still felt good that I got it fixed.
I love the community around 3d printing. It's like no other community I know.
But, for some people finding that community and engaging with them it's yet another potential point of failure that will end in frustration.
So here's the question. Would you rather recommend a 3d printer that requires a community to run or would you sacrifice the _need_ for community for the chance that they'll actually be doing 3d printing and maybe find ther community later?
@@3dpprofessor that's a good question because I got my printer not knowing that there was a community of people helping the newbies, kind of how I found your channel was because I was looking up how to level my bed. I think I would be more inclined to recommend something that just works and does not need the community in order to get it running. Its kind of like choosing a phone for a parent or a kid. Would you give them an android, knowing there might be some quirks and a little learning curve, or an iphone, where everything is the same every time and no matter what they will know how to use it? I am an android person and like to tinker so I don't mind the little extra time to learn a new phone but I would still recommend an iphone over android if that person does not have that time to figure things out.
@@MegaHomieJ I'm also an android person. Though, if im being honest, most 3d printing right now is less like Android and more like command line linux.
I have three printers that I hand built they work great now. But I'm in the market to buy one more but I need something that I can take out of the box and just use. I purchased one of those DaVinci's which was junk you had to buy filament that was theirs for it to work THAT SUCKED. And it broke shortly after... I am looking at your recommendations I was looking at the one that you said had the small build plate and I think that'll be too small. Do they sell a bigger model and what do you recommend? Also is it open source or at least can I use filament that i choose? Also jgmaker is your second recommendation what would you recommend with them aswell? I'm looking for a build plate 220 by 220 mm or 300 by 300 ml I can do the tuning that's not the problem, but I don't want a tune for more than a few hours lol I'm also looking for something that's self levels very easy. Does the first and the second printers that you recommended do they have Wi-Fi? And self level, and with what software please ?Keep up the good work I enjoyed your video 😉😊 I am an inventor if I ever make it big I remember people that helped me get there...😊 if you would please respond it would be great thank you..
I wish Davinci were better than they are. I just... ugh. XYZPrinting. Why you make me so sad?
Flashforge has many models, but big build volumes they charge a premium. They make their frames very rigid, and that ain't cheap. But, they do use whatever filament you want to throw at them.
I would not call JGMaker machines ones that you pull out of the box and just work. But it sounds like you can probably handle the type of work they demand. Different models have different features, including Wifi, but in my experience, most 3D printers with Wifi are... fiddly at best, and entirely worthless at worst. I'm just saying temper your expectations, and if you get one with a wifi that you mange to get work, realize it's a bonus.
If I keep sitting and watching and waiting, I'll never get a 3D printer - therefore I ordered an Ender 3Pro the other day and it got here today. Now I am watching this and thinking, cool - tinker time!
Tinker time is like workout time for athletes. The nerds love it
Thats why I bought a Flashforge CreatorPro for my group's labs. Works right out of the box, and training is minimal. All they have to do is level the bed hit print and stay to verify the first layer is stuck to the bed.
I just bought a Voxelab Aquila printer and I'm excited.
This is one of the best videos about getting a 3D printer. I'm sure it saved me a ton of headache!
Was originally drawn into getting an Ender 3 V2 because it seems to be everywhere you look but thankfully I kept searching. I ended up getting a 3 times more expensive Qidi tech x plus but the price difference isn't so bad because I'm sure the Ender would have ended sitting on the table unused while I'm waiting for replacement parts to arrive or looking for tutorials to fix my problem.
It's amazing how almost all the budget printers seem to ship with some kind of problem or malfunction, judging by the videos on YT. Sure, 600 isn't a top end printer but I consider it a very good deal and all the videos and reviews were praising the printer I got. Just imagine, plug play, print. No modding required.
I can agree with you on this. My first printer was a CTC clone of the Prusa I3 B it was a nightmare but I did learn a lot trying to "FIX" it then I got a Ender 3 what a blessing it was after I put it to gather what I learned from the first one made the Ender look like a dream with little fiddling and tweaking it worked like a charm first time.
