Ender 3 V2 Neo After 2 Years: Upgrades Worth Doing (And What I'd Skip)

2 Years, Hundreds of Prints, and Lessons Learned

This is the final post in my Ender 3 V2 Neo series. Over 4 parts, we've gone from unboxing (Part 1), through calibration (Part 2), into slicer mastery (Part 3), and now - what I'd actually change about the printer itself. Some upgrades were game-changers and others were a waste of money. And a few things I thought I needed turned out to be completely unnecessary.

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The Upgrades I Made (Ranked by Impact)

1. Better Bed Springs -> Silicone Spacers ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Cost: ₹200-400 | Impact: Massive | Difficulty: Easy

This was the single best upgrade for the money.

The stock springs on the Ender 3 V2 Neo lose tension over time. You level the bed, print 3-4 times, and it's off again. Silicone spacers don't compress the same way - once leveled, the bed stays leveled for weeks.

Before: Re-leveling every 3-5 prints After: Re-leveling every 20-30 prints

Installation takes 5 minutes - just swap the springs for spacers under each corner.

<!-- TODO: Add photo of silicone spacers vs springs -->

2. All-Metal Hotend ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Cost: ₹1,500-3,000 | Impact: High | Difficulty: Moderate

The stock hotend uses a PTFE-lined heatbreak. This means:

• Maximum temperature is ~240°C (PTFE degrades above this)
• The PTFE tube inside wears out and needs periodic replacement
• Limits you to PLA and PETG essentially

An all-metal hotend removes the PTFE from the heat zone entirely:

• Print up to 300°C (ABS, Nylon, PC, ASA)
• No PTFE degradation
• More consistent extrusion

The catch: All-metal hotends are slightly more prone to clogs with PLA at lower temperatures. You may need to increase retraction temperature by 5°C and tune retraction settings.

Worth it? Absolutely, if you plan to print anything beyond PLA and PETG. If you're PLA-only, it's optional.

3. Capricorn PTFE Tube ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Cost: ₹300-500 | Impact: Noticeable | Difficulty: Easy

The stock white PTFE tube is fine, but Capricorn's blue tube has:

• Tighter inner diameter (less filament play in Bowden setup)
• Better temperature resistance
• Smoother inner surface (less friction)

This translates to slightly better retraction performance and more consistent extrusion. Not a night-and-day difference, but a quality-of-life improvement.

Install tip: Cut the tube with the dedicated Capricorn cutter (or a very sharp razor) for a perfectly flat end. A crooked cut causes gaps and clogs.

4. Filament Dry Box ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Cost: ₹500-2,000 (DIY to commercial) | Impact: High in humid climates | Difficulty: Easy

Living in a humid climate, this wasn't optional - it was essential. Wet filament produces:

• Popping/crackling during extrusion
• Rough surface finish
• Poor layer adhesion
• Stringing from steam

DIY option: Airtight container + silica gel packets + a hygrometer. Works well for storage.

Commercial option: Dedicated filament dryers that also feed directly to the printer while drying.

5. Better Spool Holder / Filament Guide ⭐⭐⭐

Cost: ₹0 (3D printed) | Impact: Moderate | Difficulty: Easy

The stock spool holder works, but a printed filament guide reduces the angle at which filament enters the extruder. Less friction = smoother feeding = fewer under-extrusion issues on long prints.

This was one of my first functional prints - a filament guide from Printables.

6. LED Light Bar ⭐⭐⭐

Cost: ₹200-500 | Impact: Quality of life | Difficulty: Easy

A simple USB-powered LED strip attached to the gantry. Sounds trivial, but being able to actually see your first layer properly is surprisingly useful. Also makes webcam monitoring much better.

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Upgrades I Considered But Skipped

Direct Drive Conversion ❌

Cost: ₹2,000-5,000 | Why I skipped it:

A direct drive extruder mounts the motor directly above the hotend instead of using a Bowden tube. Benefits include better retraction control and easier TPU printing.

Why I didn't bother:

• Adds weight to the X-axis gantry, requiring slower speeds
• I rarely print TPU
• With a Capricorn tube and tuned retraction, my Bowden setup works well enough
• The cost approaches "just buy a better printer" territory

If you print flexible filaments regularly, this is worth it. For everyone else, save the money.

Upgraded Mainboard ❌

Cost: ₹2,500-4,000 | Why I skipped it:

The Ender 3 V2 Neo already comes with a 32-bit silent board. Upgrading to something like a BTT SKR Mini or SKR E3 gives you more stepper drivers and Klipper compatibility.

Why I didn't bother:

• The stock board is already silent (TMC2209 drivers)
• Klipper can run on the stock board (more on this below)
• The cost doesn't justify the marginal improvement

Dual Z-Axis ❌

Cost: ₹1,000-2,000 | Why I skipped it:

A second Z-axis lead screw prevents the X-gantry from sagging on one side.

Why I didn't bother:

• The Neo's gantry hasn't shown significant sag in 2 years
• Proper assembly and tensioning keeps it square
• It's a solution looking for a problem on this printer

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Firmware: Stock Marlin vs Klipper

This is the big question every Ender 3 owner eventually faces.

