returning to the i3... same shovel, new issues
Little bit of a rant coming, feel free to skip to the context.
TL;DR: I need help knowing how to setup the MMU2s and i3 mk3s. I've done the hardware, I've done the software, cant get it off the ground without error messages on the printer, back to the MMU, then back to the printer. When do you finally get done chasing errors from nowhere?
Context:
So I'm 6'1" and have large hands and thick fingers. I don't have the dexterity to play the guitar well, but I do precision work machining and with electronics daily. I am *so tired* of the i3's board placement, how completely jammed packed it is with the wires that are BARELY long enough to reach, and now the absolute *WONDER* that the hardware team came up with for the MMU body (I have a MMU2S running MMU3 software). I have my printer in a 'lack stack' and it's a good height to interact with the LCD and to change filament that I keep above the top of the Lack 'cabinet'. So, if you didn't know, the average adult male can basically reach 24" out in front of himself. This depends on if he's got a big gut (yep) or short arms (yep, again) or if he's super lanky (nope). So with the i3 on a shelf/ in a cabinet you can't really reach all the way around the printer to the back without leaning forward, tipping the printer, contorting yourself. Now, after having spent hours trying to get the MMU to behave, I want to throw it out the window.
Also, the three buttons? What do they do??? Oh yeah, look it up. That's the answer on the forums I see most. And you look it up, and you have to decode the color/ blink based on the printer's state. That's a gem! I mean who the f did that? You're going to make a lookup table for the buttons, and then fix it so the whole MMU tilts away from the front so you cant see the LEDs from the other side of the room. Maybe I should put the web cam up on the MMU so I can see the error message from my computer - which is where I'll have to be so I can reference the f*ing chart so I can try to figure out what's wrong.
What's killing me the most is that I've been using my Prusa Mini exclusively for the past two years and I was really excited to tackles some larger projects that I've put off and to finally be able to try something multi material. I don't think I even really care about the multi material as much as I do the ability to have 5 different humidity sensitive filaments sequestered in an controlled chamber that's connected to the printer for 'automatic' spool swaps.
And with all the stuff (read: sh*t) Prusa has been getting from their new competitors, I'm amazed that they continue to have such an un-refined product. I mean, getting out the i3 and rebuilding it along with building a MMU2s was nostalgic, but what happened to the plug and play? I though that for this amount of money we were getting 'it just works' level quality. The MMU2s is anything but - even a couple years after it's release, the best solution was 'let's redesign the idler?' If you actually look at what's different from MMU2 to MMU3, you can't tell me it's been 'redesigned from the ground up'. What a joke!
My 2 cents, I'd consider paying what Prusa is asking for new product made in the European Union so long as it was either fun to assemble, OR plug and play. This tinker in an enclosure that opens inward and away from the operator has got to be the simplest problem to fix. PUT THE DOOR ON THE OTHER SIDE. If you're going to have people working inside the enclosure, put dedicated space around the PCB for cables. Don't hide the fasteners. For what it's worth, I picked up the i3 like four years ago and it served me well until space made me switch over to the Mini which has also been a workhorse. However, I bought both used, and I wouldn't have bought them 'new' then, and certainly not now. The MMU I picked up for 80$ USD (summer 2024) and had to reprint some lost parts. The idea that the average consumer would pay 400$ USD for a new MMU is absurd. I mean you can get a multi-toolhead printer for less than that - you can get the top tier Voron parts kit for the cost of a i4 + MMU, hell you can get a Voron 2.4 clone, assembled, for LESS than just the Prusa MMU.
Prusa - if you're reading this, please give me more of a reason to stay with open source when the alternatives, both cheaper open source clones and closed source facsimiles, are often cheaper, sometimes better, and in some notable examples both cheaper and better! I really want to spend my money with a company that built the 3d printer makerspace and is committed to keeping it open source. Even if I knew that the i4 and the MMU3 would work perfectly for years, I don't know why I'd invest 1500$ USD for what you get back when you could get so much more for the same amount elsewhere or almost the same product for 20% of the Prusa premium.
/end rant
So real deal, if you want the MMU to work you /have/ to buy the upgrade kit AND you have to ??? accept that it is impossible to work on with big hands and the electronics placement on the i3? The manual even has emboldened troubleshooting tips that suggests if "you're having this problem and it persists, try nuking the firmware". I don't know if I'm willing to chase calibration issues for seemingly endless hours... Honestly, what are you supposed to do to get the MMU2s and the i3 working? Please advise.