Prusa MK4S Preview - Worthwhile Upgrade?

[@sebastianlauwers]

I instantly bought the upgrade, GPIO board and accelerometer, a few minutes after the blog post came out. Cooling and the printed parts being PETG are the only issues I’ve had with my MK4. I mostly print ASA and PC, in an enclosure, so there was no way the PETG was going to survive. Many people have been asking for ASA/PC upgrades. As a customer, this shows me Prusa is listening to the issues their printers have and investing R&D into fixing them. As a business, I value reliability and repairability much more than absolute cost. Whether it’s $500 or $1100 doesn’t matter that much to a business.

[@TheGuilev]

Prusa provide a full ecosystem : printers , 3D models ( printables ) , replacement parts, filaments, 3D printing knowledge ( academy ) , slicer software, farm management software ( prusa connect ). That's what you pay for when you buy a Prusa printer.

[@mvadu]

Love your unbiased "let them fight, I am here for a decent printer" review.

[@RobertCowanDIY]

I appreciate that!

[@coreymac2381]

Nice video! My prusa Mk4’s are far more dimensionally accurate than my bambu X1C. I ordered the upgrades for the MK4’s! I’m looking forward to the upgrades.

[@SpyRos-z2x]

The Prusa MK4 3D printer produces really beautiful and precise products.

[@DoRC]

I'm glad you talk about the profiles. A lot of reviewers are still omitting discussing them with a lot of printers and these days the software is just as important as the hardware. A printer that comes without good solid out of the box profiles is simply incomplete.

[@Lagmaster56]

Your video is the first I've seen that focuses more on print quality! Everywhere else it seems to be just about speed comparison... Thanks!

[@RobertCowanDIY]

Which is STRANGE because it's a printer, quality should come first.

[@AZ3D_printing]

We all appreciate how you are so unbiased in your reviews! Much appreciated!

[@RobertCowanDIY]

I appreciate that!

[@MisterNorab]

Speak for yourself, I hate unbiased reviews. This was hard for me to watch.

[@RobertCowanDIY]

@@MisterNorab haha. Sorry about that!

[@HERBWind]

I really like how Prusa works and I am very happy with their printers

[@JorgTheElder]

It is $1100 because Prusa builds their printers in Prague, takes care of their employees, pays them a living wage and treats them well. I don't think that can be said about any company that outsources their manufacturing to China. Prusa's hardware and software is also open source. Go ahead and ask Bambu if you can copy their hardware and software.

[@Knutahh]

​@@jaris9172 I mean, sure. For me, after upgrading a (cheap chinese) bedslinger to klipper w/ klipperscreen myself, I can't see myself going back. Why would I ever pay (a LOT) more money to get a printer that provides a more cumbersome experience?

[@joelv4495]

Also upgradability. While the value proposition of a specific upgrade is sometimes questionable, the fact that they offer upgrade kits alone is a huge reason to pick Prusa printers over Bambu.

[@Standbackforscience]

Yep, that's why I'm still happy to stick with Prusa. Many people forget that up to the MK3S+, Prusa's hardware was 100% standard and open source. You can source and build a MK3 entirely on your own. They kept the spirit of Reprap alive until the bitter end, and they'd still be doing it today, if people weren't in a tizzy over Bambu and all the the race-to-the-bottom companies.

[@comradejordan5738]

That's interesting you say that... yet companies like Anycubic and Creality are still adhering to their open source fundamentals. Prusa is no longer truly open source. Prusa sources many of their parts from chinese manufacturers. Their electronics have components made in chinese plants such as the parts for their buddy board. They pay their employees a living wage, that is true, but for 1100$ they don't even include an accelerometer in the box. Living wage is also a western idea. I'm sure the 3D printer manufacturing employees are probably making a percentile above the average in China and even if they make less than we do can probably afford to live comfortably. They are paid above the average for their nation. Also big congratulations to whatever device you just typed that on because there is a 99.99% chance that device was entirely or in part assembled in China.

[@comradejordan5738]

How dare you buy a Quest 2 instead of a Valve Index... did you not know the Valve Index is manufactured in house by Valve? We can go down this rabbit hole but your points on why you support Prusa such as open source and "living wage" whatever that western term means are points that are easily refuted in my previous comment. Bambu was a great pivot but you forgot about companies like Creality who literally have their software so open you can SSH into the f**cking device.

[@chiparooo]

Great review! Really impressed with the overhang ability. I think I would just go with the kit to save some money. That way the margin of difference isn’t so great. I enjoyed putting my first Prusa together. Thanks for sharing!

[@LauraBrown1]

Thanks for your review. I have my MK4 and I am very satisfied, but after this video I must upgrade it to MK4S! 🤩

[@PrintingPress3D]

you're my favorite 3d printing youtuber, your videos are incredible...

[@RobertCowanDIY]

awww, thank you!

[@nickm8651]

I'm in the process of purchasing ta 3D printer, and this will be my first one ever. I was between he PRUSA MK4S or the Bamabu Lab X1C printer. Been doing lots of research online regardign both of these and finally seen something that no one else showed and compared the over hang qualities. I'll be purchasing the PRUSA since it has open source software, great track record, and PRUSA seems to continue to improve and update their products along with a large community. Again, thanks for a solid non-bias review.

