Easy RESIN QUALITY Layers on an ENTRY LEVEL FDM PRINTER! - Anycubic Kobra 2 Review 

Coming from a complete beginner that is still in the research stage before i even consider making a purchase all i want to say is thank you so much for the plain talking don't care review. I don't obsorb information that well at times and i have tried to watch other reviews and alls i can hear is numbers and technical talk. I realise not everyone reads there own comments but just know this newbie is grateful

I'm with you man - I'm printing for QUALITY; if the printer can shuck out minis and terrain faster than I can paint them, and I can only hobby an hour or so every day, then what difference does it make??

Cool review! A lot of the 3D printing community is obsessed with speed over quality, but for stuff you actually want to use, patience is a virtue.

Just an FYI, the z resolution (layer height) is determined by the smallest step of the motor. Most printers like the one you have are clones of a popular "ender 3" frame. This means it will be 0.04mm as a minimum and you should use increments of 0.04mm to determine different layer heights. (0.04, 0.08, 0.12...) Good video, I'm glad you're enjoying your FDM printer!

I wish more 3d printer reviews were like this.

I have 2 x Anycubic Vypers and they have been rock solid, apart from the second one which initially had a dud cable to the hotend which once replaced has been fine. My nephew has recently gotten into 3D printing and initially I gave him one of my old printers, which he was getting inconsistant results with. I ended up buying him a Vyper a few weeks ago and set it up for him, only took about 10 minutes to setup. He has had 0 issues with it and no failed prints that I know of.

This is 100% what I wanted to see in a fdm review. I want to print mini terrain as well in as little headache to get started as possible so this has placed itself on the top of my potential printer list. Thank you!

This is awesome! Thank you for showing what FDM can do, since I wanted resin quality but was holding back d/t the extremely long and painful workflow.

this was my first printer ever i got it for Christmas and i am extremely happy with it its super fast and easy to use it is so much fun to use.

Thanks for your take on this printer, just picked one up. Coming from an ender 3 that I was mainly using for bases but would like to branch out into more detailed terrain. I love your no nonsense (does it do the job) review style. I also have been rocking the Mars pro 3 for a year thanks to you and no regrets 👍

I think you nailed it, I'm in the same mindset and would use it for the same thing. I don't care about printing carbon-fiber laced prototype parts or having to mod my machine to hell and back just to get it working. Sounds like an excellent choice.

You doing a good job we need more people like you , just all we need know if the print is good thankyou mate😊

I just ordered mine can't wait for it to arrive!

That was the review that I was looking for! Thank you so much for that entry Level Miniature hobby Video 😁🤘

Great review! It was very good that you showed the quality this unit can produce instead of just benchys

One of the biggest improvements in FDM printing for miniatures lately has been the new Variable Line Width settings in the slicer. It's almost as good as swapping out to a smaller nozzle size. 28mm is still pretty rough, but they look fine if the model was designed with FDM in mind, such as the FatDragon ones. I've been tempted to go back and try out all the old Battlemasters/Heroquest models in FDM for Oldhammer proxies, see how they turn out.

Love the intro. I'm 100% with you. I watch a lot of 3d printing channels and so many waffle on about the smallest stuff. easy, does it work, does it look good. boom simple.

I agree with you 100%!!! Just give me a printer that works well. That is why I still use some of the printers I use, I can trust that they will give me good print. Great video!

I have 2 AnyCubic Mega S printers and they have been rock solid reliable with above average print quality. They are an older design and require some “fiddling” but I dialed them in way easier then I did my Mars Pro resin printer. I am surprised about how well Sunlu filament is working for you as I haven’t been able to get good results with it. Hatchbox on the other hand has been my go to filament for 3 plus years now.

This is my first and only printer I have and I love it. It was super easy to set up, and the prints are nice quality. I got nothing to compare it to, but I’m happy with it, especially of the fact that it only cost me slightly over $200.

this is exactly what i was looking for thank you

I have been using sunlu filament almost exclusively for years. its the right combination of quality and price, and blows away all of the other budget filaments .

