Prusa MMU3 Farewell Update: Filament Changes Speed Up by 20%

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April 10, 2026 News 9459

Prusa has recently pushed the final major firmware update for the MMU3 multi-material unit, reducing filament change time from approximately 52 seconds to 42 seconds—a speed increase of about 20%.

For complex prints requiring frequent color changes, this improvement can save hours of print time: a detailed model with 2,200 filament changes saves five and a half hours, while a moderately complex five-color print with 400 changes saves roughly one hour.

The update achieves these gains through parallel idler operations, predictive idler staging during unloads, and an optimized pressure-relief step. It also introduces a “Preload All” feature, allowing users to load all filament slots with the same material in a single step. The firmware covers the MK4S, MK3.9, MK3.5, and Core One/One+ platforms.

Prusa has made it clear that this is the last major update for the MMU3, with future development focus shifting to the INDX toolchanger system. Co-developed by Bondtech and Prusa, the INDX takes a fundamentally different approach by switching between passive toolheads—each with its own independent filament path—eliminating the unload, load, and purge cycles entirely.

Meanwhile, support plans for the larger-format Core One L have been adjusted. Instead of releasing a dedicated MMU3 kit, Prusa now provides “adaptation guidelines” for users to modify existing Core One+ kits to fit the larger machine. This shift differs from the product page’s earlier statement that support would arrive in “early 2026.”

The company has recently undergone strategic downsizing due to weaker-than-expected sales, and this adjustment in hardware support is seen as an early sign of that shift. For existing MMU3 users, updating the firmware remains the most direct way to improve multicolor printing efficiency.