How so? I'm not a fanboy, but out of the printers I've tried and taking price into consideration, I would definitely recommend bambu atm. Prusa is dead to me tho.
As somewhat of a Bambu fanboy myself, I am just happy there is some genuine competition in the consumer 3D printing market now. These past few years have been absolutely amazing for those of us who are not incredible tinkeres, but who really enjoy designing and printing! The more great products we get in this space, the better the experience will be. I appreciate that a lot.
More competition is better for the customer. Often enough it means that whoever was first to market will reduce the price on their product to avoid losing market share to competition.
@@BitterCynicalBambu’s offerings are getting a bit old now so as the competition comes in to copy what they’ve done and improve on it, they’ll have to offer even more. This is win-win for all of us. I really hope Creality has finally nailed the quality and becomes that legit second major option for consumers in the affordable space.
I have an X1C as my first machine, and I'm totally stoked to see Creality come out with this offering. More competition in the market is a win for the consumer. With the formal release of the k2, I'm sure bambu is going to be pressed to release more info on that new flagship.
Gotta thank the Klipper software developers for the firmware that makes the newer, faster, better print quality 3D printers possible, as well as the various open source hardware developers for the design improvements that are making it into commercial 3D printers.
@@Kxng5Jeevy Do you really believe that? Every beslinger on the market is basically a Prusa i3 style printer. When Prusa added heated beds and removable build plates to their printers, so did the other manufacturers. Prusa introduced automatic bed levelling and so did the other manufacturers. Even the Bambu Lab X1C contains elements that were first introduced by Prusa and the Bambu Studio is based on the Prusa Slicer. A software that is developed as open source by Prusa and that Bambu Lab has used as the basis for its slicer. You are looking at a very short period of time in which a lot has changed and completely ignore the 10 years before that in which 3D printing slowly developed from nozzles that came from the DIY store and print beds covered with painter's tape to an industry with millions in revenue. Of course, Prusa could not compete with the prices of the Chinese manufacturers. They manufacture in the EU and therefore are their prices higher. Creality has copied a lot from Prusa and made 3d printing more affordable for the masses. It was never Prusa that dominated the market prior to Bambu Lab. It was actually Creality.
Yeah I bought most of their machines up to and including 2 X Ender 5 Plus, with the Ender 5 Plus they said they fixed a FW issue where the bed was scanned in an uniform manner, they didn't! in fact they introduced a new fault where random mesh data was produced from the bed leveler. I sacked them by purchasing Bambu Lab X1 Carbons and AMS units. I still use the Ender 5 Plus machines in a production environment as they have massive build surfaces but I have modded them withinan inch of their lives, there is not much of Creality left on them! I am expecting plenty of errors with this machine, well its traditional isn't it!
This is absolutely true, and always holds me back on their products. I got the Adventurer 5M instead, for 300 bucks you really can´t complain. I would be hesitant to invest 1.5k in this machine instead.
thats exactly why im not eagered to go back to creality. and it took em 3 years to counter bambu. we all know bambu is throwing its black friday sale early so they can introduce their new model for xmass ;)
Just wait until enough people get their machines and had them for a few months. I'll guess that RUclipsrs will get handpicked printers that were tested before.
glad to see that the community stopped hating Nathan for liking Creality he's been pretty vocal on where they go wrong but giving praise where it's due as well
@@JohnSmith-rt5yq I think it's hit or miss with Creality. I haven't dealt with them directly for purchasing a printer yet; I have four printers right now, three of which are Creality units. Two of these were bought used, and one was bought new from Walmart on discount. I've never had to contact Creality customer support, and the one new printer I bought (Ender 3 Max Neo) has continued to be an absolute kickass workhorse since I made a few tweaks (steel extruder gear, different hotend housing, bimetal heatbreak, silicone bed springs. That's it.). My Ender 3 V2 was bought broken from an acquaintance, now it's an Ender 3 V2 S1 testbed so to speak (I put a Sprite Pro hotend on it along with a CR-Touch probe and V4.2.7 mobo), and my CR-10 S5 is still chugging along in pretty much stock format with the same fixes as the Ender 3 Max Neo. Basically, a couple bucks in upgrades for all of them (the Sprite Pro kits are only $60-ish on Ebay now), and they'll be working for years to come. I can't speak for the K1 series, but I'm hoping the K2 will reflect the longevity of the Ender 3, only with more bells and whistles, bigger build volume, and less tinkering.
Yeah, I point it out as a potential issue, but it’d only be an issue if you’re being really dumb and were building a 2kg print off to one side… I could make it into an issue in a contrived use case, but 99% of the time it’d be fine.
If this printer really delivers, it might just restore my faith in Creality. The K1 felt like a rushed and sloppy attempt to catch up with Bambu Labs and the market they kicked off. But the K2 looks way more thought out, with all the features people actually want-finally giving us a reason to stick with Creality instead of shopping around.
Outstanding presentation Nathan one of the best I’ve seen so far will be looking forward to more updates by you and thank you my fellow Creality fanboy I’ve been one for about 10 years and they are outstanding company to work with and I am looking forward to the arrival of my K2 in the middle of November. It looks like another great product from Creality.
They all work great out of the box, it’s 6 months down the line where the true colours start to come out. This machine definitely seems geared more towards high temp filaments and it seems they have done their homework to iron out the issues that made the K1 Max a bit of a nightmare to own. Let’s just see how it holds up over time with high chamber heat cycles. I guess what do people really expect for the price point and a 30 day return warranty and no follow up servicing options.
This. This is the reason why I think I'd still rather pay extra for a Bambu XL, it just depends on how much extra. I've got an X1C and a K1 Max sitting beside me and honestly, I don't even power the K1 Max on anymore unless there's a specific thing I need that's too big for the X1C which is almost never.
@@kylequinn1963 I was the same and so I bought a P1S but what I’ve found is that those machines don’t like ABS long term, the carbon rods warp or bind up over a certain temperature and I get under extrusion, apparently a known issue once they changed to a cheaper steel print head bearing. So mine just sits there now until I can be bothered trying to solve it. I to am interested to see the new Bambu XL but if it’s not more designed to handle high temps for long periods I won’t bother with that either.
