jerbear00 wrote:This is why I went k10 pro barista as single dosing is quite a breeze. Also, I don't understand this doser hatred?

You seem to be conflating the Robur with the Robur E. The Robur has a doser.

If you're referring to me as a "doser hater," you're mistaken. Also, I prefer a hopper to single-dosing espresso. Single dosing for cupping and brewing is bad enough. That's not a statement of superiority, merely of preference. To each his own.

BDL

I think he is referring to me as a doser hater, because I am.

Firstly, you have this ghastly unnecessary outdated appendage sticking out of an already huge machine. It must be cleaned, it has retention issues, you need both hands to fill the PF, it represents extra cost that could have gone into better burrs motor, shot timing/weighing electronics etc. The doser thus represents a failure of product engineering/design. Yes, people work around them all day every day. . .but I have yet to see anyone use one in the manner it was intended (fill and one dose per thwack).

Please name one positive attribute of a doser other than they break up clumps. . .which a good grinder shouldn't produce anyway.

[/quote]Please name one positive attribute of a doser other than they break up clumps. . .which a good grinder shouldn't produce anyway.[/quote]
Commercial grinders dosered and Doserless were never designed for us home users. The dosered type allows for batch processing in busy coffee shops .Doserless commercial grinders adapted from the design of their dosered brethren with their huge funnels or troughs are IMHO every bit as ugly as dosered grinders.

therabidweasel wrote: Please name one positive attribute of a doser other than they break up clumps. . .which a good grinder shouldn't produce anyway.

The Dosered K10 costs $500 less then it's doserless brethen. I'd consider that a big plus & it's a better choice for single dosing. By the way the K30s I've seen in action produced lots of clumps.

JohnB. wrote:The Dosered K10 costs $500 less then it's doserless brethen. I'd consider that a big plus & it's a better choice for single dosing. By the way the K30s I've seen in action produced lots of it as lumps.

Yeah I actually think the whole K10 anomaly there is very curious. I read somewhere what I felt at the time was a pretty weak defense on that $500 up charge. Desirability maybe? I know I was offended by it as I was very seriously considering the k10 fresh. In fact it was literally the deciding factor between the two grinders for me. K30 do have some visible clumping with certain coffees. I have the WBC version and the clumps may be real in that they are visible, but they break so easily they have zero effect on distribution. But yes, not as pretty as a Robur E.

Bob I agree 100% that the big funnels on the Mazzers are at least as ugly as a doser. But not all doserless models have such things. Although one must admire the nonclumping beautiful distributions those giant ugly things produce. All I have seen distributed much better than a doser does.

Sorry. Didn't mean to throw the crowd.

What I meant was: the k10 pro barista is my choice. Small footprint and ease of use even with doser.

This is a personal choice though. Money wasn't a big object to me at the time but was a nice bonus

First of all, HX machines have a single boiler, just with a bit of a twist. Most SBDU machines have small boilers and groups and thus lack temperature stability (during the shot). Both HX and DB machines have more thermal mass that keep the shot temperature somewhat stable during the shot, thus I'd tend to avoid SBDU machines if possible. In your budget range and given that you live in Canada and thus are limited in where you can purchase (1st line doesn't ship to Canada last time I checked) I'd recommend a solid HX machine and the best grinder you can afford. I haven't seen the Doge Conico anywhere in Canada (in fact 1st line is the only place I've seen it), which is too bad as it's super for the price. From what I've seen available here, I'd go with a K10 in the $1600 range unless hand grinding is an option, in which case you have the Pharos and HG-One to choose from. Stregas go for about $2000 in Canada so if you are set on your $3k budget hand grinding with the Pharos looks to me like the best option if you want that cool lever. Otherwise you could go with a Bezzera 07 or 09 and get the K10.

Since you're in Canada (it seems), I'd give idrinkcoffee a call and work out a deal with them.

Last Black Friday, they were offering a stack of great package deals which were heavily discounted and no tax on top of that. They had a Vetrano 2B and Mazzer Mini E Type A for only $3500, which to me is close to the ultimate home setup, and a massive upgrade over your Silvia. It's also almost $800 below list with tax, which is a crazy good deal.

Check out this ad for more details on what they were offering, for reference: https://www.idrinkcoffee.com/Articles.asp?ID=270

I've dealt with them regularly, and they are always willing to make a deal, particularly if you offer to pay cash, as it saves them a hefty processing fee.

P.S. I don't work for these guys and I hope this doesn't violate any site rules on advertising - just relating my experience

politbureau wrote:P.S. I don't work for these guys and I hope this doesn't violate any site rules on advertising - just relating my experience

Not a problem. Thanks for sharing good information.

Is the search still on? I live in vancouver and have never heard of or tried Prado (yet). I do have a Strega, Mcal, soon to be finished refurbished cimbali M20 lever, HG One and K10 that you're welcome to try if you visit again. I would also be willing to sell you one set of equipment that i have as i just have too much. I also have a Vivaldi II and some other HX's.

As for the HX's even though you don't steam often its still nice to have. The dual boilers are usually better built as well, have better temp stability and as mentioned has the ability to turn the steam boiler off. The brew boiler on the Vicaldi is really small and can be left on 24/7. More economical than a HX in the long run.

As for the grinders a lot of it is just user preference once you get into the Titan class burr sets. However there are advantages to the big conicals. With my Mazzer Major and Vario i had to dial in grinds frequently. Not sure you want to do this at odd hours in the morning before rushing to work. With the K10 or HG One its almost set it and forget it. The Pharos in my opinion was a real pain to use. I had the full voodoodaddy mods done and it was still a pain to use. Yes, the grind is nice and if i had a very limited budget and the choice of one grinder i might choose it as nothing else compares in the price range. FYI i used it probably only a dozen times while owning it a year. I use my HG One daily and smile every time i walk up to use it. Not all hand grinders are the same...