When Geekbuying offered us the Sceoan Windstorm S1 test device, we were initially surprised: no one in the editorial team had heard of the manufacturer. But the 3D printer looks exciting with its massive appearance, unusual aluminum construction and technical data, the highlights of which include a fast printing speed of up to 500 mm/s, fast heating and a powerful extruder. And all for 360 euros – with a voucher code NNNDESOS1.
Design
Some colleagues in the editorial team are reminded of the look of an old Volvo, which is said to have been filed out of a solid piece of metal. It is angular and angular, it could also be a relic from the Cold War – but that shouldn’t be seen as a negative thing. You like the design or you don’t like it. On the plus side, there are no cables, straps or rods visible here. This keeps dirt out, looks clean and prevents the printer from getting tangled up in its own cables or knocking over a printed part while working with it.
Dirt can fall into the lower linear rails on which the print bed moves back and forth. Even when the extruder dispenses some plastic when changing filaments, for example, the plastic sometimes “runs” directly into the rails. Compared to the cable routing of many other printers in this price range, this is a harmless problem – on the contrary, the manufacturer deserves explicit praise for the thought it has put into this. Another example: All of the electronics are integrated into a kind of drawer that can be pulled out of the back of the housing – should repairs or cleaning become necessary.
What we’ve never seen before: When you set up the Windstorm S1, it’s as perfect and easy as with any other printer that isn’t delivered completely finished in one piece. Since the boom, i.e. the upper structure of the printer, lies flat during transport, the transport box is tiny compared to other devices. This is usually paid for by the fact that the construction is fiddly and you have to connect a lot of cables. Not so with Sceoan: The massive, complete boom structure including the print head is inserted into the appropriate holders next to the print bed. The electrical connection is now established – similar to expansion cards for computers, contacts on a permanently installed conductor track connect to a corresponding connector housing in the lower area of the printer. Two screws are inserted from behind and tightened with the tool provided. That’s it. There is no 3D printer that can do this easier, better or faster.
Furnishing
As is common practice today, this 3D printer also has a color touchscreen display. Sceoan relies on resistive touch technology; The display therefore reacts to pressure, not to touch. For a smartphone, that would be a knockout criterion. We don’t think that’s great with the 3D printer, but it’s not a killer argument against buying it either.
On the software side, the manufacturer takes a special approach: The Windstorm S1 is based on the Marlin firmware – open source, proven and used in tens of thousands of printers. What’s special about it? Many modern printers rely on Klipper as an alternative, which requires a significantly more powerful processor, but can also do more. These include functions such as a WLAN connection and printing directly via the Internet or a camera with AI functions, but the Sceoan does not have these features. Nevertheless, it achieves the high speeds of other modern printers, namely up to 500 mm/s.
The X and Y axes run on high-quality linear rails. Similar to the Ankermake M5C, the print bed is offset downwards and moves back and forth – a classic bed pusher design, just like the Bambu A1 Mini.
In many ways you can see that the developers of the Windstorm S1 have put some thought into it. Dual-gear extruder with adjustable contact pressure, PEI printing plate that ensures proper adhesion without glue or other pressure media, a sensibly placed filament sensor, fast ceramic heating and automatic bed leveling. Is presentable.
Compared to other printers, there are a few things missing. For example, a filament scraper, a camera, WiFi and/or cloud connection or a sensor for Auto-Z – i.e. the automatic adjustment of the distance between the print head and the print bed. Is it because of the price? Not necessarily. The Bambu Lab A1 Mini has all of this and at 269 euros costs almost 100 euros less than the Sceoan, although it has a smaller installation space.
Furnishings
We have already described the mechanical structure. Perfectly made, it couldn’t be easier. To start the first print, you just have to feed filament and start a slicer.
The slicer is the software that converts the print files into machine code to match the characteristics of the printer. There is an adapted version of the Orca Slicer on the included USB stick – Sceoan has already integrated the printer profiles here. We would prefer if the profile files were individually on the stick or available for download, then you could simply import them into an existing slicer or use a different version. Resourceful users can also simply copy the profiles from the included slicer and import them into an installed one.
