Bambu Lab P1S 3D Printer Combo with AMS

Single-colour FDM printing is well-solved. The harder problem is producing multi-colour or multi-material parts without babysitting filament swaps, managing colour bleed, or buying a separate printer for every material you need. For most South African makers, engineers, and educators, that problem has sat unsolved because the multi-colour systems that actually work have historically required either expensive machines or open-frame printers that cannot handle engineering-grade filaments through the colour-switching system. The Bambu Lab P1S Combo changes that equation by pairing the fully enclosed P1S with Bambu's Automatic Material System, a sealed four-spool unit with RFID filament recognition, a humidity sensor, and seamless mid-print switching managed entirely by the printer firmware.

The result is a machine that can switch between PLA, PETG, ABS, ASA, PA, and PC mid-print, with colour and material transitions handled automatically, while the enclosed chamber keeps the thermal environment stable enough for engineering-grade outputs. You load four spools, assign them in Bambu Studio, and the P1S Combo manages the rest. At R14,999.99 with local stock and South African warranty support through 3D Printing Store, it is the most capable out-of-the-box multi-colour enclosed FDM package available in the Bambu Lab range at this price point.

AMS 4-spool multi-colour system included | Up to 16 colours (4× AMS) | Fully enclosed chamber | RFID auto filament recognition | 500 mm/s CoreXY | 256 × 256 × 256 mm³ | Activated carbon filter | Power-loss recovery

Who the Bambu Lab P1S Combo with AMS is built for

The prototyping engineer who needs functional multi-material assemblies

Prototyping with a single material limits what you can test. Combining a rigid body with flexible seals, printing dissolvable support structures that snap away cleanly from complex internal channels, or differentiating components by colour to match an assembly drawing, these are all multi-material workflows. The P1S Combo handles each of these because the AMS feeds through the P1S's fully enclosed chamber, meaning ABS, ASA, and Nylon are viable through the AMS as well as PLA and PETG. You can run a structural ABS part with PVA or HIPS dissolvable support loaded in a second AMS slot, print the support-embedded geometry overnight, and dissolve or snap away the support the next morning with none of the manual breakout damage that brittle support interfaces cause on complex geometries.

The school, university, or makerspace producing labelled, multi-colour output

Educational models communicate better in colour. A cross-section of a heart with different chambers in different colours, a topographic relief map where altitude bands switch filament automatically, a mechanical assembly where each moving component is printed in a distinct colour to demonstrate part identity: these outputs are achievable in a single overnight run on the P1S Combo. The AMS's RFID recognition means a supervisor loads Bambu Lab filament spools, assigns them to slots in Bambu Studio, and the printer applies the correct temperature and flow profile automatically. No manual profile management per spool. For a technician managing multiple machines and multiple user queues, the Bambu Handy app and built-in camera provide remote monitoring across all units simultaneously, with spaghetti failure detection stopping failed jobs before a full spool of coloured filament is wasted.

The small print farm or creative studio scaling multi-colour production

Print farms running multi-colour jobs face two compounding costs: machine time spent on purge towers between colour changes, and wasted filament from those purge volumes. The AMS manages this systematically by using the P1S's built-in filament cutter to trim transitions cleanly, routing purge material to a dedicated chute at the rear of the printer. Farms documented running six P1S printers simultaneously report consistent quality across 4,000-hour individual machine lifetimes. Adding AMS multi-colour capability to that reliability baseline means a small studio can produce branded, multi-colour merchandise, custom signage, or colour-differentiated component batches without manual intervention per job. Stack up to four AMS units per printer via an AMS Hub accessory to run 16-colour jobs, covering the full range of practical multi-material FDM applications.

