Is The A1 Worth It? Diving Into Bambu Labs Newest 3d Printer
Check out Micro Swiss for awesome 3d printer upgrades:
store.micro-swiss.com/
Find out more or pick up your own A1 printer here (Aff):
shrsl.com/4cirw
Love the channel? Consider supporting me on Patreon:
www.patreon.com/user?u=806627
Join the official ModBotArmy discord server: / discord
Adam's A1 Mini Teardown Video:
kzhead.infoc9h4XsP8...
Models used:
Drill guide:
www.printables.com/model/6440...
Castle Slide:
www.printables.com/model/6516...
Flying Propeller:
www.printables.com/model/2278...
Low Poly Wolf:
www.printables.com/model/3863...
Flexible Dragon:
makerworld.com/en/models/8158...
Poker Chips:
makerworld.com/en/models/3529...
In todays video we dive into the newest Bambu Lab printer the A1. This is an I3 style 3d printer and the bigger brother to the A1 Mini that was released just a few months ago. We will go over specs, what setup was like, how it has performed and I will give you my overall thoughts based on my experience so far.
(´∀｀)♡ As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases:
Buy now on Amazon: amzn.to/2jQAOgV
Subscribe To My 3d Printing Blog! :
Lets Get Social!
Facebook: / dopesoner930
Twitter: / modbotarmy
Instagram: / modbotarmy
Twitch: / dopesoner930
A1s do not poop. They flick boogers.
The good old pick and flick 😂
Hahahahahahaha
Funny lol
Loose stomach with pressure 😅
It depends on the color of the filament ;)
Bambu must have sent one of these to every 3D printing KZhead channel! My feed is flooded with A1 reviews from everyone. This is the first one with any negatives about it. I recently bought an Elegoo Neptune 4, but this series bears paying attention to for my next upgrade purchase.
Yeah, I have no idea how many received test units but definitely quite a few. It is odd that I notice some cooling issues with the prints since the A1 Mini is running the same toolhead and fan but I did not see this. I will have to compare the profiles, maybe they are pushing quicker speeds with the A1. The tabs is a bummer, I had this happen early on and reached out to let them know. I am hoping some sort of mod or slight revision to the bed housing is possible.
Wish I’d get one too lol
Bambu lab will send a free printer to anyone with a pulse and more than 10 subscribers.
No bed slingers they said
@@god1aj I also remember when Apple insisted they would NOT be making a phone.
I have an A1 on the way, and Bambu now has additional base supports included with the top mount print kit for the AMS lite.
Thanks for this great review. I subbed. I expect my A1 to be delivered soon. I can't wait.😊
I still think that mounting the AMS on top of the printer will add vibration artifacts to the print. It has to with all that mass mounted that high. Input shaping can only account for so much vibration.
Just a heads up. The current version of the AMS Lite top mount comes with braces for the Z axis to prevent wobble.
Someone sent me a link :). They werent available when this was sent over but I am definitely going to install them to brace the unit.
The things these a1s have makes me very exited for the x2 and p2 series
Based on what the P1 is to the X1 and these A1s are to the P1s, expect more corner cutting and a reduction in overall quality in upcoming models.
Great video brother. The honesty you have with your community is refreshing. I can appreciate you calling out any cons without hesitation. Still seems to be a great unit. I subbed and thumbs upped. I am currently waiting for my Bambu Labs P1P.
Id love to see a hueforge video with this printer ❤
Yes, please! A Hueforge video would be great!
I would looove more deep dives into Hueforge. I’m still trying to get my bearings on making my sisters sweet nature/architecture photos translate
Yep. Hue forge is cool. Do a video 🙏🏻
Definitely yes on the HueForge stuff.
Will do, thanks!
this can also do CF with the Hardened steel tip
Got my A1 on the announcement day at Micro Center and so far it's been great, 0 failures and great prints. I have no complaints.
Good for you. Have fun with it, but you might want to cover the camera. A KZheadr found his private parts on the footage while checking the printing progress in the middle of the night, wearing only his Adam costume.
