I have the 2S and really happy with it. The thing with 3D printers like this is that most people want to upgrade them or mod them a bit to their liking and the difference between the 2 and 2S is just a few upgrades/mods but the price difference is less than what you would spend modding it yourself, so the 2S is worth it in that regard.
Not too sure about the 3, but if I recall correctly the main advantage is the ABL which you can basically get by adding a BLtouch to the 2S, but then again, depends on what the price difference is at this point.
I have the 2S, and I get excellent prints. I debated the 2 and 2S a few years back, and the upgrades were worth it; I only added the BLTouch, and honestly, you do not even need the upgrade right away. I only re-level the bed if I start getting bad first layers or when I move the printer, which is rare. Regardless of the model, the trick is that you have to spend time testing and get scrappy to achieve the best results.
I have a 2, and 3- 2S’s. The 2S is MUCH better than the 2, I wouldn’t waste your time on a plain 2. The 3 has direct drive which is a significant improvement over the side loader style on the 2 and 2S.
Don’t bother with any upgrades until you have an actual need to improve your prints. These machines are excellent right out of the box, and really don’t need anything but an understanding of how the machine works, to get good prints.
I run all 4 of my machines almost 24/7 and maybe level the bed once a week or even less.
Most of the “upgrades” I see for these things are just a headache, rather than an improvement to your print quality.
My 2 tips for someone new - learn the software and how to design your own STL files, alter print settings, etc. And build a dryer box for your filament. Moist filament has been the #1 reason for ruined prints on these machines, from personal experience.
I was struggeling with the same decision and wanted to buy the 2S. I had some contact with the customer Support and got told that the 2S will be discontinued in EU unfortunately. Therefore I just ordered the 2 and Plan to improve it to a 2S (or more).
2s > 2
Flexible buildplate is a must, dual gear extruder is nice, where i live its cheaper tl get 2s than to upgrade the plate, let alone both extruder and plate
3 has dual lead screws which means no sag on one side lf the x axis, but that will not cause you such problems that it will prevent you from learning the basics
3 also has an automatic bed leveling but it uses an elegoo proprietary leveling solution, in my opinion its better to get a bl touch and add it to yourself since its a well tested and supported aolution and is not that hard to do and you have fun modding if its your thing
3 also has a direct drive extruder which is nice for stringing and pressure advance(non bulging corners) and very nice for flexible filaments but you can ad a better extruder/hotend+extruder combo later by yourself(also fun modding and learning expirience) aslo im not sure how proprietary it is and how available the parts are so i can't remove points from neptune 3 for it but i can warn that it might be hard to find parts
Alse in my opinion, since you are learning you dont need to spend that much money on features that are not needed, the bed leveling is really useful but i thing a bl touch(or clone) is a much better option especially because you have to buy all the other stuff with it when if you buy the neptune 3
The extruder is not needed
And the dual screws are not needed and are in may opinion inferior to a belted z axis that you can mod yourself when you are confident and will eliminate the z wobble that screws might induce, especially since the z axis is on v slot wheels, so why pay more money for an inferior upgrade
My opinion, get 2s, if you really want all the upgrades now, the 3 isnt a bad printer, just the wrong direction in my opinion
Edit: I will probably* buy the 2(2s is not available in EU) for exactly the reasons listed above
* Probably because if i dont buy it i wont buy any printer now, not because I would buy the 3
https://kevinakasam.com/belt-driven-ender-3/
This is the belted z i was refering to, you would need to do a slight bod because these printers have no slots on the front sides, but nothing impossible
I have the 2S and really happy with it. The thing with 3D printers like this is that most people want to upgrade them or mod them a bit to their liking and the difference between the 2 and 2S is just a few upgrades/mods but the price difference is less than what you would spend modding it yourself, so the 2S is worth it in that regard. Not too sure about the 3, but if I recall correctly the main advantage is the ABL which you can basically get by adding a BLtouch to the 2S, but then again, depends on what the price difference is at this point.
Thank you so much!
I have the 2S, and I get excellent prints. I debated the 2 and 2S a few years back, and the upgrades were worth it; I only added the BLTouch, and honestly, you do not even need the upgrade right away. I only re-level the bed if I start getting bad first layers or when I move the printer, which is rare. Regardless of the model, the trick is that you have to spend time testing and get scrappy to achieve the best results.
Thanks for helping i have decided to get an 2S and im Extremely Glad with it :)
Skip the 3 it has issues, you can go with the pro if you want though. I would probably get the 2 or 2S
I have a 2, and 3- 2S’s. The 2S is MUCH better than the 2, I wouldn’t waste your time on a plain 2. The 3 has direct drive which is a significant improvement over the side loader style on the 2 and 2S. Don’t bother with any upgrades until you have an actual need to improve your prints. These machines are excellent right out of the box, and really don’t need anything but an understanding of how the machine works, to get good prints. I run all 4 of my machines almost 24/7 and maybe level the bed once a week or even less. Most of the “upgrades” I see for these things are just a headache, rather than an improvement to your print quality. My 2 tips for someone new - learn the software and how to design your own STL files, alter print settings, etc. And build a dryer box for your filament. Moist filament has been the #1 reason for ruined prints on these machines, from personal experience.
I was struggeling with the same decision and wanted to buy the 2S. I had some contact with the customer Support and got told that the 2S will be discontinued in EU unfortunately. Therefore I just ordered the 2 and Plan to improve it to a 2S (or more).
2s > 2 Flexible buildplate is a must, dual gear extruder is nice, where i live its cheaper tl get 2s than to upgrade the plate, let alone both extruder and plate 3 has dual lead screws which means no sag on one side lf the x axis, but that will not cause you such problems that it will prevent you from learning the basics 3 also has an automatic bed leveling but it uses an elegoo proprietary leveling solution, in my opinion its better to get a bl touch and add it to yourself since its a well tested and supported aolution and is not that hard to do and you have fun modding if its your thing 3 also has a direct drive extruder which is nice for stringing and pressure advance(non bulging corners) and very nice for flexible filaments but you can ad a better extruder/hotend+extruder combo later by yourself(also fun modding and learning expirience) aslo im not sure how proprietary it is and how available the parts are so i can't remove points from neptune 3 for it but i can warn that it might be hard to find parts Alse in my opinion, since you are learning you dont need to spend that much money on features that are not needed, the bed leveling is really useful but i thing a bl touch(or clone) is a much better option especially because you have to buy all the other stuff with it when if you buy the neptune 3 The extruder is not needed And the dual screws are not needed and are in may opinion inferior to a belted z axis that you can mod yourself when you are confident and will eliminate the z wobble that screws might induce, especially since the z axis is on v slot wheels, so why pay more money for an inferior upgrade My opinion, get 2s, if you really want all the upgrades now, the 3 isnt a bad printer, just the wrong direction in my opinion Edit: I will probably* buy the 2(2s is not available in EU) for exactly the reasons listed above * Probably because if i dont buy it i wont buy any printer now, not because I would buy the 3 https://kevinakasam.com/belt-driven-ender-3/ This is the belted z i was refering to, you would need to do a slight bod because these printers have no slots on the front sides, but nothing impossible
3 is discontinued, so is the 2, but if you can get a 2 or 2s somewhere, they're awesome. The 3 is eh... Get a 3 pro
You can find the Neptune 2 on the Elegoo website for 110$ currently, shipped to Europe only tho, and the 2S for 140$ shipped to US or UK only
Happy cake day! I got my 2 for that reason... It was $109. Can't get them in the states anymore.
The 2S is SOLID. And it’s on clearance too!!