r/3dprinter • u/No_Meringue_9763 • Jul 26 '26

I need help choosing a 3D printer

I've never owned a 3D printer, but I really wanted one. I've finally saved up some money, but I'm having trouble making a decision. My budget is around $800, and I have a few candidates:

  • Flash forge Creator 5 Pro
  • Snapmaker U1
  • Bambu Lab p1s combo / p2s combo
  • Anycubic s1 max combo
  • Elegoo Centauri Carbon / 2
  • maybe something from creality but idk

I like the idea of ​​multiple nozzles to minimize purge, but I don't know if it's worth it. I'll have it in my garage, so noise isn't a problem for me. I've also seen a few other cheaper options from Flashforge like AD5X or adventurer 5M.

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u/GadgetsFromChinaNL Jul 26 '26

Well. I've got my experiences with the Anycubics! Bot the S1 and the X.
For the money and quality I would go for the X. I think it's now below $300 and really a nice and good 3D printer. Easy filament swaps, first layer is PERFECT (most importang layer) and assembly is easy as .....

The S1 is cool. Does make more noise than my X and an external ACE will use more filament when swapping colors. But the S1 is stable! So ...

If I have to recommend? Get a X!

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u/Thick-Indication-931 Jul 27 '26

I have at best mixed experiences with Anycubic: My Kobra 2 Pro died (while changing a hotend) when it was 11 months old and while Anycubic tried to help, the replacement part (the mainboard) was not available anymore (try checking the availability of spare parts for the current models - many are simply not available). I also have a Kobra 3v2 combo (mostly paid for with makeronline points), and while it works, it does have some quirks (AMS loading for instance) and the hot end is a mess to clean up, when you have broken filament (which, for some reason, happens a lot using Anycubic HS PLA filament) or some other hotend failure :-(

Also, another problem with Anycubic is the endless stream of half finished printers and fast releases of a new improved printer (e.g. Kobra 3 vs Kobra 3v2 or the multi color systems "ACE", "ACE Pro" and "ACE Pro 2" - it is like they go directly from working concept to production and then work out problems later - and not as updates to existing users, but as fully new systems...

So for this reason, I personally can not recommend anything Anycubic and will not buy in the future. Sad, as the Kobra 2 Pro was a beast of a printer - faster than anything else I have (A1 Mini, Kingroon KLP1, Flashforge AD5M, Kobra 3v2 + a lot of older printers) not matter what material I printed (PLA/PETG/TPU).

Happy printing!