Seek espresso machine with small footprint - Page 4

by HB on Tue Jul 07, 2009 1:26 pm

dsc wrote:What do they mean by fresh water tank?

The Maximatic is an HX espresso machine similar to the Elektra Semiautomatica, i.e., steam boiler that's filled manually and no water tap. I wrote off the manufacturer's reference to the steam boiler as a second "water tank" as a poor translation from German or a poorly worded marketing blurb. BTW, the Maximatic's water reservoir is made of steel, not plastic.

dsc wrote:I thought that the Cremina and Maximatic are pretty much the same, except for the pump.

No, not even close. See Steve's Olympia Cremina 2002: The evolution of design and the continuing Olympia Maximatic - Second Look for details.

by **dsc** on Tue Jul 07, 2009 2:45 pm

Hi guys,

still it's a fact you have to fill it manually and you have to purge it as it has no vac breaker. Not sure if it's the most 'easy to use' or 'latte friendly' machine.

Regards,
dsc.

by **JonR10** on Tue Jul 07, 2009 3:50 pm

dsc wrote:still it's a fact you have to fill it manually and you have to purge it as it has no vac breaker. Not sure if it's the most 'easy to use' or 'latte friendly' machine.

I have an older Olympia Maximatic badged as a Pasquini Livietta. It is true that you have to fill the boiler manually, and it's also true that on startup one must release the "false pressure". IMO this does not make the machine a challenge to use nor is it unfriendly for lattes. In fact, it has bigtime steampower and works best for me when I plug 2 of the 4 steamtip holes

Also, the machine has extraordinary build quality. I have had my hands on many different espresso machines over the years and this is certainly one of the best made home machines I have ever seen. It's built better (heavy and tight, finished impeccably) than many of the commercial machines I have used. It's a testament to good design and careful craftsmanship. It's amazing....the vibe pump in this machine is quieter than my rotary machine!

by **timo888** on Tue Jul 07, 2009 5:02 pm

dsc wrote: ... still it's a fact you have to fill [the steam boiler] manually and you have to purge it as it has no vac breaker. Not sure if it's the most 'easy to use' or 'latte friendly' machine.

Easy is, like small size and quiet, also subjective. An HX machine that had no auto-fill does not suffer from the drop in temperature that results when cold mains water is injected into the boiler. So temperature management might be easier.

I believe that Olympia discontinued the vacuum breaker valve as they tended to get stuck with scale. (Bob Craige IIRC posted something to this effect a few years ago.) So in that sense, not having to worry about the vacuum breaker is a kind of ease of use. Purging a boiler of false pressure can hardly be considered difficult.

There's nothing in the Maximatic's design that would keep make me question its ability to perform in a home setting. Just how many lattes does one need to make at home, even at a dinner party? The single-group would be the bottleneck well before the machine's steaming capacity were being pushed to its limits.

by **zin1953** on Tue Jul 07, 2009 7:16 pm

HB wrote:The Maximatic is an HX espresso machine similar to the Elektra Semiautomatica, i.e., steam boiler that's filled manually and no water tap. I wrote off the manufacturer's reference to the steam boiler as a second "water tank" as a poor translation from German or a poorly worded marketing blurb. BTW, the Maximatic's water reservoir is made of steel, not plastic.

Having not had a new Maximatic in my hot little hands, I am going solely by the manufacturer's website. So, clearly, if it is a mistranslation, poor choice of words, etc., I stand corrected.

That said, my "Maximatic predecessor" -- the Olympia Express Cafferex -- does have a separate water tank and boiler. I can add water to the reservoir at any time. I can also re-fill the boiler at any time, BUT is it not automatic: I must push and hold the button in order for the pump to re-fill the boiler.

by **another_jim** on Tue Jul 07, 2009 8:58 pm

Based on my experience with the Elektra, there is no advantage to having a push button manual refill for the boiler. I refill the boiler once or twice a week, depending on my cappa volume, far less than I refill the tank. Doing both when the machine is cold does not waste any time whatsoever. The lack of a push button refill saves one solenoid valve and also means one less set of seals that need replacement.

Leaving the refill button out was a good move. Leaving out the vacuum breaker is sillier

by **michaelbenis** on Wed Jul 08, 2009 5:42 am

The vacuum breaker on the Elektras is certainly a rather rudimentary affair and does not cause problems - or at least hasn't for me over a number of years - but then I use filtered water. I have also heard that Olympia had scaling problems. Responding to them by getting rid of the vacuum breaker seems a bit drastic, but I don't frankly see having to bleed off the false pressure as a disaster. I have to do the same thing with my own Cremina. And I quite like the KISS approach.

More to the point for the original poster, Olympia and Elektra both have very definite ideas about what they want an espresso to taste like and the results are different, so if you can... try before you buy. It shouldn't be that difficult in London. I am sure you will be able to get a demo of the Maximatic from Londinium. You may be able to get a demo of the Elektra from Fairfax in Swiss Cottage - unfortunately they won't have very good grinders or coffee (in my opinion). Maybe you could line up the visits on the same day and take some from Londinium....

The Elektra SA and Maximatic are both very well made, but the looks and heat question may decide you and your wife before anything else. Overall the Olympia build quality is better and I believe you will get better local support from Londinium than from any of the UK Elektra dealers. The Maximatic is also quieter, which you indicated was important. Dan may be able to help with this, since I think he also has experience of the Elektra.

Flavourwise - if you like SOs, especially some of the more complex fruity ones, you may prefer the Elektra, which delivers a lighter body (strangely with very good mouthfeel) but separates out the different "layers" of flavour with more finesse and distinctness than many machines can muster.

You may prefer the steel Maximatic boiler to the brass Elektra, though I can't say it's anything that would bother me.

But you're very lucky. There is a great review of the Elektra here by Jim (in The Bench), as well as by Mark Prince at coffeegeek and Dan is writing one on the Maximatic here right now.

If the money is no problem, I reckon these two machines are amongst the very best small footprint choices you could make for appearance, build quality and above all results in the cup that you can get for the home despite not having the latest generation PIDs and LCD displays.

Oh - one last thought - and a stupid but possibly helpful one: if you are going to be installing the machine away from a sink you may prefer the Maximatic, above all to its bigger drip tray. Also the Olympia requires very little flushing to clear grounds from the portafilter holder, the Elektra somewhat more, mainly due to its more limited headspace.

Cheers

Mike


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