No matter how good this is, I’ll have to wait a year to bother with another Creality. Bambu has a new flagship due out in 2025 and they have my trust at the moment as someone who doesn’t want to constantly fix a machine.
This. Creality and Elegoo currently have zero trust from me, I got rid of all my other printers after I got my Bambu Lab and have not regretted it at all. I'll wait to see what Bambu drops since they said it's coming Q1
@@reallyanti Me too. I had both Creality and Elegoo, both of which are trying to release printers that compete with Bambu Lab right now, but neither will ever be as good.
Only started following a couple months ago and the main reason i did as well as in general, is i really appreciate that nathan doesnt mince words. ive heard mixed reviews about the k1 and tbh it was making look at bambu more. but with this in the works and hearing just his base impression of the k2, im so grateful for a 30min honest review haha.
As a modded and tuned ender 3 and stock p1s owner who wants a larger format, It's VERY nice to see other players in this game again. Especially Creality. Ill keep doing some research but the K2 plus may have a future spot on my desk!
Thanks for the great video. I took a gamble and pre ordered it (40% off) after having a positive experience with the KE and V3. Would love to see more indepth technical videos for the printer, as that interests me more than just printing plastic crap for the sake of printing. Thanks again!
I commented on one of your video's that when someone brings out a 3d printer that is as good as bambu labs printer i would buy one, Hooray at last i will be buying this one and i believe this could at last be a bambu killer i've been waiting for .
Would love to see some side by sides with the Bambu Lab machines, that seems to be the Bambu labs strength, not just speed but super clean and consistent prints.
@@riba2233 It's a bedslinger so it won't be as stable or good as a CoreXY machine. However the same could apply to both machines, with tuning on both, the X1C will probably still have better print results.
I just set up a Sovol SVO8 and it has exceeded my expectations. Full klipper, quad z motors, 7 linear rails, etc. Its a beast and under rated. This one looks nice and a main contender a bambu but creality slice is an abomination and should be abandoned and never talked about again lol.
@@AndrewAHayes Mine is printing non stop since I got it. I don’t like inductive probes but it has been consistent even on a hologram build surface. I also changed to a .6 micro Swiss hot end. As far as I can tell klipper is fully unlocked too. All printers are clones of something. China is built on exploiting weak ip laws. The creality k series is them exploiting their own Chinese competitors lol.
They've been matched/beat on hardware, but the real thing Bambu brought was the user experience - user interface, error notification and walkthroughs on fixing it and such. If it can't walk a new user through a jam or feed issue, it's going to frustrate anyone who wants it to just work. Hopefully some good feedback on that.
I’ve been happy with a v3 from Creality. I’ll admit they have started to turn things around ever since they decided to compete with Bambu. I still think it’s going to rub people the wrong way how they release so many iterative variants on the market. You pretty much have to wait until their 3rd or 4th revision on a product to get something great. If this can be picked up on an inevitable discount it’s going to be pretty decent value.
It’s funny to see so many people complaining that companies are stealing ideas to make products… that’s how advancements are made, that’s how we improve designs lol, that’s how we get competition between these companies which lowers the cost of these machines and make it possible that we can get theses machines for home use.
I could see this being my next 3D printer. One thing I'd like to know is how its dimensional accuracy and precision compare to the Bambu X1C. I find that to fit parts together printed from the Bambu, I need about a 0.2mm margin. I'd like to know what that margin is for this Creatlity printer.
I've got an X1C and bought it on the second round of pre-orders, and have enjoyed it for about two years now. Finally, Creality has pulled their thumb out and looks to have a comparable quality machine coming, and I'm happy as I can be that I have a pre-order for the K2+ coming soon-ish (November? Any confirmation there? Anyone? Beuler?) ^_^ I don't fanboy for any company, I'll be the first to tell you that Bambu isn't perfect, but they've changed the market, and anyone saying otherwise is just not being honest. With any luck, this "shot across their bow" from Creality will then force Bambu to get their thumb out as well, and make a 350-cubed machine of their own, with some new bells and whistles too. That would force even more companies to not only make their own big CoreXY machines with all of the new bells and whistles, but make them faster, better, cheaper, and of course keep trying to innovate. I don't want ANY company to have unchallenged dominance in the market, competition is what EVERYONE should want, not stagnation behind one design(er) and innovation only when the manufacturer feels like throwing the customers a bone.
This is so freaking awesome!!!! So cool to see you actually happy about a new printer! It's too pricey for me, but so glad that Creality is bringing it. After upgrades to my K1s, I am finally very happy with them, but great to see them come out of the gate with swinging with the K2!
This is the first creality printer I’ve REALLY liked out of the box. Some of their recent ones are ok, there older ones always needed a few upgrades. But this one is awesome.
Great review! Thanks! I was intrigued by the K1 Max but didn't order one because it looked like it was not ready for prime time, by which I mean the features looked good but the design and implementation probably wasn't ready for a small business print farm. The K2 Plus seems like a legitimate 2nd generation version where Creality learned from the K1 as well as their competition. Making functional parts, I don't have much use for colors, but I have some designs that I'd love to implement in ABS and TPU, and the K2 Plus would allow me to print those parts in place, making a much better product with no assembly labor. Printing a huge bed of these parts would be a real time saver too, as well as reducing the filament wasted on poop. My only user mod would probably be a heater to make the CFS box into a filament dryer. I assume Creality is using good old reliable steel linear elements on the gantry motion control with bigger motors to get faster speed, unlike Bambu using carbon fiber tubes? Carbon fiber wear probably isn't an issue for hobbyists, but I don't want to see motion control parts visibly wearing on a machine used for 24/7 production.
Thank you for the early info, please keep us updated with anything as creality has a bad history of both quality and company wise that's hopefully come to a turning point.
Hi, awesome video... I'm really excited about this one... BUT, as a victm fo the K1 Max, I need to know... DO THEY REALLY SOLVED Leveling issues and X-axis ressonance?? Can you give us more inoformation about that? Thanks a lot and keep up with the amazing content!!
Have you checked the flattness of the buildplate? How does it change when you heat it? I wished that they would have used 4 lead screws that was individualy controlled to adjust the bed leveling. Had some issues with my K1 Max on that issue.
Power switch on the back = con (so old school it sucks). USB on the side = con (they make extender cables to run it to the front). 5th Spool on the side = con (there is space to mount it to the side and face inward towards the multi-spool holder and still have room). Other than those “minor” negatives, it looks promising.
