Convince me I need an XL
Looking to move up in print bed volume as I currently have an MK4 w/MMU3 and MK3.9S with a Core One upgrade kit ordered.
Is the XL really worth it vs other comparable large format printers (Sovol S08 for example)? Yes, the XL has the 5 tool heads, but I have an MMU3 and don't really do a ton of MM prints as it is. I need the larger bed mostly for functional parts for diy projects. My other concern is that the XL is getting a little long in the tooth and doesn't feel like Prusa is fully committed to it, compared to the MK series and now the Core series. Maybe there's a redesign in the works.
It would be nice to have all printers on the same workflow but not sure it's worth the $1000 or so price delta. But I'm open minded 🙂
Those of you with XLs, I would love to hear your thoughts and if you could go back in time, would you buy one again?
Thanks!
Convince me I need an XL
If you need convincing you don't need it.
I have an MMU3 and don't really do a ton of MM prints
The MMUs don't really do multimaterial, mostly it's just multicolour. True MM makes it possible to print PLA and PETG hinged with TPU *and* multicolour in a single print; OTOH it obliges adopting techniques to ensure different materials remain attached. It's a lot faster and less wasteful than the MMU.
the XL is getting a little long in the tooth
It has no real competitors in the sub £50k price range.
would you buy one again?
If only I had the workshop space; yes, tomorrow.
Cheerio,
RE: Convince me I need an XL
Convince me I need an XL
If you need convincing you don't need it.
I have an MMU3 and don't really do a ton of MM prints
The MMUs don't really do multimaterial, mostly it's just multicolour. True MM makes it possible to print PLA and PETG hinged with TPU *and* multicolour in a single print; OTOH it obliges adopting techniques to ensure different materials remain attached. It's a lot faster and less wasteful than the MMU.
the XL is getting a little long in the tooth
It has no real competitors in the sub £50k price range.
would you buy one again?
If only I had the workshop space; yes, tomorrow.
Cheerio,
That's an excellent point regarding the true multi material capabilities. Even just multi color, I'd probably be more apt to utilize as it's not that wasteful. I've printed a lot of TPU...being able to combine that with other materials certainly opens up a lot more design possibilities.
Thanks for sharing!
RE: Convince me I need an XL
If the extra volume is all you need there are more options out there that dont "bite" as much as the XL. If i wanted just a large printer i wouldn't buy the XL. If i wanted another true MM then i cannot thing of another choice. There are some out there but most of them means tinkering your device. Also is true that the XL has some issues. I'm not sure how other companies compare to this. I consider my self on the lucky category since the issues i have are rather minor to other out there (extruders stopping mid print , bsod etc). Also Prusa made some questionable design approaches on the XL (i.e. usb buffering, lousy wifi, lack of cooling on the board case, petg parts etc) but all in all i would buy it again. NOW if in the near or far future there is a competitor for a multihead printer and its time to buy a new one i'll compare them and decide. My humble opinion is that if you want or plan in the near future to use the benefits of a true mm then go for it. If not then go for something cheaper. For me printing thing like for example o-ring in place, tpu hinges or petg with pla supports , for the time being, worth's the cost. Also even for simple multicolor the time saved since there is no need for loading, unloading and purging its a huuuuggggggeeeeee plus in comparison with mmu (coming from mmu3s), ams or whatever else single extruder out there.
RE: Convince me I need an XL
I've been struggling to choose between the Prusa XL and the Bambu H2D. I'm currently using an ancient Makergear M2, and I'd like something that can work with nylon and polycarbonate for making parts for fighting robots, and potentially TPU and glow-in-the-dark filaments. Prusa's open-source technology is attractive, but my main concern is that polycarbonate needs a heated chamber - the H2D has a chamber heater that goes up to 65C. I've heard of people using the XL bed heater with an enclosure, but it sounds like the resulting temperatures are much lower.
I've heard of some mod to improve tool head cooling, and I've been thinking about developing a chamber heater add-on. Think that would be feasible?
