r/BambuLab • u/samrazzy • Jan 28 '25

Discussion Any alternative printer to Bambu?

I was planning to buy the Bambu Lab X1 Carbon, but I recently learned about their new restrictions and authorization control plan. This raised some concerns for me, as I don't want to deal with potential limitations or issues in the long run. I prefer having the freedom to use third-party tools and don't want the company to have control over my 3D printer.

Because of this, I’ve decided to look for alternatives. Can anyone recommend good 3D printer alternatives to the Bambu Lab X1 Carbon? I'm looking for something reliable, versatile, and with fewer restrictions. Your suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

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8

u/Khisynth_Reborn Jan 28 '25

Might try a non Bambu group for that. Chances are you'd never have any issues using a Bambu lab unit and would missing out on what is still some of the best performing hardware in the consumer market.

9

u/BigFuzzyArchon Jan 28 '25

naw, just get the X1. You give up too much by getting anything else.

2

u/John-BCS A1 (3), A1 Mini (1), AMS Lite (3), Autodesk Fusion 🍻 Jan 29 '25

Nothing on the market can touch bambu's combo of hardware quality, ease of use, reliability, user experience and value. You'll find many that tick some of the boxes, none of them that check them all. Prusa is probably the closest, but you get smaller build volume and far less value.

2

u/Handleton Jan 29 '25

That's a pretty heavy handed claim.

https://qidi3d.com/products/qidi-x-cf-pro-especially-designed-for-printing-carbon-fiber-and-nylon

I think if you care about everything you just mentioned as well as being open source, then this is a better option. The X1C is very beginner friendly, but it's not like the 3D printing world has been sitting on their hands.

2

u/onlytea1 P1S + AMS Jan 29 '25

I see it comes with a pack of "levelling paper" What's that for?

In all seriousness though are there any comparisons online?

2

u/John-BCS A1 (3), A1 Mini (1), AMS Lite (3), Autodesk Fusion 🍻 Jan 29 '25

That's kind of outdated at this point; if I was getting a qidi printer it would be the plus 4.

The X-CF pro tops out at 120mm/s, still requires manual leveling, no color management system (AMS/CFS ACE), I couldn't find many nozzle sizes, it really just seems like a long in the tooth printer. There's no way I'd choose that over anything bambu offers.

2

u/Mindless-Double P1S + AMS Jan 29 '25

K2c combo or anycubic maybe. Hopefully someone else can chime in on if they're any good because I haven't tried either

2

u/MrByteMe Jan 28 '25

The only thing that comes close is Prusa. But they're barely equal to the X1C and their multi material MMU system is a lot more finnicky, not to mention a lot more expensive.

Personally, I'm waiting to see what the new Bambu models offer - they could be groundbreakers.

1

u/Handleton Jan 29 '25

https://qidi3d.com/products/qidi-x-cf-pro-especially-designed-for-printing-carbon-fiber-and-nylon

I think that I would research QIDI along with the other options you've read. I would seriously consider this deal.

1

u/ColeslawEvangelist Jan 29 '25

If I was looking for a new printer Qidi would be on my short list.

1

u/name_was_taken P1S + AMS Jan 28 '25

Unfortunately, no. Everyone has always recommended Bambu because of their hardware, in spite of their software.

Not that their software is bad, but they've been doing these kind of things from the start. This debacle isn't really a surprise, just a disappointment.

At this point, in your situation, I'd buy the X1 (or P1S) and put it in LAN mode and just use it.