I've heard of people burning themselves on printbeds trying to install spools on the inside of a machine. Though if you really wanted it set up that way I guess you could mod it.
I really appreciate the comment that while money didn't change hands, you did receive the printer as a favor from the company under the understanding that you would make videos about it and could thus be considered sponsored in that sense. If I were a reviewer, I'd make a point to emphasize that with every review of products received for free from their producers. While this printer is far outside of my price range, its small footprint and low noise would be really enticing if I had deeper pockets. I'm looking forward to seeing how what Creality's made here will ripple down the pricing stack across the market. I wonder if the choice to go for closed-loop control will pan out in particular - the Magneto X seems to be a disappointment overall but closed-loop control with traditional motors instead of linear motors might be the happy medium and the solution to beat if this printer takes off.
Time will tell, while my K1 has been decent, trying to work with Creality when (not if) it breaks has been nothing but a nightmare. they have actually closed most of my tickets before resolving any issues. I've spent so much money to just not have to work with them at this point. i dont think ill be buying their products for a long while. in the process now of swiching to QiDi, and its looking way better than any creality experience ive had to date.
Actually, Bambu has already announced they are releasing a larger-volume flagship printer in Q1 of 2025. They have also somewhat recently (few months ago) patented some IDEX designs and double-extruder designs. @truey90s
I looks like an amazing printer system! I love my K1 Max, but this has the ball out of the park! Also looking to see if they adapt their color system to work on the K1 Max too... Thanks for sharing with us!
the cfm that has a controlled envioment in it is amazing this is the printer i want i have 2 k1 maxes right now i am so getting this in june when they go on order again
idk if you have experience with it, but another comparable machine would be the qidi plus 4. Little smaller build plate though and qidi doesnt have a cms (maybe you could get it to work with the box turtle). It would be interesting to see a detailed comparison between those two from a mechanical and build quality standpoint. edit: For anyone that sees this comment, there is a potential fire hazard issue with the qidi plus 4 so I would probably not consider buying one at this time
I hope Qidi have stepped up their quality. I haven’t seen the 4, but all of their older stuff printed great but had a cheap plasticky feel that made me feel like it was going to break after a while
Please check/verify the report that the door hinges are just glued (as some early bird receivers are complaining their door just fell off due to that). If that's true, with those hinges basically on the inside of the chamber, it's probably just a question of time for everyone's door to come loose.
31 min is a short now? Are we rising up and ending this embargo ourselves? (creality thinks my little videos are too much and to "please don't release the important and detailed content too early, lol." Making me wait till Nov 11th.
Excellent review. I have the K1 Max and have many issues you have to resolve on your own, like the VFA with mods. I want the CFS for the K1 Max but a K2 Plus too. Can you weigh the 3D printer and CFS separately? How many kgs each?
Having problems with the Qidi? I agree, I would not have bought this printer, but I have an excellent example of it to use, and I’m pretty happy with it.
Love to see competition heating up! I wanted to comment on your multi-color print time estimate, 3:52. I think you would find that it takes much less than double the time to double the number of objects, as the number of color changes is the same :)
Oh darn. I bought a new printer 2 weeks ago. Looks like a good printer. Used your link, but not posted yet on their website. At least I didn't find it.
Great video. The printer seems to be nice too. What do you think Nathan, is it a good idea to buy a brand new k1max right now for 590? and mod it ofcourse.
It’s hard to say, they did a silent upgrade to the K1 max so I don’t really know what the newer models are like. Plus I e had issues with heat creep on the new K1 unicorn nozzles
@@NathanBuildsRobots What materials were you printing when heat creep happened ? I had one ordered recently, but had to return it for a new one because of some pulley issue. Box had a date on it 2024-04, it had unicorn nozzle and upgraded extruder etc... When I was talking to creality and asked if there's a way to get one from recent batches, they said that printers are sent randomly, which is a little sad that they sell stock from 6 months ago. Or maybe it was returned or refurbished at some point.
Did bambu hold their release to see what creality was coming up with? What is the max nozzle and bed temp? What is the max temp that the chamber reach (with the heater)?
I would speculate that they just didn’t hit the level of polish or reliability that would be necessary to have a product launch that lives up to their reputation. A bad product launch does a lot of brand damage.
Would love to see more detail regarding the firmware. Specifically, whether they are used a forked Klipper like in the K1, or the publicly available version of Klipper.
@@TheFoxalot Because having both means expensive logistics and 4 is "good enough" for many users. This was they only need to order one set of tooling for production, only need one size of packaging, and don't have to manage stocking multiple SKUs. I do think it'd be nice to have more options as a customer/user, but in terms of business having just one product makes more sense.
@NathanBuildsRobots From another video it seems the K2 may have a color bleeding problem. Probably the nozzle volume is too big and needs excessive purging, and even that doesn’t seem to help, printing from black to a light color. Can you investigate?
I'm very curious to see what other companies cook up in response to this machine. This is one of the first 3D printers with this feature set and build volume that isn't a kit or custom design. How exciting :)
Great video and hope you could make one after using this a lot for 3-4 months. Creality support have been so bad in the past that we don't touch creality machines for print farm, but this is very interrestimg machine to consider. For now we probably will start using Qidi 4 plus even if it is just slightly larger then the A1/X1C we use today.
Nope. I watched the video because who can resist Nathan as a Christmas Elf? As for fanboyism... I've had 6 FDM printers (including an Ender 5 Pro and an Ender 2 Pro) and of them all the only ones that get regular use are my Bambu Lab X1-C and my A1, both with AMS. They just work and require only minimal upkeep. I want to print things as a hobby and not have keeping the printers running correctly as a hobby. Maintenance is a given, but constant tinkering to keep a printer usable, no thanks. It's not about being a fanboy, I'd have settled on a different brand had they provided the ease of use and upkeep that Bambu does. And the new FLSun T1 Pro is right now what I would get were I in the market for another printer. Having said that I'm glad that the advent of Bambu Lab has forced some vendors to up their game, especially Creality from whom I have two older printers that weren't reliable enough for me to be satisfied with them. And after watching this video, this machine is the one I would get if and/or when I need a helmet-class printer.
