Creality K1 MAX vs QIDI X-MAX 3: Tech Review and XXL Comparison!

[@247printing]

What do you think about Creality's and QIDI's new line-up - worth buying?

[@Lucas_sGarage]

For me considering the price of the K1, sure

[@simplegamerz9485]

Yeah I got a k1 and it’s been great I got it fully unlocked and changed some stuff on the software side of things and did quite a bit of tuning and I don’t use crealitys software crap so I setup pursa slicer for my k1 using the trident profile and changed the bed size got all the filament stuff setup and it’s been working good I did have under extrusion problems as I got an earlier model but I used a extruder mod with a tension spring and got a new hotend with a bimetal heartbreak I also put a Nevermore filter on instead of the 120 fan and made it so I can switch between having a filter and having a fan duct which I have really liked I also got my old Ender 3 textured pei bed and put it on in place of the stock smooth whatever surface it is and it’s produced very nice prints however I can say I like my 2.4 more just because of how open source it is and I can easily mod anything on it but that and my k1 are my main printers at the moment and work very well

[@Kimberlie1]

I love my QIDI MAX3. It has an extra large build volume and active chamber heating to support printing with high performance filaments, I think the MAX3 is the most powerful 3D printer at its price. I have a number of 3D printers and the QIDI MAX3 is the one I use most frequently and with the best print quality.

[@JohnMarcel666]

As an owner of the X-Smart 3, I can say a big YES for the latter, but I'm not convinced by the brand's other two models, especially in terms of price positioning.

[@garylangford6755]

get the neptune 4 or neptune 4 plus if you want a bigger printer. i switched from the original enders 3/5. man i love printing again

[@cwm9686]

I bought a Qidi X-Max3 and, honestly, I don't have any of the problems you show. My bottom layers are flawless. The prints are fast and look beautiful. Your first layers look like the z-offset was set too high and there wasn't enough plastic being put down to fill the volume as a result. For $1,000, I just don't see how this printer can be beat, especially if you want to print large, functional parts.

[@shellumus]

What slicer are you using in conjunction, if you don’t mind me asking?

[@cwm9686]

@@shellumus The qidi slicer, which is basically prusa with one or two minor changes

[@tjhuntog]

printing what though? My kobra 2 max does 420x420x500 and it prints like a beast to be honest. I manage 175MM/S with a .6 nozzle at a .3 layer height with .65 wide lines. I can reach 275 with .2 layer height and .65 wide lines. Its most definitely hitting max flow rate. If you are strictly printing CF then i understand. I print primarily PETG on the kobra 2 max. Looking at getting a printer specifically for CF but cant decide.

[@flushroyal970]

Qidi updated sensors and printbed... which version do you havei do you have thetouch proble like in the video ?

[@dracodraco1982]

How's the X-Max 3 holding up six months later? It seems promising for my first filament printer, but would love to hear more about how well they hold up over the long haul.

[@JeffreyMiller-p6g]

I'm very pleased with my X-Max 3 and yes I prefer it's appearance to the K1. I used ABS, PC and other engineering filaments way more than the average consumer, so for me the max temps, build volume and heated chamber are important decisions. I believe it is the best in "consumer price range" printer for my needs. The only improvement would be if it was IDEX and/or bigger build volume.

[@adriannasyraf3534]

does the BL touch working well in a warm chamber like the X-max 3?

[@parallelsandtangents938]

I've got a Qidi Tech X-Max 3, it's a nice printer once you get the kinks ironed out. Also, I have one of the new issued versions. Bed leveling is done with an inductive probe not a bl touch. The firmware update has fixed many issues encountered in the initial release model. And customer service and after sales help has been outstanding. For the 899 dollars I spent on this printer, I am satisfied.

[@shellumus]

What kinks have you ironed out and how. I have a Qidi on its way and rather not take hours to setup if someone has already pushed past. It would be appreciated

[@HyperMakes]

Loving these absolute unbiased and true to nature reviews. No competition leads to monopoly and it's really a bruh moment for giants like these to enter competition with handicap printers...🗿

[@Beecher_Dikov]

You think that was unbiased? Lol...

[@Victor-ze3sd]

@@Beecher_Dikov Can you give details please?

[@oleurgast730]

Actually I bought the X-Max 3. As it uses unrestricted Klipper, for me it's the compromise between a ready2use out-of-the-box printer and a printer build from scratch (like a vCore 3.1 or a Voron), I realy like the sturdy mechanics. There is a reason, the X-Max 3 is so heavy. However, I already started to modify my X-Max 3: - I modified the door hinges to easaly remove the door for PLA-printing - I added a webcam - I replaced the PTFE-tube by a longer, transperent one and set the spoolholder on the side - I added a 3th MCU ( a creality silent board) to get an thermister input, modified the hotend to use a Revo Voron coldend and a RevoHF, Revo or RevoObXidian Nozzle. One of the next steps might be to add an automatic z-offset calibration. As the nozzle can not reach outside the printbed area, I have to add a servo to place/remove a reference switch to the bed. However I see no reson why it shouldn't work. But I realy would like e3d making coldends with integrated loadcell, as this would make live much more easy. One downside of the X-Max 3: Filament tip on unload is a mess. If you do not pull the filament on unload, it might get stuck in the printhead. Actually this is the reason I changed to a Revo hotend. While with RevoHF same problem occurs, with Revo Standard or ObXedian I get a very nice filament tip. Which certainly helps to add an ERCF.

[@steveh8724]

Thanks for listing the mods for the X-MAX3! As for the webcam, it's now an official option from Qidi (I've pre-ordered) and they have an install vid on youtube. As for your final bullet point, is there any source for more info on these mods you could share (including pros and cons), I don't think I've seen them mentioned before...