This is what I'm talking about. I want something I dont have to tinker with, mess with, upgrade or anything else to get working. Kind of like I've had to do with my Ender 3 V2. That thing is hot garbage and I've been looking to replace it. I just want to print. I don't want to sit and fix crap. Had my eye on the Kobra 2 and really glad the reviews have been positive.

Good timing for an FDM review of a good printer. Im looking at getting a nice one that can do what you just described. thanks for the info, buddy.

In my opinion, one of the best videos about this printer. I am like you ... I want to unbox it and print.

Nice. Seems massively better since the days of the Chiron. I have a 400x400x700 printer that can do very thin layers, but with the weight of the bed it is very slow. Now if they can scale this one to 500x500x500 with 2 in 1 out extruder, that would be killer.

exactly what I'm thinking. it should just work without a lot of hassle and settings. anycubic has always worked that way for me.

Thanks for the no nonsense layman approach! I picked one up and it arrived today. Going to assemble tomorrow morning and hopefully print some stuff! I'm actually interested in trying to do some minis on this as well since I don't have a space to safely use a resin printer

My wife got me one for Father’s Day, not knowing that they’re not ideal for minis. But I’m pretty excited. I do dnd, can use it for bases and ork terrain. This is great

I kinda like slightly thicker layer lines on minis of robots. I think they make it look like the robot was 3D-printed in-game. Also, it can create some interesting shimmering effects with metallic paints. The colour seems to change depending on the angle at which you’re looking at the mini. The problem is if the robot is wearing clothing or carrying items then those also get the layer lines.

I use voxelmaker for a lot of my armor prints. I do the supports with 4 layers of support roof at 75% density. x/y .88 z .3. Everything stays in place and comes off easy.

Nice one, I tend to use my FDM printer at the lowest settings mostly for printing bases to the 1/4 and 1/6 sculptures it saves a hell of a lot of resin and you can have them both going at the same time 😁 Oh and Sunlu matte gray PLA is my go to as details just pop even without priming !

Awesome review mate. I’ve been looking into the world of 3D printing and an absolute novice. Have exactly the same attitude and the fact this is just build , turn on and play is a huge attraction. I’d just use for some blasters and maybe armour pieces. This might be the one for me Cheers

The fan might be borked! I used this in my front room when I received it at about the same distance as you were and I had to keep looking over to see if it was still working as I couldn't hear it over the videos I was watching or the ferrets scratching when the videos were paused. I was also Very impressed with this printer, I will probably use it more than my Eligoo Mars if the mini's I want to print come out well enough.

Thank you for this video! 🥰

I've just bought this for myself. its an upgrade from my previous one which was the Diggro Alpha. It was as basic as you get. I hope its as easy and as trouble free as people make out.

I was looking into buying this machine as my first ever 3d printer. Are there things I need to look out for, things I need to buy extra or be careful off? Very helpful review, thank you very much for the info!

Really helpful review 🙂 I have one of the original anycubic kobras (partly for D&D and Warhammer terrain) and it's a solid printer. Nice to see the next gen got a speed upgrade!

Honestly this is the same way I've felt about fdm as well. I might finally get one of these.

Nice review! I wish other channels focused on high res quality of printers.

Definitely tempted to get an FDM for yeah terrain

Nicely done, mate. This review really appeals to my way of looking at tech. Spot on with your attitude and approaching this as a "normal" consumer. My dude, how long did it take to print that Space Hulk corridor at that height tho? Thanks in advance!

Wow, that print looked really good for FDM. I've somehow acquired 6 Anycubic printers across FDM and resin and have been quite happy with the prints and reliability. The FDM printers I use most are 2 Mega S with a few mods. The older ones only get used when I need to finish something fast. I'll look at buying a Cobra 2 if one of them dies or just gets too worn, although I'm trying to save up for a larger format resin printer atm. Oh, and I don't care either! Reliability and print quality are key for me, the nice-to-haves are just a bonus.