Happy to see Creality catching up and making sizeable strides, COMPETITION IS GOOD for all of us regardless of you company/printer of choice :) It really seems like they're actually trying to improve on everything instead of just flooding the market with even more Ender 3s that have a single differentiating feature between each other (like, how many printers have they released between 2023 and 2024? Way too many...). The only thing that worries me is time, give everyone's K2s a few months of usage and then tell me how many of them are failing and need repairs or upgrades, like what happened with the K1 series. Instead of fixing the problem for the current units they just released a new printer and left everyone in the dust lol (afaik of course). I'm hopeful, I want to trust them... But it's still Creality :/
My problem with creality isn't that it is not bambu like you are suggesting with the "fan boy" comments l. My problem with creality is that their approach to products is basically throwing half baked spagetti onto a wall and seeing what sticks. I have some confidence that bambu, or tbh most other industru leaders, will make better quality printers with long term reliable support systems compared to creality. That is how much faith i have lost in the company.
Yeah I agree. I wouldn't have placed a pre-order for one of these since there was 0 information about it, but after playing around with it for a week I'd be much more likely to buy one.
outside of the multi-filament system and difference in build areas, how does the K2 Plus compare to the Qidi Plus4? the Creality website is pretty thin on machine specs for this one.
I’ve seen some rough input shaper results from K2 Plus users. Any chance you have run an input shaper that you can show? (I haven’t finished the video at about 3/4 in)
Is the door Uncle Jessy Proof? 😂🤣😅 . How much power does it consume during bed heating and printing (peak nominal) ratings? The website says the aluminum bed is 5mm thick, could you please confirm? Would like to see the core xy motors, they seem to be concealed outside the heatd chamber. Thanks for the fantastic review.
Please go easy on the Bambu Fanboys. They are going through a difficult time right now.
Same goes for the Prusa fanboys! I’m not company loyal, just love the evolution of the tech!
😆😆
Are we? Sorry no, I don't have a constant worry in the back of my mind that's it's going to break like the Creality fanboys. Try next time. :)
I never worry about my ender 3 v3 se@@joshwhite4412
How so? I'm not a fanboy, but out of the printers I've tried and taking price into consideration, I would definitely recommend bambu atm. Prusa is dead to me tho.
As somewhat of a Bambu fanboy myself, I am just happy there is some genuine competition in the consumer 3D printing market now. These past few years have been absolutely amazing for those of us who are not incredible tinkeres, but who really enjoy designing and printing!
The more great products we get in this space, the better the experience will be. I appreciate that a lot.
More competition is better for the customer. Often enough it means that whoever was first to market will reduce the price on their product to avoid losing market share to competition.
@@BitterCynicalBambu’s offerings are getting a bit old now so as the competition comes in to copy what they’ve done and improve on it, they’ll have to offer even more. This is win-win for all of us.
I really hope Creality has finally nailed the quality and becomes that legit second major option for consumers in the affordable space.
I have an X1C as my first machine, and I'm totally stoked to see Creality come out with this offering. More competition in the market is a win for the consumer. With the formal release of the k2, I'm sure bambu is going to be pressed to release more info on that new flagship.
Gotta thank Bambu for forcing these companies to put out quality machines. It's a great time for 3D Printing 🙏🏾🙏🏾
Gotta thank the Klipper software developers for the firmware that makes the newer, faster, better print quality 3D printers possible, as well as the various open source hardware developers for the design improvements that are making it into commercial 3D printers.
@@Liberty4Ever definitely them too
Prusa been putting our quality machines for a decade now.
@@LilApe this is very true but it didn't really force any innovation
@@Kxng5Jeevy Do you really believe that? Every beslinger on the market is basically a Prusa i3 style printer. When Prusa added heated beds and removable build plates to their printers, so did the other manufacturers. Prusa introduced automatic bed levelling and so did the other manufacturers.
Even the Bambu Lab X1C contains elements that were first introduced by Prusa and the Bambu Studio is based on the Prusa Slicer. A software that is developed as open source by Prusa and that Bambu Lab has used as the basis for its slicer.
You are looking at a very short period of time in which a lot has changed and completely ignore the 10 years before that in which 3D printing slowly developed from nozzles that came from the DIY store and print beds covered with painter's tape to an industry with millions in revenue.
Of course, Prusa could not compete with the prices of the Chinese manufacturers. They manufacture in the EU and therefore are their prices higher. Creality has copied a lot from Prusa and made 3d printing more affordable for the masses. It was never Prusa that dominated the market prior to Bambu Lab. It was actually Creality.
Sounds like Creality are locked in on this one, but I've already been burned with their "trust me we fixed it this time".
Yeah I bought most of their machines up to and including 2 X Ender 5 Plus, with the Ender 5 Plus they said they fixed a FW issue where the bed was scanned in an uniform manner, they didn't! in fact they introduced a new fault where random mesh data was produced from the bed leveler.
I sacked them by purchasing Bambu Lab X1 Carbons and AMS units.
I still use the Ender 5 Plus machines in a production environment as they have massive build surfaces but I have modded them withinan inch of their lives, there is not much of Creality left on them!
I am expecting plenty of errors with this machine, well its traditional isn't it!
This is absolutely true, and always holds me back on their products. I got the Adventurer 5M instead, for 300 bucks you really can´t complain. I would be hesitant to invest 1.5k in this machine instead.
thats exactly why im not eagered to go back to creality. and it took em 3 years to counter bambu. we all know bambu is throwing its black friday sale early so they can introduce their new model for xmass ;)
@@rrb79 In my case it was definitely "fool me twice" 🤡
Just wait until enough people get their machines and had them for a few months. I'll guess that RUclipsrs will get handpicked printers that were tested before.
glad to see that the community stopped hating Nathan for liking Creality
he's been pretty vocal on where they go wrong but giving praise where it's due as well
Creality has burned me many times, I'll have to wait before I bite
@@JohnSmith-rt5yq I think it's hit or miss with Creality. I haven't dealt with them directly for purchasing a printer yet; I have four printers right now, three of which are Creality units. Two of these were bought used, and one was bought new from Walmart on discount. I've never had to contact Creality customer support, and the one new printer I bought (Ender 3 Max Neo) has continued to be an absolute kickass workhorse since I made a few tweaks (steel extruder gear, different hotend housing, bimetal heatbreak, silicone bed springs. That's it.). My Ender 3 V2 was bought broken from an acquaintance, now it's an Ender 3 V2 S1 testbed so to speak (I put a Sprite Pro hotend on it along with a CR-Touch probe and V4.2.7 mobo), and my CR-10 S5 is still chugging along in pretty much stock format with the same fixes as the Ender 3 Max Neo. Basically, a couple bucks in upgrades for all of them (the Sprite Pro kits are only $60-ish on Ebay now), and they'll be working for years to come. I can't speak for the K1 series, but I'm hoping the K2 will reflect the longevity of the Ender 3, only with more bells and whistles, bigger build volume, and less tinkering.
