Tutorial for Multi-Color Printing: Connection and Use of QIDI BOX

To set up multi-colour 3D printing on a QIDI printer you need three things: a compatible printer, a QIDI BOX filament unit connected to it, and QIDI Studio. Load up to four filaments per box, connect the box to the printer, synchronise the box's filament list into your slicing project, assign colours to the model, and slice. The printer changes filament automatically at every colour transition.

This tutorial walks the whole path with the QIDI Q2 and the QIDI BOX multi-colour unit, from wiring to slicing to a finished multi-colour print — plus the parts most tutorials skip: how much filament the colour changes actually waste, which materials must never go through the box, and what to do when a filament change fails mid-print.

What is the QIDI BOX?

The QIDI BOX is a four-slot automatic filament changer and heated dry box for QIDI 3D printers. It holds four spools, feeds any one of them to the printer's extruder on command, and keeps all four dry at up to 65 °C while the print runs. A hub — the BOX HUB — merges the four PTFE paths into the single tube that reaches the toolhead, and monitors filament in real time so it can detect clogs, tangles and run-outs.

Two design points matter more than the marketing bullets:

• It dries while it prints. The box is a sealed, insulated enclosure with a heater and a built-in temperature and humidity sensor. A long multi-colour print can run for a day; without active drying, hygroscopic filament sitting in the open absorbs moisture the entire time.
• It reads filament automatically. Current QIDI filament carries an NFC/RFID tag that the box reads on insertion, so type and colour populate themselves.

Item	Specification
Filament slots per box	4
Maximum boxes per printer	4 (16 colours or materials total)
Drying temperature	Up to 65 °C, active during printing
Filament identification	RFID tag, ISO/IEC 14443-A, 13.56 MHz
Sensing	Built-in temperature and humidity sensor; run-out, tangle and clog detection
Supported spool width	50–72 mm
Supported spool diameter	195–202 mm (plastic spools; adapter needed for some 195 mm spools)
Auto-refill	Switches to an identical spool when one runs out
Slicer required	QIDI Studio

Which QIDI printers work with the QIDI BOX?

The QIDI BOX is compatible with the Q2C, Q2, Plus 4 and Max4. Those are the four printers QIDI currently lists on the QIDI BOX product page. The box unit itself is universal across them — what differs is the hub data cable.

Printer	Build volume	QIDI BOX support	Hub cable type
Q2C	270 × 270 × 256 mm	Yes	Q2-family hub cable
Q2	270 × 270 × 256 mm	Yes	Q2-family hub cable
Plus 4	305 × 305 × 280 mm	Yes	Plus 4 hub cable — not interchangeable
Max4	390 × 390 × 340 mm	Yes	Q2/Max4 hub cable

Do not swap hub data cables between a Plus 4 and a Q2 or Max4. QIDI calls this out explicitly in its documentation: the BOX unit is universal, the Plus 4 hub data cable is not. Mixing them is the single most avoidable setup mistake.

One more Plus 4 note worth knowing before you start: when printing PLA or PETG on a Plus 4 with a box attached, QIDI recommends placing the box beside the printer and leaving the printer's top cover open. With the enclosure sealed, chamber temperature can climb high enough to soften filament in the feed path and cause extrusion problems.

Step 1: Connect the QIDI BOX to the printer

Power everything down before wiring. Then, in order: mount the BOX HUB on the printer, connect the QIDI BOX signal line, connect the hub signal line, connect the power cord, confirm the routing, and only then power on.

Once the hardware is live, open QIDI Studio, the official slicing software of QIDI. Navigate to the "Device" interface and click the green "+" icon to add a device. Select the printer preset — "Q2" in this walkthrough — enter the machine name and IP address, and complete the connection.

On startup the printer checks the box. If no filament is threaded through the BOX HUB, it reads each loaded spool in turn, which takes roughly one to two minutes. That pause is normal. Before you send a job, confirm there are no red indicator lights on the box.

Scaling to 16 colours: chaining four boxes

Up to four QIDI BOX units can be chained to one printer for 16 colours or materials. A single box ships with its own BOX HUB. To run more than one, you need the QIDI BOX Expansion Kit, which supplies the 7-into-1 PTFE connectors, PTFE tubing and sheath, and the additional signal cable that daisy-chains the boxes.