Me too, but just scrub build plate with soap and water in the sink and dry with papertowel or washcloth etc.... if you do start getting failures like I did, after 24 7 printing u days a week for months lol, but it can't do everything we have to clean the plate once In a while lile every printer it's just SO easy that we forget ahha cuz the printer is so damn convinient
@@andreas.grundlerlol ya the camera comes with a cover. It comes covered up.... lol
There is a printed part out there to fix the plate registration that goes where those guides are for the other printers. I wonder if it will work for the A1.
Bambulab is really doing all the right things in terms of marketing and decision making. Pretty amazing to see from a business perspective!
Almost... their customer support is still green, and with increasing users, it is hard to imagine a swift solution. From the business perspective, all the rest is impressive, with an outstanding match between the target market and products.
@@Heatfluidnamycs totally agree on the CS side. Aside from that their business decisions have been great.
Awesome video Thanks 🙂
Hueforge is amazing, it would be very cool if you did a video on it so people know more about it and using it.
Thanks for the heads-up on the bed tabs! I just ordered mine and I don't have any spare nozzles...
I would at least get one spare. They have hardened steel ones also which are really nice. 😊
Definitely getting this!
good bedslingers are sometimes the better option. when you print with >1.0mm nozzle and can't go super fast anyway, or when you print small objects. biggest complain i have is the space bedslingers need. my cr10s pro v2 demands ~90cm movement space, my k1 max only needs 60. you can stack them up much better
in what situation is bedslinger better than voron 0 for small things
@@youtubehandlesuxwhen you can't afford a voron 0
I would love to see a deep dive into HueForge. Thanks for the video.
HueForge deep dive please! 👍🏻👍🏻
Totally agree we need more coverage!
With the bed confirmed going up to 100°C and the nozzle up to 300°C, what is still not clear to me WRT printing high temperature filaments (ABS, ASA, PC) is why Bambu Lab are saying on their wiki/FAQ page for the A1 that "We don't recommend enclosing the A1" - any ideas? Could it be due to insufficient cooling for the electronics, or maybe issues with softening the Z axis timing belt? I am asking because I've built my own perfectly sealed enclosure (a lot of sweat went into making it) and I'd rather use that with the A1 if possible than pay for the P1S, especially since the A1 has the quick change nozzle and no "no build areas". Bambu Lab mention they don't recommend printing high temperature filaments on the A1 due to the lack of the enclosure (the A1 is therefore not able to ensure the required higher chamber temperatures and also not able to contain the toxic VOCs), but they never explain why they recommend against enclosing the A1.
How wide is the printer with the ams light on the side? 🤔 I'm thinking about whether I can put it through the ikea platsa or put it next to it 😆
Im so happy with my a1... i just wish theyd explain on a sticker note on the front showing visual of how you should rinse it in a sink with soap and water and a sponge/brush or hand lol thats literally all it ever needs
These are having problems with the cables catching fire
So, can dry boxes be used with this system, and have you printed using dissolvable PVA filament? What is your recommendation. I am looking to use a dessolvable for support filament.
Also check out purge into object go to objects, others and click purge into object i always add 1 more model for the purge and save a lot of waste that way.
Anything you'd suggest I get set up prior to picking up the A1? (waiting for them to re-release)
My prints coming off this printer show less ringing than my X1C :) Speed is still FAST.
Do you think Creality will come out with a AMS for the K1?
How do i fix the cooling and layer print time in bambu studio?
Excellent video, thanks! Looking to buy an A1 soon, any idea if I can upgrade and add the AMS at a later date or do I need to purchase them together?
Yes ams can be purchased separately afterwards. It does cost more that way though.
What is the height with the spool holder on top?
For me I am going to get a P1S since it looks nicer, is enclosed and has the normal AMS. But the A1 is probably my new exclusive recommendation for starting out.
P1S is awesome. I really like mine and if I had the choice between the two would also go that route.