I have an X1C and love it, but I'm very happy to see these sort of improvements. Competition is good for consumers.
Same, I'm excited. I just switch to whatever printer works better.
The 2Z axis screws had me worried for a moment until I realized my Prusa XL uses the same number as well. And it’s print quality is excellent.
Yeah, I point it out as a potential issue, but it’d only be an issue if you’re being really dumb and were building a 2kg print off to one side…
I could make it into an issue in a contrived use case, but 99% of the time it’d be fine.
If this printer really delivers, it might just restore my faith in Creality. The K1 felt like a rushed and sloppy attempt to catch up with Bambu Labs and the market they kicked off. But the K2 looks way more thought out, with all the features people actually want-finally giving us a reason to stick with Creality instead of shopping around.
Whats actually going on with the hate in this community? bamboo, creality whatever.. Great to see 3d printing progress.
Bambu have treated me very badly.
Like, their CEO has beef with me or something, idk 🤷
@@NathanBuildsRobots Sorry. I directed that to the regular comments. Great impartial review.
@@NathanBuildsRobots aww poor you 😭 ever wondered why they only did it to you? no way it's 100% your fault right?
@@riba2233 uh, we have a bamboo fanboy right here. please shut up and go hate your pity life elsewhere
Outstanding presentation Nathan one of the best I’ve seen so far will be looking forward to more updates by you and thank you my fellow Creality fanboy I’ve been one for about 10 years and they are outstanding company to work with and I am looking forward to the arrival of my K2 in the middle of November. It looks like another great product from Creality.
They all work great out of the box, it’s 6 months down the line where the true colours start to come out. This machine definitely seems geared more towards high temp filaments and it seems they have done their homework to iron out the issues that made the K1 Max a bit of a nightmare to own. Let’s just see how it holds up over time with high chamber heat cycles. I guess what do people really expect for the price point and a 30 day return warranty and no follow up servicing options.
This. This is the reason why I think I'd still rather pay extra for a Bambu XL, it just depends on how much extra. I've got an X1C and a K1 Max sitting beside me and honestly, I don't even power the K1 Max on anymore unless there's a specific thing I need that's too big for the X1C which is almost never.
@@kylequinn1963 I was the same and so I bought a P1S but what I’ve found is that those machines don’t like ABS long term, the carbon rods warp or bind up over a certain temperature and I get under extrusion, apparently a known issue once they changed to a cheaper steel print head bearing. So mine just sits there now until I can be bothered trying to solve it. I to am interested to see the new Bambu XL but if it’s not more designed to handle high temps for long periods I won’t bother with that either.
Don’t know how I got here. But I’m drunk and just had a guided meditation to whatever the hell this was on my couch. Thanks
No matter how good this is, I’ll have to wait a year to bother with another Creality. Bambu has a new flagship due out in 2025 and they have my trust at the moment as someone who doesn’t want to constantly fix a machine.
Yeah plus by then we’ll have a better idea of the long term reliability, which I can’t assess in a week. So far so good though
This. Creality and Elegoo currently have zero trust from me, I got rid of all my other printers after I got my Bambu Lab and have not regretted it at all. I'll wait to see what Bambu drops since they said it's coming Q1
@@reallyanti Me too. I had both Creality and Elegoo, both of which are trying to release printers that compete with Bambu Lab right now, but neither will ever be as good.
nope, bambu is crap. will be getting rid of mine x1c soon
Why ?@@rightsdontcomewithpermits7073
Nathan: embargo? What embargo?
Only started following a couple months ago and the main reason i did as well as in general, is i really appreciate that nathan doesnt mince words. ive heard mixed reviews about the k1 and tbh it was making look at bambu more. but with this in the works and hearing just his base impression of the k2, im so grateful for a 30min honest review haha.
As a modded and tuned ender 3 and stock p1s owner who wants a larger format, It's VERY nice to see other players in this game again. Especially Creality.
Ill keep doing some research but the K2 plus may have a future spot on my desk!
Thanks for the great video. I took a gamble and pre ordered it (40% off) after having a positive experience with the KE and V3. Would love to see more indepth technical videos for the printer, as that interests me more than just printing plastic crap for the sake of printing.
Thanks again!
wow this looks incredible. Been waiting to see these in the wild, since Rapid . Thanks NBR
Dude your shirt is really fun. It's like a ninja Christmas elf's casual wear. Love it.
Just ordered the K2 Plus Combo for less than $1200 - excited.
May I ask where you purchased it, thank you
@@jeffkroeger946 May I also ask, thank you
I commented on one of your video's that when someone brings out a 3d printer that is as good as bambu labs printer i would buy one, Hooray at last i will be buying this one and i believe this could at last be a bambu killer i've been waiting for .
Now that the bugs are getting worked out the qidi plus 4 is also looking very competitive.
Would love to see some side by sides with the Bambu Lab machines, that seems to be the Bambu labs strength, not just speed but super clean and consistent prints.
It’s a better speed benchy than what I got on my A1, worse than the X1C.
With some tuning I think it’d be near identical with the X1C
@@NathanBuildsRobots interesting, from what I have seen A1 does better speed benchy than x1 in few minutes less
@@riba2233 It's a bedslinger so it won't be as stable or good as a CoreXY machine. However the same could apply to both machines, with tuning on both, the X1C will probably still have better print results.
@@riba2233 same here, A1 outmatches X1 in so many scenarios
I really hope this one is the machine their K1 series ought to have been. Creality has a lot of work to do to regain customers’ trust.
I am really happy about the options as there is this Creality K2+, the Quidi +4 and whatever BL comes up in 25Q1. I am holding onto my X1C till then.