[@MikeKobb]

As for cost, I'm happy to pay more for a printer built in a Western country by workers who are well paid, with outstanding 24/7 customer support, and built and developed by a company that actively supports open source rather than building proprietary closed-source products off of others' open source work. Anyway, congratulations on posting the best video I've seen about this launch so far. Some folks are basically reading the press kit, but you added some real value.

[@hillfortherstudios2757]

Very good customer support. Also excellent quality and reliability. I have several for my business. I also agree that Its important to support companies that treat people like human beings.

[@paulhuckaby]

when I first started 3d printing I would've been on here disagreeing with you - but after wasting money & tons of time trying to get cheaper "fast" printers working consistently - I picked up a Prusa Mk4 that was being sold on Craigslit (only had about 9 hours of print time). I did a factory hard reset and when through the full setup, including updating firmware. And WOW - it was so easy and the print quality is beyond anything I have gotten before, and its consistently printing quality parts. I'm a convert - I've already orderd the "S" upgrade kit and will pay a little more for a quality product. In fact I just bought an XL (also off CL) and I'm looking forward to getting that setup and put to work. My time is way to valuable to be waisting it.

[@drconflict629]

@@hillfortherstudios2757 I mean, it better be good if it's 3 times the price of a machine that can do prints just as good. Prusa fanboys really drank the koolaid.

[@Netkravler]

@@drconflict629 let me guess you haven't seen the whole video. "of a machine that can do prints just as good". Which machine are you referring to. try fast forward to 17 minutes

[@BrianDavisDivis]

This. All of this! ☝

[@LauLex]

Love your videos and professional honesty, not to mention your integrity. Keep it up please!

[@RobertCowanDIY]

Thank you! Will do! Subscribe and tell all your friends.

[@tshev]

I love the Prusa's priorities, and I will be happy to upgrade my MK4.

[@bricogeekcom]

Excellent unbiased review as always, thank you Robert!

[@EddieNanakase]

I saw one review or two and I was not convinced about upgrading, seemed pointless for me. Then I came across your video and at the end of the video, I was completely conviced into upgrading my MK4, thank you for your top notch videos

[@Blayzeing]

Great to see a real unbiased review like this where the print quality on the objects is actually stacked up against eachother. It's also really interesting when seeing the comparisons with Bambu to see that many people are comparing the MK4S against the P1S or even the A1 or A1 mini when as your video shows, it's much more reasonable to compare the MK4S against the X1C, which (at least here in the UK) I'm surprised to see is actually more expensive than the MK4S - both with and without their respective multi-material options.

[@Blayzeing]

And here's a long follow-up to this on the back of Robert's video about overhang performance being more of a slicer setting than anything else: It was an interesting watch, although I don't feel it was exactly the slam-dunk some Bambu fans seem to think it is. Before I explain my thoughts on that, I'd like to just clarify: when I mentioned the MK4S performing faster than the X1C on complex geometry, I was explicitly referring to the print times shown in this video - all of which the MK4S performs faster. That indicated that the MK4S was making up significant time by handling overhangs better; something that actually remains in Robert's overhang video - even with the alternative overhang settings, the MK4S still prints the test piece 30 minutes faster than the X1C, which to me indicates their competitiveness. As to the actual fact of the matter on this, I still feel like this is a point in favour of Prusa. While not quite the astounding physical difference it appeared to be at first, it does highlight the core difference between Prusa and many other 3D printing companies (and one that this whole comment thread was started with): When you buy a printer, you are not just buying a piece of hardware on it's own. You are buying the software too. Prusa has been and still is directly supporting the open development of their slicer. They discovered and fixed this issue 9 months ago. They were able to do so because they know their printers well and they tune their profiles and improve their software to match them instead of relying on the open source community to highlight and fix issues for them. When you buy a Prusa you are buying quality research that works out of the box. Seemingly, when you are buying Bambu you are paying for hardware from them while they wait for someone else (in this case Prusa) to highlight the issue and fix it for them. If not for Prusa's input and work on 3D printing development, Bambu Studio would not look and function as it does (as it's a fork of PrusaSlicer), spring steel sheets may not be industry standards, and various multi-material solutions would not function in the way they do. The least we can do is say "hey, yeah, they've made their software better than the competition on release". I think it's important not to get caught up in what could or can be. If I wanted a really fast or really accurate printer, I could buy a sovol SV08 (or heck, even build my own) and tune it to be better than either printer. At the time of release, the Prusa with it's bundled software outperformed the X1C in a number of areas, and the only way we've got the X1C to match it was to change settings and hope to instigate a bugfix in Bambu Studio. While I don't doubt that coreXY designs can and will ultimately outperform most bedslingers, this all proves that currently we're not hitting hardware limits, we're hitting software limits, and Prusa seem to be more on the ball when it comes to that. Also, I noticed in Robert's video that while he tuned the slicer to work well with the X1C, he didn't tune Prusa Slicer to perform better - it's not an amazingly fair review when you've tuned one and not the other. That'd be like comparing two cars, but one you've put an after-market turbo in. Do I think if both were tuned to their maximum capacity that the MK4S would print faster or better? Probably not, but I don't know how much work it'd take to get each to perform like that. At the end of the day, you're paying for a complete package, and for continued development. If some people are happy buying tech built on the back of other tech then each to their own, but the flip side of that is that the people actually developing the tech will be the ones to fix issues first, and that'll be reflected in their products. It's the same reason the MMU wastes less filament and changes colour faster than the AMS (which again, at least to me, puts the MK4S in a competative position with the X1C rather than Bambu's other offerings).