I have one in my closet but during these cold winter days I’ve been having many failed prints unsticking to the build plate. Seems like I need an non-textured plate with glue to combat this.
7:15 Is the filament purge catcher an accessory or 3D printed?
If you want perfect quality at speed you still need to buy the non- bed slinger versions IMO. And I'd rather have an enclosed AMS to help prevent moisture which makes a big difference to quality. Since I've been using an enclosed filament heater with my Creality Ender 5 Plus the quality has jumped up several notches. I know the A1 is a good price but personally I'd rather save up for one of the other versions from Bambu.
Thanks for that. I've been waiting for my local microcenter to get some P1S in stock. They seem to be really trying to get people to buy the truckload of the A1 they have.
Im unsure to buy one of this… I got a Prusa Mini but i want a bigger one with multicolor, so the A1 combo is like the perfect one. But is the print so good and consistent like the prusa mini? Can u help me with some infos?
A friend gave me his old ender 3 and wow what a nightmare. It works but is way too much work to get things going. I really want to pick one of these up. I just want to print!!
Ive had my k1 max for about a month now and i rewlly wanted to look into multi color cilament options i relalt have enjoyed my k1 max but recently experienced clogs which was my fault from the spool getting tangled and after tsking apart the hot end nozzle and such ive experienced a lot of stringing on all my prits so far im wondering if its a good idea to return the pritner and pickup the a1 combo it looks amazing the features are really what want me to switch i hate to return it but if all that packaging to return the printer if im nore happy with the a1 combo thats all i care for.
Thanks for the diary
Yes! Definitely do a HueForge video.
What material is used in this video? At the end he said that cooling is not a issue if you use PLA or PETG, but what material is used in the video that needs additional cooling?
Nice video, what do you think about ender 3v2?
Don't use a metal scraper on those PEI sheets. I switched to the plastic razor blades to prevent damaging my sheets (like the metal one has).
I haven’t had an issue with it but you definitely don’t want to apply force. It can glide and get under things easily but if your not careful there is risk. I may try the plastic blades just to compare.
i actually sharpened my scraper to be like a wide razor blade, and since then, i havent had any issues using metal on PEI. YMMV
Does it work with the blled controller?
So you think the P1s is a better printer all together?
Good morning. When will it be available for sale to consumers?!
I have a prusa mini and I think it doesn't make much sense for me to buy a little larger (but faster) printer even if it has AMS, I love how bambu stirred up the pot, and I'll wait for the large version.
I'll be honest, bought an a1 mini and already have a prusa mk3s with pinda bed levelling. So far, bambu has nothing on the prusa with consistancy and reliability. Alot of faffing with the load cell levelling and ams load fails. Has all the technology and prints nicely when ok but its 50/50 at best
The bed levelling is so inconsistant, one print will be perfect and the next will have the z offset too high
@@jacobplatt3066 ouch. Haven't heard of many bad experiences yet, I suppose they will have to iron out the flaws very quickly if they want long term sales numbers.
@@dingdingdingdiiiiing Yeah, it can be frustrating. Only explanation is that the PEI textured bed is the culprit (Or oozing filament) because of the surface texture but surely this wouldnt cause this much disparety
Prusa is trash
ill subscribe if you could make a video directly comparing the p1s to the a1, im thinking of buying one but i just cant decide, but i have the money for both. also if you cant dont worry about it, i dont want to add more things for you to do, goedendag!
Hello and thank you for your excellent comment, I hesitated to take the P1s , but I ordered the A1 that I have not yet received, I print only pla and I look for the quality of prints, I wonder if I did not make a mistake, Many people say it’s worse than p1s in terms of print quality, will I be able to change my A1 to P1s if I’m not satisfied? Are there any problems with bambu lab returns (I am French)? Thank you in advance for your answer, thank you again...
