Buying decision: A mini+ the way to go?  

RE: Buying decision: A mini+ the way to go?

Posted by: @dakkar-2

[...] But now my problem: In preparation for the delivery I read throug these forums and git a little bit scared. There are a lot of reports about problems, which sounds exactly like my horrible reprap machine. problems with clogged nozzles, locked filaments, extrusion issues and so on.

Keep in mind, these are user support problems. While most people won't sign up just to report that things are going well, they will sign up to deal with problems. Support forums by nature tend to be filled with negative or at least negative-seeming reports. For the dozens of problems we see here, Prusa has sold hundreds of printer -- far more than they can ship quickly in fact -- that we are not seeing complaints about.

I spend a lot of time on the various 3D printing discussions on Reddit and other sites and there are far more posts from excited users who have turned their printer on and just completed a successful Benchy. Much of the time, their 1st print looks better than those from users of other printers who are struggling to get the bed level. For every complaint topic I see here, there are easily double as many for every other printer.

So now, I am not so very shure, if this 450€ invest is a good one. A friend of mine is using a creality CR6 SE and is quite happy with it. He's just printing PLA and his experience is only some weeks "young", but basically it seems to work  is is cheaper than the prusa mini.

And yes I know, prusa is not a chinese cheap factory with better support, but this won't help me, if there are some fundamental problems with the mini+

Support will help you immensely. I had a rudimentary problem with my Artillery Sidewinder. The thermistor bed cable broke due to a very poor design. I was lucky it wasn't the AC bed heater cabling that could have caused a fire. Getting a resolution from support took over 72 hours of slow email exchange. The replacement part to 60 days to arrive. I've had parts from Prusa arrive within a week on the few times I've needed help.

Stay calm and carry on. If you have a problem, Prusa is very good at working through issues. Their online chat support is stellar. If you have no problems, you can expect reliable service with minimal upkeep. The basic design is robust and safe.

So what I want to know (and I hope for honest, objective answers 😀 ) :

• Are these problem listed above still in the mini+ 
• Are these the typical "in such a forum of course only people with problems are reporting in and the other 95% have no problems" topics?
• would you say, the mini+ is such a "simply print most of time" machine?
• Is the CR6 maybe a valid alternative?

Hope you can help me here to decide wther to wait for the mini or cancel my order and go with the cheaper CR6

Thanks

Dakky

yes

The answer is yes, Mini is great! Plug, and play. Love it. Just many weeks of waiting ...

Creality is a cheaper machine but a higher chance of it burning down your house 🔥
+ hours of fixing stuff and no firmware updates.

Remember your vote with your money, in terms of what you support.

stay safe

RE: Buying decision: A mini+ the way to go?

I would have bought the Prusa Mk4 instead, with the 32bit board and display instead of the Mini... It just doesn't exist yet. 😁

RE: Buying decision: A mini+ the way to go?

I'm novise and wanted 3D printer which would work "almost" like my laser printer. Just put it on, add medium, choose your document (model),  print and go do something else.

Well, I got my Mini near the end of July, and naturally after assembling it I tried to do the first layer calibration. That was weirdly difficult, as every time the printer calibration run, I had to tweak the z-offset. It didn't take long to figure out that something was changing when the printer warmed up. In the end I ended up preheating the printer for 10 minutes before printing, that way I got consistent results. Just like many others with this problem have done.

Now that we have the new SPinda (got mine a short while ago), those problems are gone. Now I can (just did before I started writing this) download a model (or use one of my own), slice it, save it on the usb-drive (I still use the one that came with the Mini), switch the machine on, and print.

It still isn't quite as easy as printing on paper with laser, there's quite a big difference. But I think I am now close to what I thought I paid for: reasonably priced printer with good printing quality, support and ease of use.

My problems now are related on learning what can be printed on this and how the parts should be on the board, when to use supports and so on. I.e. I'm learning the 3D printing, but I'm not wasting my time tinkering with the printer.

I have never printed PLA, I use solely PETG, currently Prusament, and stubbornly will stick to this until I will mostly succeed (have learned the ways of printing with it). Then I might switch to something harder, PC, maybe. 🙂

I cannot say how good Mini is compared to other reasonably priced printers (or the ones which are notable cheaper) as this is the only printer I have ever used. But I think I got roughly what I paid for. I expected the software to be immature, and it is. However, it is improving, and I try to help with it by reporting bugs and missing features when I notice those. The new controller shows lots of potential, but at the moment firmware is doing catch-up when compared to to earlier Prusa models, but it is getting there. We just got the sheet profiles. Rudimentary yes, but the most needed functionality regarding them is now delivered (4.3.0 RC1). I expect to get lots of more functionality in the printer in the long run, making me even happier customer.

RE: Buying decision: A mini+ the way to go?

I have a MINI of 9 months. This is my first printer. I have never printed PLA, I use solely PETG. I printed over 100 prints, no spoiled print yet!

RE: Buying decision: A mini+ the way to go?

You really can't go wrong with a mini.  

RE: Buying decision: A mini+ the way to go?

I agree with @cwbullet. Especially the Mini+ with the SPINDA. I upgraded mine with SPINDA and now it's a print & forget printer!