Any other thoughts on how those machines compare? Thank you.
RE:
The more I print with it, the more I wish I had more of them. I have not really had only issues with mine other than I got it too hot in the enclosure one time and ruined some parts. They are all PCCF now so no more worries. It's my go-to printer honestly because of the 5 tool heads. Even if I don't need multi material it's just convenient to have 5 filaments on tap at all times. Yes it's kinda lazy, but it is what it is.
I also find the H2D intriguing, but I just watched a teardown of it today and it made me not want one. It looks almost impossible to work on. It's easily 10X more complicated than the XL. You can see that as good or bad, but I see it as bad. If the print quality was 10x as good then maybe, but it's not. It's arguably better than the XL, but it's splitting hairs imo.
RE: Convince me I need an XL
I've been struggling to choose between the Prusa XL and the Bambu H2D. I'm currently using an ancient Makergear M2, and I'd like something that can work with nylon and polycarbonate for making parts for fighting robots, and potentially TPU and glow-in-the-dark filaments. Prusa's open-source technology is attractive, but my main concern is that polycarbonate needs a heated chamber - the H2D has a chamber heater that goes up to 65C. I've heard of people using the XL bed heater with an enclosure, but it sounds like the resulting temperatures are much lower.
I've heard of some mod to improve tool head cooling, and I've been thinking about developing a chamber heater add-on. Think that would be feasible?
Any other thoughts on how those machines compare? Thank you.
I saw the BL H2D and its looks interesting. I skip and ignore the laser stup!didy since its just a silly addon. But its just an idex with the capability for attaching the AMS. Its basically a middle ground between an idex and a multihead printer. The cost is obviously much less than that of the XL. If you compare a 2TH XL vs a H2D yes it requires some thinking. The heated chamber, PROPER and INCLUDED in the price enclosure (not 730E without shipping) for an accordion and a box with air gaps it makes it a very attractive offer. I haven't used or seen up close the H2D but there are lot of negative comments for the XL also, so its not a truly perfect or bad device. The "opensource" approach is not so valid for the XL. I mean what is exactly opensource except some plastic parts? The slicer? fair enough. I dont care personally since if i buy a printer ill use the recommended software. BL showed that it makes reliable printers (I DO NOT own one but from what ive read) and i guess you can trust the company, as far as build and performance quality, as much as you can trust Prusas name. And before getting attacked i like my 5TH XL, i paid a premium for it, trusting the "Prusa quality" , and NO its not exactly what a premium name should represent. Its not bad its just not how a 5k printer should be(if you include the enclosure).
BUT i'll repeat myself and say that i REALLY like my XL, with its imperfections (PETG parts, abysmal wifi, usb buffering, strange errors ) and price bloated afterthoughts (again basic but overpriced "official" enclosure ) since there is no other 2+ toolhead solution out there which comes ready made, even at the level of the Prusa XL. Prusa XL needs a bit of attention but is not a voron. I dont want to build my printer but to build with my printer. The only think that got my interest lately is bondtechs indx multitool but its not still attached to an actual printer. Even if it was displayed working with a voron v0 and it was rather impressive. They claim that its easily attached too any printer so im waiting for a company to officially attach it to their lineup.
And lastly its being almost two years since i got the XL and they still ironing stuff out, im still printing mods for some cooling on the board and better cooling on the heads, for successfully loading tpus etc FROM printables. Or waiting for the community to find solution to issues like extruders stopping midprint due to badly design dwarf board connections etc. Prusa name lost a chunk of its luster. Sorry guys dont attack me but if i decide to give 5k for a machine i expect to work nearly flawlessly , to have 5k quality parts (not an esp dodgy wifi or petg parts) and im STILL waiting for the ability to print with multiple size extruders simultaneously, WITHOUT having to play around with the slicer settings to achieve this.
