Monolith MC4 vs Versalab M4

#1: Post by **Spike99** » October 8th, 2021, 11:11 pm

Looking for a grinder to pair with a Decent espresso. Will be using medium/dark roasts and mainly for milk drinks.

Currently looking at Kafatek Monolith MC4 and Versalab M4. Any advice ?

Thanks in advance.

#2: Post by **RyanP** » October 9th, 2021, 12:29 am

Monolith conical is cheaper and will be a good match for med/dark roasts

Versalab you can purchase today and generally doesn't require RDT/WDT

You're not going to go wrong with either of them

#3: Post by **sethde** » October 9th, 2021, 12:35 am

If you like light roasts, Versalab for sure

#4: Post by **ira** » October 9th, 2021, 1:10 am

If your making cappuccinos, it probably won't matter, they will both be great choices.

Ira

#5: Post by **bas** » October 9th, 2021, 3:04 am

For medium/dark a Niche is good enough. In my opinion there are no big differences in taste between the "bimodal" big conicals (based on my personal experience with the HG1, Kinu M68 and Niche). Perhaps the MC4 had an advantage with the additional "pancake" burrs" for pregrinding?

As an alternative to the Monolith conical you could consider the Key.

Of you want the full range from light to dark I would go for the Versalab.

Or a cheaper solution if SD is not a must: Eureka Atom 75e.

October 9th, 2021, 7:51 am

RyanP wrote:Monolith conical is cheaper and will be a good match for med/dark roasts

Versalab you can purchase today and generally doesn't require RDT/WDT

You're not going to go wrong with either of them

Yes, Monolith MC4 is about 1k cheaper. I believe preorders starts this month and ship date is March 2022
For Versalab, lead time is 6 weeks.

I do like that Versalab does not seem to require RDT or WDT.

#7: Post by **Quester** » October 9th, 2021, 8:20 am

I wrote a detailed grinder shootout on Decent Diaspora comparing the Versalab M4, Kafatek MC4, and Kafatek MAX SLM. Because this forum discourages cross-posting, I'll send the entire review to you in a private message.

#8: Post by **lukehk** » October 9th, 2021, 8:38 am

It's a shame if you can't post the review here as I found it very interesting. Hopefully an exception can be made?

#9: Post by **jtbenson** » October 9th, 2021, 8:42 am

surely you can just copy the content into a new post here (well, assuming you used a third-party host for the images and videos, if any)?

October 9th, 2021, 8:55 am

Quester wrote:I wrote a detailed grinder shootout on Decent Diaspora comparing the Versalab M4, Kafatek MC4, and Kafatek MAX SLM. Because this forum discourages cross-posting, I'll send the entire review to you in a private message.

Great review

I want to ask about the jamming with the Versalab... In what scenario does this occur ? Is there a particular type of beans or is it preventable ? Also, what have you done to fix ?

Cool that you have DE1... I was holding off on the DE1XL until I finalized the grinder. Any PROS/CONS with the Decent espresso machine ?

Thanks in advance.