[@Titan3DAZ]

Love this review. Thank you! I think that is a very solid contender for a TPU powerhouse. In my shop I like to dedicate machines to each material type. That way, I can adapt the machines to the nuances of each material, and so I can always quickly start customer prints. Without an enclosure (and me not really liking the enclosure they have for it) I think TPU/PETG are perfect for this machine. I might have to pick one up for for the shop.

[@Alex-kr7zr]

Even without the S upgrade this printer is already handling TPU very well. Can't wait for the upgrade. Also it fits neatly inside a standard server housing, so no need to buy their enclosure. I mostly didn't buy it because it doesn't come assembled and as a business owner I want to have it assembled. Didn't regret getting the server housing, was built in less than 20 minutes, costs 1/5th and works as good.

[@GürkanDursun-q8o]

One of the best objective reviews I have ever watched. Thank you very much

[@nuadarstark]

No fancy web interface huh? Well, as a person that manages a farm of 20 or so printers, I can tell you that none of the web interface or mobile apps offer me the same kind of functionality Prusa Connect does. Not even Klipper. I couldn;t imagine living without it.

[@Janovich]

Prusa connect pretty much sold me on soon moving on from octoprint. It seems Prusa is the only company that takes printfarms seriously because 1. they actually run one and use their own printed parts in assembly enmasse. 2. Actually developing a new advanced fully automated printfarm system as we speak 3. Prusa multitool system and modular bed are superb for printfarms People saying Prusa is getting left behind because they did not recently release a highspeed enclosed core-xy machine like Bambu X1 and creality K1 are not looking at the whole picture.

[@sebastian.werner]

👋the upgrade prusa MK4S is great, perfect, I am very very satisfied 🤝

[@allEs0nE]

I’ve originally bought MK3, upgraded to MK3S, upgraded to MK4, and now I’ll upgrade to MK4S. In the meanwhile they put out countless small firmware and slicer upgrades - listening to community and always delivering a tested and reliable features. THAT is Prusas best selling point - when you buy Prusa you can be sure that you will not be “left behind” - you are always getting new features for your printer. How many other brands provide that? None! So I’m getting the awaited native app now. I’m getting the GPIO, and accelerometer. I’ve got the input shaper. And it’s only a matter of time before I get the camera capabilities. And who knows what else. I paid for a machine that seems to never be getting obsolete, and it was worth every euro.

[@JohnWilson94-n2z]

Great video! Thank you! This upgrade for the Prusa MK4 - Perfect price for what you get! I can't wait to get it home.

[@bunker1213]

I don't have a separate workshop room, so for me, sound level is important. Would be really interested to see and hear a sound comparison of different bambu and prusa printers. Or at least mk4s and A1 that I suspect are the quietest printers of each brand.

[@Alex-kr7zr]

I have my MK4 sitting in a server housing next to my office desk. You can't barely hear it normal mode, in stealth mode can't hear it all, the noise of my computer is louder, not to speak of my AC. Without a housing? Not sure, I wouldn't want any printer sitting next to me, not only because of the noise, but also the smell and fumes. I used my MK4 before there was stealth mode and I had a server housing also in the same room and it was annoying, so I moved it to the room next door. However, for reference I also has a Creality printer some time ago, that was a hell machine compared to the MK4 when it comes to noise. The MK4 probably could be used in a large office without housing, the Creality printer not. In a small or silent office, better not without a housing. But from what I've read the Bambu isn't better, actually worse. Get a housing, no matter what printer. A small server housing with some sound mats inside will do the trick and costs maybe 200 bucks including the housing fan and carbon filter.

[@MichRules]

Nice print quality 😮 . Great video man, your reviews are really good

[@RobertCowanDIY]

Much appreciated!

[@dangerfly]

@@RobertCowanDIY Doesn't Galaxy Black hide imperfections better? Not the filament I would have used for a baseline.

[@RobertCowanDIY]

@@dangerfly Yeah, it does and I've repeated that test with a couple different filaments now. I was just using what they included, not knowing there was a dramatic difference between different filaments. Even a different color of Pusament was much worse.

[@Standbackforscience]

Glad to see Prusa back in the game with their signature moves : print quality and reliability.

[@devlindaniel1306]

Fantastic and very informative review. Much appreciated.👍

[@wafflecart]

Appreciate the very detailed review with the hardware and software! The overhangs and the speed at which it does it is impressive!

