I am currently strongly considering purchasing a Max Hybrid. I have an opportunity to purchase a less than a year old machine or new. What I really want to know is this:

Would you buy your Cimbali again after having experience with it. I would like to know how long it has been in use and why or why not you would purchase again.

In ditching my MDF I want to accomplish the following: Eliminate the need for WDT. Not have to purchase another grinder in the foreseeable future. Enjoy delicious espresso with the least effort and annoyance. (FYI - I know it's loud... that is not an issue)

Thanks in advance

Jon

Jon,

First of all, welcome to HB.

Secondly, regular readers -- I am sure -- are sick and tired of reading what I think of the CMH. But, just for the sake of consistency, let me repeat: The single biggest improvement I have ever made to my espresso, in terms of equipment, was to replace my Mazzer Mini with a CMH. (FWIW, I got the Mazzer Mini to replace a Gaggia MDF that I have for 25 years.)

Third, it is a great grinder, but not without its faults. Primarily it depends upon you, or more properly, how you use a grinder. The CMH is a great grinder if . . . if you do not grind-by-dose, but keep your hopper 25-33% full; if you do not change beans frequently, but stick with one bean for a period of time. It is built like a tank -- or, at least like a jeep (Mazzers are built like a tank) -- and has been absolutely trouble-free in daily use for three years.

Cheers,
Jason

Yeah, every time you say that I think about upgrading my Mini. So, knock it off... I have pretty horrible upgraditus anyway without you talking about better equipment all the time.

I don't have any experience with the other titan grinders but I love my CMH. I should mention that I've ordered a Baratza Vario to do decaf and single shots, it'll be here Thursday with any luck

I love my CMH. My usage is similar to Jason's & his posts about the machine helped decide to purchase it.

I also have a CMH and I like it very much. In terms of quality of shots and ease of use its hard to beat for the money.

However, it does have some quirks. As many have mentioned, it's quite noisy, probably because the sheet metal case resonates more than the cast metal housing on Mazzers and Macacps. The fit and finish of the parts is also not as nice as on my Macap M4. The plastic trim around the doser looks cheap and doesn't fit snugly, and the doser itself feels a bit flimsy compared to the doser on my Macap. It's also hard to get into the doser and clean it out, and it does retain quite a bit of used grounds. Also, the catch try is too small and narrow to catch all of the excess grounds, which end up on the kitchen counter instead. However, every other grinder I've owned has the same problem.

Finally, I think it's kind of ugly compared to the competing grinders. The squared-off sheet metal housing just isn't as appealing as the polished aluminum of a Macap or the powder coated aluminum of a Mazzer.

Honestly, most of this stuff doesn't matter because the result in the cup is what really counts, and in that respect the grinder works great. Still, if I had to buy a grinder now, I might go with the Baratza Vario, which costs half as much and reportedly gives nearly the same result. The Vario wasn't available at the time I got the CMH, or it would have been a serious consideration for me.

Beezer wrote:Honestly, most of this stuff doesn't matter because the result in the cup is what really counts, and in that respect the grinder works great.

Agreed. (Although I happen to like the way the CMH looks.)

Beezer wrote:Still, if I had to buy a grinder now, I might go with the Baratza Vario, which costs half as much and reportedly gives nearly the same result. The Vario wasn't available at the time I got the CMH, or it would have been a serious consideration for me.

I was in the same position: the Baratza Vario (aka the Mahlkönig VARIO Home) was not available when I purchased my Cimbali Max Hybrid. I bought the CMH based largely upon the Titan Grinder Project: Can It Beat the Robur?, and I have been very happy with the grinder ever since.

Minor Thread Drift:

When I bought my Mahlkönig K30 Vario, I bought it as an upgrade to my home setup (pairing it with the Elektra T1). It was a substitute for the CMH, but not a replacement; I moved the CMH to my office (pairing it with the La Valentina). When I decided it was time to upgrade my "secondary" home grinder (a Quick Mill doserless), I got the Baratza Vario, and I've been very pleased.