What sets the Bambu Lab P1S Combo with AMS apart

An AMS that stores your filament as well as feeds it

Most multi-material systems treat the filament source as a passive spool holder. The Bambu Lab AMS treats it as a controlled storage environment. The unit is airtight by design, with silicone O-ring seals at all PTFE tube entry and exit points, two internal desiccant slots, and a live humidity sensor that reports moisture levels to Bambu Studio and the Bambu Handy app in real time. When the desiccant is exhausted, you get a warning before humidity climbs high enough to affect hygroscopic materials like PA, PC, or PVA. For South African users dealing with coastal humidity or seasonal moisture variation, this matters. A filament spool that has absorbed moisture produces steam bubbles mid-print, which you hear as popping and see as rough, porous surfaces. The AMS reduces this failure mode significantly compared to printing from an unenclosed spool holder on a standard printer.

RFID filament recognition that eliminates profile management errors

Every Bambu Lab filament spool carries RFID tags on both sides of the hub. When you load a spool into the AMS, the unit reads the tag and transmits the material type, colour code, and recommended print parameters to Bambu Studio automatically. If you load four different Bambu Lab materials in no particular order, the AMS identifies each one and the slicer maps them to your model's colour assignments without manual input. For third-party filaments without RFID tags, you configure the material and colour in Bambu Studio once, and the AMS handles the physical switching from that profile onward. The practical benefit in a school or studio context is that any competent user can load spools and queue a multi-colour job correctly, not just the person who originally set up the printer.

The enclosed chamber that makes AMS genuinely useful for engineering materials

The standard AMS is compatible with PLA, PETG, ABS, ASA, PET, PA, PC, PVA, BVOH, PP, POM, HIPS, and the Bambu-certified carbon-fibre grades (PLA-CF, PAHT-CF, PETG-CF) for multi-material printing. But to print ABS, ASA, Nylon, or Polycarbonate reliably through an AMS, you need an enclosed print chamber, because these materials warp under temperature gradients that open-frame machines cannot prevent. The P1S's fully enclosed chamber with its steel chassis, polycarbonate panels, glass front door, and chamber regulator fan maintains the elevated ambient temperature these materials need. This is the critical distinction between the P1S Combo and the A1 Combo with AMS Lite: the A1 is open-frame, which limits its practical AMS material range to PLA and PETG. The P1S Combo gives you the full engineering material range through the AMS, which is a qualitatively different machine for anyone whose workflow includes ABS, ASA, or functional Nylon parts.

CoreXY speed and vibration compensation that keep multi-colour print times practical

Multi-colour FDM printing introduces time overhead because each colour change requires purging the previous material from the hotend before the new colour runs cleanly. The P1S Combo minimises this overhead in two ways. First, its CoreXY motion system reaches 500 mm/s with 20,000 mm/s² acceleration, so the actual printing portions of a multi-colour job are as fast as the hardware allows. Second, Bambu Studio's slicing engine optimises purge volumes and wipe-tower placement automatically, keeping purge waste at the minimum necessary for a clean colour transition on the specific materials you have loaded. The combined effect is that multi-colour jobs which would take many hours on slower machines complete in significantly less time, making overnight batches practical and daytime short runs feasible.

Filament backup and seamless spool switching that survive overnight runs

When one AMS spool runs out during a print, the AMS automatically switches to a second spool of the same material in another slot, continuing the job without interruption or user intervention. This is the AMS filament backup function, and it changes how you plan long multi-colour runs. Instead of calculating whether your loaded spools have enough material to complete the job before you start, you load a backup spool of each material in a spare slot and let the system manage transitions. Combined with the P1S's power-loss recovery, which saves print state to the MicroSD card so that a loadshedding interruption does not require restarting from scratch, this makes overnight multi-colour printing in the South African grid environment significantly more reliable than it would otherwise be.