Well I bought an ender 3 as it’s my first printer and it was 166€ and I like building stuff so I didn’t mind making it myself and I like fiddling around with it
Yes and IIRC, the Ender 3 pro comes more or less fully assembled.
Is there an updated version of this video? I found it very interesting as a person wanting to print (small) things to make my life easier and hobby electronics projects more functional/polished
Most of this is still pretty accurate with the addition that if you want to go as cheap as possible, the East ThreeD K7 is $80 and actually works.
@@3dpprofessor Perfect, thank you for the info! This video is helping me as I weigh my options. I have a limited "budget" of energy that I can spend in a day. That's why printers that deliver high-convenience at a lower price via smaller-capacity excite me.
The Prusa mini+ seemed like the popular way to do it. But, I wanted to know, what are the other options! The expertise of people such as yourself is so invaluable to me. As a laymen on many topics, I wouldn't have the time to investigate tools and technologies such as 3D printers from the beginning. But, since you and other share your experience and guidance openly, I'm able to enjoy a broad range of different interests with some degree of success (which is quite satisfying!)
Much gratitude for all your efforts. They are extremely helpful.
(I'm still waiting things out, btw. I'm curious to see how things evolve in the next few years. For now, I just print my custom project enclosures at the Library's innovation center :D)
My first prints were on a QidiTech X-Pro and boy were they scrappy. I'm sure the problem was my skill level. I got to test out the FlashForge Dreamer and loved how quiet and smooth it printed but the build volume was just too small. Then, I got to try the Ender3 and loved the print quality, but you're right the machine was always down for repairs. Finally, I decided to buy a Prusa because I wanted something that was just going to work and I didn't care that I had to assemble it. I've run almost 20 miles worth of filament through it and it just does the job. There are still a few minor issues but the community and the company support are excellent. If you're willing to spend 10 hours assembling the machine, you'll have something really worth its weight.
He said the cold hard truth. Enjoyable too. Subbed!
I’ve enjoyed my Voxel (adventure 3) for over 2 years, but I ordered a Prusa mini for the extra temperature range and advanced leveling. I don’t expect the prusa to be as carefree, but I won’t have to print with a raft all of the time.
Awesome video THX
I really appreciate these videos. Learning a lot. I have a years-old Flux Delta, still doing its job. Do you need to have additional ventilation when printing with PLA filament? Is it toxic ? Thanks in advance for the advice.
th-cam.com/video/m-_81EhDGnM/w-d-xo.html
PLA is the least toxic of all the materials you can use. But even for the most toxic ones all you need to do is give yourself some distance. The VOCs produced condense within 25 feet to safe macro particles.
Happy printing!
Hello, from the 4% not male audience LOL
Got an Ender 3 when they were just new (when they still printed their PSU enclosures new and before there was a subreddit for it). Love it, it's still my only printer, and I agree that it's not just a plug and play machine.
Your comments suggest that Prusa 3D printers do not have bed leveling and that they only come as a kit. This is misleading. Also you should consider that if a newbie buys an obscure printer then they will struggle to find community support.
I actually edited out the comments about buying an assembled Prusa (and how that related to cost, and how you had to take into account the value on your time and... etc) because the video was running a bit long. I just felt it bogged down a discussion when there were other things I wanted to focus on.
But let's talk about that community. I love the 3D printing community. It's like no other community that I know.
Now, here's the big controversial "but"; the 3d printing community was a crutch for garbage engineering for a technology that didn't have it's legs under it. Now, in that way it was the best thing ever, because it was a synergistic collaboration between consumer and manufacturer that had we haven't seen for 40 years. Last time we had this sort of community was with the Apple IIe (and we didn't even have the internet back then!) But eventually, the Apple IIe went away, and Macintosh and IBMs came along and the they didn't have a community sharing hacks and vital upgrades. Sure, there was still community, but shifted to being less about what can be done for the technology and switched to what can be done with the technology. And 3D printing is on that cusp.
