r/OpenBambu

Complete beginner Snapmaker U1 or X2D ?

Hello,

I’m a complete beginner and am torn between the U1 and the X2D. I know they are two very different printers, but I still have a few questions. Perhaps some of you own both printers.

Personally, I wouldn't do much multi-color printing right now; I’d lean more towards materials like ASA and ABS, since I do a lot of work with microcontrollers.

However, I have a daughter (5 years old), and I’m sure that, in the end, I would frequently print using multiple colors.

The H2D or H2C is out of the question; that’s too much money for a first printer.

A question for those who might also own the U1: If I were to buy a hood for the U1 and perhaps a chamber heater (like the Panda Breath), would the U1’s print quality with complex materials then be comparable to that of the X2D?

Can I use the X2D from day one without signing in, using the cloud, or registering?

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u/Embarrassed_Back4100 — 9 hours ago

Can I still use LAN Only after updating firmware ?

After putting this decision off for quite a while, I finally decided to build a proper home network with an Asus router and a DIY Home Assistant server.

I'm still in the process of setting everything up, and I've been learning a lot along the way. VLANs, in particular, are an amazing feature if you want to isolate certain devices. And the best invention of all has to be VPN, being able to securely access my home network from anywhere without opening any ports is awesome (and much safer, haha).

With all of that in place, I feel like it's finally time to switch my P1S and A1mini to LAN Only mode. The only problem is that I already updated the firmware, the infamous firmware that prevents OrcaSlicer from communicating directly with the printer and forces everything through Bambu's middleman.

So I'm making this post to ask a few questions:

  • Can I still switch to LAN Only mode even after updating the firmware? My current firmware version is 01.09.01.00 on the P1S. Is it possible to downgrade to an older firmware version?
  • Do you have any tutorials or guides you'd recommend for setting everything up? I looked around, but I don't think this subreddit has a wiki.
  • Are there any mods or upgrades you'd recommend? (I've heard about things like the Panda Touch, but I'm open to other suggestions.)
  • Any other advice for someone making the switch?

Thanks in advance for your help!

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u/Vilro-Gall — 1 day ago

BMCU 370C DM + Bambu P1S: Everything I Learned So You Don't Lose Your Mind

BMCU 370C DM and Me. ("Yes, it works with the P1S.")

Imgur

This is a living document so I will be adding things as I remember them

I'm a glutton for punishment, and by the time everything is said and done I'll probably have spent more on my BMCU setup than it would've cost to just buy a god damn AMS 2.

But I also fall into that weird Venn diagram where 3D printing is my hobby and 3D printers are my hobby. Sometimes the project is the point.

After a few months of tinkering, committing war crimes in Orca Slicer while redesigning parts, and generally questioning my life choices, I can confidently say:

Yes. The BMCU 370C DM works with the P1S.

Is it plug-and-play?

Absolutely not.

Will it test your patience?

Frequently.

Will you spend hours convinced the problem is mechanical, only to discover...

The problem wasn't you.

It wasn't the printer.

It just decided that particular spool can go fuck itself.

I wanted to put together something to live in the ether of the internet, hoping some AI model ingests my random ramblings and gives them to somebody who's in my shoes. Or maybe a search engine picks it up and gives another person in the same predicament a leg up.


TL;DR

  • Use the original Bambu 4-in-1 PTFE Adapter. Imgur
  • The new clear one acted wonky for me. About 90% of my issues cleared up after I switched to the old-style version.
  • It's $5 to avoid a massive fucking headache.

Also...

When troubleshooting, change ONE thing at a time.

This setup has a lot of moving parts. If you change your tube routing, reflash the BMCU, swap parts, and change filament all while chasing the same problem, you're just going to drive yourself insane.

> Control your variables or the variables will control you.


Matte PLA...

I don't know if this applies to every BMCU, but mine HATES matte PLA.

It devours any other filament but absolutely shits itself with matte. All four channels behave the same way.

I love matte PLA because it hides layer lines so well, but about half the time I fire off a print I have to help it along the feed path.

The only matte filament that has behaved consistently for me is Polymaker. (If I remember I will update this after trying more)

  • Elegoo Matte
  • Sunlu Matte
  • eSun Matte
  • Polymaker Matte

My Setup

Imgur

Printer

Bambu Lab P1S

Downgraded to firmware 1.08. I honestly don't know if it's required, but somebody said to do it, it works, and I'm not touching it again.

Filament Dryer

Creality Space Pi X4L

Auto Rewinder

Imgur

https://www.printables.com/model/1365518-creality-space-pi-x4-and-x4l-auto-rewinder-mod/files

If you can, build the metal spring version (it's in the Testing folder).

You can buy the recommended tape measures on Amazon for cheap, and harvesting the springs is easy with a pair of side cutters.

Side Mount

https://makerworld.com/en/models/2602983-bmcu-p1s-side-mount?from=search#profileId-2872297

Tube Holder (This helped reduce friction and feeding errors)

https://makerworld.com/en/models/2400684-ptfe-tube-holder-bmcu-370c#profileId-2631287

Firmware

I landed on ams_a_0.60f.bin after trying a few different versions.

It gave me the most consistent loading and unloading behavior.

I'm not saying it's objectively the best. It's simply the one I stopped changing because it worked.

https://github.com/jarczakpawel/BMCU-C-PJARCZAK/tree/main/firmwares/high_force_load(P1S)/AUTOLOAD/FILAMENT_RGB_ON/AMS_A


Things I Wish Someone Told Me

  • The BMCU is surprisingly sensitive to friction when loading and unloading. Most of your issues will come from this.