Configuration	Colours / materials	Extra hardware needed
1 box	4	None — hub is included
2 boxes	8	Expansion kit
3 boxes	12	Expansion kit
4 boxes	16	Expansion kit, 7-into-1 PTFE connector

On a Plus 4 specifically, connecting more than three boxes requires the printer's USB 3.0 port. The seven-into-one PTFE connector is what merges the multiple box outputs into the single feed line to the toolhead.

Step 2: Prepare the filaments

According to your printing design, place different filaments into the slots of the QIDI BOX.

• If you are using the new version of QIDI filaments, the box will automatically recognise the type and colour of the filament via the built-in RFID chip — no manual setting required.
• If you are using other filaments, enter the filament settings interface on the screen and manually select the filament category and colour.

For filament information that needs manual setting, you can also modify it in the "Filament Control" section on the QIDI Studio device page.

Which filaments should not go through the QIDI BOX?

Avoid running brittle, high-modulus, flexible or highly absorbent filaments through the box. The feed path involves PTFE tubes, a hub with a cutting blade, and several direction changes. Materials that snap or squirm cause jams that are tedious to clear.

Material class	Examples	Why it is a problem
Fibre-reinforced	PAHT-CF, third-party PA-CF/GF, PET-CF/GF, PLA-CF/GF	Abrades PTFE tubing; brittle fracture inside the feed path
Brittle specialty PLA	Some silk PLA, glow-in-the-dark PLA	Snaps under the bend radius
Flexible	TPU, TPE	Buckles and jams inside the feed tube or BOX HUB
Highly absorbent	PVA	Swells and sticks in the feed path
Cardboard spools	Any brand	Wears the active drive shaft and blocks smooth spool rotation

Stick to plastic spools in the 50–72 mm width and 195–202 mm diameter range, and treat the PTFE tubes as consumables — check them for wear during routine maintenance and replace them before wear turns into a feeding fault. For the safe end of the material range, QIDI's own PLA and PETG lines are the ones tested against the box.

Step 3: Synchronise information and process the model

Scenario 1: You already have a multi-colour model file

Import the multi-colour model file; the filament information included in the project will be directly displayed in the "Filaments" section.

Click "Synchronize Information" in the printer section, then select your printer to obtain the corresponding box information. There are two ways to synchronise filament information, and "Map" is usually used by default:

• Map: correspond the project filaments with the filaments in the box one by one based on type and colour.
• Overwrite: use the filaments in the box to replace the project filament list in sequence; unused filaments in the box will also be automatically added to the end of the list.

If the type of project filament does not match the filament of the corresponding colour in the box, the matching will fail. You need to return to the "Filaments" section to modify the filament type.

Click on a filament to modify its type. If the required type is not available, select "Add Filaments".

After modification, re-perform the matching, and click to synchronise now once confirmed correct.

After successful synchronisation, a blue checkmark (✔) will appear in the corresponding filament slot, indicating that the printer and the box are ready.

Scenario 2: Colouring a single-colour model

Open the model file, click the "+" icon in the "Filaments" settings section on the left to add filaments, and select the type and colour of the filaments. You can also click the colouring tool at the top to add or remove filaments.

After adding, match the project filaments with the filament information in the box.

Next, you can use the colouring tool, select the colour and an appropriate tool type to colour the model.

The painting tools themselves are worth learning properly — we cover them separately in how to colour models in QIDI Studio.

Step 4: Slice, check, and send the job

Note: during multi-colour printing, the wipe tower will be enabled by default. It cleans the nozzle every time the colour changes, effectively preventing colour cross-contamination.

Click "Slice Plate" to enter the preview mode, where you can view the filament usage, number of colour changes, and estimated printing time. Slide the scroll bar on the right to check whether the colour change of each layer is correct.

Click "Print Plate", confirm that the box is turned on, and then send the file for printing.

How much filament does multi-colour printing waste?

Every colour change purges a small volume of the old filament out of the nozzle, and that purged material is waste. When a change happens, some old filament is still sitting in the extruder. As the new filament loads, it pushes the old out, and you see a gradual colour transition in the extrusion. The model only stays clean if the new filament has fully replaced the old — but flushing more than necessary wastes filament and print time.

