【3D Printing News】 Bambu Lab A1 Mini Combo: A highly cost-effective multi-color 3D printer!

Since entering the desktop 3D printing market, Bambu Lab has been making waves with its solutions, including the original X1C, X1E, and the P1S and P1P 3D printers. Now, the manufacturer has launched its latest FDM multi-color 3D printer: the Bambu Lab A1 Mini Combo (with AMS Lite). This bed slinger is fast and will be the cheapest among Bambu Lab's already affordable 3D printers!

This new desktop 3D printer offers 4-color capability, automatic calibration, active flow compensation, active motor noise cancellation, and a 180x180x180 mm³ print volume.

As an entry-level product, Bambu Lab claims that its latest 3D printer will bring high-end, state-of-the-art features to beginners, making multi-color 3D printing more accessible to more people.

Key Features of the New A1 mini

The A1 mini arrives pre-assembled, pre-tuned, and pre-calibrated, so users can print out of the box without having to assemble or tune it themselves!

All calibration is handled by the A1 mini. Z-offset, bed leveling, and X and Y axis vibration resonance are automatically calibrated before each 3D print job. The A1 Mini is also equipped with a new nozzle pressure sensor that automatically calibrates fluid dynamics.

Bambu's latest 3D printer also features a new touchscreen user interface that is simple and straightforward. Users have noted that the IPS touchscreen UI makes operation as smooth as a smartphone, and the system guides users through all 3D printing steps and helps resolve any issues related to the HMS system. What's more, thanks to the new MakerWorld platform, the A1 mini can load preset files in 3mf format, allowing users to start 3D printing with a single click.

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The A1 mini is also easy to maintain, with a quick-change hotend that includes only a clip for quick and easy removal of the hotend. In fact, the entire hotend exchange process can be completed in 30 seconds, and there are no electrical connectors involved in the process!

Bambu Lab's latest 3D printer was also designed with aesthetics in mind, featuring a subtle color scheme and clean CMF design. As its name suggests, the A1 mini has a relatively small footprint, measuring 347 x 315 x 365 mm³. The A1 mini takes up slightly more surface area than a sheet of A4 paper, making it adaptable to various working environments.

• The new A1 mini also adds active motor noise cancellation technology: Bambu Lab claims that this effectively reduces motor motion noise, resulting in a quieter 3D printing experience. After the first power-on, the A1 mini will undergo a motor calibration process to calibrate the vibration characteristics of the specific motor of the 3D printer.

• Reliability is also a major highlight of the A1 mini: the 3D printer uses all-metal rails and linear bearings. All-metal rails offer higher rigidity and precision than traditional plastic V-wheels. In addition, the A1 mini's construction requires minimal adjustment and maintenance, making it easier for beginners to get started!!

• The A1 mini's drive system is protected by a cover: this helps prevent accidents and interference from external particles. The covered Z-axis also keeps users' hands free from dirty lead screws.

• The A1 mini features an advanced filament monitoring system: unlike most 3D printers that are equipped with a filament sensor to detect the presence of filament, the A1 mini can measure the presence of the filament, its speed and mileage, the tension above the extruder, and the pressure below the extruder. This allows users to monitor filament runout, tangles on the spool, and slippage on the extruder. When a problem is detected, the 3D print will also automatically pause, and the HMS system can accurately pinpoint the problem.

• Bambu HMS code system: The design is very user-friendly, allowing quick and easy diagnosis of specific problems by looking for specific codes. In addition, all wear parts are modular and easy to replace, making part replacement convenient and economical.

• Fast 3D printing speed is also considered a key feature of the new 3D printer: in fact, the A1 mini's 3D printing speed can reach up to 500 mm/s, with a maximum acceleration of 10000 mm/s². X and Y axis vibration calibration is performed at the beginning of each 3D printing job to ensure high-speed 3D printing accuracy.

Most 3D printers on the market use default values that remain constant throughout the 3D printing process. However, the A1 mini calibrates these values before each 3D print to adapt to the 3D printer's tension and ambient temperature. In addition, an eddy current sensor is located at the hotend to measure extrusion pressure before 3D printing. This compensates for extrusion flow, ensuring stable extrusion throughout the 3D printing process.