[@oleurgast730]

@@steveh8724 I made a video. However, i can not link it here. YT policies. But I have only 4 videos anyway at the moment, so not hard to find. For the camera: Actually my wasn't the best, but after some prints with 65°C chamber temperature the picture is barly recognicable anymore. I might change it to a better one - but definitly placed outside the chamber...

[@oleurgast730]

​@@steveh8724​ One of the main downsides of the Qidi seems to be the display, having his own cpu and communicates with the board via serial. Three major downsides: - z-offset is stored in the display, not in printer.cfg. At reboot, the display sends the stored z-offset to the board. Changing z-offset in fluid can result to problems after reboot therefore. - Filament unload isn't a macro, but preprogammed into the display. This sends a command to extrude a bit (purge), than to retract filament with a constant speed. To avoid filament getting stuck on unload, you need sort of ramping profile (fast out of the noozle, but slower while the tip passes the heatbreak, giving the tip more time to cool). Using a macro this could be user optimiced. But the display does not call a macro.... - You can obviously change the density of mesh bed leveling in the printer.cfg. However, if you make changes there, the display does not know about it. Starting mesh bed leveling with the display, the printer does a mesh with wrong resulution... However, adiptive mesh before every print seems to be uneffected by this problem. Over all, one of my next steps obviously is to replace the display. Maybe old Android device with Klipper screen. However, I still am a beginner with klipper. So I decided to undo some of my mods on the x-max 3 at the moment, and ordered a X-Smart 3 to do even more tinkering, like display change, upgrading to armbian bullseye, reinstall klipper from scratch etc. If it works there reliable, I do the same mod on the max afterwards.

[@ChrumkavySuchar]

I just ordered X-MAX3, so let's see how it will work out. Usually in all reviews the xmax had better quality then k1 max, just everyone "hate" the manual Z-offset, which I don't mind at all. I actually like to have ability to edit it manually. Also BL touch on the newer models is replaced by the inductive probe, so I hope they did such probe that doesn't care about heated enclosure ? Also its missing the camera, but they have now option to buy one. Well, lets see.

[@tuxflyer]

My K1Max is operating since August 2023 without any issues which weren't caused by myself.

[@varaskal]

This is the kind of detailed, thorough, nonbiased review that we need more of on KZbin. Kudos to you 247.

[@UnwrittenGamingftn]

I feel like the communities obsession with speed is unhelpful and just not interesting. People only care about "how fast" but are forgetting more and more about reliability, serviceability and most of all quality...

[@mpa568]

And print quality. With this said - which printer would you recommend?

[@UnwrittenGamingftn]

@@mpa568 Really depends on the context. What's your use case?

[@mpa568]

@@UnwrittenGamingftn I mainly print technical parts currently, in 1 color. But for the children it would be nice to have a multi color option. Especially you could combine flexibel Material with none flexibele or use suppot Filament for better results. Housing is very nice because of dust protection...its not in everyday use. So bambulab, k1 and quidi are currently possibilities...i had an early ender 3 until now.

[@UnwrittenGamingftn]

@@mpa568 If you want a plug and play option the x1c is probably your best option imo. If you're alright with building it yourself going the voron or ratrig route is a lot better imo

[@mpa568]

@@UnwrittenGamingftn I already build a voron with a friend. Its still in progress but almost done. This is too much of work for me to do it again :) So not the other 2 Options?

[@jbergene]

I actually think the xmax3 makes sense for the price since you get the larger machine and heated chamber

[@mohistschool1003]

Yeah, i love my max3, works fine

[@mikemarucci913]

The X Max 3 has been a joy for me, no issues. Just perfect prints everytime. I have 320 hours on it so far, just firmware updates are a MFer it takes a good hour to get it to update then heat the bed to level, Z off set, run input shaper.@@mohistschool1003

[@ChuckThree]

KZbin’s foremost authority on fast 3D printing has spoken👨‍⚖️ There is no other opinion on printer reviews I trust more than that of 247printing

[@lausi772]

Same here!!!! 👍👍

[@stephendye672]

I just got my K1 Max and my prints never turned out like the ones shown. The machine is so easy to use and the prints are excellent.

[@efahrenholz]

After you put full fat klipper on the k1-max and fix a few of the g-code macros, the quality actually improves quite a bit. Its actually very reliable since they unlocked the root account.

[@DailyFrankPeter]

Can you provide some links/sources?

[@SimonCoates]

QIDI Tech's closest comparison printer to the Creality K1 Max is the QIDI X-Plus 3 which is considerably cheaper than both printers reviewed here.

[@everlastingmedia]

Hey thanks for the review. I recently picked up an X1C and it's been an interesting experience for me. Getting spoiled to some of the out of the box features, like perfect first layers and no nonsense printing has me frustrated at my Prusa machines, but there's a 5-6 year tech gap there.... I need to remember. Nevertheless it looks like these 2 printers would be moving away from current, not forward. Thanks for taking the time to make this insightful review.

[@Liris777]

Hi dear! I have been using the K1 max for about 1 week on regular software from Creality, thus I can not say that it is a perfect machine. Anyway, I am a Russian speaker user and we have already cracked this software to the clean and nice Klipper. After you install clean Klipper this machine becomes much better, I would say that it is 2 different machines! You have to try it before recommending or not recommending to buy it. Also, I have to note that 900 USD is not a fair price, since you may buy it for less than 800 bucks (coupons, etc.) I do not protect any of the companies, and I will not write either their names but P1S also may have a big problem with the plate, seems like P1S was created from out-sorted parts from X1C...

[@247printing]

Thanks a lot for your input! I'll try to install a clean Klipper version on the K1 Max and tune down the speeds in the profiles - I bet that will make it a greater, but slower printer in the end.