I am not sure what the return policy is like especially outside of the US. Worst case I would think you can sell it locally for at least very close to what you purchased. Honestly if quality is your biggest want you just may need to slow down the speeds a bit. P1S has added cooling and a more rigid frame so yes you will be able to go faster and maintain quality but at the increase in cost.
a huforge video would be great
I have seen other multi-color printers do fairly well with just a ‘purge tower’ - is the Bambu’s additional “poop station” really necessary, resulting in so much waste?
Lots can be done to minimize waste. kzhead.info/sun/qLOtlpGFoJh4lmg/bejne.html
You can choose to use a purge tower instead if you want. You can also purge into infill and/or support material.
So the A1 gets a touch screen while my P1S still have a vizio TV remote covered up with my ESP32 touch lol. Jokes aside looks like one hell of a lil printer. Ender 3 S1 killer!?
I like ModBot.
can u help with the problem with x belt. My printer shows the error with timing belt of x and says its loose and my printer has damaged my last 5 prints and i have been frusted in not to solve that problem . can u help with it.
This is one of the better reviews I've watched for this printer, however, it seems that all the reviews have "omitted" the actual speeds that they were running the test prints. Was this on purpose? Seems that would be valuable information to those watching to decide on purchasing.
he mentioned slicer defaults which for the A1 is roughly 200mm/s with 7k accel but you can go a fair bit faster without dropping quality if you dont mind adding brims (bedslinger moment)
Why does it say it gets up to a 100 bed temp online?
oon the coin slide the layer shift is in every video i watch on youtube. i feel like its somthing with the model it zelf
Sadly still waiting for this to release 😮💨
This is going to be my next printer withour the ams
Me too
Definitely hueforge. Sadly 3 Bambu prints but no AMS
I’m confused about the maximum bed temp. Is it 80°C or 100°C?
It’s 100 I verified it. Their original printer specs that we were sent was incorrect.
Wasn't there a correction on this from Bambu stating that the bed does go up to 100c?
Yes I did put that in the video 😊
Does the AMS system come with or do you have to buy it separately I’m looking at buying one since my Ender 3 v2 NEO just broke
You can buy just A1 or A1 combo with AMS lite 🙂
8:16 wolf looks like it has some banding
I have only seen it on that print. I used another filament and printed just a tall square cube and saw no signs of it. Not sure if it was the silk filament or something with slicer settings.
How much tweaking to your profile in your slicer did you need to do to dial in silks? Getting frustrated with the lack of profiles in cura or prussa for the Anycubic kobra neo 2 and the anycubic slicers is limited on parameters. Wondering if the A1 would be an upgrade or not.
Try the Orca Slicer, see if that is compatible with your printer and will help you out on that issue with printing silk..
I've had no issues with silks on this thing
@@alvodisco oh damn. Making it even harder to resist getting one. Lol
I own an Ender 3 Pro, I've dumped a stupid amount of money for parts for it and messed with Marlin & Cura constantly and I can't get quality prints and I still feel like it isn't up to par. Would this be a good thing to go for?
I have an ender 3 S1 - I am going to trash mine - I am looking at this - I like that there is no option to have to run paper and fiddle with screws at the corners to try to get it level. I am going to get this or a car xy variant - I just want to know if the bed slinger design effects quality like you are asking - it is not good that he saw imperfections in the benchy - but I would take an imperfect benchy over what I could do with my old printer.
@@tomsop Me too man, I just ordered one for Christmas because this looks promising- gonna see if I can make any money off my Ender 3 Pro but I think this is a great start into the Bambu Lab line up which have some great products.
+1 for Hueforge
1:56 The arm still jumps about
I ordered one of these after my Kobra 2 broke for the third time in 4 months of ownership. I just want one to work without much tinkering.... we shall see.
The only review to mention negatives for the printer in a flood of reviews.
Good morning. Would you consider doing a series of resin printer videos focused on those of us who do primarily functional prints with our FDM printers currently? The series could investigate the Pros and Cons of resin printing for functional parts, the differences between FDM and resin printing for functional parts, and best practices for printing functional parts with a resin printer. Most of the resin printer content currently available is focused on miniatures and does not address the specific requirements for functional prints such as part tolerances, part-to-printbed alignment for functional parts, and post-processing considerations for functional components. Thank for considering this request.