Fantastic video - informative.

Spot on 👌🏻 thanks.

glowing review :D Really what I needed to know too :D

I was watching this.on another channel just yesterday about how low the printer company said it can go and what you should actually go I won't say channel names but was highly advised not to go that low but I've just started this month with anycubic resin printers my first mono 4k and I had to pick up a second the other day, I got the mono 2 and it's fantastic for straight out the box printing with no lines! Thisnis what I'm working on with the mono 4k adjustment settings now, I printed off a ww2 vignette on the mono 2 it was nice but can definitely see the plus in these FDM printers if they just done something with them lines!

The Elegoo Neptune 4 ( or Pro)) addresses speed and cooling issues I'm also using SunLu but their PLA Plus. I went for the Neptune 4 from a CR20-POR - it's like night and day. Neptune 4 looks remarkably like this but has monster fans and 1/10 of the assembly.

Love it if you'd mention price points for purchase. Know nothing about beans and types but looking to get something soon and be nice to find a good entry level plug and play that gives good prints.

Sunlu PLA is good for what it is and for $15 on Amazon US, it delivers the quality I expect from my new Elegoo Neptune 3 Pro. I got the Neptune 3 Pro instead of a Neptune 4 or the Anycubic Kobra 2 because the price was cheaper on Amazon. Overall, I'm happy with my purchase although on occasion, I still second guess myself. Should I have gotten the Neptune 4 or Kobra 2 instead of the Neptune 3 if I print mostly PLA?

Thank you for the review. I’m the same - i just want it to work without faffing around. Would love to see a video of it printing 28mm minis.

Sunlu Is great, prints extremely well. I been printing for about a year now, after trying about 20 different brands, I found my "go to" has been sunlu as well.

That's what I wanted to hear "how easy is it to get printing. Is it easy to operate etc. Definitely got a new sub here. Great video I'm looking for a new printer too. Anycubic is on my short list

Can’t wait to see your A1 mini review! If it wasn’t for that coming out (at some point soon hopefully) if totally go out and buy this one based off this review

Hi, loved your video, very informative! Just to correct you on this, they say on their page 250mmm/s printing speed actually. Thanks!

Amen! I've been printing with FDM printers for a few years now, and at first I enjoyed tinkering with and "upgrading" my printers, but now I want them to just work, and I'm more interested in print quality than in printing 3-minute Benchies. I have an Anycubic Kobra Go and an Anycubic Mega S, and the print quality from both is great, especially for such inexpensive printers, but they are quite slow. I don't care. I'd rather take several hours to get good results than get garbage in minutes. Unfortunately, the reliability of both printers is not great. The Kobra Go is only a few months old and already needs a new fan for the mainboard, and the Mega S - my "old" printer at 3 years - is about to get it's third mainboard and new linear bearings. So, for my next printer, I'm gonna have to spend more, but I want one that will produce good results, and that will last a few years before I have to do any repairs.

Amazing video! Have you tried Anycubic Kobra 2 Pro as well? Because now I'm deciding which one to buy and I'm not sure.

I got mine from offer up for 160 bucks which came with 11 rolls which were about 800 dollars worth that were given to this guy for free and to review it. who gave an honest review and only used it last month. Right now I finally calibrated the pos. and it's printing beautifully compared to my davinchi 1a that the motherboard decided to unsubscribe from life magazine. The motors still work tho so I'm parting that out and throwing out the rest.

Excellent video, and I agree you just want something that works. Have you had a look at the Bambu Labs printers?

I got one of these with the intention of printing pieces for the purpose of sculpting over it with monster clay and then cast with resin. Could i get better results as opposed to sculpting details by hand after printing a basic shape or just modeling and sculpting in blender and just print out a final piece instead.