[@Liris777]

@@247printing Also, I noticed that a lot of quality issues were caused with the K1 series, not effective input shaping data due to missing bolts under acrylic panels and one of the Russian bloggers said that changing spools on the stepper motors brings clean printing without ghosting and ringing. Thanks a lot for your reaction). But of course, the changing of steps on the motors is available after unblocked Klipper installation. And no, after all manipulation the K1 as well as K1 max becomes a really fast machine! real 500 mm/s with 20k acceleration is not a joke for K1 max.

[@xsvforce3335]

I’d love to see a standard K1 video, especially if you try to get the most out of it. Like change the nozzle to a CHT, use a better slicer, calibrate the pressure advance, and tweak the settings. The smaller size of the K1 should let allow to go faster with less ringing as well. However, I do recommend you remove the compliance springs for the upper linear rod as they either cause binding or create vibration that messes with the input shaper calibration (I think binding is the problem).

[@iPrint3D]

Why should you need to do that stuff though? Upgrading is fine, but needing to do this to a stock machine is silly

[@xsvforce3335]

​@@iPrint3D - You don't need to change the K1 at all. However, you may wish to get more out of it by some tweaks. Also, why do you think people build vorons when they could just buy something instead. Building and modding is part of the fun for some.

[@Stevieboy7]

@@xsvforce3335 The point is, generally when reviewing the 3D printers, you're trying to review how well they print, not on how much you can upgrade/change them. For the same reason when reviewing a car, you ask how well it drives, not how well you can upgrade it to drive aftewards. 99% of folks just want to PRINT, not fool around with BUILDING/REPAIRING printers.

[@Ughmahedhurtz]

@@Stevieboy7 Exactly. I spent a fair bit of money and time upgrading an Ender 3 Pro and I NEVER want to have to go through all that again. Even with upgrades, if you buy Creality don't expect consistency or quality.

[@xsvforce3335]

@@Stevieboy7 There are plenty of reviews of the K1 that is exactly what you are saying. Hell, that is what he did here. However, for those who don't mind a project, it would be nice to see what you can get if you for the retail price plus a bit of extra. Who knows, it might be the best deal there is.

[@PrintingPerspective]

If Creality actually used the PID heatbed control on their butchered and locked-down Klipper version the layers probably wouldn't look so bad lol. But yeah a great take on these two machines with no BS. Creality and QIDI have a long way till they can catch up to Bambu Lab's standards if that ever comes. Hopefully, it does as more fierce competition is always better for consumers. :)

[@247printing]

Thanks a lot my friend! We'll see Bambu Lab's take on XXL hopefully next year!

[@asdadasdadasd2841]

Its interesting to see how the 3D printing industry is evolving with larger and faster machines. These comparisons shed light on the industrys progress.

[@djispro4272]

I agree. The X-Max3 looks like a cheap toy compared to the K1 Max, but If I were to chooses between the two, I would choose the QIDI since Creality's cloud seems sketchy at best. I would rather build a premium CoreXY as you would too.

[@G53X0Y0Z0]

My X-Max 3 is is far from a cheap built toy. I got it to prototype and produce real commercial parts, and I'm not sorry in my choice, it does a good job and it's surprisingly well built. It's not perfect, but neither are the competitor's.If I wanted something to look at, I would have went to look at some show girls.

[@djispro4272]

"LOOKS like a cheap toy"@@G53X0Y0Z0

[@azamatT7]

@@G53X0Y0Z0 did you replace the factory parts like hotend and nozzles with aftermarket parts from 3rd party manufacturers?

[@G53X0Y0Z0]

@@azamatT7 - No, I have not replaced anything except the breakout board on the hot end, the original failed.

[@TheStainedOne]

Nice video. I bought my xmax 3 on August 27th. Set it all up and started printing in September. A few prints in pla came out decent so I switched to using ASA, the reason I bought it. For some reason after that the nozzle decided to bury itself into the build plates. I would reset everything, recalibrate get a good print then, it would happen again. Went through both double sided pei bed sheets. Contacted support several times, they sent a couple build plates smooth/textured, a new tool head, figured out a line in the printer.cfg was populating that shouldn't have been so we fixed that. Then it happened again, sent me a new emmc, replaced that and so far things are working pretty good. Support has actually been pretty good. Do I regret buying the XMax 3? Yeah I do. I wanted something that just worked but instead I got a month and a half of frustration and troubleshooting. I actually started using my S1 Pro and CR10 v3 again during this time and realized they are still pretty damned good lol, just have to watch that bed leveling.

[@wonderbread6100]

qidi support literally sent me a bunch of free stuff for fixing my screen issue when it actually was just screwed too tight haha. Wayyy better support than bambu.

[@B1OD]

After waiting minths for the K1 Max to release and then seeing the poor reviews I then studied building a Voron, however once the uodated X-Max3 reviews started coming i took the gamble. Z Offset shouldn't drift and i set and forget. Qidi superb support deserves a mention. You can request an inductive sensor and tbey will send it FOC. Sure the next generation mught be abother level up but i want to print this year and print big and hot.

[@NicoFritzler]

dammn you have a Revision 1 Xmax3. those were taken off the market like 3 months ago. you should definetly ask qidi fo a new revision 3. it has hugely better build quality inductive probe and everything

[@juliusfucik4011]

I am happy with my fairly slow V400. It has been running 247 since january of this year. It messed up only two parts. Prints super well with the cheapest PETG I can find.

[@JonLaRue]

Slow V400 I thought it's faster than most machines? My FLsun SR with CHC Hotend and 5015 blowers is faster than my Bambu on quick prints because there is not an Elaborate start up procedure.

[@VampireOnline]

I’m really happy with my K1. Haven’t had a lot of time for tuning but it’s producing better quality than what was shown here. Wouldn’t go for the max. I want to build a voron and use the k1 to print it!