Full specifications — Bambu Lab P1S Combo with AMS

How the Bambu Lab P1S Combo compares across the Bambu Lab range

Materials and software for the Bambu Lab P1S Combo with AMS

Filaments the P1S Combo handles

• PLA, hotend approx. 220 °C, bed approx. 55 °C. Fully supported through the AMS with RFID auto-recognition on Bambu Lab spools. The easiest starting point for multi-colour work, with clean colour transitions and minimal purge waste in Bambu Studio's default profiles.
• PETG, hotend approx. 240 °C, bed approx. 70 °C. Supported through the AMS. Slightly more adhesive to the PEI plate than PLA, so do not over-compress the first layer. Good for mechanical multi-colour parts that need moisture resistance.
• ABS, hotend approx. 250 °C, bed approx. 90–100 °C. This is where the P1S Combo separates from the A1 Combo: ABS prints reliably through the AMS inside the P1S's enclosed chamber, where temperature gradients are controlled. The carbon filter manages odour during extended ABS runs.
• ASA, hotend approx. 250 °C, bed approx. 90 °C. Behaves similarly to ABS through the AMS with better UV stability. Suitable for outdoor-use multi-colour parts such as signage and brackets. Enclosed chamber is essential for warp-free results.
• TPU (Bambu-certified "TPU for AMS" grade), hotend approx. 220 °C, bed approx. 35 °C. Standard generic TPU is not recommended through the AMS because soft filaments jam the AMS feed mechanism. Use only Bambu Lab's AMS-rated TPU grade through the AMS; load generic TPU directly into the printer's external filament path.
• PA (Nylon), hotend approx. 260–280 °C, bed approx. 70–80 °C (Engineering Plate recommended). Supported through the AMS. The AMS's airtight storage and desiccant slots are particularly valuable here: Nylon is highly hygroscopic and wet Nylon produces porous, weak prints. Keep the AMS humidity sensor reading below 15% RH for best PA results.
• PC (Polycarbonate), hotend approx. 270–280 °C, bed approx. 100 °C (Engineering Plate recommended). Supported through the AMS on the P1S. Store PC in the AMS with fresh desiccant and pre-dry spools before loading if they have been outside the AMS for more than a day.
• PVA / BVOH / HIPS (dissolvable and snap-away support). Load dissolvable support material in one AMS slot alongside your structural material. Bambu Studio automatically generates the support interface layers from the dissolvable filament and the bulk of the support from a cheaper material such as PLA. This dramatically reduces post-processing time on geometrically complex parts.
• Carbon-fibre composites (PLA-CF, PETG-CF). Bambu-certified CF grades are supported through the AMS. Generic carbon-fibre and glass-fibre filaments from other brands are not AMS-compatible and must be fed directly. A hardened steel nozzle upgrade is required before printing any CF material to prevent rapid nozzle wear.

Slicers and software

• Bambu Studio: The native slicer, required for full AMS functionality including slot assignment, colour-to-model mapping, purge tower optimisation, and RFID filament profile sync. Multi-colour jobs are configured visually by painting colours onto model surfaces or importing pre-coloured 3MF files. Available for macOS and Windows. The only slicer with complete access to the P1S Combo's proprietary calibration and AMS coordination features.
• OrcaSlicer: Open-source fork with AMS slot support via standard G-code output. Popular with experienced users who want granular control over transition tower geometry, purge volumes, and input shaping tuning parameters. Some AMS automation features, such as RFID profile sync, are unavailable via OrcaSlicer.
• PrusaSlicer: Compatible for single-colour and basic multi-material G-code output via community-maintained P1S profiles. Suitable if you are already in the PrusaSlicer workflow from another printer. Advanced AMS coordination and Bambu-specific calibration features are not accessible.
• Ultimaker Cura: Compatible via standard G-code with community machine profiles. Useful for educational environments already standardised on Cura for other hardware. AMS-specific features unavailable through Cura.

What's in the box

• Bambu Lab P1S 3D printer (pre-assembled, Textured PEI Plate pre-installed, AMS buffer pre-installed on printer)
• Bambu Lab AMS unit (Automatic Material System, 4 slots)
• 4× reusable filament spools
• LCD screen (requires installation: plug-in connection and 2 screws)
• Filament spool holder
• Sample filament spool
• Spare hotend assembly
• 2× nozzle wiping pads
• 2× scrapers
• Power cord
• Unclogging pin tool
• 4×6PIN bus cable (AMS to printer connection)
• Allen keys (H1.5 and H2)
• Screw packs (scraper, spool holder, extruder)
• Hotend clip
• Thermal paste and lubricant grease
• Desiccant bags (for AMS internal slots)
• 32 GB MicroSD card (pre-installed in printer, includes sample print files)
• Quick start guide and warranty leaflet