Layer lines are easy to get rid of in FDM printing. Just drop the nozzle size from .4mm to .25 mm and reduce the layer height from .2 to .1 or lower. Those first settings are just speed frienldy settings. You adjust them for what you need. If you don't need detail, through in a .6 to 1mm nozzle and crank up the layer height to .3 and enjoy some time saving.

perfect!!!! thank you :)

One little thing I'd like to see on these videos is telling and showing the price of those printers, even if MSRP is not always 100% what you can get them at with discounts etc. You're sometimes doing it, but not consistently Maybe even for a few different currencies, say USD, GBP and EUR. Because those different MSRPs aren't necessarily direct current conversions, because of slightly different cost-of-living figures and taxes.

My guess for the brim on that dinosaur is to further ensure print success for a beginner that might not have the printer assembled quite right. My first print was the lucky cat on the ender 3 which had a raft. Super overkill. but if a beginner plugs in a printer and the print doesn't succeed, they can just blame it on the printer itself.

I'm definitely impressed with this printer

On the dong that it comes with it has a slicer program that you can download and take off the brim

Certainly looks good for mini terrain and bigger pieces. Is the comparable to resin for highly detailed 32mm and 75mm figures or would resin still be a better solution?

Sunlu has excellent PLA+, it's my go to filament in grey or black.

This channel is a breath of fresh air. Most of the time with these kinds channels the first 10-15 minutes of a 20 minute rwview is some jackoff complaining about boxing or a a screw being in the wrong place and not printing a benshi inconsequentially worse than they think it should be.

I’m really interested about getting into 3D printing, and I’m probably going to get this but I was wondering how do you add the files to the printer so it can print your 3D print

Mine looks like yours accept yours has a bigger display screen. Just printed the boat and its pretty cool

hi! I'm still researching to decide which printer should I buy and your reviews are helping me a lot! would you say that the printing quality of the kobra 2 max it's just as good as this one? thanks

I don't see anything about changing the slicer settings.. What did you use and setting would be amazing!

Can you share the settings that you have for this printer? I'm also using Prusa Slicer.

Rotary tool for easier clean up , I'm still unsure if I should get resin or fdm

I just bought one after watching this video. I don't care either... I trust your opinion, really hope you're legit

About 3 years ago i built a 3d printer on a pre prusa era frame with a rails 1.4 board and a carlstruder. I tuned leveled and tightened it for weeks. I printed a model at 0.1 with a .25 nozzle and when i gave the model one coat of primer it looked like injected plastic part wit no visible lines and it only cost me like 200$ . I recently bought a cr10 max for 1000$ thinking my days of tuning printer are over and then almost smashed it with a hammer. What i realized is printing is your knowledge of it not the printer.

I'm a long time Ender 5+ (modified) user...have a Neptune 3 Max on order. Quick Question: On that 0.06 print you did.... What was the nozzle used (0.4mm or smaller??) and what general extruder settings did you change from standard (if any)? I was going to be using a Mars DLP (or Saturn DLP if the make one soon) to do all my detail prints or sections of prints, and handling my large prints and print sections on my FDM machines (best of both worlds??) However, I could definitely use a valid set of profile parameters to accomplish part of this on the FDM machines I have. Following you on IG now as well.

Great video, actually just got this printer before even watching this video… and I don’t care about alot of the junk people are advertising about other printers, just need it to work, and I’ve never have and never will print a benchy boat

Now is there a difference in the quality on the neo and the neo 2? As i was looking, i noticed the size, as far as building, are the same. If I'm wrong, please let me know. The size of stuff I'm makimg will be for my 1/10 and under r/c cars. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Automatic bed leveling is such a liberating feature, great stuff.

Thanks for this! I very much appreciate that much of this doesn't matter! Related question, I can't find a good answer on which resin to use for miniature wargaming. Any suggestions or where I can go for suggestions? Reddit didn't seem to want to answer it.