[@fierox88]

Yeah have mine little over a week now and this was my first thought as well when the print examples came up. My benchy looks very, very close (but slightly worse under a magnifying glass) to the xMax 3 example shown here and i haven't done much tweaking yet.

[@matts8023]

I have over 600 hours on my k1 max making consumer products without a single problem. I hate the slicer but have yet to use anything but the silk generic profile. Only thing I changed was to a 0.6 nozzle. The thing is a work horse and quality is same as my P1S's even after this many hours. I just don't understand why so many people think they will use peek and fiber filaments. Everyone has a spool of two to try, but then go back to making helmets and statues. I wouldn't mind the heated chamber so I could move these to garage though.

[@toto_chanel6952]

Thx for this sidie by side comparison. Was the Qidi you tested the first iteration or the new relaunched one with the fixes?

[@JonS]

Excellent dual review. Mediocre first-generations in both cases. Maybe the 2nd iterations will be better? On paper the Flashforge Adventurer 5M Pro looks interesting for a smaller class of printer (220mm cubed volume). Direct nozzle bed probing (loadcells in bed), standard Klipper, no online requirements, and a circulating chamber filter (which I believe is the right way to do it, instead of single-pass with venting in to the room). I hope you get a chance to test that one too.

[@plixplux]

An awesome video - as always! Disappointed that neither printer got the 247 seal of approval though🙁The X1 of course would be nice, but I would really like to be able to print 300*300*300 mm3 or bigger.

[@lb8384]

You won't miss the 5centimeters per side.

[@ashers_workshop]

VORON time!!!! V2.4 350mm

[@wonderbread6100]

@@ashers_workshopVorons are so clean looking and quality, but its like diagnosing an annoying bedslinger on steroids lol.

[@kennung1001]

I own the X-Max 3 with inductivity sensor for bed leveling. It works perfect! I am using it for printing technical parts I am selling. The X-Max 3 is a workhorse, it prints nearly 24/7 for me, with maintenance between. To be honest, I love the X-Max 3. The quality of the printed objects is the best, compared with my other 6 printers. Would never replace it with K1 Max or Bambu Lab printer.

[@azamatT7]

Hi ! , did you replace the factory parts like hotend and nozzles with aftermarket parts from 3rd party manufacturers?

[@kennung1001]

@@azamatT7Hi, I replaced absolutely nothing with aftermarket parts. There is nothing to complain with the original manufacturer parts until now.

[@MiChAeLoKGB]

I ordered the X-Max 3 today, since it was on sale for 899€ and I would like to upgrade my old CR10S Pro V2 and still have large-ish build volume (reason why I didn't go with P1S). We will see how well will it print once it gets here, but I must agree that BL-Touch for bed leveling and no automatic z-offset surprised me.

[@chovavmordechai]

I bought the K1 Max a couple of months ago and must say I had a lot of troubles: Started with the motherboard having an issue causing the head to hit the sides of the printer. Then after getting a replacement motherboard, the filament kept getting stuck in the cooling block before the nozzle. After I drilled out the hole in the cooling block to make it bigger, the filament got stuck inside the extruder, after the gears. The hole there is simply too small, combined with sharp edges and retraction, it cuts into the filament and getting it stuck. My bed was not level at all, with a 1.5mm lean to the back. I had to manually level the bed by causing the rear screw to skip a few steps in the belt. After after 3 hours, i got the corners to be more or less level. Still 0.5mm of deviation, this time sticking up in the middle. You didnt talk about removing the nozzle but it is a realy pain, if you have an issue you often find yourself removing 18 screws of different sizes and lengths. I still have problems with first layers and underextrusion. I only get to 23mm3 with PLA and that limits the printing speed forna lotnfo scenarios. Moving to a 0.6 or 0.8mm nozzle doesn't make much sense as you are even more flow limited, resulting in printing speeds which are almost equal to 0.4mm. Creality print really sucks, crashes constantly. I am using Orca Slicer which is much better. I would definitely not recommend this printer to a newbie. I can be good value for money if you need very large prints but it requires a lot of tinkering. It would be nice if you get to install the open source version of the firmware and get the x and y axis to actually calibrate for input shaping (I believe it only calibrates the x axis now and copied the cslues ti the y axis). Maybe show how you are limited by extrusion rate and how you could improve it by doing some upgrades.

[@thenextlayer]

I’m surprised! My XMAX3 was amazing. Like Bambu level good. Until I started swapping out parts to non official ones. Then I had NOTHING BUT PROBLEMS. I assumed it was my fault for swapping parts out but maybe not… but yeah also the first layers are an issue. thanks for the review.

[@PCBWay]

wohoo, Caught you here

[@steveh8724]

Sorry, but could you clarify, when you refer to swapping out parts for non-official ones, are you referring to a Bambu printer or the XMAX3??

[@TimothyStovall108]

Just got a K1 Max a couple of weeks ago from Microcenter. My 600mm/s 20k mm/s acceleration test on rapid PETG for 22 min speed boats look pretty good. Especially the 17 min one that came with the USB stick on the Hyper PLA. No stringing, and just a some artifacting and ripples on the edges from the extreme accelerations, but it stayed for the most part within the layer lines. Much better around the rear corner than yours, but was still the problem area. I'm certainly glad they have continued to make improvements on this machine. Especially the with the extruder pressure, and being able to keep up better with the higher speeds now. Good review, and shows Creality has been listening, and refining. Hope they continue to do so.

[@Daves3DProjects]

Thanks for reviewing both printers as they seem to be the current "big" printers. After purchasing a K1 Max, with $190 in Amazon discounts, I was having second thoughts after hearing about the X-Max 3. I would agree with your review, the LiDAR and AI features are lacking. I was able to root the K1 and use fluidd to improve the quality, however, that's not really fair for the "out of the box" review. As for the QIDI, well, it's big and ugly and a cost a bit more. Waiting for the next "big" thing, is probably the correct advise for the viewers.