I would like to try one out just to be different. watching beds sling around at warp speed is entertaining Thanks for the video!
another thing, all the waste makes for excellent packing material LOL can you imagine opening a box filled with that/ hahahaha
Someone mentioned packing material, another was for planter mix inside of a pot. I saw someone recently that created an aluminum mold and was selling custom coasters out of it. Definitely some options to repurpose.
I like mine very much..
Out of these which one should I get ? • Elegoo Neptune 4 plus • Creality K1 • Ender 5 S1 • Anycubic Kobra Plus • Bambu A1 Or any other printer thats in the £300 price range
Bambu A1 has bed heater issue and Creality k1 isn’t a good printer. Ender 5 S1 is a good printer but when you are planning to add mods to it. Kobra printers are good, but bed slingers aren’t very good at handling heavy prints
8:16 anyone else see the z banding? i'm confused that a lot of the bambu reviews say the quality is excellent etc when they look like they have many problems! are my stanrdards too high?
So it was only on that model. I originally also thought it was z banding so I ran a square tower and none of the artifacts were present. I am not sure if it is just the silk, or the combination of the silk with the infill/speed but I did not see it with the other filaments.
@@ModBotArmy huh strange…
what happens if you have many PLA's but not all from bambu and put it in the AMS?
So far all the PLA i use in my A1 is not from Bambu and it works fine. you can use generic PLA or create customized settings in the slicer for certain makers, like Inland or others.
What if you have mixed color Pla? Sparkle, rainbow, glow one?
@@TheFighterX4 If you go into Bambu Studio, and select to add a custom filament, you can chose from a reasonable list of vendors, though no where near all of them that are out there probably. Then you then chose the type of filament ie, PLA,PETG, TPU, ABS, more etc. then you define whether its basic, matte, Silk, Marble etc, then you can chose settings from an existing preset or generic for standard settings. So far for most any filament I've used Generic PLA, with other defining factors has worked fine. Bambu Filaments if using the AMS, reads information somehow from the reel to setup up what it is, color, and other settings automatically. When you switch colors on the AMS, it purges of the nozzle of the previous color before resuming printing. This many consider to be wasteful, however I like being able to have color models, not a single color for some models not all., However when doing color, if I can do it with a reasonable number of color changes during the print. I will, and Bambu Studio tells you all these details. Considering how much filament I've tossed even before color., and perhaps many others as well from failed prints, waste all a matter of perspective. It would be nice if some filament companies could setup a recycling program to recover filament from failed prints and using color. Not aware of any yet..
yes for hueforge
Which Prusa printer does it compete with? Mk3s, Mk4s?
I don't think it's really competing with the MK3/MK4. It may look like it, but the targeted user groups are very different. The MK3/MK4 is first and foremost an industrial printer. Not pretty, but reliable and easy to maintain. And it's for people who want to delve deeper into the technology behind 3D printing, with the ability to modify and tinker with the printer. The A1 is a printer for people who "just want to print" without getting into the technology behind it. In this respect, it competes more with the AnkerMake M5/M5C, which also promises ease of use.
Creality, but mostly P1/X1 series for those with smaller pockets
I see a lot of creators showing Z banding, and cooling inadequacies. Was excited for this model, but most likely going to stay away, I don't see anything special here, except ease of use. Was hoping the quality would be just as good as the X1 but it does not seem to be the case.
I would definitely say print quality is better on the CoreXY printers at least if you are trying to print at these higher speeds. A more conservative profile will definitely help. The Z banding is odd, I printed a tall cube to see if I could spot it but did not see any at all. The silk filament seemed to maybe have some but I actually think it was caused by the infill pattern.