What I'm saying is if the printer is good enough, you don't _need_ community. You can have it. You can find it. But making finding a community a prerequisite to success is just another fail point that may lead to another forgotten 3D printer. I want more people to get into 3D printing, so if we have a fail point, we should be honest about it.
You rock. thanks!!
I have an Ender 3 pro, Creality CR6s and a Flash forge creator pro. After using and upgrading these I finally took the plunge and bought a Prusa i3 mk3+ and I wish I had done this in the beginning as it is more reliable quieter add produces better quality prints. I have learned the hard way you get what you pay for.
I'm still leaning towards one of the Ender 3 V2 models because I hear good things about them and fiddling with upgrades and maintenence might help me learn more about how they work and how to fix and upgrade them. The worst thing I have heard so far is warped beds and levelling issues, but I was planning to upgrade those away to start anyway.
I don't know why bed leveling is such an issue. The paper method works fine, and isn't really hard. Then on your first print watch how it goes down, and adjust a bit while printing if needed (if mashed to nothing, lower an 1/8 turn. If too narrow and tall, raise the same). After that, you don't have to touch it unless you change the nozzle. I have levels the bed three times in two years. That hardly justifies a BLtouch. The E3 bed being warped is an issue though. Mine has a good hump in the middle.
Getting an adventurer 3 for Christmas from the wife,it'll be my first printer. I'm excited to dip my toes in. Thanks for the vid...
When I did my research to buy a 3D printer (just to do something in my life), I preferred the ender 3 for the ease of finding information. I'm an electrician but this field is new to me, a year has passed since I bought it, it takeing me 3 weeks before I had decent results, with all my friends telling me that I will not get anything out, and that they don't know how I can be patient (I started printing PETG) now I have learned to solve different problems and modify the firmware. I am really satisfied with this machine especially after the time I dedicate to it every day.
You saved me! I cannot express my level of gratitude.
You are one of the most honest 3D printer-tutorial broadcasters I’ve ever seen and actually like to stay as neutral as possible. I really meant to say that in a complimentary way well executed without bringing smugg and no disrespect whatsoever to whoever(.....whenever, whatever? No!) thanks
Damn that patreon was sooo smooth
Good that i alredy knew the things he said so im not giving up on the printer
I was lost until I found the 3d Printing Lawyer. I highly respect the way you speak about topics and review printers in depth. I will be purchasing the Ender 3 Pro, understanding there may be a lot of obstacles and headaches along the way. :D
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Rock it. You're going to do great things!
@@3dpprofessor I appreciate the kind words 👌
Agreed. Not many folks of color with 3d printers except me.
And we need more. If there's anything I can do to make that happen, I'd love to help.
I am colored and print
@@williamjohnson9156 💯
If you personally have the time and skill, perhaps look into the possibility of bringing 3d printing to a library or create a hacker space in a mixed or non-white community. Dan Meyer's Fab Lab in Chicago is a great example. If you know another language other than English, create content in that language or if you're not an expert reach out to your favorite youtubers and offer to send them sub files for their troubleshooting and tutorial videos!
I am likely about to put my foot firmly in my mouth, so feel free to judge me harshly if my next thoughts merit that although I hope I'm not being too terrible...
I am curious about the demographics of those who do 3D printing, and would love to see a video on this with some speculation of why some demographic groups are less likely to be printing right now than others. Do things like economics come into play, where statistically speaking that "open your wallet" price point might be more realistic for white families than families of color? Differences in living arrangements, where a white family might be more likely to be in a place where they have an extra room/closet that can be a printing station vs another demographic which might be more likely to have a premium on space? Differences in general "nerdiness" within a demographic / how "nerdiness" is expressed?
With that kind of information it would be interesting to see tutorial creators target some of these specific situations with solutions, such as describing ways to set up a printing station when extra space is at a premium.
Tech savvy person of color here 🤓
Just checking in lol
Happy to have you.
Nah dude don't you know we can't 3d print?! It's like a curse. I have 2 printers in my basement but every time I go to print, my gcode just falls out.
Only one gcode for us
(/s if the dripping sarcasm wasn't obvious) Also that wasn't _really_ my takeaway.