[@JohnFTodd]

I've got a soft spot for 3D printers, and videos like this make me want to start a new project. The addiction is real!

[@JamsterJules]

I've got 5 printers, and I have no idea why 😅

[@vaibhavbelle632]

After watching this review, Im leaning towards the K1 Max. It looks like it has the potential to take my 3D printing projects to the next level

[@davidbell304]

I think the question is not so much if your fast printer needs to be big. Rather, it's if you need a big printer then it must be fast. Fast benchys are nice but speed becomes much important as the print size goes up, because then you are saving hours as opposed to minutes. Thanks for the review, really helpful.

[@mimmolagonigro]

finally an honest review, this is much appreciated by a private individual who has to make an investment. Thank you also because these printers should be ready to use, it makes no sense to take them and use them as a basis by modifying them. at this point you build a ratrig from 0

[@shellumus]

What camera are you using in the video for the Qidi? Also, did the camera come with the mount, as it appears to fix very nicely. Sending back my Neptune 4 max. Definitely not a winner but looking at the Qidi because of the pros out weigh the cons for me personally. Thank you for the review and time put in.

[@markhoward3851]

Great review/comparison. I have had a Qidi i-Fast for 18 months. I replaced it with a K1 Max 3 months ago. We bought the Qidi for engineering materials, and the active heated chamber. I was new to 3D printing, and the learning curve was steep. The Qidi came with low temp and high temp/hardened hot ends. I tried to use the high temp and got nothing but clogs. We used the low temp fairly successfully with ABS for over a year. That being said, the K1 Max out of box experience was 1000x better. I'm getting a smoother, nicer looking ABS part in half the time now. Curious to try a Bambu now.

[@tr7851]

I disassembled the high temp hotend and replaced stock with a dragon hotend and a nozzle x. No more clogs. The Dragon is a drop in replacement, the screw holes are in the same alignment and you can use V6 nozzles instead of Qidi's proprietary MK10 like nozzles.

[@azamatT7]

@@tr7851 could you please share links to these parts? I want to install these parts on my qidi xmax 3

[@tr7851]

@@azamatT7 for the xmax 3 you'll need a mount adapter, there's no drop in replacement.

[@paulnortness1354]

I just picked up a K1 Max and few weeks ago and it's awesome. I'm finally able to print all those gambody models I picked up but was disappointed with the quality from my bed slingers. Using standard PLA, I've noticed some quality issues with the top layers...but switching to the Creality Hyper PLA makes a huge difference. At 0.10 layer height, the details are so crisp with almost no stringing. I've made no changes to the printer at all, the only thing was a firmware update that the printer automatically updated. Not using Creality Print makes a HUGE difference as well. Use Orca Slicer. Bambu Slicer works too it has a K1 Max profile. Though Orca and Bambu are almost identical.

[@dtdionne]

Dude, u r killin it!!! Keep up the truly epic and wildly valuable work, so much love and respect from America. DT

[@247printing]

thank you SO much! that keeps me going

[@je3d37]

have had the k1 max for a few weeks now and have absolutely none of these issues. also have the p1s and the print qualities are very similar as it is with so many others.

[@milowmilo]

Hi, did you use the creality integrated version of input shaper on the k1 max? It seems that they are locking down some input shaper options and use the same resonance frequency for the x and y axis. Do the prints look as muddy, if you use the unlocked firmware and the standard input shaper from klipper?

[@ThomasS17]

I have a K1 Max (which I got because I needed a printer for work relatively short term and the K1 Max ticked the most boxes) for a bit now, and I'm not fully satisfied yet. The layer stacking is my biggest gripe, although it doesn't happen at every print. Some prints actually look pretty good. The first layer consistency is another point I want to improve in the near future. And the proprietary and crippled Klipper (even with root access) is annyoing, too. It is surprisingly reliable, though. I've only had one print come lose, and only one pritn warp up, but both were mostly my mistakes made in the slicer. I don't mind tinkering with it and trying to improve as many negatives as I can, but I understand that this shouldn't be necessary with a machine like this. Overall I would not 100% recommend it. Though there are not many alternatives if you don't want to use Bambu printers with the cloud, but also don't have the time to build a Voron or alternative.

[@802Garage]

I hope Flashforge releases a larger version of their Adventurer 5M Pro and opens it up to use other slicers. I think it would be a truly great addition to the market. If they could keep it under $800 or especially $700 I think it would get a lot of attention.

[@germanrcbashing245]

Sehr gute Gegenüberstellung der Drucker. Ich selbst habe einen normalen k1 und kann die erwähnten Probleme bestätigen. Allerdings läuft mittlerweile mainsail und der orca slicer was viele Möglichkeiten zur Verbesserung bietet. Die Hardware beim k1 ist meiner Meinung nach nicht das Problem.

[@plum3d]

FIRST HONEST REVIEW!!! THANK YOU!!!! Wish I had found this before wasting money on the QIDI! Time to just build a Voron.

[@Inveterat]

Have fun troubleshooting for 1000 hours until you get a half decent print! You will however bee a master in identifying issues.

[@SCHWARZSCHAF75]

I have virtually no problems with the Z-offset on my X-MAX 3. I also use a thickness gauge and not the supplied paper for levelling. As long as I don't have to change the bed temperature significantly, the QIDI doesn't make any adjustments at all. I am very happy with my printer in terms of print quality.

[@GoodScienceForYou]

Because the Bambu Lab uses 255 Deg C for PETG I set up my fast prints using 255 and they print very fast. The Anycubic Kobra Max 2 prints almost as fast as the Bambu using Bambu parameters. I print almost exclusively PETG. The material needs a bit more heat to go fast.