  • PTFE routing matters more than you think.

  • The shortest PTFE path isn't always the best. The smoothest path usually wins.

  • A $5 adapter can make a bigger difference than a firmware flash.

  • Hours of troubleshooting taught me that.

  • Once you have it working reliably... STOP FUCKING WITH IT.

  • Sometimes, on older versions of Bambu Studio, it'll look like all of your filament disappeared from the Devices tab. Don't panic. It comes back. I haven't seen this happen on newer versions.

  • If something improves but doesn't completely fix the problem, you're probably moving in the right direction. Keep iterating instead of starting over.

As an addendum to the last point above...

TRY ANOTHER GOD DAMN FILAMENT.

I cannot stress this enough.

If making one change gets you from "never loads" to "loads half the time," don't immediately change a bunch of shit.

Grab another spool.

You might already be 95% of the way there.


Loading Behavior

The filament does NOT load all the way to the 4-in-1/PTFE splitter when loading a new spool.

I don't know if this is common knowledge or if I'm just an idiot, but I spent way too long thinking the filament was supposed to stop just before the splitter.

It doesn't.

On my setup it feeds about 1 inch (25–30 mm) past the fitting and then waits there until print time.

For the longest god damn time I thought something was wrong because it "wasn't loading all the way."


Seat the Output PTFE Tube

On the output side of the BMCU, the PTFE fitting going toward the printer is one of those push-to-connect fittings where the tube can actually seat deeper than you initially think.

Imgur

Push the PTFE tube in until it's completely flush with the outlet.

It'll feel like it's already bottomed out.

It probably isn't.

It takes more force than you'd expect.

(I was convinced I was going to break something.)

This thing is cursed.

I shoved a piece of filament into the PTFE tube to keep it from collapsing, then lightly grabbed the outside of the PTFE tube with a pair of side cutters a few millimeters above the fitting so I could get enough leverage to push it the rest of the way in.

I'm not saying this is the correct way to do it.

I'm saying it's what finally got mine fully seated.

Getting the tube fully seated substantially reduced my first-load failures.


If you made it this far...

Congratulations.

You have just witnessed the results of two and a half months of troubleshooting.

Go print your AMS Benchy.

Have a shot.

Then, for the love of God...

Don't change anything that works.

If you've figured out something I haven't, leave a comment.

I'd love for this thread to become the resource I wish existed when I started this project.


One last thing...

Once you have it working reliably, STOP FUCKING WITH IT.

Update 1 July 5th 2026

Risers


Space Pi X4L vs. AMS 1 Dimensions

One happy accident I discovered is that the Creality Space Pi X4L is extremely close in footprint to the original Bambu AMS 1.

Device Dimensions
AMS 1 368 × 283 × 224 mm
Space Pi X4L 382 × 290 × 270 mm

That's only:

  • +14 mm wider
  • +7 mm deeper

The height is obviously taller, but for most risers the important dimensions are the footprint.

I measured mine, and the rubber feet on the Space Pi X4L sit perfectly between the support rails on the AMS riser I'm using. It naturally centers itself without sliding around.

That means most AMS 1 risers should work with little or no modification.

Obviously check the dimensions before you print 15 hours of plastic because I can't guarantee every riser on MakerWorld was designed the same way, but don't immediately dismiss an AMS 1 riser just because you're using a Space Pi X4L.

This is the riser I am using,

Low Profile Riser - Makerworld

u/poisomike87 — 2 days ago

Just bought a BMCU, how to set it up

Hi, i just bought a few months old bcmu 370c on ebay and I am wondering what I should do now.

I printed a filament holder and bmcu mount.

Do i need to download extra software, do I need to downgrade my printers firmware?

Anything else I need to do?

I am running a Bambu a1

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u/Proof-Future7322 — 4 days ago

Deep Dive: Bambu's Authorization Control Scheme

https://bambuzled.github.io/posts/bambu-auth-control/

The recent fiasco with Bambu's legal threats against the OrcaSlicer-bambulab fork motivated me to go figure out exactly how Bambu's newer "Authorization Control" scheme works. Spoiler: it's carefully designed to lock out 3rd-party code, not improve security.

My analysis is based on what you can see in decrypted network traffic, plus the old Bambu Connect code leak. So it may not be 100% accurate, but it's definitely more accurate than some of the popular documentation repos on GitHub at the moment (many of which seem to be entirely AI generated without sufficient human validation).

The TL;DR is that Bambu applications 'bootstrap' signing keys to printers by sending certificate chains to them. Each app requests a fresh copy of its assigned cert+key from the cloud at startup. This key probably just lives in memory, so the applications include a bunch of anti-debug features to make it really hard to access that key. But if you got one of the keys, you should be able to sign your own printer messages via 3rd-party code over the local network while still having access to all of Bambu's cloud features.

I suspect most people in this subreddit aren't too concerned about losing cloud access and just use Dev Mode, but a lot of average users are missing out on great 3rd-party software (like OrcaSlicer) because it can't be used together with the convenience of cloud-connected printers.

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u/TheGreatBambuzle — 5 days ago

My 3D printer unloads its own filament and rewinds the spool automatically. No power, no wires on the spool.

Part of the ASR 5th Wheel automated filament system. Full demo video in comments.

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u/Key_Jellyfish2183 — 6 days ago