I personally have no experience with them; but so far I've never seen any flat burr that has the sheer bulletproof and idiot proof consistency of the big conicals.

I can agree here. But bulletproof consistency does not equal to being better in the cup?

My experience from titan class grinders comes only from a "battle of titans" tasting we had some time ago. There we pitted K30 Vario, Robur-E, Super Caimano and Versalab against each other. The point was to find out if any difference was detectable. Actually K30 got the best score, but none of the differences were statistically significant. Of course it was just a one tasting, with too many samples to taste. However in my opinion K30 is easily the most pleasant to use (and look at) when compared to the three other contestants, or to any other grinder that I've used.

In case they have managed to deliver K30 like performance with ProM (and fixed some quirks), I would be very happy...

Bullet proof consistency means it's more likely to be great in the cup. If you're running a busy bar or are busy at work and looking for a quick mouthful of heaven with a caffeine kick, that's important.

The Compak K10 and Anfim Super Caimano - both of which have bigger motors and burrs than the K30, the former conical and latter flat - regularly get praised for their taste profile and mouthfeel as well as their consistency of grind and dosing. The K30 gets praised for its beauty, its cleanliness of dosing, its modern design and the fact that it is much improved. This is the first time I have heard it receive serious praise for its taste profile.

Generally speaking, the longer the grind path and the bigger motor, the greater the flavour delineation on the one hand, and on the other, the more consistent the grind and therefore the pour and taste profile (resulting from a combination of the predictable grind and predictable extraction).

As Jim wrote, the burrs and motor of the K30 compare with the Super Jolly, which isn't a bad grinder at all, but nowhere near as complex in taste profile as my Elektra Nino, for example, nor as consistent or controlled in the way shots pour.

The motor and burrs are what make a grinder, not the technological features, which may be nice, but are an "extra" and can't make up for any lack in the essentials.

Cheers

Mike

oton wrote:Thank you guys. I'm with the K30 for about 4 months. You can see more pics of my setup HERE if you want.

I have to agree with the others. Very nice setup

If you don't mind me asking, how did you go about getting a polished K30? And how much extra did the polished finish cost? I want a K30 so badly...

another_jim wrote:Because it has the same specs as a super Jolly and every other standard Italian bar grinder -- 64mm flat burrs, 1/3 to 1/2 HP motor, 1700 rpm. Mahlkoenig may know things about burr design the Italian makers don't; for instance, the little Vario does amazingly well for its size. But just looking at a spec sheet, it's hard to see what the fuss is.

Hi Jim. A K30 with a similar motor as a Super Jolly? Well, I unknow if there are different K30 versions but my K30 Vario (220V 50hz) draws 850 watts (1,1 HP) @ 1400 rpm.

CrimsonScythe wrote:I have to agree with the others. Very nice setup

If you don't mind me asking, how did you go about getting a polished K30? And how much extra did the polished finish cost? I want a K30 so badly...

Sorry. I can't answer you. My K30 is second hand. But I know that esw.nl sells this grinder (RAL 9005 color & polished) for about 1600€ + VAT

oton wrote:Hi Jim. A K30 with a similar motor as a Super Jolly? Well, I unknow if there are different K30 versions but my K30 Vario (220V 50hz) draws 850 watts (1,1 HP) @ 1400 rpm.

According to Mahlkönig, there are indeed a BUNCH of versions of the K30, with current consumption ranging from 2.4 to 4.7 A and power consumption ranging from 470 to 850 W. I assume the European 240V models have the beefier 850W motor; Mahlkönig USA lists the US 120V version as being on the low end of power consumption and the high end of amp draw. Still, that's not the motor's OUTPUT power, so I don't think that is directly comparable to the Super Jolly's rating of 350W, which I believe is its motor's output power rating.

K30 Voltage / frequencies / phases:

• 200-230 V / 50/60 Cy / 1~
• 240 V / 50 Cy / 1~
• 100-115 V / 50/60 Cy / 1~
• 200 V / 50/60 Cy / 3~
• 208 V / 60 Cy / 3~
• 220 V / 60 Cy / 3~
• 400 V / 50 Cy / 3~

Current consumption: 2.4 - 4.7 A
Power consumption: 470 - 850 W
Rotations / minute:

• 1420 rpm @ 50 Cy
• 1640 rpm @ 60 Cy