Is the Microswiss NG worth buying over the Original Microswiss direct drive extruder with all metal hot end? In this video I try to show the pros and cons of the Microswiss NG in layman terms.
Drop in Replacement
The partially preassembled design of the NG makes it even easier to install than the already straightforward Direct Drive system.
Weight
The NG is significantly lighter due to its smaller stepper motor and reduced use of aluminum. While the weight difference may not be noticeable on smaller printers like the regular Ender 3, I did find that the original direct drive caused the x-gantry to sag 1mm on an Ender 3 with the Ender Extender 400xl kit, while the NG did not.
Low Overhang Design
The NG has about 1/4″ less overhang than the Direct Drive but it makes up for this with almost an additional 1″ of width. The additional 1 ” of width is because the NG comes with dual fan ducts out of the box. This would be beneficial for PLA but you could always print your own dual fan ducts for the Original.
If you print a lot of pieces one at a time that extra 1″ of width will reduce the total amount of pieces you can print as you will need more clearance.
Additionally the added 1″ caused me to lose a bit of build volume because the nozzle was not able to go all the way to the edge of the bed in the x-home position, so i needed to update my Bed Size Marlin firmware settings.
MARLIN code to adjust for lost build plate volume
Updated printhead settings in CURA
Shortest Filament Path
Although the NG boasts the shortest filament path, I haven’t noticed any real impact on my day to day use.
Modularity
The NG is split into 2 machine pieces of CNC’d Aluminum that are bolted together. The part that holds the Hot End and the part that mounts it to the x-gantry. You are able to swap out the part that mounts to the x-gantry with many different options – from Microswiss themselves or from other creators.
Tug of War Results
The NG has more extrusion for than the original, the moment the 1kg spool of filament started to lift the Original started under extruding. Meanwhile the NG kept extruding right up to the point where the filament broke a chunk out of it.
So is the NG Worth it?
At only an extra $20USD, I think so.