Keep in mind these videos were made before a lot of firmware updates. The banding has been pretty much eliminated now. Yes a 5mm round 200mm tall tall rod will probably still wobble, but that's a part issue, not a printer problem.
Hueforge PLS!
What do you suggest between A1 and A1 Mini? You seemed more enthusiastic in the A1 mini video 😄
I think that may be because the A1 mini was the first in their A1 line so it was a lot of new things while this carry’s much of that over. Main perks of this one is 100c bed and bigger build volume. No bed tab issues on the mini but a lot of it comes down to space. The minis really won me over but for $100 difference the bigger size and two towers for z probably makes more sense for many.
@@ModBotArmy thank you very much for the answer, now I have a Neptune 3 Pro and give me problems and I want go with a bambu because I want to print and not think about anything else. I'm very undecided between the a1 and the a1 mini, and also whether or not to get the ams which perhaps I would never use 😅
@@pieronompleggio3910 given that you save $100 by getting it in the bundle I would opt to get it. If fore some reason you don’t use it I imagine you can recoup at least close to that amount given the standalone price.
@@ModBotArmy do you mean selling the ama light? Play with bambu studio with a1 and a1 mini profile I notice that for some models the a1 mini is faster than the a1, it’s because it have less travel to make?
Yeah exactly I mean to sell it locally if you end up not wanting it. Versus not getting it and decided to buy it later at $100 more. I haven’t compared profiles between the A series.
I would not be surprised if this ended up being more durable and print higher quality than the p1p or x1c. Having experience with plenty of other bed slingers, all they were missing was some software and sensors for convenience. Sure it might be slower than the corexy printers, I’m confident all other pros will outweigh the cons. I’ll keep my p1p’s but I’d prefer some of these fellas.
Higher quality? Why? The only benefit to a bedslinger is price.
do you have any updates on the failing of the ams of this printer as it has been reported that number 2 slot to be failing for many people. great video by the way
Def an interest in those amazing pictures on the printer !!! ❤️🙏🏻 we are all one
obvious failure point is the fans. how hard is it to replace a fan? GEE I DUNNO MISTER
I got a X1C about 5ish months ago and I must admit that i would have a hard time picking the X1C over this again. its like 1/3 the price even with the AMS. The only thing I don't like is the poop chute flinging everywhere
You definitely want some kind of a catch for the filament purge. It gets messy real quick without it.
Sold my X1C for $1200 the day I picked this A1 up. No regrets!
@@foam27why? any other reason besides price? X1C is better quality imho
So it dosent have a camera?
Pls do a hueforge video
Yes hueforge!
According to my grandchildren an A1 delivered this week has a recall notice. Why is Bambulabs delivering faulty units that are not even registered with the Canadian govt recall database? This is probably a criminal violation or a good reason for a class action.
Putting the AMS on the top of the machine is going to introduce A TON of resonance and lower the overall acceleration as input shaper won’t be able to make up for all of it
I am sure there is a tradeoff and the z axis braces have also been released to help stiffen things up. It didn't seem to have visible affect on print quality using the standard profiles (once I reran input shaping). If you are trying to push the printer to its limits then it may not be the route you want to go. I typically have more height than desk space to work with so I really like the space savings.
More weight on the Gantry (where the AMS is mounted) is stationary and the additional weight actually DECREASES resonance. If it was moving, what you are saying would be true.
500mm/s Only in X axe, in Y low speed
But what did the NDA not let you talk about?
long live bed slingers
Me and a friend call it the Bruce Springsteen plate
I don't understand why manufacturers don't use independent z stepper motors
In this case the only thing I can think of is cost. Similar to why they don’t use multiple motors for their beds and they just use a belt to synchronize it.
Because there really is not that much of a benefit to it.
I have 1 has 2Z mounters and they get out of sync all the f****** time.
Plenty of manufactures do use dual Z stepper motors. Prusa MK2/MK3/MK4 use them. Even my old anycubic mega S used them. Sovol uses them too.
@@LilApe dual motors, yes. but they're not independent steppers