[@eddiee2750]

Great video. I will say I received my XMAX 3 yesterday and printed 3 benchys and all 3 took 17 min each and are about as close to flawless as possible using pla+.

[@Vez3D]

Great review Albert. I had the chance to play with both of them and I was surprise on their quality.. though like you said it wont compete with a good DiY , i think they still are good goto machine for normal printing

[@247printing]

Sorry for the late reply, didn't notice your comment here - thanks, Simon!

[@reprinted3D]

Excellent review, Albert. I agree with you on the high-speed filament line; I'd rather one line of filament which works on high-speed and regular printers alike. I am really looking forward to the larger X1C that will be coming in 2024 (according to Stefan's interview with Dr. Tao).

[@247printing]

Thanks a lot my friend! Dr. Tao goes the right approach: Bigger printers need to be designed for the task and not just scaled up - X-Max3 does a better job on this as the K1 Max, but still has its annoyances. I am also looking forward to Bambu Labs (professional...) approach on this. Greetings to NY (if I remember correctly)!

[@oleurgast730]

Actually there are 3 maijor issues with the X-Max 3: - The z-Bearings have a quite bad quality. I changed them to Mitsumi bearings and the layer stacking improved. - Also you should deactivate z-hopping. This also improves layerstacking. - Preheat the bed and wait at last 5 minutes before probing the bed. This results in much better first layer. The thermistor is on the underside of the bed, but for leveling the top side matters. They have even a sticker inside the printer telling you to preheat and give the bed time to get fully heated. However, no waiting command in the start g-code...

[@yousefalmarhoon8789]

I had the Qidi x max gen1 for almost 2.5 years and only printed three PLA+ prints out of it at the time I bought it, I just now took it out again and installed the hotened extruder to print nylon carbon fiber pa12 and still waiting for the result😁

[@blahorgaslisk7763]

Reading through the comments here is very interesting. I'm not currently looking for a printer, so this is just me looking for now. But there is absolutely no consensus in the comments on either printer. Both has received both love and hate. Yes in some cases Hate! There are people having set up print farms with the K1 MAX and are over all very happy with their performance, while others have nothing but scorn for everything from construction and materials to print quality and speed. Now I give the guys with print farm more weight when reading posts as they are the ones that will be taking a huge hit if there's a problem with the particular printer model. I can't remember seeing anyone claiming to have a print farm with the X-MAX 3 thought. But that might just be me missing some posts. All in all I would not feel safe investing in either right now. But then I'm not really looking either. But it's interesting to see how Bambu Lab has moved the goal posts. Two years ago either of these would have been marvelous printers...

[@GTechOfficial]

I've definitely had my eye on the K1 Max for a little while now as a bigger and faster upgrade to my Ender 3 S1 but I'm happy to see an unbiased review pointing out it's flaws, especially with its competitor. I'm definitely still in the process of saving up though so for now, I continue saving and keep searching for my ideal choice.

[@maxim000maxim]

same situation, but I still ordered k1 max)

[@tired5925]

​@@maxim000maximhow has it been?especially speed wise

[@LeadMuffins]

Sucks that so many people had a problem with that line of Qidi printers. I've had more problems with the X-Plus 3 than any other printer I've used - got a full refund and sourced the newest version motherboard from somewhere else (they offered to sell me one for a good price but I was busy and waited months) but it's still my favorite printer. It has every feature I want except being bigger but it's given me some of the easiest and best prints I've ever had. I've got the version before they even put the metal bar at the bottom and upgraded some other things and it has the most consistent first layer of any printer I own including the X1C - even with the chamber heater running off and on. Currently 90% into a PP-GF30 10 hour print and it's looking perfect.

[@ZERONEINNOVATIONS]

My diy $20 enclosure for my CR10V3 heats up to 45 degrees with only 100c bed. I installed a 150w incandescent lamp at the top and now it's an active heated chamber, inside temperature is 58c-68c now. Quality of ABS printing is night and day difference with active heated chamber. I guess I need this function.

[@daddyhomework]

what printer do you recommend if we need at least 300x300 build volume?

[@RitoriqPrinciples]

What alternatives would you recommend? Considering the features of the QIDI X-MAX 3 there don't seem to be any alternatives I know of.

[@mjethier]

I bought Bambu units this time last year. With the exception of one out of 11 units had a fan failure, yet still works...I will say the 3 creality k1 max units I purchased...1 out of 3 worked out of the box. I haven't gotten into bed level testing and so on. Shipping from china is clearly lacking at the moment...how the 3rd unit from Amazon showed up with perfectly straight and un-bent triple screws holding the plate down while the other ones look like a car backed into them is beyond me, since the source is the same. One of my units failed from the get-go where it clogged halfway through the benchy print (this is with the newest revision of extruder, software etc, I got them 2 weeks ago)...it also had slightly bent screws that held the print bed down. the second unit (direct from creality, not amazon) showed up with screws that looked like they were put through a series of torture tossing contests...that actually printed a benchy while taking a dump on itself with movement where the entire machine seemed to shiver while making an incredible noise and actually shaking a solid (floor bolted) table. the third unit was amazon, not that im a fan by any means of amazon. Prints out of the box, triple set screws for build plate were perfect...actually worked out of box flawlessly. I assume there's a special shipping channel for amazon as basically all chinese companies seem to still have them (i buy a lot on alibaba and whatnot for cameras, lasers, nerdy stuff)...many of them offer "import tax free" confidently. Anywho...going to test the hell out of the one working unit out of the 3 tomorrow. I bought 3 of the microswiss hotends to escape the random gap between heat break and nozzle issue that I'm hoping the first unit suffered from. Haven't tested the build plate that people regularly complain about yet. Novel for some, I type fast. Get over it.