[@webfiles4utube]

Another awesome unbiased review, thank you. $1100+ USD is really a tough sell imho. Prusa has left a really bad tase with me with my Prusa Xtra Large problem printer and poor support, and my mk3s+ is still rock solid. So MK4s still wouldn't not be on my short list neither is any of the Bambu printers. Like you said, the market right now is very fickle with a lot of growing pains and all the focus on high speed is just really frustrating. Perhaps Prusa's refocusing on high quality and consistent out is a good thing. Sadly my XL isn't high quality nor consistent output. It reminds me of my Luzbot from 10 years ago.

[@AlanKarcz]

the processing seems to be successful👌

[@yathani]

I tried to print the platter overhang on my X1C and it failed when i used Bambu studio slicer however I switched to Orcaslicer and they have something to slow down to prevent curled perimeters. My X1C handled the model perfectly with no issue printed in bambu speed of 3.5 hours. My RatRig VC3 printed the same model flawlessly in 2:40 h :) Thank you for uploading the models .. Great video

[@wabbitguy]

Awesome preview. I always find it fascinating that users seem to want apps and cameras. I print via Repetier Server Pro, it sends a push notification if something goes amiss or the print is finished on any of my printers. That's about as close to a camera as I'd ever care about. I enjoy building printers as much as using them so the kit price is really attractive when it comes time to replace my MK3S/MMU2S (which I'm still trying to wear out). I can fully understand price being important as well, I know if I wanted to actually save money I'd take up a different hobby..LOL Anyway, thanks again for the fabulous preview!

[@drewmakesstuff]

exactly the kind of review i was looking for, something unbiased and not influenced by the hype

[@farnaby13]

One thing you forgot to mention when talking about how expensive it is, is the 24/7 support. I still get it for my 7 year old MK3..

[@RobertCowanDIY]

I try to only mention things I have personal experience with. I've never used support on any printer, so for me it's not really a selling feature. But you're 100% right, their support is great to have for people that need it.

[@MikeKobb]

@@RobertCowanDIY I have used their support on a couple of occasions and they are outstandingly good. They helped me diagnose an issue with one of the nozzles on my XL 5T where the flow was restricted by the grub screw being over-tightened. You can tell that these folks actually have deep experience with the printers. They're not just a call center somewhere with a script.

[@VincentGroenewold]

But it is there and does cost money. I had someone within 5 min, just noticed something and was asked for a few pictures and a video, boom send off to the firmware people and even got a follow-up on it a few days later. Even if I never need it, I appreciate it a lot it exists.

[@victorlin4645]

Yup, talked to their 24/7 support for a three year old machine which simply confirmed my own diagnosis that I needing to pay $160 (at the time) for a replacement EINSY board... for a 3+ year old machine. I mean, if you need someone to talk to directly... that's great. But it doesn't help at all with costs or prices if you need to actually fix something. In the end I still had to scrounge on eBay for a used EINSY board because the high cost of just a new board would have meant I would have been better off just putting that towards a modern Bambu.

[@Unscientifically]

back when I had my prusa the support was great, like all day any day they were available. Also the warranty is very good. I had a broken fan when I first got it and they replaced it. I told them I was starting school and wanted to finish the printer soon so they expedited the shipping and got it from prusa to the US in 3 days. Also when my bed layer was poor, they sent me a pinda probe for free to test, it ended up not even being the issue.

[@LilApe]

All the people complaining about the price are the same people on reddit/FB groups every week asking whats wrong with their printer and asking for help and exchanging printers every 2 years after becoming bricks. While the people with "overpriced" prusas are just happily printing along of years to come.

[@RobertCowanDIY]

yep. many people are still quietly using their MK3.

[@elleryfg7853]

You know that's not true little monkey😂

[@PoweredUP_]

Lack of a great alternative does not imply that prusa's prices are reasonable

[@markswayne6326]

I was happily using my Mk2 until I managed to bend the heatbreak with a print gone badly wrong. I don't have the space to tear it all down and rebuild the hotend right now, and the printer is ancient. So I've been agonizing about what to replace it with. The assembled Mk4 has been tempting but the price has been a huge blocker. OTOH I don't know that I can trust the other manufacturers to make something that will last. This update makes the mk4 a bit more tempting.

[@LilApe]

@@PoweredUP_ They're EU made(soon to also be USA made) with name brand high quality components. They can't be expected to sell for china made prices when the parts they use are more expensive than made in china parts. Prusa makes the cheapest EU/USA made printers. People keep expecting china made prices for things that aren't made in china.

[@talbech]

Thanks for your content. I for one will be looking at upgrading my MK4 based on this review.

[@RobertCowanDIY]

I think it will be worth it. I'll see if I can get an upgrade kit from them and show what's included and what's involved.

[@talbech]

@@RobertCowanDIY will an upgrade render my existing obsidian nozzles obsolete or make the upgrade less desirable? It is not entirely clear.

[@joost3732]

@@RobertCowanDIY Curious about that! Is the fan a different type from the MK4 fan?

[@RobertCowanDIY]

@@talbech The upgrade will work with your nozzles, BUT you won't get to use the new high flow nozzle, you'll have to pick. I REALLY wish they had just released the MK4S with a high flow obxidian nozzle. right now you have to choose if you want 'high flow' or the ability to print abrasives.