X1C is still a great printer and has held up well for over 2 years
I just set up a Sovol SVO8 and it has exceeded my expectations. Full klipper, quad z motors, 7 linear rails, etc. Its a beast and under rated. This one looks nice and a main contender a bambu but creality slice is an abomination and should be abandoned and never talked about again lol.
It’s a lot better now. They forked bambu or orca and made some cool additions, but I guess you could stick with orca if you wanted to
SV-08 is solid though
Yeah they also claimed that they designed it from the ground up, another lie! and it isn't even any good!
@@AndrewAHayes Mine is printing non stop since I got it. I don’t like inductive probes but it has been consistent even on a hologram build surface. I also changed to a .6 micro Swiss hot end. As far as I can tell klipper is fully unlocked too. All printers are clones of something. China is built on exploiting weak ip laws. The creality k series is them exploiting their own Chinese competitors lol.
just use cura, it still has feature that other's don't have
that elf shirt goes hard if that is what it is
Just needs the yellow pointy hat 🤣
@@bryanfoster362 it's awesome I think
Literally just came here to say something like that
Panto pays well at this time of year.
They've been matched/beat on hardware, but the real thing Bambu brought was the user experience - user interface, error notification and walkthroughs on fixing it and such. If it can't walk a new user through a jam or feed issue, it's going to frustrate anyone who wants it to just work.
Hopefully some good feedback on that.
I’ve been happy with a v3 from Creality. I’ll admit they have started to turn things around ever since they decided to compete with Bambu. I still think it’s going to rub people the wrong way how they release so many iterative variants on the market. You pretty much have to wait until their 3rd or 4th revision on a product to get something great. If this can be picked up on an inevitable discount it’s going to be pretty decent value.
Yeah I agree. They have completely changed their design focus since bambu came out.
I think this one will have some staying power.
It’s funny to see so many people complaining that companies are stealing ideas to make products… that’s how advancements are made, that’s how we improve designs lol, that’s how we get competition between these companies which lowers the cost of these machines and make it possible that we can get theses machines for home use.
that thing sure is beautiful, seeing all these hype videos is making me wanna snag one.
I could see this being my next 3D printer. One thing I'd like to know is how its dimensional accuracy and precision compare to the Bambu X1C. I find that to fit parts together printed from the Bambu, I need about a 0.2mm margin. I'd like to know what that margin is for this Creatlity printer.
Wow , its looks prety good , good size too
this quality is impeccable. i never thought we could make it this far from the makerbot days. bought a neptune 4 and i love it but it's not THIS good
I've got an X1C and bought it on the second round of pre-orders, and have enjoyed it for about two years now.
Finally, Creality has pulled their thumb out and looks to have a comparable quality machine coming, and I'm happy as I can be that I have a pre-order for the K2+ coming soon-ish (November? Any confirmation there? Anyone? Beuler?) ^_^
I don't fanboy for any company, I'll be the first to tell you that Bambu isn't perfect, but they've changed the market, and anyone saying otherwise is just not being honest.
With any luck, this "shot across their bow" from Creality will then force Bambu to get their thumb out as well, and make a 350-cubed machine of their own, with some new bells and whistles too.
That would force even more companies to not only make their own big CoreXY machines with all of the new bells and whistles, but make them faster, better, cheaper, and of course keep trying to innovate.
I don't want ANY company to have unchallenged dominance in the market, competition is what EVERYONE should want, not stagnation behind one design(er) and innovation only when the manufacturer feels like throwing the customers a bone.
Agreed on every count 😇
Freue mich auf mpox sein review. Falls er das Gerät bekommt.
Nice job dude. Like your stuff
I look forward to beta testers of this printer once they figure out fixes and troubleshooting i'll jump in
This is so freaking awesome!!!! So cool to see you actually happy about a new printer! It's too pricey for me, but so glad that Creality is bringing it. After upgrades to my K1s, I am finally very happy with them, but great to see them come out of the gate with swinging with the K2!
I bet a lot of this will trickle down to the lower priced products as well. I wonder how cheap creality can make a multicolor Ender 3?
@@NathanBuildsRobots right?!? The new race to the bottom will be in color! I'm here for it!
I think this might be my first Creality printer
This is the first creality printer I’ve REALLY liked out of the box. Some of their recent ones are ok, there older ones always needed a few upgrades. But this one is awesome.
Thanks for the review Nathan, Looks like Creality in on a winner with this one
Great review! Thanks! I was intrigued by the K1 Max but didn't order one because it looked like it was not ready for prime time, by which I mean the features looked good but the design and implementation probably wasn't ready for a small business print farm. The K2 Plus seems like a legitimate 2nd generation version where Creality learned from the K1 as well as their competition.
Making functional parts, I don't have much use for colors, but I have some designs that I'd love to implement in ABS and TPU, and the K2 Plus would allow me to print those parts in place, making a much better product with no assembly labor. Printing a huge bed of these parts would be a real time saver too, as well as reducing the filament wasted on poop.
My only user mod would probably be a heater to make the CFS box into a filament dryer.
I assume Creality is using good old reliable steel linear elements on the gantry motion control with bigger motors to get faster speed, unlike Bambu using carbon fiber tubes? Carbon fiber wear probably isn't an issue for hobbyists, but I don't want to see motion control parts visibly wearing on a machine used for 24/7 production.
Thank you for the early info, please keep us updated with anything as creality has a bad history of both quality and company wise that's hopefully come to a turning point.
K2 Plus alone weigh near 50KG
Correction : 50kg is the posting weight
Is it really? Felt more like 25kg or 60 lbs to me
My bad
Mixed up with it's posting weigh
Machine weigh around 35kg(without CFS)
Thanks for this first look! In your next videos can you show any exhaust, filters, or other stuff to keep our lungs safe?
It has dual filters on the exhaust. However I’d always recommend ventilation and/or a HEPA filter depending on the materials you’ll be printing with.
Thanks for the in depth review, Got the K1 Max and loving it atm with hardly any issues. Would love this for the CFS/color prints.
Hi, awesome video... I'm really excited about this one... BUT, as a victm fo the K1 Max, I need to know... DO THEY REALLY SOLVED Leveling issues and X-axis ressonance?? Can you give us more inoformation about that? Thanks a lot and keep up with the amazing content!!