Ordering, shipping and support

The Bambu Lab P1S Combo with AMS is stocked at 3D Printing Store's branches in Centurion and Boksburg, and ships via courier to any address in South Africa. Warranty claims on both the P1S printer and the AMS unit are handled locally through our service team, avoiding international return logistics. Replacement nozzles, PEI plates, and a range of compatible filaments including PLA, PETG, ABS, ASA, and TPU are stocked for ongoing use. Contact us at sales@3dprintingstore.co.za for pre-purchase advice, AMS compatibility questions, or post-sale support. The P1S accepts 100–240 V, 50/60 Hz input and runs directly from South Africa's 220 V grid without a converter.

Frequently asked questions about the Bambu Lab P1S Combo with AMS

What is the difference between the P1S Combo with AMS and the A1 Combo with AMS Lite?

There are three meaningful differences. First, the AMS (included with the P1S Combo) is a fully sealed, airtight unit with a humidity sensor, desiccant storage, and dual-side RFID readers, while the AMS Lite (included with the A1 Combo) is an open system with no humidity control, suited to PLA and PETG but not hygroscopic engineering materials. Second, the P1S is fully enclosed with an activated carbon filter, making ABS, ASA, Nylon, and Polycarbonate viable through the AMS, which the open-frame A1 cannot reliably support. Third, the P1S runs at 20,000 mm/s² acceleration versus the A1's 10,000 mm/s², meaning faster practical print times on complex geometries. If you need multi-colour engineering-grade output, the P1S Combo is the correct choice.

Can I print TPU or carbon-fibre filament through the AMS?

Standard generic TPU is not compatible with the AMS because soft, flexible filaments jam the AMS feed mechanism. Bambu Lab produces an AMS-rated TPU grade specifically engineered to feed reliably through the system; use that grade for TPU via the AMS, or load generic TPU directly into the printer's external filament path, bypassing the AMS. Carbon-fibre composites from Bambu Lab (PLA-CF, PAHT-CF, PETG-CF) are supported through the AMS, but require a hardened steel nozzle upgrade installed on the P1S first. Generic carbon-fibre and glass-fibre filaments from other brands are not AMS-compatible and must be loaded directly.

How long does the P1S Combo with AMS take to set up?

Allow approximately 30–45 minutes for full setup, including both the printer and the AMS. The printer itself takes around 15 minutes: install the LCD screen, attach the spool holder, and connect the power cable. The AMS adds the connection of the 4-pin and 6-pin bus cables, routing the PTFE tube from the AMS buffer to the printer's extruder, and loading your first four filament spools. An on-screen guide walks through the self-test and Wi-Fi setup. Bambu Studio's AMS wizard handles slot assignment and filament profile configuration before your first multi-colour print.

How do I know when the AMS desiccant needs replacing?

The AMS humidity sensor reports internal relative humidity to Bambu Studio and the Bambu Handy app in real time. When the desiccant is approaching exhaustion, humidity will climb above the acceptable threshold and Bambu Studio will display a warning prompt. At that point, open the AMS, remove the old desiccant bags from the two internal slots, and replace them with fresh bags. Rechargeable silica gel desiccant is widely available and can be regenerated by heating rather than discarding. For hygroscopic materials such as PA and PC, keep a close eye on the humidity reading and replace desiccant proactively rather than waiting for the warning.

Does the Bambu Lab P1S Combo come with a South African plug, and is the AMS covered under local warranty?

The P1S Combo accepts 100–240 V, 50/60 Hz input and is fully compatible with South Africa's 220 V grid and plug. Both the P1S printer and the AMS are covered under the manufacturer warranty, and all claims are managed locally through 3D Printing Store's Centurion and Boksburg branches, so you do not need to arrange international shipping for a warranty issue. Contact us at sales@3dprintingstore.co.za for warranty queries.