Stock Marlin (What the printer ships with)

Pros:

• Works out of the box
• All features accessible from the printer screen
• No additional hardware needed
• Easy to update via SD card

Cons:

• Limited customization
• No input shaping (for reducing ringing)
• No pressure advance
• Print speeds limited by firmware processing

Klipper

Klipper moves the motion processing from the printer's mainboard to a more powerful computer (Raspberry Pi, old laptop, etc.). The mainboard becomes a "dumb" actuator.

Pros:

• Input shaping - dramatically reduces ringing/ghosting
• Pressure advance - cleaner corners and better extrusion control
• Higher print speeds - firmware isn't the bottleneck anymore
• Web interface (Mainsail/Fluidd) - control printer from any browser
• Highly configurable - everything is in a text config file

Cons:

• Requires a Raspberry Pi or equivalent (₹3,000-5,000)
• Setup is more complex
• Printer screen becomes useless (or needs KlipperScreen)
• More things can break

My Take

I've stayed on stock Marlin. Here's why:

The Ender 3 V2 Neo's hardware is the bottleneck, not the firmware. Klipper's speed benefits shine on printers with linear rails and direct drive - features the Neo doesn't have. Input shaping would help with ringing, but I've managed it well enough with belt tensioning and acceleration tuning.

When Klipper makes sense for the Neo:

• You've exhausted all other optimizations
• You want a web interface for remote monitoring
• You're comfortable with Linux and config files
• You plan to keep upgrading the printer hardware

When it doesn't:

• You just want to print reliably
• You don't want to maintain another computer
• Your prints already look good enough

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Designing Your Own Parts

The real power of a 3D printer unlocks when you stop downloading models and start designing your own.

Fusion 360 (Hobbyist)

My go-to for custom utility items like netpot cups, keychains, and wall hangers.

• ✅ Free for personal use
• ✅ Parametric modeling (change one dimension, everything updates)
• ✅ Excellent tutorials on YouTube
• ❌ Cloud-dependent
• ❌ Learning curve is real

SolidWorks (Professional)

I use SolidWorks for industrial parts at work. It's overkill for hobby printing but unmatched for engineering-grade design.

• ✅ Industry standard for mechanical engineering
• ✅ Advanced simulation (stress analysis, thermal)
• ❌ Expensive license
• ❌ Windows only

Design Tips for FDM Printing

Not everything you design in CAD prints well on an FDM printer. Here are the rules I follow:

Design Rule	Why
Minimum wall thickness: 1.2mm (3 × nozzle width)	Thinner walls may not print or will be very fragile
Chamfers instead of fillets on bottom edges	Fillets need supports, chamfers print clean
45° overhang max without supports	Beyond this, overhangs droop
0.2mm tolerance for fit joints	FDM isn't injection molding - allow clearance
Orient flat side down	Minimize supports, maximize bed adhesion
Avoid thin horizontal bridges	They sag, even with cooling

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Cost Breakdown: 2 Years of Ender 3 V2 Neo

Let's be transparent about what this hobby actually costs:

One-Time Costs

Item	Cost (₹)
Ender 3 V2 Neo	~18,000
Essential accessories	~2,500
Silicone spacers	~300
Capricorn tube	~400
All-metal hotend	~2,000
LED light	~300
Spare nozzles	~300
Total hardware	~23,800

Ongoing Costs (Per Year, Approx.)

Item	Cost (₹)
PLA filament (~10-12 kg)	~10,000-15,000
PETG filament (~3-4 kg)	~4,000-6,000
Replacement nozzles	~300
IPA, glue sticks	~500
Electricity	~1,000-2,000
Total annual	~16,000-24,000

That's roughly ₹40,000-70,000 over 2 years for the entire hobby. Sounds like a lot until you realize what you've printed would have cost 3-5x more to buy or get manufactured. The hydroponics netpots alone saved their cost many times over.

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If I Started Over Today

Knowing what I know now, here's what I'd do differently:

1. Buy silicone spacers immediately. Don't waste a single day with the stock springs.

2. Calibrate E-steps on day 1. I spent weeks blaming slicer settings when the extruder was the problem.

3. Start with OrcaSlicer, not Cura. The built-in calibration tools would have saved me a month of trial and error.

4. Buy a filament dry box early. Especially in humid climates. Don't wait until you've wasted a roll of PETG.

5. Print upgrades for the printer first. Filament guide, cable clips, tool holder. The printer can improve itself.

6. NOT buy: dual Z-axis, direct drive conversion, upgraded mainboard. Save that money for better filament.

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Would I Buy This Printer Again?

Yes. But with a caveat.

The Ender 3 V2 Neo was the right printer for me in 2024 because I wanted to learn 3D printing, not just consume it. Every jam, every failed print, every late-night calibration session taught me something. When I design a part in SolidWorks now, I instinctively think about print orientation, support requirements, and material selection. That knowledge came from tinkering with this machine.

If you want the fastest, cleanest prints with minimal effort, buy a Bambu Lab A1 or P1S. No shame in that.

But if you want to understand the craft, if you want to troubleshoot by instinct, if you want to feel the pride of a perfect 3-day print on a machine you've tuned yourself - the Ender 3 V2 Neo is still a remarkable starting point.

Happy printing! 🖨️

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Series Navigation:

1. Getting Started with the Ender 3 V2 Neo
2. Calibrations That Actually Matter
3. Slicer Deep Dive & Long Print Survival
4. Upgrades Worth Doing After 2 Years (You are here)