@@BeefIngot Wasn't the point I meant to make, but looking at some of these comments, hoo boy, did I stick my foot in it.
Which, in and of itself, is pretty thought provoking.
@@3dpprofessor I didn't actually take it that way as I said at the end of the comment. I just found the idea funny.
As I said in some other comment though, I do think the wording was a bit awkward, but the message sounds like its coming from the right place.
Hilarious 😂😂
Guess I should timidly raise my hand - *woman* and of *color*. 🤦♀️🤦♀️
Great content ultimately!👍💯
SWF-Nerd digging your stuff. ;)
The sheer honesty of this is awesome !! What’s the easiest 3D printer for under 400$ today that you’d recommend? I want something to print brackets and pc shrouds maybe like gpu shrouds or fan grills. I’d like something easy to get running
If you don't mind a little fiddling, the Ender 3 is still a great bet. If you want something a little more push and go and don't mind sacrificing a little bit of build volume, I still recommend the Flashforge Adventurer 3.
@@3dpprofessor I want something easy. Def hard pass on Enders because I know all the issues they had. I want an adventure 3 but worried it may not be. If enough. Is there anything that does 225mm wide for under 550$ that has similar ease of use without heavy tinkering like the Enders. I had a biqb1 and it failed first day and had nothing but issues leading up to it. It was a bad experience. And thanks so so much ! Love the channel !
@@cppctek I can't think of anything that size for that price. Unfortunately the prices go up a lot faster than you'd expect after that. It's like, once the race to the bottom loses it's gravitational hold, it's into the stratosphere with the rest!
Love my ender 3. Of course I've done a few upgrades....bltouch, direct drive, ender extender, skr board....need that filament break thing too. So yep you pretty much described me as the tech guy...still cheaper than a prusa
Would you say those upgrades can be done relatively cheaply or printed upgrades? or are those specific upgrades you cant print and must buy? Ive been told by many many 3d printers to get a ender 3, as the video says its very commonly recommended by people that start on it and if you have the patience can be worth it. I like tinkering and ive always been interested in 3d printing but never had the money or felt it was too expensive, still do for some of the higher end machines, not looking to 3d print as a business, more of a hobby and life improvement device sorta dealio.
My Ender cost me less than shipping a Flashforge would have been. Not the cost of the printer, just the shipping.
Wow, where do you live? Flashforge has several warehouses around the world, but it's possible that they don't have the coverage Creality does.
Thanks for the upload! I'm on the fence but leaning towards the Prusa i3 MK3S. This will be my first 3D Printer. There's certain thing I could print to be self useful around my home and thing I have ideas for musicians as well. So far, this would be the best fit. Any ideas? Thanks again for the upload. This was helpful.
Again, just know what you're getting into. Unless you want to spend a whole lot more, the Prusa is a kit, you have to build it, and you're gonna get to know it real well by the time you're done, but do you want to? Some do, some don't, and both are great options.
@@3dpprofessor I'll purchase it already put together. After watching video of other assembling it, that task would be a bit time consuming for me. I would like to assemble it but, it looks a bit too much work. There's a few things that I could print to make others a little more at ease with musicians. I have a friend that created a slide for guitar and he's looking for a cheaper way to get it out instead of steel. We've been talking about trying other ways of production. I feel like it's worth a try. Thanks for responding.
Great video
I like how he uses the opposite of technically savvy people is "others".
Well if you just need a side hobby take ender 3, it will keep you busy but if you are like me who uses 3d printers to do business i would recommend Prusa over anything. I have mk3s and they just WORK, i run them 365 days a freaking year and i never have to mess with the printers not even the print setting (i used esun to print) and i just throw my cr10s away for such a trash it was 🤣
Thank you so much for this video. I'm currently looking to buy a 3D printer, and I have spent most of the day on TH-cam watching endless printer reviews. None, not a one, are even close to as valuable as this one has been. All this time I thought I needed reviews of printers. Little did I know that what I really needed was a review of reviewers.
Me watching after owning a modified ender 3 for over a year and now a prusa mk3s..both run fantastic!