I have one in my show room they sent me by air and I put it through the paces prior to giving the green light to make me 100 machines and I do not see it as an issue. First of all it is not intended to be a commercial machine by any means. We all know that. I hope none of you take this as offensive but this machine was designed to appeal to the coffee geeks that want PID control of brew temperature with the ability to steam milk without losing that perfect temperature like you do if you add a PID to a single boiler machine. Now here is where I hope none of you are offended, geeks take forever to weigh out the beans dry out the portafilter, take extra care in being sure they have even distribution with Yogurt cups, Weiss methods etc, etc, this machine will be waiting on you not you waiting on the machine. I built this machine because I think it filed a void in my line up of machines I offer.

I understand the issue - was the Euro weaker when you were offering the machine at $799? I think the greenback was weaker back then. And I understand that $799 was an introductory price, but a 25% jump is a big increase.

Thanks for the reply. My experience is limited to the 100ml aluminum boiler with a 1450W heating element of my Gaggia Classic: even with a PID, it takes about 7 minutes for the water to fully recover the set temperature, measured at the group, after a 50ml shot.

I assume that despite the lower power, the much larger boiler with a potentially smarter PID implementation should provide the Silvano with significantly better performance.

chris wrote:... I hope none of you are offended, geeks take forever to weigh out the beans dry out the portafilter, take extra care in being sure they have even distribution with Yogurt cups, Weiss methods etc, etc, ...

No offense taken. Indeed, I must admit that is very representative of my current stage in the learning curve, which probably makes me part of your targeted market.

I think many of us "geeks" take all those steps in the hope of a better result in the cup, consistently. Steps which I would gladly trade by a more "forgiving" machine (assuming that's something one could expect to achieve). What I'm trying to determine is whether or not the Silvano could be that machine.

I am the proud owner of a Silvano V1 and I have never been less than completely satisfied with it. There is nothing I can see about the V2 that gives me any concern about it. The V1 was incredible value for money, which makes the V2 look expensive, but compared to other machines sub-$1000 it still provides good value.

The recovery time of my V1 is great. Remember, because you don't have to flush, you're only drawing 2oz of water per shot. Doing that on my machine cause the temp to drop about 20F, and it then recovers at the rate of 1F/second. So even with the reduced wattage boiler, you're still looking probably at under 30 seconds recovery (although it can overshoot a little). I really don't think you'll be waiting on the machine for the second shot. That said, there are those among us who will seize on every issue, no matter how small, to cast doubt into the minds of potential buyers. They did it with the steaming power, and they did it with the hot water spurt, and I'm guessing they'll do it again with the boiler power. Ignore them!

I'm sorry if I sound like a shill, but i'm genuinely not. I'm just a happy owner who believes his machine should be better appreciated.

The increase in NOT 25% I suck at spelling and history but my math skills are pretty good. The machine always had a $995.00 price tag. As an INTRO, which is something I always do, I offer machines at an intro price with buyers remorse, in that way a person interested has NOTHING to lose and a couple of hundred dollars to gain by buying a machine from the first shipment. This gets machines out there quickly for me so I can get feedback. The first hundred machines arrived October of 2010 and were sold out before Thanksgiving. IF the Euro had remained at 1.3 I might have been able to sell them for $895.00 but with the Euro at 1.4. The machines were basically into priced on sale at 20% off. You might have missed the sale but I did not raise the price.

chris wrote:Actually we went to 1000 watts on the heat bank and changed the pump so there is no pulsing anymore it simply puts out steady constant steam. The expansion valve was not only moved for easy access it was also changed to the same commercial one we use in the NEW Andreja Premium. If the Euro were to hang around 1.3 the price you mentioned would most likely be possible unfortunately it will not get off the 1.4 mark. You are correct that one could move you to a HX machine for a few hundred more but you still have a HX machine and still have to temperature surf.

I owned a Silvano V1 (which I later gave to my parents). It sure sounds like this new Silvano will steam a lot better than the old machine. IMO, one of the big issues with the old machine was the pulsing of the pump. If you moved the tip to the surface before the steam was really flowing and moving the milk, well... you would end up with lots of big bubbles right off the bat, and any chance of good microfoam was gone. Once I started to wait 4-5 seconds with the tip buried and let the steam pressure build before raising the tip towards the surface.... I was able to get much better microfoam. Removing the pulsing and adding some heat to the steam should be a Win Win.

If, I was in the market for another machine (under $1K) I would not hesitate to get a Silvano V2. That is, if my assumptions on performance are correct.

Chris, I really appreciate that someone is looking at the market and filling that gap. I think im in a boat with a lot of folks who's WIVES would never consider a 2k machine, but under 1k, there is a shot. This really does make sense and I hope sales are strong so that when it's time for me to upgrade(when I break my gaggia doing something stupid to it) I can. This does however make it harder to justify buying an Hx machine with less temp control, i'm sure youve thought that through. This looks like a machine that was thoughtfully designed, made of quality components built to last. someone's gotta look out for the geeks I guess, thanks.

chris wrote: The machines were basically into priced on sale at 20% off. You might have missed the sale but I did not raise the price.

Hey I understand it from your perspective. But from the buyers perspective there is still sticker shock when we've got to pay 25% more than the introductory price.

I want to thank Chris for a great deal of $795 for the Silvano. I paired it with a just purchased Cimbali Max Hybrid Espresso Grinder with a 15% off deal. With a Gicar PID, pressure gauge, brass boiler, see through water reservoir, stainless steel body, this 35 pound beauty takes care of my straight espressos in the morning. I see other online retailers are now selling Silvano's for also $995. So the Euro is keeping prices in the same range as Chris's Coffee, but customer service is is by far the best with Chris (I had to send an email to Espresso Zone to remind them of my free items that were back ordered from my large purchase). So keep up the good work Chris.

On that subject, I understand that the warranty and service are not available in Canada if purchased from Chris, or other U.S. retailers. Why is that? How is it different from someone in Asia or South America making that purchase? Important questions for us Canadians, as the landed prices from U.S. sites are routinely lower than Canadian sites.