There IS a point of diminishing returns and QPR (quality-price ratio). The Baratza Vario, with the new control board, is $449. At $760.95, the CMH costs 41 percent more. Is the CMH 41 percent better than the Baratza Vario? How do you measure that? Certainly the Baratza Vario has demonstrated itself to be a grinder "playing above its weight class," and is one hell of a deal! (That is, high QPR.)

I have no intention of getting rid of my CMH. But in a home environment, there is something to be said for the Baratza Vario being more than enough grinder to handle the job, and at a considerably lower price.

The only concerns voiced about the Baratza Vario to date -- that I can recall -- have been about its longevity. It's an open question, simply because the grinder is so (relatively) new. The Cimbali Max and Cimbali Junior grinders have been around for a long time, and have demonstrated their longevity and reliability; although newer, the Max Hybrid is no different.

Cheers,
Jason

zin1953 wrote:single biggest improvement I have ever made to my espresso, in terms of equipment, was to replace my Mazzer Mini with a CMH

I have read Jason's refrain many times, and ultimately I broke down and purchased a CMH to replace my Mazzer Mini. Guess what, the CMH went back after about 3 weeks, and I "upgraded" back to the Mazzer.

Jason, I'm glad that the CMH allowed you to make that improvement in your espresso preparation. But I do not believe the CMH is a "prescription" that will deliver better espresso for everyone. It's just a different tool. One that happened to fit your style of espresso prep and your palate.

I wonder if something was amiss with your Mazzer Mini. Faulty burrs or burr carrier out of alignment. Or something in your prep, i.e. something you were doing with your dosing, distribution, tamp, etc. Or maybe you were using a really specific coffee (i.e. Vivace) that just "took" to the CMH.

For me, the Mazzer Mini was a better tool. More enjoyable to use and better in the cup.

Not trying to take you to task here; just offering a contrasting viewpoint.

Ryan

p.s. I also have a Baratza Vario that I believe is a competent espresso grinder. It's an easy one to recommend because of the price, usability (timed doserless), low waste, and counter-friendly size.

Ryan, just to be clear: I have never said that "the CMH is a 'prescription' that will deliver better espresso for everyone." Not even close! I've never said "You" (meaning anyone) "should run out and buy a CMH!" All I have ever said about the CMH has been solely related to my personal experience. I have also attempted to be quite clear in citing the grinder's limitations, such as what I said above:

zin1953 wrote: . . . it is a great grinder, but not without its faults. Primarily it depends upon you, or more properly, how you use a grinder . . . .

(Indeed, if you read any of my posts, I rarely say "buy this," but rather offer a range of suggestions that are specifically tailored to it the individual's stated needs AND their budget.)

The Mazzer Mini was purchased new from 1st-Line, and it was an excellent grinder -- and a huge step-up from my Gaggia MDF. It worked perfectly. I could dial it in with no huge effort; it threw grinds to the left and made a mess (just like all the reviews of the Mazzer states that it does). All in all, it performed exactly as advertised, and I was very happy with it for quite some time. And then "upgrade-itis" struck, and I was intrigued by the TGP. Indeed, I almost bought a much more expensive grinder, until I saw the results of the CMH in the TGP and thought I'd try it out.

FOR ME, there was a significant and noticeable improvement in the cup over the Mazzer Mini. A "quantum leap," if you will, rather than an improvement that was "a matter of degrees." But that's my experience. YMMV. It obviously has. And I'm not going to reimburse you for the CMH!

Cheers,
Jason

Another happy Max owner here! But that's not the reason I'm posting here. If anyone following this discussion is interested in getting a CMH, I stumbled on this eBay auction that looks decent. And you get a GraLab timer with it! All for $499. Seems the seller is at least familiar with HB, and may even be a member.
http://cgi.ebay.com/Cimbali-Max-Hybrid-Grinder_W0QQitemZ300397328287QQcmdZViewItemQQptZSmall_Kitchen_Appliances_US?hash=item45f113779f