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Multi-Color 3D Printing with AMS lite

AMS lite is a new updated version of the original AMS, enabling simple and easy multi-material 3D printing. Compared to its predecessor, this new AMS has fewer parts and exposes all parts that require maintenance, improving reliability and making it easier to maintain. For example, Bambu Lab claims that removing broken filament from the PTFE tube is "very easy."

Bambu RFID readers have also been added to the AMS lite, enabling automatic filament synchronization. Therefore, the AMS lite can automatically detect Bambu filament types and synchronize them with Bambu Studio, thereby optimizing the 3D printer profile accordingly.

The AMS lite is only compatible with the A1 Mini, not with the X1E, X1 Carbon, or P1S. All these machines use the standard AMS system, not AMS Lite.

In terms of material compatibility, Bambu Lab claims that the AMS lite is compatible with the same materials as the original AMS. Therefore, the AMS lite can use a variety of filament materials and colors. However, according to Bambu Lab, flexible filaments such as TPU, TPE, and absorbent filaments such as PVA "should be avoided with AMS lit."

AMS Lite — Automatic Material System, is the real reason the A1 Mini stands out. For the most affordable price, you get the A1 Mini 3D printer and AMS lite! The AMS Lite can feed four different rolls of material to the A1 Mini, supporting multi-color printing simultaneously, which is almost unheard of in products at this price point!! As shown by the cute panda included on the SD card, it can print stunning results with minimal effort.

Quality Not to Be Overlooked

This adorable little panda wasn't a one-hit wonder either. Dozens of models were printed, with print times just over 100 hours, and each model (excluding complete failures) looked excellent, with uniform layer lines and clear details. In CNET's test prints, there were few overhang and bridging issues, and no ghosting. The spire showing the partial cooling fan's operation was a bit wobbly. Additionally, there was some stringing—melted filament—but not enough to affect overall quality.

Testing Different Materials

The Bambu Lab A1 Mini has a maximum speed of 500mm/s, but the default slicer speed is in the 200-300 range. It has excellent input shaping that suppresses vibrations and eliminates ghosting.

The printer arrived with several prints pre-installed. You'll definitely want to buy consumables before taking this machine home, especially if you plan to do a lot of AMS printing. We offer a full range of 3D printing filaments here.

The tester printed a Benchy with regular gray PLA (2 walls, 3 top and bottom layers, 10% grid infill, 0.25 layer height, and 0.5 layer width) in 19 minutes and 15 seconds. Most of the print had smooth layers without any ghosting or layer shifting. Due to lack of cooling, the overhangs of the boat and around the bow became a bit sloppy, but considering that printing at default settings takes 46 minutes, the print quality was excellent.

3D Benchy (Image source: Tom's Hardware)

To demonstrate the Bambu Lab A1 Mini's performance under normal conditions, the tester printed this "Forest Wish Spirit" with default settings of 200-300mm/s and 0.2mm layer height. The print time was 9 hours and 20 minutes, and the tester "painted" the colors in BambuSlicer. The print needed to be scaled down to 85% to fit the print bed, but the results were very smooth, with no visible layer lines or ghosting. There was a bit of green at the bottom of the crystal due to insufficient purging, but the tester liked the effect.

Layered Green Forest Wish Spirit (Image source: Tom's Hardware)

Next, for the PETG test, I printed the new Mini Joel with my fingers! The print was clean, clear, and printed without any supports! This print took 1 hour and 16 minutes, with a layer height of 0.2 and a speed of 200-300 mm/s. A normal speed printer like the Neptune 3 Pro would take about 3 hours to print the same model.

Wekster's New Mini Joel (Image source: Tom's Hardware)

For the TPU test, the tester printed this rubber duck from Thingiverse. I did have to trim the round bottom slightly, as the overhang was too large for TPU, and I didn't want to use supports. Once this issue was resolved, the A1 Mini handled TPU well.

Reminder – AMS cannot handle TPU, so the spool is mounted directly on the single spool holder on the machine. There was a bit of stringing and a glob of filament on the tail, but it wiped off without any issues. Bambu Slicer slowed the print speed down to 5 hours and 6 minutes with a 0.2 layer height.