The purge volume is not a fixed number. QIDI Studio calculates it per transition, and it depends on two things:

• Colour distance. A bigger difference between the old and new colour needs more flushing. Direction matters too: going from a dark filament to a light one takes several times the volume of going light to dark. Black to white is expensive; white to black is cheap.
• Filament type. A type change — PLA to PETG, for example — adjusts the volume automatically, and support filaments are treated differently again to avoid weakening the model or making support impossible to remove.

The authoritative number for your specific job is in the slice preview: after slicing, QIDI Studio reports total filament usage and the number of colour changes. To turn a purge volume in mm³ into grams, use the material density.

Material	Typical density	1,000 mm³ purged weighs	100 changes at 150 mm³ each
PLA	≈ 1.24 g/cm³	≈ 1.24 g	≈ 18.6 g
PETG	≈ 1.27 g/cm³	≈ 1.27 g	≈ 19.1 g
ABS	≈ 1.04 g/cm³	≈ 1.04 g	≈ 15.6 g
ASA	≈ 1.07 g/cm³	≈ 1.07 g	≈ 16.1 g

Work it in that order — read the change count from the preview, multiply by the per-change volume the slicer shows, convert with the density above — and you get a waste estimate before you commit a spool to a 20-hour job. One planning note: a 0.2 mm nozzle has a low maximum volumetric speed, so flushing is slow. Multi-colour work on a 0.2 mm nozzle adds noticeable dead time at every transition.

Four ways to cut purge waste

QIDI Studio gives you four levers, and they stack. All of the "flush into" options require the prime tower to be enabled.

Option	What it does	Best for	Watch out for
Flush into objects' support (on by default)	Dumps transition extrusions into support material, which gets removed anyway	Models with large support areas	No effect if the model needs no support
Flush into objects' infill	Dumps transitions into the model's internal infill	Large objects with solid interiors	Not recommended with transparent filament — mixed-colour infill shows through
Flush into this object	Designates one object on the plate to absorb all transitions	Plates with two or more objects, e.g. hidden gears or bolts	That object ends up multi-coloured; only use it where colour does not matter
Flushing multiplier	Scales the auto-calculated volume up or down	Fine-tuning after a test print	Cutting too far leaves ghosting of the previous colour

Order colour changes intelligently too. If your palette allows it, sequence transitions light-to-dark rather than alternating, since dark-to-light is the expensive direction. And if colour bleed survives your purge settings, our guide on avoiding filament colour bleeding covers the rest.

Drying while printing

The QIDI BOX can hold a set drying temperature for the entire duration of a print. On a multi-day multi-colour job this is the difference between the fourth spool printing as well as the first and it printing with stringing and popping. There are two ways to enable it:

1. On the printer screen. Open the filament page, tap the temperature control button on the right, and set the drying temperature.
2. In QIDI Studio. Synchronise the box filament information first, then open "Edit Filament Properties" in the filaments menu and set the temperature there. Slice and send as normal, and the box starts drying automatically.

Two hard limits. Do not exceed the maximum drying temperature preset for that filament type — softened filament inside the box is exactly how you create a clog. And when the box has recognised PLA in a slot, drying-while-printing is disabled for it: PLA softens at temperatures a dry box comfortably reaches, and the spool does not rotate during printing, so heating would be uneven.

For a standalone drying cycle rather than drying-while-printing, unload all filament first, choose the slots, set time and temperature, and close the lid. The tray rotates every five minutes for even heating, and the fan starts automatically above 35 °C to protect PLA. Because the box seals well, open it after a PLA cycle so it cools quickly.

Troubleshooting multi-colour and filament-change failures

When a filament change fails, the printer reports a QDE code. These codes point at a specific stage of the feed path, which turns guesswork into a checklist. Here are the ones you are most likely to meet, with what they mean.

Code	What happened	What to check
QDE_004_001	Filament fed into the box inlet never reached the BOX HUB	Hub wiring; filament tangled or bent at the inlet
QDE_004_002	Hub already had filament present, so loading was refused	Unload the filament currently in the path first
QDE_004_003	Filament did not exit the box feed port on unload	Knots in the filament; if it left the port but did not rewind, ignore it
QDE_004_005	No filament detected during a feed operation	Spool empty, or filament never inserted into the inlet
QDE_004_006	Filament did not reach the extruder	Wrapped filament; bent or unseated PTFE tube above the extruder; leftover fragment stuck in the hub; run-out sensor above the extruder
QDE_004_009	Filament did not exit the hub on return	Worn or damaged cutting blade; dust in the hub preventing the motion switch from rebounding

If a fault appears mid-print, fix the cause and hit Retry — or, if you prefer the console, issue TRYMOVE_AGAIN in Klipper. A stalled multi-colour print is usually recoverable; a print you abandon is not.