WARNING: You fail to talk about the nozzle issue. This hot end uses a non-standard Volcano nozzle... In fact, we should not say Volcano as it is not one. A real deal breaker for us. We can't find suppliers for this weird type of nozzle so will probably end-up returning the multiple Kobra2 we purchased for our print farm.

Where did you get your Allen wrenches? I like the rounded edges and the non-slip material on them.

I'm one of those lol just found this luv it

I had bought this printer, and out of the box it was great. Then for whatever reason the hotend stopped working. The online guide suggested a couple of fixes, checking the connection on the board and sticking a multimeter on the hotend for resistance. Neither worked so I contacted anycubic. I received an email telling me the had received it and would get back to me promptly. 48hrs later I received an email from them asking if they had been any help in fixing the issue. It's now back in the box and returning it. Ender 3d S1 pro ordered instead.

Is there a chance you could share you profile? I notice you're using Prusa, which I don't know and I'm of a Cura slicer :P but still I'm looking for profile! I want to acheive your 0.04 actually :P

Got a link for a profile we can use for the same settings?

My main concern with this printer, and the printer it was based off of (Kobra NEO) is that I'd need to know if they changed the cables that run to the printer bed. The Kobra has always been known for having the cables to the bed fry themselves and throw a "MINTEMP: BED" error which needs to be fixed ultimately by replacing the bed entirely. This issue is known to happen within the first couple months of ownership.

very nice

if i wanted to print some shelving , say 400mm x 150mm (max one of course), sides and back 150mm, how long you think that would take at say 3mm thickness, holding game cases/carts

Any tips on printer petg? Also what slicer printer profile did you use?

Have you done a review on the Kobra Neo? I purchased it a while back and have had a few issues printing some objects. There's a part of me that wants to get this printer, but I don't want to drop almost 300 for another printer.

can you recommend speed settings for the kobra 2? i'm using the anycubic slicer (which is a modified version of prusaslicer). I just got this printer, along with a roll of pla plus filament so i'm trying to determine what speeds and temps i should be using (at least to start).

Whats your settings To print? And you can print miniatures?

Thanks for video I am thinking about purchase one od those nie. Just one quick question is this good for models and figures in scale 1/48 or 1/35 ?

Good printer

if you really fine tune the ol' bedslinger design (Ender3 style, like this one) to get it going great.. you should be able to print at about 0.04mm layer height. Due to bed slinger systems, lack of serious part cooling make it slower printers. The biggest problem with the frame design is it isn't designed for actual high speed printing - sure some have modified the heck out of their printers to do it, but if your not into that DIY effort, it's not something to do casually. Getting above 60mm/s actual print speed, without serious quality issues, is a challenge on most bedslingers. Then you come to part cooling - which is something you touched on. The tiny fans, no matter how hard they try - just cannot keep up with real part cooling at speeds. They are loud, they are bad airflow, and sometimes they aren't even aimed right. One of the number 1 prints is a new fanduct system, typically incorperating 5015 blower fans to add insane amounts of cooling to allow faster print speeds, even if they aren't 100mm/s As for slicing models down select sections - it depends on the model. Your effectively looking for something to detect the vertices (the joining of the polygons, typically viewed in wireframe mode) and cut along them. Meshmixer has a basic function of this "plane cut" - with choosing "keep both sides" as desired, but this is only useful in single plane cuts, it's literally slicing with a plane afterall, at any angle you can arrange it, but doesn't work for complex shape cuts. Blender has something similar, and is probably the way to go - although personally I don't have any experience with Blender... so... sorry on that one. Most of my needs to cut in half are literally that - halving on a middle section, so plane cut works just fine for me.

I’m wanting to get into 3D printing. I want to get the Uninformation GKTwo with the wash and cure station. But until I can save up for that I’m thinking about getting a FDM printer that way I can make sure I will like 3D printing. I would like a printer that has a self leveling bed. I’m looking at the Kobra 2 and the Ender 3 S1. And advice on which one I should get?

Does the kobra 2 neo and the kobra 2 have similar specs?