[@Teon]

Really appreciate your balanced and informative take on this. As you alluded to at the end of your video, not all reviews are equally unbiased...

[@magicmanspaz]

I ran Prusa mk3s+ bears with Bontech sls extruders for years in my farm and they where great for PETG and overhangs. Not so great for ASA or ABS even in a tent. Bambu Is what I use now and have dropped PETG mostly and print ASA and ABS. The Bambu is for me the best printer in every way except overhangs. I just can not seem to tune overhangs with any material as good as the older model Prusa with Bondtech SLS extruder and duct. or any duct I had used over the time I had Prusa. I really wanted the XL and was a day one pre order for two of them but after about 3 years I cancelled. Sold my Prusa farm and went Bambu. Still Kinda want a XL but Bambu is probably not far off a larger XY machine so it will be interesting.

[@SpectraV3i]

I cant wait to get my MK4S Kit. I will probably print the screen frame from a different material. IDK if I like the Screen frame, I would rather have it printed.

[@Rob_65]

It's fun to see how you present this upgrade in a much different way from Thomas Sanladerer. You are much more focusing on the technical quality of the print(er) - and that is exactly why we bought the Prusa XL - which I am hoping will get an S upgrade soon I have (almost) no issues with our XL, it has been printing perfectly for over 6 months now while a friend with a Bambu P1 had a clogged nozzle after 6 weeks and he is still too afraid to see if his big Dutch hands are too large to be able to fix this. The XL is a workhorse that is reliable and easy to repair when I need to - that is the quality I have expected from Prusa when buying our printer

[@KidHaru]

This feels a bit disingenuous. Your friend is too nervous to touch a clogged nozzle on the P1? Is it their first printer? My converted P1s had a clogged nozzle after months of uninterrupted printing. That I fixed in under a minute by just heating the dang thing. Using the retract setting on the printer. And then pushing it back through. Had that same cheap moist silk filament clog up my extruder gear. Took 4 minutes to fix. Just like 5 screws to open the back of the head. Pulled out the plastic. And it's been good again. Well over a year and my P1s, nor that of 4 other friends have been down for over 10 minutes. Cumulatively. Over the last 2+ years.

[@plutonasa]

@@KidHaru remember: bambu bad, prusa good

[@ericpascual8913]

I'm glad not having jumped on the MK4 last year, because this new version seems to be a killer. I'm impressed by the comparison with the Bamboo, and by the fact that the net result in terms of effective speed and quality of the MK4S is above it (the plate demonstration is impressive). For sure it's expensive, by having a MK3S for 4 years now, I could appreciate the consistent quality and reliability of Prusa printers. I would thus go with the MK4S... as soon as I could find a way to finance it 😕 Anyways, thanks a lot with your honest and detailed review. Much appreciated 🙏

[@eodpunk]

Maybe a future video idea could be walking through your troubleshooting steps you do to get a print to work. Not Bambu specific but what you did to get it to finally print successfully. Keep the videos coming!

[@crazyethanyeahyeah]

Hey Robert, I just wanted to say I really enjoyed the video! I've watched it three times already and shared it with others. To be honest, after watching some of your other videos, I initially thought your critiques were a bit too nitpicky-kind of like my old bank manager giving me a performance review, haha! But this video was fantastic. It was straight to the point, honest, and completely unbiased. I really enjoy the segment of the video with the over hang torture test and side by side comparison Prusa and Bambu lab. It really resonated with me because I recently made a big upgrade from my old MakerBot Replicator 2 to the Prusa MK4. I was on the fence for a while, debating between Prusa and Bambu Labs, but your video confirmed that I made the right choice going with Prusa. Thanks again for the great content! Looking forward to more. - Ethan, new subscriber from Australia

[@michaelpayne8102]

Thanks for the video, I have the MK4 will upgrade after viewing this.

[@philxcskier]

My first printer was the Mk4 kit and, I have nothing bad to say about it- it just works. It’s really awesome to see an upgrade come out, if it’s anything like the i3 it should be able to last just fine for 7 years cranking out prints and doing its thing. That makes me pumped to see where it goes, and if any community improvements or mods really end up shining

[@RobinCernyMitSuffix]

That's the "problem": it just works, over and over and over and over. It's not flashy it's not fancy, but it gets the job done, in a reasonable time, and with great quality. There is only so much those KZbinrs and Influencers can say about something that just works.

[@JeffsPrints]

Excited to see what people do with the GPIO board! That looks really interesting.

[@RobertCowanDIY]

There will be some really cool modifications done with it I'm sure. A nozzle wiper, auto part ejector, light control, timelapse trigger, etc, etc. It's a neat product.

[@sonicshockalarm]

Thank you. You sold me on upgrading my 4 to 4S. Regarding value for money, real time support I can say from experience is a strong point of Prusa, and the primary reason I use their machine. Unlike hardware & software products, support resources are labour intensive and as such costly. Yet because it's intangible, people have trouble quantifying the value and don't value it remotely near what they should. How much? I'd suggest a lot. Maybe even half the cost of the printer. There's a reason why companies will do most anything to avoid having to deal with you on a real time personal basis, and if they do, you'll be talking to some ill trained call centre in India or Philippines. One single call to a well trained tech support person can destroy your profit margin unless you've priced it into your product up front. "Never need support", some people say. Sure, until the day comes when they do.