RE: Buying decision: A mini+ the way to go?

Only an anecdote, but I had been using my Mini for 16 hours a day for many months. I stopped for a while after projects were done and PPE was available. Just today I turned it on and cranked out two parts with no issues. No adjustments were needed. I don't even have the SPINDA yet, but it is on order. These forums have been unmatched in their helpfulness. I've considered getting a second one, but I really don't have room to put it anywhere. I would highly recommend them.

Regards,

Mark

RE: Buying decision: A mini+ the way to go?

okay thanks for the feedback. so I think i'll give it a go.

RE: Buying decision: A mini+ the way to go?

Posted by: @hemdrup

The answer is yes, Mini is great! Plug, and play. Love it. Just many weeks of waiting ...

Creality is a cheaper machine but a higher chance of it burning down your house 🔥
+ hours of fixing stuff and no firmware updates.

Remember your vote with your money, in terms of what you support.

stay safe

 

I wish people would refrain from posting like this, as it serves no purpose in this discussion.  Both Creality and Prusa have very large engaging communities that help eachother.

Each person is different. Each person has a different budget. For people on very tight budgets, the Creality Ender 3 V2 is an excellent printer to start out with. Since the motherboard and firmware is Open Source, there is community firmware available for pretty much all of the Creality Printers.

No matter the brand. Each 3D printer is a potentional fire hazard, if you don´t know what you are doing and not take any basic safety precautions.

RE: Buying decision: A mini+ the way to go?

PS. To the OP. I would not buy the Creality CR6-SE at this moment, since there are some serious issues with the motherboard and power switches. Hence, why I canceled my own order from a local webshop and ordered a Prusa MK3+ kit instead for now.

The power switches have been fixed on the later production units, but the usb problem with the motherboard still exist on the updated 4.5.3 motherboard. So give your friend with the CR6-SE a warning not to connect a usb cable between the printer and PC!

So if your budget is tight, even for a Prusa Mini+ and/or don´t want to wait that long to get it. Look at either the Creality Ender 3 V2 or the Ender 5 Pro.

RE: Buying decision: A mini+ the way to go?

Posted by: @guillermo

I wish people would refrain from posting like this, as it serves no purpose in this discussion.  [...] No matter the brand. Each 3D printer is a potentional fire hazard, if you don´t know what you are doing and not take any basic safety precautions.

Hmm... I don't disagree with your basic sentiment, but I think it's important to point out that some companies have better safety track records than others. Creality only enabled thermal runaway safety checks and released firmware after having their feet metaphorically held to the fire by the community. They also shipped a lot of printers with faulty connectors that could overheat and create a fire hazard. While it's true that any printer can be a fire hazard, some companies have a better track record with shipping devices that are safe out of the box. Safety and reliability should be part of the comparison between printers with widely different pricing. Anybody considering getting into 3D printing should read up on the perils of cheap designs. I'm glad I read such cautionary tales before making my selection.

RE: Buying decision: A mini+ the way to go?

@guillermo

I have to disagree - Creality does not compare with Prusa.  I own two Creality printers and support from the company and users has been a struggle.  

RE: Buying decision: A mini+ the way to go?

Posted by: @dakkar-2

Hello

I hope I get some feedback for my decision problem 😉

My background concerning 3D printing: I'm owning a reprap prusabased 3d printer for now about 4 years and its a permanent source of frustration. Most of the time I have to finetune it, sometimes disassemble parts of it and so on. Basically it's much more working on the printer instead of printing with it. So i decided to buy me a "ready to use, hassle free"-printer. Of course, I know that there will alway be some minor problems to fix but my goal is to print and not to work on the printer.

Thats my history 😀 So I ordered a mini+ and expect exactly this "simply print" experience. It will be delivered sometimes in february next year, so nothing is "broken" yet.

But now my problem: In preparation for the delivery I read throug these forums and git a little bit scared. There are a lot of reports about problems, which sounds exactly like my horrible reprap machine. problems with clogged nozzles, locked filaments, extrusion issues and so on.

So now, I am not so very shure, if this 450€ invest is a good one. A friend of mine is using a creality CR6 SE and is quite happy with it. He's just printing PLA and his experience is only some weeks "young", but basically it seems to work  is is cheaper than the prusa mini.

And yes I know, prusa is not a chinese cheap factory with better support, but this won't help me, if there are some fundamental problems with the mini+

So what I want to know (and I hope for honest, objective answers 😀 ) :

• Are these problem listed above still in the mini+ 
• Are these the typical "in such a forum of course only people with problems are reporting in and the other 95% have no problems" topics?
• would you say, the mini+ is such a "simply print most of time" machine?
• Is the CR6 maybe a valid alternative?

Hope you can help me here to decide wther to wait for the mini or cancel my order and go with the cheaper CR6

Thanks

Dakky

I can only say one thing: In this price range, the original Prusa is the best (including support) that you can get for your money.
Of course, you have to invest time and patience, and every now and then maintenance or repair is necessary. But honestly - which machine does not require this?

wbr,

Karl (I am not a Prusa employee)