Other things that commonly go wrong

• Mapping fails at sync. The project filament type does not match the box slot type. Go back to "Filaments", change the type, and re-run the match — a colour match alone is not enough.
• Auto-refill does not trigger. The box only swaps to a backup spool when manufacturer, type and colour all match. Any difference and it will not switch.
• RFID does not read. Use the re-read button above the filament. It only works for filaments QIDI officially supports with RFID, and it cannot be used while filament is threaded through the hub — return the fed filament first.
• Filament tangles after ejecting. The tail end can twist after the Eject function. Tidy the spool before storing it, or the next load fails at the inlet.
• Everything is slow to start. That one-to-two-minute read on startup is the printer identifying each spool. Let it finish.

Frequently asked questions

How many colours can a QIDI printer print at once?

Four colours with a single QIDI BOX, and up to 16 by chaining four boxes with the QIDI BOX Expansion Kit. Each box holds four spools and the hub merges the feeds into one line to the toolhead. The printer uses a single nozzle and swaps filament between colours; it does not print two colours simultaneously.

Which QIDI printers are compatible with the QIDI BOX?

The Q2C, Q2, Plus 4 and Max4. The box unit is the same across all of them, but the Plus 4 uses a different hub data cable from the Q2 and Max4, and the two must not be interchanged.

Do I need QIDI Studio for multi-colour printing?

Yes. QIDI Studio is the slicer that synchronises box filament information, maps project colours to box slots and calculates flushing volumes. Other slicers can produce multi-colour G-code in principle, but they have no channel to the box hardware. The relationship between QIDI Studio and the wider open-source slicer family is explained in our piece on QIDI Studio and Orca Slicer.

Can I use third-party filament in the QIDI BOX?

Yes, with two caveats. Filament without a QIDI RFID tag has to have its type and colour entered manually on the printer screen or in QIDI Studio. And the material restrictions still apply: avoid fibre-reinforced, brittle, flexible and highly absorbent filaments, and avoid cardboard spools, which wear the drive shaft. Spools should be 50–72 mm wide and 195–202 mm in diameter.

How much filament does the wipe tower waste?

It depends on the number of colour changes and the colour distance of each one, so read the figure from the slice preview rather than assuming. As a rough anchor, 100 changes at 150 mm³ each is roughly 19 g of PLA. Enabling "flush into objects' support" and "flush into objects' infill" reclaims a large share of that on models that have support or solid interiors.

Why did my filament mapping fail?

Because the filament type in the project does not match the type loaded in the corresponding box slot. Colour alone will not satisfy the match. Open the "Filaments" section, correct the type — adding a new filament definition if the one you need is missing — then re-run the match and synchronise.

Can the QIDI BOX dry filament while it is printing?

Yes, up to 65 °C, set either on the printer screen or in QIDI Studio's filament properties. The exception is PLA: when the box identifies PLA in a slot, drying-while-printing is blocked for that slot, because the spool does not rotate during printing and localised heat could deform it.

Can I print TPU with the QIDI BOX?

No. Flexible materials such as TPU and TPE buckle inside the box feed tube or the BOX HUB and jam. Print flexibles from an external spool feeding the extruder directly instead — QIDI documents a procedure for printing with external filament while a box is connected.

Conclusion

By following the above steps you have the entire process of printing multi-colour work with the QIDI Q2 and QIDI BOX: wire the box and hub, load and identify the filaments, synchronise the box into your project, paint or map the colours, then slice, verify the layer preview and send. Add the purge settings and the drying options and you go from "it prints in colour" to "it prints in colour without wasting half a spool".

Where to go next: the complete QIDI Box guide covers the hardware in more depth, how to 3D print multiple colours covers the alternatives if you do not have a box yet, and ten multi-colour project ideas is where to look for something to print first. Full hardware documentation lives on the QIDI BOX wiki, including multi-box connection, reducing filament waste, material and spool restrictions and the full QDE error code list. Start your 3D creation journey now.