[@Ghinis]

I appreciate your integrity. Thank you

[@marianososa4309]

Excellent video-informative and impartial. Beyond that, I find the machine interesting; however, I agree with the concerns about the price. While many praise the excellent support, that doesn’t mean Prusa shouldn't consider optimizing costs and lowering the price of their machines as much as possible. Every dollar counts, and even a reduction of just $100 could have a significantly positive impact on sales and the perception of the general public.

[@RobertCowanDIY]

This is exactly my feedback to them. Stop with the gummy bears, stop with the kits (I bet they cost a fortune to bag up and sort all the hardware), and do everything possible to chip away at the price instead of justifying the high price.

[@marianososa4309]

@@RobertCowanDIY Yes, I agree with you. While I understand that it must be a complex task, considering the prices offered by the competition, I don’t believe they can afford to maintain such comparatively high prices in the long term. It’s essential to recognize that lowering prices doesn’t necessarily mean compromising quality. An affordable product doesn’t have to be low-quality. Take, for instance, the Bambu Lab A1 Mini-an extraordinary machine available at a truly competitive price. The recent shift to using injection-molded parts instead of printed ones is a strategic move aimed at reducing costs and increasing production volumes without compromising quality. By implementing a series of similar changes and improvements, they could likely enhance their pricing while maintaining profit margins and quality standards. And let me clarify-I’m not against Prusa; quite the opposite. I’m a fan of their products (I use the Prusa MK3S+ and MK3.5 daily), and I genuinely hope they continue to thrive.

[@fybyfyby]

Thank you for the review. Cooling and cht hotend seems like much needed upgrade!

[@daveglas1972]

I`ve found that upgrading my MK3s to 3.5s has bought them to life for me again. I`m waiting to get a MK4 until I've upgraded all my MK3s printers and seen what bambu labs brings out later this year. I know its very old tech and I know its a little pricey, but I have had had to deal with prusa customer service and its fantastic.

[@jeremytodd1]

Is the overhang platter model available anywhere? I'd like to print it on my printers just to see how it does.

[@RobertCowanDIY]

I was hoping they'd officially release it, it's one of Prusa's files. Let me check with them.

[@jeremytodd1]

@@RobertCowanDIY I appreciate it! Hopefully they release it.

[@amoose136]

Search for “Scandic Plate - 75°” on printables. Model by @rudolf

[@jeremytodd1]

@@RobertCowanDIY I think I found it. Search "Scandic Plate - 75° Overhang Torture Test" on Printables. Robert, would you be able to compare it to the file you used and confirm?

[@RobertLeithan]

Great video and upgrade

[@blubbertje321]

Can I ask which TPU shore you are using? Is the red benchy TPU 85A? Also with the overhang, was your cooling 100% during overhang printing? Thanks!

[@someguy2741]

I started printing with a $250 i3 clone. I increased the size of it simply by swapping out to bigger components. I can print 300x300x450 and it cost an additional 150 dollars. That is in CDN dollars so total is around 350 USD. If you arent going to tinker then the prusa or bambu is the unit to get. It is a bit crazy that prusa charges so much for a dumb architecture when a bambu is leaps ahead. I wouldnt even consider the prusa at this point.

[@LeakyWaderAdventureClub]

I just ordered mine. Will be a huge upgrade from my creality haha excited to get it together and see what she can do

[@MartinHájek89]

Such an upgrade for the price. I'm gonna have to go for it. I'm looking forward to the increased speed and print quality this upgrade will bring.

[@JillyHerrer]

Thanks for the review on the MK4S-it's awesome! It costs $99, so it’s basically free

[@Sembazuru]

Ummm... Not sure if you were being facetious... The upgrade from MK4 to MK4S is $99USD...

[@enhidri160]

@@SembazuruLol my room would be filled with Prusas if they were $99

[@shenqiangshou]

Good review. Thank you. Yes, the x1c's fan is pretty weak, and yeah, I do always have to think about plate orientation when trying to print fast on it. I upgraded my old mk3s to have 2 blowers, but even that didn't have enough cooling for really good overhangs.

[@sensii2]

best review on youtube , thanks for your content 😍

[@adameberbach]

No regret choosing the MK4. It cost more than some but it makes excellent prints, no cloud nonsense. And now it gets even better.

[@nhand42]

Great review as always.

[@RobertCowanDIY]

Thanks, I really appreciate it. Please consider subscribing if you haven't already!

[@andrewmorris483]

It looks like there is a new Overhang King in town.

[@ninamacova4308]

Thank you very much for this video. I have got MK4 and this was very interesting.