A few models are already prefabricated on the printer, including the classic 3D benchy – a small boat with lots of inclined surfaces and overhangs that pushes the printer to its limits. In just under 20 minutes, the Windstorm S1 brings the benchy onto the print bed in a very respectable quality.
Almost 20 minutes? Yes, it took us a while to realize that the Sceoan’s counters weren’t working properly. One minute on the printer does not correspond to 60 seconds on the clock, so we later placed a stopwatch next to it.
Print image & speed
What we also print with every printer is a Spiderman bust. 3.5 hours of printing time is extremely fast in comparison, and the result is impressive. The side walls in particular are very well done, the surfaces appear a little rougher, but overall still very good. The supplied filament ran out on the last 20 or 30 layers. The printer reports this acoustically and with a message on the touchscreen. Refilling new filament is easy and intuitive. Unfortunately, we awkwardly moved the print bed when inserting the new roll. The axis is not blocked by the stepper motor when the filament runs empty – so a light touch is enough. The printer wanted to continue with new filament, but it couldn’t find the starting point. It’s a shame, so the printing failed after all, even though everything basically went well. So: be more careful when changing filament – or a new firmware that blocks the axes when the filament runs out.
As nice as most of the parts we printed look, the Windstorm S1 lacks a little precision. You can see this, for example, in a sliding puzzle that is printed in one piece and which we have in three versions: with 0.15, 0.20 and 0.30 mm spacing between the puzzle pieces. The Bambu A1 Mini, which costs 269 euros, already prints the 0.15 mm version so cleanly that it can be moved wonderfully. With the Sceoan we also couldn’t move the 0.2 and 0.3 mm versions. A pity. This doesn’t seem to be the optimal printer for precise functional parts and print-in-place. Figures and the like look good though.
Unfortunately, the lack of precision isn’t the biggest point of criticism we have: the Windstorm S1 is far too loud. Its component fan roars and whistles like a high-performance hairdryer, and some movement noises seem to be amplified by the metal structure. During the Z-hop, i.e. the slight lifting of the print head before moving over the object, there is almost a banging noise.
The manufacturer probably noticed that too. He has already reacted on his website, gives tips on how to reduce the volume a little and offers a print part for download that focuses the air flow better. The handling of the problem is absolutely exemplary. We are all the more excited about a possible successor – because many of the ideas that Sceoan is implementing here are really good. The bottom line is that unfortunately this doesn’t help with the overall appearance of the product.
Price and alternatives
It’s difficult for us to give a real recommendation for the Sceoan. The data is not bad, as is the price of 360 euros – with a voucher code NNNDESOS1 – sounds interesting. But it’s just not enough anymore in 2024.
On the one hand, it has to defend itself from below against the very good A1 Mini for 269 euros, which works much quieter and more precisely, but has a smaller installation space. The easy-to-use Anker Make M5C is also cheaper at 300 euros. On the other hand, if you need more space, you can get 3D printers such as the Flashforge Adventurer 5M Pro, which is currently available with a coupon for 439 euros, or the Creality K1 (we tested its big brother, Creality K1 Max) for a manageable additional charge. for 400 euros – both with a closed build space, which enables printing of materials such as ASA, PLA or TPU.
Conclusion
The Windstorm S1 does a lot of things right. The structure is exemplary, the design language is exceptional. Unfortunately, he also does a few things wrong. The manufacturer has recognized that it is far too loud and is working on a solution. Almost exemplary.
Nevertheless, there is simply not enough for a recommendation at the moment. If you really want something simple, you can’t ignore Bambu Lab – and then the small A1 Mini is even cheaper than the Sceoan. And at the other end of the line there are many good printers with a closed installation space with a minimal additional charge. Unfortunately, there is currently no room for the Windstorm – even if it implements so many good ideas. We’re excited to see how the successor performs.