For something like the Breville, how serviceable is it? My concern with some of the name brand stuff is being stuck buying parts only from the manufacturer if they are even available at all. Also thought that Baratza made good grinders, and easy to work on. This isn’t a small purchase so I don’t want to get some crap. Also not really interested in modding the machine
The Bezzera Hobby was also mentioned in some reviews I saw
I’ve talked a bit about having a Gaggia Classic on here before, I added a PID and swapped the wand out. Both those were worth doing and the PID helped me with consistent temperatures.
My Sette 270 is an older one, it’s very fast, louder than a Niche of course and they’re easy to work on. I don’t know if the newer design has changed much but in mine the piece of felt they use eventually compresses and has to be replaced/repaired. It’s an easy enough to part to change but it is also aggravating. But actual grinding performance never let me down otherwise, and for what I paid on a refurb unit I still think it was a good deal. I still use my Virtuoso for press and pour over and while I think the 270 is a better grinder, the Virtuoso doesn’t need any care to handle that task well.
I’ve got a Niche Zero now and haven’t been using the 270 but I do miss a larger hopper. For espresso I’m single dosing and it doesn’t matter but if I was going to critique the Zero I’d start with the lack of a hopper. There are different ways it could be addressed and people have already been modifying them aftermarket. But for comparison’s sake it is much easier to adjust and quiet and generally cleaner to operate than a 270. I probably should have mentioned earlier, but I never liked all the various arms and holders on the 270. I didn’t use most of them but I didn’t like that stuff that was supposed to help me hold a portafilter mostly got in my way, but that has nothing to do with grinding coffee.
The Niche Zero is around $700 depending on exchange rates, $1000 on ebay is someone taking advantage of their always slow availability. They are starting to transition away from the Indie gogo model to a more conventional website.
My brother has one of the Breville machines and has been very happy with it. I’ve used it a time or two myself. For me I like the tinkering and more direct aspect of machines like a Gaggia, I’ve adjusted pressure, added the PID and had it apart a couple of times overall. Not the kind of things I picture anyone doing with a Breville, and not exactly the experience everyone would want.
My morning cup in action:
Usually do a larger carafe during the weekdays to take to work, but on weekends I make fresh cups every time 
I have a Cuisinart brand grinder purchased at CostCo around 2008. It broke once (the plastic bin screws into the unit to control the grind level and broke) and took $20 to replace the part. Probably not the most precise grind, but works for me.
I switched from espresso to drip with my Breville precision brewer. Does a nice job and has a setting for manipulating bloom times and water temp if I want to experiment. I love espresso but need a little more volume in the morning to last for a little bit as I work. Also, I have high cholesterol and wanted to move away from routine unfiltered coffees. Now I prefer to get my espresso from one of the local shops that does a much better job than I ever could. Or if in a pinch in the afternoon - Nespresso!
I recently bought a used Gaggia Classic and a new Baratza Sette 30. I am super happy with my purchase and don’t see the need for anything more at the moment. Could it better, of course, but I personally am not in any place to be able to notice subtle differences and even with the 30 settings of the Sette 30, I have no problem dialing in shots within the standard 25-35 second time range. Best of all, the espresso I’m making is as good if not better than 9/10 shops I would visit around me.
I would equate this to buying an aluminum road bike with Shimano 105. It is plenty capable of providing you with everything you need at a reasonable price (expensive to any outsider). Anything pricier will improve the quality but I don’t believe it is justified by the price increase. It really all depends on how deep your obsession and pockets are.
EDIT: Changed to a better metaphor.
And both should be punishable offenses. 
Well…
I would put the Gaia as a 10 speed 105, while something like the rancilo would be a 10 speed ultegra… Both will do the work just fine, but one will always be better… and will also hold the value for longer…
If there’s one thing I’m convinced of, it is that there’s never really a downside to getting a ‘better’ grinder (other than empty wallets). That’s where the improvements to taste are largely available.
To your original post, the 270 will be noticeably easier to adjust for your needs, the steps on the 30 are a little too far apart to get consistent results for espresso. You’ll be able to get good brews from the 30 if you’re lucky but you won’t have the fine adjustability to guarantee consistent grinding performance. The 30 is totally fine for pourover/press style coffees though, but that’s not what you’re after.
A decent machine is hard to quantify, some people prefer the taste of a coffee from a $30 V60 to that from a $7000 LM GS3.
Between the Gaggia and Silvia it’s largely a quality of build difference IMO, the Silvia build quality is a bit higher so it should last longer (but this is reflective of the price you’ll be paying). The Silvia will be slightly more consistent with your brews, I suspect this is largely down to simply having more metal/thermal mass keeping temperatures more stable, I could be wrong though.
So, in summary: Gaggia vs Silvia will have minor taste differences, 30 vs 270 are where you’ll see larger taste differences.
I have a bezzera grinder (espresso specific 350)…
My brother has a Rocket Espresso Faustino Grinder (close to $800)
We have done blind tastes using my profitec and i always pick the coffee out of his grinder as a better brew…
So i think grinder makes a huge difference…
Hi all, I’ve got a DeLonghi espresso machine but I stopped using it last year because it’s so loud and I wake up before the family. It’s noise seems to be amplified by the counter it sits on.
Are there any ways to some how elevate it and dampen the vibrations you coffee experts know?
How do I get a Niche Zero without getting ripped off on eBay? Is there a waitlist.
A lot of us keep wondering the same…
it is the grinder people who are into single dosing want… but can’t get…
Have you seen the alternatives for single dose grinding?
a sample…
Most of them, somehow, OOS.
The least eye watering expensive is around $1300!!!
And that’s why people really want the Niche.
EDIT:
It looks like niche is moving from indegogo… Maybe in a few months things will get better and people will be able to subscribe to “notify me” when in stock or something…
will see…
Some people use rubber mats…like the ones used on the gym. Not sure if its effective.
The usual noise comes from the pumps… and unless you have a rotary pump and good insulation, there is not much to do.
Suggestions:
The link may be the same but it doesn’t go to their old indiegogo page now. Sign up for their emails and hopefully, as they did before, they’ll send out an email when they plan to take orders again.
I signed up for the waitlist. Just how good is the Niche, it looks well made and like a product that could last a lifetime but has anyone had it long term that could comment about things they do and don’t like about it?
I trust this guy!
His channel is very good.
At 500 pounds for the unit and 50 for shipping I think I’ll have to pass. $780 USD is too much for a grinder for me. I can’t find any excuse to buy it especially not having an espresso machine yet to begin with, I tried to convince myself that it’s really really good but still just seems too expensive.
Yes. Its is very expensive.
If you only do espresso, then MAYBE is worth it.
If you have multiple ways to do coffee… maybe not so much.
It is still less expensive than 100% of other single dose grinders in the market… not like this make it any better.
As someone who just enjoys coffee I don’t think it’s necessary. When it comes to taste I can certainly make out the bigger flavor changes but have been unable to differentiate the more nuanced flavors in any hobby I’ve had that calls for it: beer, wine, cigars, coffee. I can taste the difference between a Maduro and a Connecticut, or different styles of IPA, but I can’t pull out those finer flavors that the reviewers are always raving about
I think for me, good is good enough, maybe I can get away with a nicer burr set in my Encore, or even find someone here selling something used, I just can’t make myself spend almost $800 for a grinder. $800 for a whole setup is more me