RE: Convince me I need an XL
That's basically the main thing stopping me from just going with the XL without a second thought - the 2 head model is already more expensive than the Bambu H2D, plus it would require hundreds of dollars of extra hardware to give it the must-have features for working with polycarbonate (enclosure, filament dry box).
And the H2D laser is kind of tempting, but a.) the need for an external air compressor and vent would be awkward, and b.) there's a local makerspace with way better lasers.
RE: Convince me I need an XL
just a comment about lasers. I have an xtool s1 and inside becomes a mess. I dont know how this thing will work after using the laser for a few times. There are so many stuff in that printer and so little space that i dont know how is this designed not to affect the 3d printing function , which needs a clean environment.Do they expect taking the extruder mechanism out and cleaning it after each laser use? Thats really impractical. There is soot build up even only after a few cuts. Time will tell about the 3d laser addon, but even if i was to choose the H2D i would wait for a few months and get reviews about the laser part.
RE:
I've had insanely good experiences with the old MK3 lineup. Many printers, rock solid performance, though obviously very dated design by todays standards. So we needed larger format printer and I personally suggested XL for my good experiences. We got it and.
I have nothing good to say about it. About 4 months in use and I've reported like 7th time of issues for now. Changed load cell, changed sheet for damage machine created cause of faulty load cell, firmware bugs: I couldn't jog extruder to clean up extruder gear. Software just didn't allow that. It seems to be fixed now in some firmware. Machine now between worked for I don't know few weeks and it worked nicely. Then just last week all the same issues "stuck filament", "bed leveling problem". It's just a disaster everywhere. It's downright as bad experience as my original Anet A6 was back in the day.
Printer was kit. But every single damned problem has been on Prusa assembled parts.
0/10 Hard pass rating for me. Only consider if you _absolutely_ need multiple toolheads. Other than that... Pass.
It's really unfortunate. There's so much potential in this printer, but as of today. I'm sending it back to Prusa for warranty repairs. I've friggin' had it with this junk. I'd absolutely go now for like what is that Crealitys larger format printer K2 Plus or something? Or what is that new Bambu model. No way in hell I'd buy XL for myself. Luckily this machine was bought for company use. I'm already pissed off, but if I'd have bought this for personal use and had these problems. I would've already made like 4h YT vids about the flaws I've seen 🙂
Hell might still do...
Looking to move up in print bed volume as I currently have an MK4 w/MMU3 and MK3.9S with a Core One upgrade kit ordered.
Is the XL really worth it vs other comparable large format printers (Sovol S08 for example)? Yes, the XL has the 5 tool heads, but I have an MMU3 and don't really do a ton of MM prints as it is. I need the larger bed mostly for functional parts for diy projects. My other concern is that the XL is getting a little long in the tooth and doesn't feel like Prusa is fully committed to it, compared to the MK series and now the Core series. Maybe there's a redesign in the works.
It would be nice to have all printers on the same workflow but not sure it's worth the $1000 or so price delta. But I'm open minded 🙂
Those of you with XLs, I would love to hear your thoughts and if you could go back in time, would you buy one again?
Thanks!
RE: Convince me I need an XL
I've said it earlier, but mine has been flawless. I'm over 5000 hours now without issue. Just finished a 20 hour print with PETG and TPU.
Like @brian-12 I have had no problems that were not my fault.
The XL, like other Nextruder based machines, is particularly sensitive to filament quality and having up to 5 spools exposed to the atmosphere generates a need for careful drying especially with multi-day prints - plus having different sized nozzles fitted adds another layer of complication but basically, it just works.
Cheerio,
RE: Convince me I need an XL
I've always used Prusament..
Prusament..
Excellent - as long as you keep it dry.
Cheerio,
RE: Convince me I need an XL
I ended up pulling the trigger and getting the 5T and will echo the dry filament. Print consistency improved dramatically when I added filament dryers to all the spools. Will also agree that when I added a 2 0.6 nozzles (both obxidian) I had to tinker with settings a bit. Still not loving how Slicr handles mixing nozzle diameters on the same print.