The valves are designed that way so they are closed under spring pressure. This keeps you from hulking them closed and eventually wearing them out. My Astra has them. They're a joy to use...if it's appropriate to say that operating a valve can be a joy.

curmudgeon wrote:The valves are designed that way to they are closed under spring pressure. This keeps you from hulking them closed and eventually wearing them out. My Astra has them. They're a joy to use...if it's appropriate to say that operating a valve can be a joy.

I LOVE the valves. I just stand there playing with them. It felt odd that they are loose from the beginning, but what a smart system. They are very pleasing to turn.

Radio.YYZ wrote:Let us know how you make out with flavour vs duty cycle of a shot. I am finally getting a hold of getting good shots and getting everything right - lots of tinkering and calculations.

Enjoy.

I was able to play with it for one day. I'm going to have to install a shim on the Sette, because the finest setting still isn't fine enough, so used my Vario. I tried using the free bag of coffee I got with the machine, but it was like four months old and rather dark, so then I switched back to my much lighter espresso and then had to start over dialing in

BUT overall, the quality is better than my Silvia and I haven't really done anything. Not sure I understand the flushing, and steam vs flashboiling, or yada, so need to spend some time with it. Had to leave town for work this week, so back at it when I get back.

It's a very pretty machine, the wife who was not so sure she wanted me to take over a part of our small kitchen dedicated to coffee has given total blessing now that she's seen it in person. Says it makes out kitchen look very European now

ben8jam wrote:That was one of they reasons I choose the Profitec over the ECM, I didn't like the idea of the joysticks (not that I actually got to play with them).

Interesting! I don't like the dials at all and went for the ECM Synchronika!

I like the font on the ECM dials too.

Many think that joysticks are an upgrade. To me, they do allow faster on and off but valves are fun to turn (to me at least).

I really love the Pro 600 design where they sort of took Rocket's idea and made it rationally German. What I'd love to do is take those wands and valves and put them on a Synchronika for the perfect e61

JayBeck wrote:I like the font on the ECM dials too.

Many think that joysticks are an upgrade. To me, they do allow faster on and off but valves are fun to turn (to me at least).

I don't think they are a functional upgrade. They are a design upgrade.

ben8jam wrote:I was able to play with it for one day. I'm going to have to install a shim on the Sette, because the finest setting still isn't fine enough, so used my Vario. I tried using the free bag of coffee I got with the machine, but it was like four months old and rather dark, so then I switched back to my much lighter espresso and then had to start over dialing in

BUT overall, the quality is better than my Silvia and I haven't really done anything. Not sure I understand the flushing, and steam vs flashboiling, or yada, so need to spend some time with it. Had to leave town for work this week, so back at it when I get back.

It's a very pretty machine, the wife who was not so sure she wanted me to take over a part of our small kitchen dedicated to coffee has given total blessing now that she's seen it in person. Says it makes out kitchen look very European now

that was exactly my upgrade path as well... silivia to pro 500 + sette. We have a thread about flushing and temperature (erics thermometer) and all that goody. Cheers