K30 Vario - hands down.

(former e37s owner, K30 vario user).

JayBeck wrote:I have a Sette and was prepared to buy a Monolith but it's a Gamble and really a unicorn at this point. I'm moving on. I feel like the only grinder upgrade over a Sette is to go to a Ceado E37S or a Monolith. $1700 is a lot of money (does the espresso taste that much better? Really?) and I hear it's hard to adjust for other brew methods. I wanted a Monolith because you can go back and forth quickly like the Sette.

You used your Ceado for non espresso or is it a PITA?

PS: I would never get a K30 - so ugly!

Im not going to say it tastes better but it tasted very good much more frequently with a good grinder!

I have around 5 grinders so I've never needed to try the ceado for other brew methods but i assume it'd be a PITA. By the time you invest in a good espresso grinder i'm sure you'll be in the same boat as me having a grinder for basically each brew method... ha.

The only thing anyone has learned is there is no best espresso grinder. They all have tradeoffs.

nuketopia wrote:K30 Vario - hands down.

(former e37s owner, K30 vario user).

For what reason

Randy

Whole Latte Love did some recent testing involving the Ceado E37S and grind retention. Results start at 4:33min.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_5ZnraVs_7M

brianl wrote:Im not going to say it tastes better but it tasted very good much more frequently with a good grinder!

I have around 5 grinders so I've never needed to try the ceado for other brew methods but i assume it'd be a PITA. By the time you invest in a good espresso grinder i'm sure you'll be in the same boat as me having a grinder for basically each brew method... ha.

The only thing anyone has learned is there is no best espresso grinder. They all have tradeoffs.

Looks like you have a Vario so I assume the Ceado was the upgrade to the Vario? From what I've read, the Vario has more consistency issues than the Sette (especially if going back and forth between grind settings). I feel like my Sette shots are wildly consistent. I switch beans nearly every day and my grind settings almost always are spot on: For example: Monday I drink Counter Culture Fast Forward and grind my 2:1 in 30 seconds at a setting of 7A. Then Tuesday I go to caffe lusso gran miscela carmo which achieves the same recipe around 8G. I can go back and forth all week and the only minor setting I may have to make would be aging of beans. Comes out fluffy and only 0.1-0.2 g variance each time (I single dose).

I have an Encore at my office for my pourover and use the Sette at home with BG burr for brew (Baratza was kind enough to send me the Sette 30 plastic adjustment collar so that I don't have to pop the burrs out when I switch things up).

I almost pulled the trigger on the Ceado E37S several times, and with the 7% off sale at WLL I've been tempted again. I see it can be easily single dosed. I had thought I was going to get a Monolith Flat but I see that's a lottery. I also convince myself it's worth it to upgrade and then I sit back and wonder how much better (really -- how much better) is that extra $1500-2000.

HB / Dan's 7-5 K30 vs Sette test / review is a great indicator of that in my opinion as those are very trained barista's participating in the taste experiment. They indicate very subtle differences that I'm not sure I can taste (plus I rarely drink straight espresso).

Anyways -- this is more a thread on the K30 vs the E37S so I apologize for the tangent. I guess I just want to hear how awesome the E37S is as that is something I have been considering for months and want to compare it to what I currently have

Any comment proclaiming "Previous E37S owner, K30 hands down!" most likely stemmed from early irritations with the spraying issue and not because of grinder quality, whether they admit it or not. The Ceado E37S is a beast of a grinder.

I had a second generation e37s. It had the new design metal gate that supposedly solved the "spraying issue". It did not. Nothing like getting grinds sprayed all over the counter and up your arm trying to get a espresso on a busy morning. Some people never had a problem with the first generation

I also found the grind quality to be inconsistent with anything less than a half-pound of beans in the hopper and not all that great even when a full bag was in it. I swear I could never pull two shots out of the damn thing the same. A lot of sink shots. Lot of retention too, but not unexpected from any commercial design type grinder. Honestly, in my opinion, a highly over-rated grinder. Big burr, cheap price, but just not very good. Maybe the new ones are better. I dunno. I'm done with it.

Don't patronize me either. It wasn't just one factor that I had issue with. Just wasn't that good. I think it gets undue praise due the to large burr size and low relative price.

To be quite honest, I'm more impressed with the Sette 270w in my second home than the e37s. It is more consistent and delivers a good cup and costs a lot less.

The Mahlkonig K30 Vario I borrowed was completely consistent grinder. Never sprayed, grinds were consistent. It's kind of big and has a lot of retention, which is common on commercial grinders. Shot after shot pulled the same and never changed once dialed in. Great flavors too. If a gumball-machine commercial style grinder suits you, I'd go with the Mahlkonig. You'll see lots of these in better espresso shops too.

My Monolith conical in my main home has been flawless. I can dial it in and pull shot after shot consistently and top notch flavor and measurably high extraction yields.

nuketopia wrote:I had a second generation e37s. It had the new design metal gate that supposedly solved the "spraying issue". It did not. Nothing like getting grinds sprayed all over the counter and up your arm trying to get a espresso on a busy morning. Some people never had a problem with the first generation

I also found the grind quality to be inconsistent with anything less than a half-pound of beans in the hopper and not all that great even when a full bag was in it. I swear I could never pull two shots out of the damn thing the same. A lot of sink shots. Lot of retention too, but not unexpected from any commercial design type grinder. Honestly, in my opinion, a highly over-rated grinder. Big burr, cheap price, but just not very good. Maybe the new ones are better. I dunno. I'm done with it.

Did you have spraying problems even aside from single dosing? I'm the one that bought your e37s and the only time I ever have gotten sprayed by it is when I've tried to single dose. I keep the hopper maybe 1/4 full and never have a problem, and I never need to fiddle with the flap mechanism.

I also haven't had any consistency problems to speak of, but I'm also running a lever setup with the Strietman CT1, so probably more forgiving than a pump driven shot. Once I am dialed in for a particular bean the timed dosage is consistent enough that I don't need to weigh my baskets.

I've been pretty happy with the ceado e37s and don't really see a need to upgrade, but if I did it would be for a Monolith with the ability to single dose and what I assume to be a better grind. I've only used a Pharos and Mahlgut to compare it to, no experience with the k30. I vastly prefer the ceado though because of the easier work flow compared to hand grinding for a dinky little espresso shot.

I really wanted to like that grinder - but it just repeatedly let me down and the spraying thing was only part of it. I'm glad you are enjoying it. I was never happy with it.

I think I was one of the first ones on this forum to report the spraying issue. It hasn't sprayed since, that was years ago. It think it's either part of the break-in period, or the result of me messing with the shoot/flap. It sounds like maybe you got a dud. Mine was a massive step up in quality and consistency vs my old Baratza Forte.