[@link6032]

Great review, super balanced and really concise - shame Tom's review was so clearly Prusa biased, this was really great in contrast - nice job

[@christianedelmann6880]

I think a lot of the comments here about how Prusa can’t lower prices and keep quality or still have manufacturing in Europe. Honestly this point has been made but 3d printing most of your parts is extremely expensive. It takes hours just to get a handful of parts and it’s just not scalable. A big reason why the Chinese competitors are inexpensive is that they can leverage absolutely massive economies of scale and have very experienced engineers who know how to design for manufacturability. If Prusa doesn’t want to go the way of dodo they will need to start making their printers easier to make and make faster. Simply put 1.1k for something like this is just not really acceptable in today’s market.

[@Luca.Rocher]

nice machine with fast printing nozzle, it's nice

[@iopfarmer]

wow the quality of the storage box is astonishing 😮

[@BorisRomac]

Yesterday i complete assembly of my MK4s, and I also use MK3s, Ender 3S1, and Bambu X1C. My comment is Prusa is simple machine without to much stuff which can go wrong, I like it for now, speed is comparable with X1C, but printer is much quieter. I only hope that Prusa will make some upgrade with two hotends and two color printing.

[@marcelschmidt8099]

now I chose the prusa mk4 printer, because bambo can have long-term reliability problems, as time has shown

[@C4mpblor]

OMG thank you for sharing the files. I am going to print one on my MK3.5 :D

[@petrnovotny-u7i]

Upgrade for 99 USD. Good price!!!

[@zacharcurik2276]

It looks like Prusa is using a pre-cut gcode file of Overhang_test with settings: External perimeters first (then internal). And good cooling together... I used to try this setting with good test results up to 70° (my 3D model didn't have more). But it has some disadvantages, so I don't use it much: Print order on bridging in Slicers, less accurate inner holes and nooks in the overhang (last two tend to pull the thread out).

[@ImolaS3]

I've been a prusa plan since the mk3 was released and had 2. Now, for me they are not even close to competing with my X1Cs and it is about time Prusa added an enclosure, light, camera, good web and app interface etc. There is nothing in this that would take me back to prusa after a couple of months with 2 X1Cs

[@Thadopeera]

I love all my Prusa machines and never once complained about the price or performance. If you think Prusa are too expensive you can always get a cheap Bambu

[@RobertCowanDIY]

Ha. You should really try an X1C, it might change your mind. The Prusa at times feels like the 'cheaper' alternative. I think both have their pros and cons for sure, but calling the Bambu 'cheap' as if its an insult shows you've never really given it a chance.

[@Thadopeera]

@@RobertCowanDIY It wouldn’t hurt I guess to try one out. I want to see what it’s got 💯

[@RobertCowanDIY]

@@Thadopeera I'd be curious what you think. I just got a second X1C and I really haven't been using the MK4S much. They are surprisingly good, and this is coming from a die-hard Prusa user for many years.

[@Venaloid]

1:41 - Yeah! I was really disappointed with the Mk3S , Mk4, and XL for literally sidelining the part cooling. I always thought they screwed this up coming from the Mk3 with its nearly 360 shroud. I'm very glad to see Prusa backtracking on this decision to ignore cooling.

[@SmiteoPuzzles]

love the unbiased review.

[@nicogyro7525]

Thank you for your feedback

[@TorIvanBoine]

love my mk3. a good work horse since 2018. now I love my A1 w/AMS😁

[@RobertCowanDIY]

Kinda same. I loved my MK3 and it's what REALLY got me into 3d printing. That printer made me realize that 3d printed parts had a place in my projects.

[@ivanivanov1340]

I tested the models on my Bambu X1C, and they printed perfectly. Just to be clear, I'm not against Prusa-I have one and I love it.

[@RobertCowanDIY]

I'm curious how you were able to do that. Myself and a few others were not able to get it working. Did you make changes in the slicer?

[@riba2233]

@@RobertCowanDIY please don't tell me that you just use unmodified stock slicer profiles?

[@ivanivanov1340]

@@RobertCowanDIY for me temperature of 205 and lowered fan speed did it, I am using Bambu PLA Basic

[@DavidKSanders]

Nice video, I liked how really tried to show how thorough you were. Until you should have mentioned, you can get this printer cheaper if you want to assemble It yourself. Also, You should mention how the Bambu comes with its AMS and you're at another $300 for Prusa's MMU.

[@RobertCowanDIY]

It sounds like you're already aware of all those points :-)

[@kensb2]

I originally bought the mk3s+ and mmu2s. I've upgraded to the mmu3, which is vastly improved. I'm planning to upgrade to the mk4s, which will be around $700. I can't get another well-known, supported printer in that price range (maybe a SV08?). The ability to upgrade the machine as I go is amazing. I can go 3.5 or 3.9 now, then go up to the 4S or 4s+, which will inevitably be released. Much easier on the budget, and allows me to learn as I upgrade.

[@RobertCowanDIY]

I wouldn't call the SV08 a well-known or supported printer. It had some early reviews and then everyone pretty much moved on. You CAN get two Bambu A1s for $680, or a P1S or P1P. There are absolutely other very viable options for that price. I agree that upgrading is nice, but it's nearly the price of a new printer. And going from a MK3 to MK4 requires you to remove most of the printer. I don't disagree that it's a nice option to have, but I would never argue it's economical.

