[Aurornis]

This was already available in an OrcaSlicer fork (the one they used as an inspiration) which works with Bambu and Prusa printers.

They're just putting the technique into their branded slicer which should make it easier to access for people who don't like using OrcaSlicer.

[sho_hn]

From what I've seen in the blog post, this is underselling it a bit. They did improve on the color mixing model, and they're launching filaments to match to make it an end-to-end product.

No this isn't rocket science, and there's definitely a vibrant FOSS community actually pioneering this and that is probably the best place to be on the true frontier, but there is productization effort here. Considering people always advocate for Bambu for "making it easy to buy", Prusa also deserves credit when they try. They certainly get knocked when they don't.

As someone deeply embedded into the FOSS community myself, it's sometimes really annoying when we sabotage the better players. It only helps the worse ones.

[MBCook]

Well said. They’re also sharing everything!

PrusaSlicer is used as a base by some others, they’ll get this.

Version 3 is coming soon, they’ve promised good things. I’m curious what shows up.

They also open sourced their color mixing model so if people think it’s better they can switch. And they’re using and adding their stuff to the open print tag database they’ve already cooperated with others on.

This seems like all upside to the community to me.

[Aurornis]

> They did improve on the color mixing model, and they're launching filaments to match to make it an end-to-end product.

For what it's worth, CMY filament bundles have been available forever and they're well characterized for use with HueForge there are open databases with measured color and TD values. It's great that Prusa is launching their own bundle with their own measurements. I'm just trying to point out that this all exists and has existed for a long time, and there are multiple resources available for it.

> As someone deeply embedded into the FOSS community myself, it's sometimes really annoying when we sabotage the better players

Not trying to sabotage anyone, just trying to help the community with some more information.

[MBCook]

The big thing for me is this plus the INDX from Bondtech. And at least for now they are the exclusive partner for that (you can still buy on your own and add to any machine).

INDX already has fast color changes and produces far FAR less waste than an AMS. And that’s what sold me.

Then the coloring mixing stuff started coming from the community. Now you don’t need to buy 30 colors of filament for many uses. Thats a serious upside. And it really benefits from multiple toolheads.

It’s a great confluence of events if you’re in the Prusa ecosystem or just don’t want a Bambu or U1.

[Aurornis]

> It’s a great confluence of events if you’re in the Prusa ecosystem or just don’t want a Bambu or U1.

I'm excited for INDX too, but like you said it's not a Prusa exclusive system. I think this is great news for people who like to play entirely within the Prusa ecosystem, but I also think it's good to let people know that there are a lot of options outside of that ecosystem.

The Snapmaker U1 is looking good at $899 shipped for a 4-color printer with no waste https://us.snapmaker.com/products/snapmaker-u1-3d-printer

[MBCook]

If I wasn’t already in the Prusa ecosystem the U1 is what I’d want. I was jealous of it until INDX was announced.

[Aurornis]

The INDX upgrade for the Core One costs more than the entire Snapmaker U1 printer. I think of them as targeting different price points.

I guess I've been in 3D printing long enough to not consider myself in anyone's ecosystem. I'm jumped between printers and had multiple printers at home for years and never felt tied to any one ecosystem.

[MBCook]

Oh yeah. But since I already had the Core One the INDX is the obvious upgrade path for me. I also only got the 4 head version.

I started with a MakerBot Thing-O-Matic when it was new. After leaving the hobby for a while I got a MK3(S?) because it seemed the most reliable to me at the time.

I’ve stuck with Prusa since then since I’ve been happy and I’m used to their stuff. I had a MK4S because I could upgrade my existing printer to it. The next time I was interested I didn’t see anything I was more interested in so I stuck with what I liked. There is also a “known quantity” factor in the company since I’ve dealt with them a few times now.

I would leave them if I saw something I liked better, but haven’t at a time I was buying. I do like the look of Bambu printers much more. I looked at their printers for a minute when I wanted to replace my MK4S but didn’t like it enough to bother. I didn’t get a Core One until after the INDX was announced, and that was a big part of why I decided to upgrade.

If I was starting over the U1 would be a VERY big draw for me. Price/capability is very impressive. Prusa’s low end is quite lacking as far as I know.

[rblatz]

The AMS doesn’t cause the waste, it’s purging the old filament out of the tool head. The H2D and X2D can print two colors with an AMS without needing to purge and the H2C can do 7 without purging. You still need a prime tower when switching tool heads, but that is significantly less than a full purge. But I believe the INDX has the same restriction.

I do agree though that direct feeding each tool head offers the best experience vs the AMS approach.

I’m glad to see Prius’s catching up to Bambu on the color mixing front, Bambu has had CMYK filaments for a long time and has supported color mixing in their slicer for at least a month.

[rented_mule]

> You still need a prime tower when switching tool heads, but that is significantly less than a full purge. But I believe the INDX has the same restriction.

INDX no longer needs a tower. They say there is 13 milligrams of waste (which they call less than a grain of rice) on each filament change. So a print with 1,000 changes wastes 13 grams of filament. Details:

https://blog.prusa3d.com/prusa-core-one-indx-orders-now-open...

[qiqitori]

I'd kind of considered printing a rather small thing (seriously, 3x3x3 cm or so) in grey using this technique (using white and black filament). It told me it'd require 140 (== number of layers) filament changes and it'd take 5 hours. (In fairness, if I wanted to print 10 at once it'd probably take a similar time.)

So... honestly it's kinda silly IMO. If I wanted to mix colors in a hacky way I'd just... wait, hold my beer.

[_zoltan_]

at home printing values, is filament waste really such a problem?

I understand OSS people don't like Bambu, but as pure end user, they are great and well put together.

[MBCook]

I’d say the level of waste from filament switching is a disaster. But many people are used to it which I find crazy.

It can be multiple times the weight of the actual thing you’re printing. Exactly how bad depends on the model. Here’s an extreme version:

https://www.reddit.com/r/BambuLab/comments/1jluvde/35_g_mode...

It makes one of those little color blobs every single time it changes colors.

[Wololooo]

Waste is waste, if you end up using 2 to 4 times the filament (depending on the number of colour change) it's still something to account for.

This might seems like a lot but this is the reality of the system.

[Mashimo]

Well depends on what a problem for you is. But the purging on complex models can be more plastic then the model itself needs.

And it also takes time. The difference can be a few hours vs a day of print time. Plenty of videos online that show case examples.