[@stevenshizzle]

I am grateful you released this video just a day after another video about this was released by another popular maker. His video I believe was sponsored and focused more on the benefits of the heated chamber of the Qidi, but this video highlights a lot more facts about it. I appreciate the hard work you did on this review.

[@NoMercyFtw]

Are there any reviews out there of the X Max with the new sensor and anything else they changed since release

[@markhoward3851]

I have a Qidi I-fast for 2 years and and a K1 Max for half a year. I mostly print ABS on both, and I'm curious how the X-Max 3 would handle it. I bought the Qidi for it's active chamber heater. I'm getting decent results with the K1 and setup is easier. Surface finish/layer lines are nicer on the K1. That plastic card Z height check was annoying. I felt like I had to redo my Z every week or I'd have layer adhesion issues. Great video, keep up the great work.

[@godzillaarmyyt531]

I may not be ready for a giant printer yet, but Im loving the fact that the 3D printing industry keeps evolving. Cant wait to see whats next!

[@kurtcrean]

Not a bot, but my K1 max has been a mixed bag. It came and probably would've been fine but I tried to change the nozzle and accidentally killed the thermistor. So I try to replace the hot end with the one in the box and it was jammed into the heatsink with no grease, so I contacted support and 3 days later (from China to Australia) I had it swapped over. After that hassle everything has been so good.

[@kalashin1529]

Finally someone said, what i was thinking the whole time :) nice and honest review! I totally share your opinion.

[@247printing]

Hey, thanks!

[@florianschneider2256]

Separate high speed fillament is probably the better choice. I'm not sure, but for injection moulding, plastics can be optimised for easier processing by aiming for a higher spread of polymer chain lengths. This makes the plastic flow much more easily. The disadvantage is that the plastic flows much more easily if you don't want this effect -> higher tendency to creep.

[@mahmudulhasantanim1271]

I appreciate your focus on the bigger picture of the 3D printing industry. These reviews help us understand the trends and advancements.

[@howqywar181]

Ive got a soft spot for 3D printers, and videos like this make me want to start a new project. The addiction is real!

[@qwertyzxaszc6323]

I love my K1 Max. I am new to filament printing and have been getting flawless prints. Flawless ASA prints.Could not recommend it more.

[@crowguy506]

Could a similar nozzle for regular prints on the K1 counter the quality advantage of the Qidi?

[@Catboy-hr2qp]

I'll be getting an xplus 3 and alot of the things you said about the max 3 should carry over. I will be running a CHT nozzle when not using filled filaments, also volcano nozzles can easily be cut down to fit, im gonna print a jig to do so.

[@kpop7935]

Wow, the competition is heating up in the 3D printing world! Im excited to see these big and fast printers compared. Thanks for the honest review!

[@slvreagl01]

What firmware was installed at the time of this video?

[@koenvanduffel2084]

I agree both feel unfinished. The K1 max even worse than the X3 max. Just adding nozzle probing to the K1 max would pull me over though. The Bambu lab I don't want to use because of their closed source. With the local network option they are already better than cloud only, maybe this might pull me to the P1S. Though no heated chamber might still hold me off. I currently use a Creality CR6 with a heated chamber and running ABS at 60 C gives so much stronger parts that I don't want to step back to 45~50 with just a passive chamber.

[@RaviKumar-rs5yw]

Big thanks to the reviewer for keeping it real. Honesty is like a breath of fresh air in the 3D printing world.

[@g2rich]

This comment is not truly related to 3D printing but the OP did mention right at the beginning and acted surprised to find a wooden crate in a cardboard box and there is a very good reason for that. The reason is simply due to shipping costs. The largest shipping companies, UPS, FedEx, and DHL, all have large handling charges for shipments in wooden boxes BUT, if the wooden box if fully enclosed in a cardboard box there are not excessive handling charges. FWIW, I own a business founded in 1975 and have been using those three shipping services on a daily basis since my father founded that company, that’s how I know about the packaging tricks to reduce shipping costs.

[@supercurioTube]

This was a fantastic in depth review comparison, actually going into details and the limits instead of describing everything as "good" and "fast". Thank you very much! Fully agree with waiting for the next gen here.

[@247printing]

Thanks a lot! I make the reviews I would want to see, but time is always a limiting factor unfortunately. Would have liked to test more on both.

[@nokat8562]

Im pleasantly surprised by what Ive seen about the K1 Max in the video, though you dont recommend it lol. It might be just the upgrade Ive been looking for in my 3D printing journey. Thank you for your honest review

[@craigheartwell5142]

Any chance QIDI was using a larger nozzle as the basis for their higher extrusion rate? Doesn't that have to be taken into account somewhere?

[@neekovturbo]

Nice video and to the point and exactly what people need to hear. When I first saw the creality app a few months back it told me the whole story hence why I never got the K1 max. Made a full aluminum case for my P1P and man that thing is rock solid like you said. Also got myself an Ender5Plus from ebay for $200 for that sweat conversion like your got in your b roll. off the topic, but is the triple bed leveling kit and the aluminum build plate worth the bucks for the conversion?

[@Jdbye]

I like the design of both. The K1 Max is very sleek and blends in well with existing furniture. The X-Max 3 certainly stands out with its rugged look but fits right in with other tools in a workshop. I will say I prefer the design of the K1 Max though. It's a much more manageable size which fits better in a small apartment and without looking out of place.

[@stefanh.9275]

You can change the Nozzle from the X Max 3 and X Plus 3 only. Needs a few seconds to change. You dont have the newest Hotend! My xPlus 3 has a bed tolerance of 0.1033mm. no wonder given the thickness. So I don't care if it takes me a little longer to warm up. But he hast an inductive Probe.