[@hedsy]

I own a Prusa mini+. Id buy another Prusa on a heartbeat. I really like their reliability and their customer service. I buy a printer to print, not to tinker and get angry and the dumb thing for not working.

[@RobertCowanDIY]

A few years ago, Prusa was really the only brand that could claim that. But times have changed and there are other options for printers that 'just work'.

[@Jykinturah]

I think Prusa needs to exist because 3d printing becoming closed off is a bad thing, that’s why I buy from them, sort of my way to put my money where I want it to go as a casual hobbyist

[@WolfManCrabArms]

Seeing the quality and speed makes me want one, and you've come to the conclusion I have with my bambus, If I need overhangs, I print SLOW. But then the price.... $1100. I have found my A1 prints as good as my X1C and P1P, and its $340. So me sitting here, having always wanted to justify buying a prusa (because before bambu they were the dream, by the time I had the money, bambu was out and prusa hadn't responded) I have to consider, yeah 3 and a half hours for a very difficult print, leaning towards Prusa's strong side (cooling). Over 5 hours on the bambu, but for that price, I could run 3 bambus and get THREE of those prints in that 5 hours. Then prints without drastic overhangs, the bambus are still faster. I just don't see the value. I know prusas support is supposed to be top tier, and bambus isn't great and slow, but again its the 3 to 1 printer issue. Probably dont need 24/7 support if I have 2 extra printers when one has a problem. There's too many good cheap printers now to be doing this, in my opinion as someone where every dollar counts.

[@JorgTheElder]

Prusa open sources their hardware and software and manufactures in Prague, taking good care of their employees. If that has no value to you, feel free to hand your money to closed source companies that outsource everything to China.

[@No0o0o0o0o0]

I don't live in Prague and couldn't care less what a worker there gets paid. I don't contribute, read,write or otherwise contribute to open source hardware or software. I am not a r@cist in that a Chinese life is worth less than a European life. What I will do is vote with my wallet and get the better value for my money. If it's with Prusa, creality, Bambu or any others then so be it.

[@tomtlc]

Damn I need to start saving some money for MK4S :D

[@bmorr]

I feel like this should've been what they released as the normal Mk4. I love my Mk4, but my only other experience is the Ender 3. The MK4 should've had these when it released to truly compete with the Bambu Labs printers.

[@RobertCowanDIY]

Things change so fast. There have been numerous improvement on the MK4 that a lot of people (myself included) didn't really notice.

[@CrabtreeCAD]

Great Video

[@unloveableandre]

Honest review? THIS. Amazing

[@RobertCowanDIY]

I try!

[@noobling8313]

Genuine dimensional accuracy. Reliability. Prints awkward filaments. All straight out of the box. It’s the cheapest printer that does that, AFAIK.

[@pjcanada4763]

Bought the MK3 a few years ago and still pri ts very nice but slow and with My palette 2 s pro i jave to go with 90 percent speed like 50 mm s Anyway not buying prusa due to sky high prices and super happy with my Flsun v400 printer for half the price With 600 mms speed and super nice prints with 1500 hrs on it like the first day and first nozzle 🎉🎉🎉

[@Seaofjitsu]

Best review possible!

[@RobertCowanDIY]

Thanks so much!

[@ethancohen6005]

Some things to note for anyone without much printing experience: These rounded calibration prints. You will much more ringing, and ghosting with more square prints. Additionally colors like galaxy black and prusa excel at hiding ringing and ghosting. The comparison is a cartesian vs a core xy; fundamentally different systems. Now i have a mk4 and an x1c ans i print far more than toys. My x1c is far faster than my prusa. But my prusa wont have issues like my x1c does when bambu releases a firmware update.

[@doranku]

Nice display of the improvements. Thanks. Will I buy the mk4s? No. Will I recommend it to friends, unlikely. It is just too expensive in the current consumer market (and I say that owning a mk3, mini and xl)

[@Racemade3D]

Well. After the X1C ive purchased the 2Head XL and now its in repair. Quality by Prusa 😢 The P1S in my store is nice but after some problem and encountering with the support, i still like prusa more….prusa is still helping, while bambu always say „still in tolerance“. And thats the fact why prusa is quality. Its not the Product itself, its the service you get (and pay for). Hope my Xl will printing soon. The mk4 looks amazing with that update! Price tag is still big i think….

[@ahbushnell1]

The MK4S does not have an enclosure. Is it okay with ABS? I just replaced my TAZ 6 which I had for many years with the Bambu carbon partially because of the warp problem. But during COVID I was running my printer 24 hours a day with face masks using ABS. So you can make it work.

[@FrequenciaJogos]

I have one MK3S, I look to upgrade it to MK4S but... Considering the ~600 EUR upgrade price, you can get almost 3x BambuLab A1 Mini, 2x Flashforge Adventurer 5M and almost 2x BambuLab A1 or even get one FLSun T1. For course, comparing printers is hard, and I'm not saying that those printers will be better than upgrading my MK3S to MK4S. However, considering that I can have 3 printers instead of a upgraded one is really difficult to justify.