Have you checked the flattness of the buildplate? How does it change when you heat it?
I wished that they would have used 4 lead screws that was individualy controlled to adjust the bed leveling. Had some issues with my K1 Max on that issue.
4 lead screws is a waste tbh. Plenty of designs level just fine with 2
Bet the holes in the benchy were from having gap infill off
Yeah, that usually speeds up prints quite a bit and doesn’t have much of an effect on print quality
Max Flow rate? And hot end power?
Power switch on the back = con (so old school it sucks). USB on the side = con (they make extender cables to run it to the front). 5th Spool on the side = con (there is space to mount it to the side and face inward towards the multi-spool holder and still have room). Other than those “minor” negatives, it looks promising.
I've heard of people burning themselves on printbeds trying to install spools on the inside of a machine. Though if you really wanted it set up that way I guess you could mod it.
I was disappointed with the k1 max but this looks like it's what it should always have been.
I mean it's basically twice the price
@@michaelgleason4791 oh well, nm.
In more detail, the k1 max should have had a flat bed and an extruder that doesn't clog as badly as it does
Price is not the same.
Fantastic video! I am loving my k2 combo. Super clean printer
I really appreciate the comment that while money didn't change hands, you did receive the printer as a favor from the company under the understanding that you would make videos about it and could thus be considered sponsored in that sense. If I were a reviewer, I'd make a point to emphasize that with every review of products received for free from their producers.
While this printer is far outside of my price range, its small footprint and low noise would be really enticing if I had deeper pockets. I'm looking forward to seeing how what Creality's made here will ripple down the pricing stack across the market. I wonder if the choice to go for closed-loop control will pan out in particular - the Magneto X seems to be a disappointment overall but closed-loop control with traditional motors instead of linear motors might be the happy medium and the solution to beat if this printer takes off.
The elf is back 😁
Yeah I noticed that, I also at first though he had a cat on his head. LOL
Time will tell, while my K1 has been decent, trying to work with Creality when (not if) it breaks has been nothing but a nightmare. they have actually closed most of my tickets before resolving any issues. I've spent so much money to just not have to work with them at this point. i dont think ill be buying their products for a long while. in the process now of swiching to QiDi, and its looking way better than any creality experience ive had to date.
bambu needs to release the a bambu XL MAX 500x500 24 color printer to stay on top of the competition
With 2 print heads that can pre swap to the next filament before needing to swap colours
Watch out, an anouncment is imminent!
Actually, Bambu has already announced they are releasing a larger-volume flagship printer in Q1 of 2025. They have also somewhat recently (few months ago) patented some IDEX designs and double-extruder designs. @truey90s
@@AndrewAHayesbeen hearing that for months
I looks like an amazing printer system! I love my K1 Max, but this has the ball out of the park! Also looking to see if they adapt their color system to work on the K1 Max too... Thanks for sharing with us!
the cfm that has a controlled envioment in it is amazing this is the printer i want i have 2 k1 maxes right now i am so getting this in june when they go on order again
Excellent video Nathan. As usual :)
idk if you have experience with it, but another comparable machine would be the qidi plus 4. Little smaller build plate though and qidi doesnt have a cms (maybe you could get it to work with the box turtle). It would be interesting to see a detailed comparison between those two from a mechanical and build quality standpoint.
edit: For anyone that sees this comment, there is a potential fire hazard issue with the qidi plus 4 so I would probably not consider buying one at this time
Qidi announced a MMU for 2025. There are also the ERCF and 3d chameleon that should work
I hope Qidi have stepped up their quality. I haven’t seen the 4, but all of their older stuff printed great but had a cheap plasticky feel that made me feel like it was going to break after a while
Amazing video, Nathan! This will help my team a lot!
Which team?!
@ the A-Lab team at LBNL 😁
My definitive source for 3d printing news!!! Keep 'em coming. Shill on!! :)
Is this a presale k2 they had a few months ago and what’s that suit your wearing. You going to a Xmas pageant later?😄
It's my Bambu Harbinger of Doom Elf suit
@@NathanBuildsRobots Bambu Basher 😆
Could you please test how well the on-board filtration works by printing some ABS and seeing if/how much it smells?
Thanks
Please check/verify the report that the door hinges are just glued (as some early bird receivers are complaining their door just fell off due to that). If that's true, with those hinges basically on the inside of the chamber, it's probably just a question of time for everyone's door to come loose.
31 min is a short now? Are we rising up and ending this embargo ourselves? (creality thinks my little videos are too much and to "please don't release the important and detailed content too early, lol." Making me wait till Nov 11th.
Apparently some customers have received their printers already? Doesn’t sound much like an embargo to me
haha you got cucked by creality (just like with your wife lol), sad
Excellent review. I have the K1 Max and have many issues you have to resolve on your own, like the VFA with mods. I want the CFS for the K1 Max but a K2 Plus too.
Can you weigh the 3D printer and CFS separately? How many kgs each?
Good to see Prusa joining the fray with more multicolor stuff. Hopefully it'll drive bambu's AMS unit prices down because competition.
Seems to have a lot of good buzz. It looks pretty awesome.
I refuse to be a first mover on this printer. Lessons have been learned acquiring the Qidi plus 4.
Having problems with the Qidi?
I agree, I would not have bought this printer, but I have an excellent example of it to use, and I’m pretty happy with it.
I agree, creality has burned me enough times for me to know better...
Always keep the latest firmware, Plus4 print quality always is so great.
the new bambu x1c max is 400mm by 400mm multi colour. and is set to be released in January 2025. RIP the K2
Love to see competition heating up!
I wanted to comment on your multi-color print time estimate, 3:52. I think you would find that it takes much less than double the time to double the number of objects, as the number of color changes is the same :)
Can you add multiple filament boxes to the Creality K2 like Bambo?
They say you can, but I haven't tested it. I only have one CFS unit
Oh darn. I bought a new printer 2 weeks ago. Looks like a good printer. Used your link, but not posted yet on their website. At least I didn't find it.
they will open up more orders in a week or 2
Very nice... I have an X1C , this K2 is like that printer but on steroids :)
Great video. The printer seems to be nice too. What do you think Nathan, is it a good idea to buy a brand new k1max right now for 590? and mod it ofcourse.
