The Lusso does sound like a good choice for a quiet espresso machine. I guess a hand grinder is somewhat quieter than one with a motor. However, although I own three of them (one wall, one knee and one countertop) they don't fit the "quick" definition. And I've never quite caught the "romance" of cranking 50 (quite hard) to 200 turns to get enough coffee to fill the portafilter. It is true, however that two of the 3 do a very nice job of grinding the coffee. I just don't have the patience.

Ciao Ben,

If you haven't the time for manual grinding, there are a few electric burr grinders that are "relatively low noise", for ex., the Rancilio Rocky & the Mazzer Mini (if I've read correctly). In these cases, it isn't the motor so much as it is the beans getting ground up that makes the noticeable noise. On the plus side, grinding with one of those takes considerably less time than pulling the shot.

Buona Fortuna,
Wayne

roastaroma wrote:If you haven't the time for manual grinding, there are a few electric burr grinders that are "relatively low noise", for ex., the Rancilio Rocky & the Mazzer Mini (if I've read correctly).

I guess it is a matter of opinion, but I would not describe the rocky in my kitchen as "low noise". My advice would be to "listen before you buy"

You could make a sound-hood, to place over an electric grinder. Honey, look what I made you for your birthday, so you can have your beauty sleep while I have my early morning espresso. Should be pretty easy to fashion with some sound-deadening insulation. With some hardwood veneer it could become a home woodworking project. Really fancy, and it could have hinges and open like a tabernacle

A hand grinder and lever machine will do quiet. Quick and quiet will cost a fortune. Quick, quiet, and great espresso will require a live in barista. The most time is spent in setup and cleanup; and the only way to avoid this is with a superauto (or aforesaid live-in barista). Home superautos have noisy grinders and pumps, commercial ones have quiet grinders and pumps. However, they start at around $3000.

I don't know what it would cost to have a barista show up daily at 4 in the morning to set you up on the way out.

My children don't awaken when I grind (Zassenhaus) in the basement for my quiet chrome peacock to pull an espresso. The milk frothing for my wife's cappuccino increases the sound, but they usually don't awaken. I usually pull shots that do not have me missing Vivace, Intelli, Stump etc etc. I've done the residency thing though and wish I had had a quick, quiet, great shot to start some of those fascinating, grueling days, but I just had a moka pot and french press back then.

Ciao again, Ben,

One factor to be considered is how noise from your kitchen is perceived by your wife in bed; the acoustics of your particular apt. could make a significant difference. If, for ex., she can be disturbed by the sound of an electric blender in the kitchen, then it's definitely the manual grinder for you. My GF doesn't seem to mind the Rocky in the morning, but maybe it's because she knows her cappuccino is being made!

roastaroma wrote:If, for ex., she can be disturbed by the sound of an electric blender in the kitchen, then it's definitely the manual grinder for you.

Maybe I am guilty of having a dirt cheap blender and a very expensive grinder (yes, I am), but both my Super Jolly and my Robur are much quieter than any electric blender I've ever seen or used... until the doser thwacking starts. I've had the pleasure of using a Robur E, and its noise is almost totally innocuous, not to mention it's only on for 2-3 seconds to grind a shot. The K30 is another nicely quiet, ultra-fast grinder. I bet the Mazzer Major E is also pretty quiet, and I think if I had to be super-quiet I would break the budget and get a 2 group Lusso and a Major E, or, if I wanted to go cheaper, a 1 group Lusso and a K30. If I wanted to go ghetto cheap, I'd buy a used Super Jolly, duranium burrs for speed, a darkroom timer for 0.1s accuracy grinding, and of course the doserless conversion kit. I'd live with the stale grinds in the chute on account of the screen over the chute, and use the money I save on the setup to waste a third of a shot at every session. I'd probably get very sick of the WDT, but that's just because I'm spoiled, perhaps. The Super Jolly isn't as quiet as the titan doserless grinders, but it's better than a Mini or anything cheaper. The Vario will give it a run for the money, on quietness and footprint if nothing else.

for greatphotos and all concerned with a quick shot
Your Breville, or any other Espresso machine "ONLY" does the mechanical job of pumping water through correctly ground (and dosed) espresso coffee (probably with the same or similar vibe pump, as you folks in the forum call it), pressure builds up when water hits coffee : the coarser you grind, the faster your brew: try and grind finer till you get your "perfect 20-25 seconds brew (for a regular espresso, because the rule is 1 milliliter per second)
Believe me, most machines - more or less - do, or can do, a decent job, IT'S the variables : Blend, freshness, grinding, tamping, QUALITY OF WATER,experience etc. that give you a real good shot.
One friendly advice : do not mess about your grinder and just keep it for the one type of grinding you have adjusted for your preferred blend
(incidentally try and prefer conical burrs since the quality of grinding is so superior : you would be surprised comparing with flat burrs and discovering what better brew you can get )
Keep an eye on progress