[@247printing]

Yes for sure, you can just change the nozzle. I wanted to show how to change the hotend as it's included.

[@juliencosta9885]

Just watched the K1 Max vs. X-Max 3 video! Im seriously torn on which one to get for my next project. The struggle is real!

[@kilianlindlbauer8277]

For flow testing, were you using the steel or copper nozzle? Couldn't really tell from the pictures on the qidi A few thoughts on those: qidi looks cheaper, but does a few things better than the k1: linear ball bearings for the toolhead, small pulleys on the AB drives and spreadcycle, print bed that doesn't require consumables to work. The qidi also has hollow x axis shafts, try to find that online. Personally im not happy with three things on the k1/max: 32 or 36t pulleys result in less consistent layer stacking (magnets have always a bit of "play" in them, larger pulleys amplify that play), but enable you to use stealthchop most of the time which is useless because of noisy fans. Also they use bushings (play in bearing) rather than linear ball bearings, even though they are clearly using hardened steel shafts, the bambus use carbon tubes, so they have to use bushings rather than ball bearings. Lastly their klipper knockoff, claiming its their own firmware yet a badly hidden klipper version. But hey, creality finally managed to produce a Mainboard with drivers with a functioning uart communication, only took until 2023 while prusa had spi communication in 2018 in their 8 bit mk3 Mainboard

[@quattrocity9620]

Thanks for the in-depth comparison. I was actually looking for for the x 3 plus when I found this video, but this was one of the best review and comparisons I've seen!

[@Elektrotechniker]

Kinda weird though, as I haven‘t had any of the shown issues with my qidi x-plus3 (same hardware), and I am certain that the Review was done without installing the firmware update that came out directly after the printers were shipped out, meaning everybody should‘ve checked that for themselves before using it… There are so many guys complaining about those layer-shifts and under-extrusion leading to clogs… That was all fixed by their Firmware updates several months ago! Issue is just that nobody checks for new printer firmwares on the homeoage of qidi, so they all miss out on them until they contact the support which ask whether the firmware has been updated already. I love my printer, and I would still recommend giving it a shot. Someone can a,ways send it back if it‘s as terrible as this channel describes!

[@neslii01]

This competition is a good sign for the 3D printer industry. It pushes companies to innovate and improve their products.

[@sirgriffinman]

Not sure what you did here. But I own the K1 Max and it prints excellently with PLA+ and PETG+ and looks nothing like whatever you did to get the results you got in this video...

[@247printing]

I don't know what you did. I used the printer out of the box and the stock Creality Slicer profiles. K1C is also at mediocre print quality out of the box.

[@sirgriffinman]

@@247printing I took it out of the box and started printing on firmware that was outdated by 4 versions without issues.

[@Contoh-df6in]

Just watched the K1 Max vs. X-Max 3 video! Im seriously torn on which one to get for my next project. The struggle is real!

[@ArturMalyPL]

@247printing do you prefer Voron 2.4 or Trident from print quality perspective?

[@mikecrane2782]

Thank you for review, which is really well thought out and a great contrast to what is going out on other channels. I was looking at getting a larger build volume printer than my Bambu X1C, which has been surprisingly good but as an early adopter of the hardened 0.6mm nozzle it took some dialling in.

[@247printing]

Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks a lot!

[@ilyak8333]

Greetings from a subscriber from Russia) On k1 max, you need to change the pulleys of the X and Y motors by 20 teeth, activate the root and install the fluid shell, and adjust the values for the 40 rotation motors and 110 sensitivity, and then this printer will sparkle with new colors, vibrations will go away, the input shaping indicator will grow to 65 mzv, noises will go away and the printer will start printing perfectly! The heat chamber of the k1 max is heated at the expense of the table and up to 50 degrees it takes 20 minutes. There are disadvantages due to the design of the extruder on k1 max, it is impossible to print pla and petg (For a long time) with the upper and side cover closed, the extruder overheats and begins to melt and turn the plastic (((

[@woodworker3856]

I love your channel and thank you for your review!! I was literally thinking about buying one of these 2 printers as a larger temporary print option to the PSP and you pretty much nailed it. These machines are just knee-jerk reactions to Bambu Labs. Thanks for saving me $1000!

[@johnslugger]

*I like the QIDI but I like your advice. I will wait 6 more months and I need time to learn the Cad Software anyhow.*

[@247printing]

Good idea doing so! And as note for me: For extra emphasize and attention you can go *bold* now ;-)

[@johnslugger]

@@247printing *Thanks* . Hey after looking and testing EVERY software out there and getting really frustrated I found one that I learned in only 6 hours!!! It's called Alibre. It's reasonable to purchase and yours to keep on your hard-drive. Too bad it's the last one I found but now I can REALLY appreciate its power and simplicity. Their company is based in Tx and have been in business since 1998. Also you can actually get live help on the phone! Now its practice, practice, practice for me until QIDI V2.0 comes out for sale. Lets hope they have a web-cam and self leveling bed by then!

[@olafmarzocchi6194]

What about print performances and quality of P1S vs Voron/Ratrig? ignoring the personal enjoyment, does it still bring some factual advantages over ready-made printers like K1 or P1S or X1C?

[@iemozzomei]

Been eyeballing it as a potential Polycarbonate printer, looks like it's going to be a handful though.

[@martinpirringer8055]

I print for big robots and often my Chiron (400x400x450) is too small and needs work arounds. I also print with a .8. As for heated chamber - they higher (within reason) the ambient/chamber temp the higher the layer adhesion on filaments like hips/petg/abs etc and the less warping. At some point heat creap becomes an issue so if you enclose and heat you got to make sure the heatsink on the hotend stays cool enough. So if I would have to pick between the 2 right now it would be the max3 due to bigger volume and heated chanber but rn I have time to wait to see if bambu labs makes an XL