It’s hard to say, they did a silent upgrade to the K1 max so I don’t really know what the newer models are like. Plus I e had issues with heat creep on the new K1 unicorn nozzles
@@NathanBuildsRobots What materials were you printing when heat creep happened ? I had one ordered recently, but had to return it for a new one because of some pulley issue. Box had a date on it 2024-04, it had unicorn nozzle and upgraded extruder etc... When I was talking to creality and asked if there's a way to get one from recent batches, they said that printers are sent randomly, which is a little sad that they sell stock from 6 months ago. Or maybe it was returned or refurbished at some point.
Did bambu hold their release to see what creality was coming up with? What is the max nozzle and bed temp? What is the max temp that the chamber reach (with the heater)?
I would speculate that they just didn’t hit the level of polish or reliability that would be necessary to have a product launch that lives up to their reputation.
A bad product launch does a lot of brand damage.
@@NathanBuildsRobots Yeah sounds more like it...
Multi color benchy has a big bead at the side-back from blue to white change. Mine comes in November. Finger crossed.
Would love to see more detail regarding the firmware. Specifically, whether they are used a forked Klipper like in the K1, or the publicly available version of Klipper.
Why did they only do 4 spool instead of a 5 spool AMS to up one on Bambu? They got the real estate on top of the k2. Idk. I think they missed out.
Maybe they have plans to fit it to smaller machines too
@@NiSE_Rafter Pretty much the right awnser.
Cause all they do is copy?
@@NiSE_Rafter why not make a 4 and 5 spool holder? Then offer the 5 to the plus?
@@TheFoxalot Because having both means expensive logistics and 4 is "good enough" for many users. This was they only need to order one set of tooling for production, only need one size of packaging, and don't have to manage stocking multiple SKUs.
I do think it'd be nice to have more options as a customer/user, but in terms of business having just one product makes more sense.
Great video! This is the first video that I watched on this machine!
@NathanBuildsRobots From another video it seems the K2 may have a color bleeding problem. Probably the nozzle volume is too big and needs excessive purging, and even that doesn’t seem to help, printing from black to a light color. Can you investigate?
I didn’t notice any bleeding on my prints, even mixing black and white. I can take a closer look though
I'm very curious to see what other companies cook up in response to this machine. This is one of the first 3D printers with this feature set and build volume that isn't a kit or custom design. How exciting :)
Great video and hope you could make one after using this a lot for 3-4 months.
Creality support have been so bad in the past that we don't touch creality machines for print farm, but this is very interrestimg machine to consider.
For now we probably will start using Qidi 4 plus even if it is just slightly larger then the A1/X1C we use today.
Have they fixed the bad extruder design? And do you have any colir bleeding as other have?
Hey Nathan when u do ur deep dive video can u show us how that spool holder is attached. Looks pretty weak
Nope. I watched the video because who can resist Nathan as a Christmas Elf?
As for fanboyism... I've had 6 FDM printers (including an Ender 5 Pro and an Ender 2 Pro) and of them all the only ones that get regular use are my Bambu Lab X1-C and my A1, both with AMS. They just work and require only minimal upkeep. I want to print things as a hobby and not have keeping the printers running correctly as a hobby. Maintenance is a given, but constant tinkering to keep a printer usable, no thanks. It's not about being a fanboy, I'd have settled on a different brand had they provided the ease of use and upkeep that Bambu does. And the new FLSun T1 Pro is right now what I would get were I in the market for another printer.
Having said that I'm glad that the advent of Bambu Lab has forced some vendors to up their game, especially Creality from whom I have two older printers that weren't reliable enough for me to be satisfied with them. And after watching this video, this machine is the one I would get if and/or when I need a helmet-class printer.
Happy to see Creality catching up and making sizeable strides, COMPETITION IS GOOD for all of us regardless of you company/printer of choice :)
It really seems like they're actually trying to improve on everything instead of just flooding the market with even more Ender 3s that have a single differentiating feature between each other (like, how many printers have they released between 2023 and 2024? Way too many...).
The only thing that worries me is time, give everyone's K2s a few months of usage and then tell me how many of them are failing and need repairs or upgrades, like what happened with the K1 series. Instead of fixing the problem for the current units they just released a new printer and left everyone in the dust lol (afaik of course).
I'm hopeful, I want to trust them... But it's still Creality :/
Would love to see this compared to the Qidi Plus 4.
I don’t have one, so can’t make the comparison 😣
@@NathanBuildsRobots Contact them to send you one.
My problem with creality isn't that it is not bambu like you are suggesting with the "fan boy" comments l. My problem with creality is that their approach to products is basically throwing half baked spagetti onto a wall and seeing what sticks. I have some confidence that bambu, or tbh most other industru leaders, will make better quality printers with long term reliable support systems compared to creality. That is how much faith i have lost in the company.
Yeah I agree. I wouldn't have placed a pre-order for one of these since there was 0 information about it, but after playing around with it for a week I'd be much more likely to buy one.
outside of the multi-filament system and difference in build areas, how does the K2 Plus compare to the Qidi Plus4?
the Creality website is pretty thin on machine specs for this one.
Yes! Finally a printer that can print Castle Ravenloft 😅😅
I’ve seen some rough input shaper results from K2 Plus users.
Any chance you have run an input shaper that you can show? (I haven’t finished the video at about 3/4 in)
I can't wait to get mine, but i love my qidi xplus 4 as well and can't wait to see their multicolor system next year
Thanks for the overview! Awesome!
What about nozzles? easy to change/replace?
why is the elf talking to me about a creality?
Is the door Uncle Jessy Proof? 😂🤣😅 . How much power does it consume during bed heating and printing (peak nominal) ratings? The website says the aluminum bed is 5mm thick, could you please confirm? Would like to see the core xy motors, they seem to be concealed outside the heatd chamber. Thanks for the fantastic review.
It probably is 5mm, I couldn’t get a good look at it but I was guessing 6mm
K1 max is still testing my patience every week.
is there gonna be a k2 but without the multicolor option ?
I am afraid no. Product linkage on its finest. Buy it or leave it. :(
I bet once things get going there will be. Like the bambu A1 mini was originally just available with the ams lite but now you can buy it separately.
Finally they got rid of that stupid notch in the door glass for the LCD. lol