3D Printer Buyer’s Guide 2025 (Part 3): Speed Demons, CoreXY & Multi-Color

If you are reading this, you probably already own a "Bed Slinger" (like an Ender 3 or Prusa MK3). You know the struggle: waiting 14 hours for a helmet to print, or manually swapping filament to get a two-color sign.

Welcome to the enthusiast tier. In 2025, the market is dominated by two features: Blistering Speed and Automatic Multi-Color.

In this final installment, we look at the machines that don't just print—they perform.

The CoreXY Revolution

Traditional printers move the heavy bed back and forth (Y-axis). This limits speed because physics hates moving heavy objects quickly.

CoreXY printers keep the bed stationary (or just move it down slowly) while the print head flies around on a gantry. This allows for accelerations of 20,000 mm/s². What used to take 12 hours now takes 3.

1. The Market Leader: Bambu Lab P1S & X1C

You cannot talk about modern 3D printing without talking about the Bambu Lab ecosystem. They didn't invent multi-color printing, but they perfected it.

• Get the P1S: If you want an enclosed workhorse for PLA, PETG, and ABS. It is the best value CoreXY on the market.
• Get the X1-Carbon: If you need Lidar inspection and a hardened steel hotend for printing Carbon Fiber or Glass Fiber nylon.

2. The Professional: Prusa XL (Toolchanger)

While Bambu Lab swaps filament (which wastes plastic by "pooping" out the old color), the Prusa XL swaps the entire print head.

It has up to 5 extruder heads. When it changes color, it parks one head and picks up another. This means:

1. Zero Waste: No purge blocks or poop chutes.
2. Material Mixing: You can print flexible TPU and rigid PETG in the same model (impossible on a single-nozzle system).

It is expensive and massive, but for engineering firms and serious props makers, it is the ultimate machine.

3. The Volume King: Creality K1 Max

Sometimes, size matters. The Bambu printers are limited to a 256mm cube. The Creality K1 Max offers a massive 300x300x300mm build volume.

It runs Klipper (open-source firmware) out of the box, has a built-in AI camera for failure detection, and includes a LiDAR sensor for flow calibration. If you want to print full-size cosplay helmets in one piece, this is the machine to buy.

Comparison: Which "Speed Demon" fits you?

Final Thoughts on the Series

3D printing in 2025 is in a golden age. Whether you buy the simple A1 Mini (Part 1), a highly detailed Saturn 4 Ultra (Part 2), or a multi-color beast like the P1S, you are getting technology that was science fiction just five years ago.

The most important part? Just start printing.