My fine new Italian machinery

[Jarvicious]

Ahahahahaha.

The little one he points the flashlight down is the one ma got me for Christmas a few years ago.  It was a very thoughtful gift, so I haven't had the heart to tell her it's nothing more than a glorified drip coffee maker  .

I agree with you though, stevens, the grind and the prep (and the right bean) makes a lot of difference even when it comes to a $40 Krups.  I've actually been toying with the idea of somehow adding a small, variable speed pump to mine to try and force the water through it a bit faster, but building a powdercoating oven, gas tank smoker, and finishing the beemer are much more pressing projects . 

[Nitewaif]

I need to talk one of you coffee gurus into coming over and  fiddling with my DeLonghi superautomatic to see if you can get a better shot from it than I can.  I can't tweak the settings to my liking, and I typically use Illy.

[mstevens]

I need to talk one of you coffee gurus into coming over and  fiddling with my DeLonghi superautomatic to see if you can get a better shot from it than I can.  I can't tweak the settings to my liking, and I typically use Illy.

Aren't the DeLonghi machines part of the Jura family? That is, it's got a non-removable brew group, right? If so, I'm pretty sure the settings are going to be fairly different from the Saeco/Gaggia removable-group ones. One difference is the Jura-style ones have much more variable dosing and can make a "true" double shot where the Saeco-style ones really need to make two separate shots.

On my machine I needed to set grind to second-finest (out of 5), preinfusion time to maximum, "strength" to maximum (which means a couple of extra grams of coffee per shot), and cup size to 30cc (which required using a graduated shot glass). My machine uses made-up symbols for most things, so one can't easily tell dosing or shot size without measuring.

Basically, my goal was to get a 1- to 1.5-ounce shot pulled in around 25 seconds, keeping the "amount" (should be weight, but I suspect it's actually volume) of coffee grounds the same. I set the dosage and preinfusion times and just left them alone. Then I changed the grind and timed a shot. If it was long, I made the grind finer. Once the time was about right, I'd check the volume. If that needed to be changed, I'd adjust it then re-time. It only took a couple of tries to get it right. On my machine, time seems to be how the machine keeps track of volume so it didn't vary too much. However, I've got an "SBS" knob that appears to do something akin to a pressurized portafilter. Messing with that definitely changes shot time. Mine's set to maximum.

My sense with my style of machine is that they come from the factory with the grind and cup size set too high and the pre-infusion set too low.

Whatever you do, don't go on the enthusiast sites such as coffeegeek.com and even mention the existence of superautomatics. They'll eat you alive.

[JEFF_H]

I just ordered the Bialetti recommend by Kop (Woohoo)

then went to the doctor for a checkup yesterday
and i have high blood pressure and have to reduce my caffeine (D'Oh!)

[ducpainter]

I just ordered the Bialetti recommend by Kop (Woohoo)

then went to the doctor for a checkup yesterday
and i have high blood pressure and have to reduce my caffeine (D'Oh!)

...or you could get a job and collect a weekly check.

That would reduce stress and lower your blood pressure.

[Jarvicious]

...or you could get a job and collect a weekly check.

That would reduce stress and lower your blood pressure.

Depends on the job......

[ducpainter]

Depends on the job......

True...

but he wouldn't have to worry about cash flow.

[Nitewaif]

Aren't the DeLonghi machines part of the Jura family? That is, it's got a non-removable brew group, right? If so, I'm pretty sure the settings are going to be fairly different from the Saeco/Gaggia removable-group ones. One difference is the Jura-style ones have much more variable dosing and can make a "true" double shot where the Saeco-style ones really need to make two separate shots.

On my machine I needed to set grind to second-finest (out of 5), preinfusion time to maximum, "strength" to maximum (which means a couple of extra grams of coffee per shot), and cup size to 30cc (which required using a graduated shot glass). My machine uses made-up symbols for most things, so one can't easily tell dosing or shot size without measuring.

Basically, my goal was to get a 1- to 1.5-ounce shot pulled in around 25 seconds, keeping the "amount" (should be weight, but I suspect it's actually volume) of coffee grounds the same. I set the dosage and preinfusion times and just left them alone. Then I changed the grind and timed a shot. If it was long, I made the grind finer. Once the time was about right, I'd check the volume. If that needed to be changed, I'd adjust it then re-time. It only took a couple of tries to get it right. On my machine, time seems to be how the machine keeps track of volume so it didn't vary too much. However, I've got an "SBS" knob that appears to do something akin to a pressurized portafilter. Messing with that definitely changes shot time. Mine's set to maximum.

My sense with my style of machine is that they come from the factory with the grind and cup size set too high and the pre-infusion set too low.

Whatever you do, don't go on the enthusiast sites such as coffeegeek.com and even mention the existence of superautomatics. They'll eat you alive.

Actually, I think coffeegeek is where I read great reviews on the DeLonghi when I went to compare superautomatics before buying mine. 

http://www.delonghiusa.com/index.php?product&nid=20

This is the one I got.  I got this one vs the totally digital because I thought a dial would afford me more fine-tweaking vs pushing buttons.  Right now my cup size is set at 3 and my beans are at 6.5.  Maybe I'll follow your lead and time the extraction.  The settings right now aren't bad, but I got much better espresso from my manual.

I don't have a "timer" per se.  My options are one cup or two, then number dials 1-10 for bean amount and cup size (water amt). I can control the grind of the bean by a dial located inside the bean hopper.

[Popeye the Sailor]

I just ordered the Bialetti recommend by Kop (Woohoo)

then went to the doctor for a checkup yesterday
and i have high blood pressure and have to reduce my caffeine (D'Oh!)

So....how much do you want for the new maker then? 

[JEFF_H]

So....how much do you want for the new maker then? 

freaking vulture!
I havent even got it yet!!
(supposed to ship the 15th)
they are on sale for $225 with a coffee sampler and other goodies



I'll keep it...just drink 1 espresso in the am, and cut out the moka pot of espresso i drink in the afternoon at work
<glances at the shop fridge full of beer>

right? 

[jasaretta]

I bought this



With a mini mazzer grinder.

Great machine. Double boiler which is what you want (coffee and steam at the same time) also has the Faema E61 group head which I think can't be beaten.

Helps me do this ------> 

[mstevens]

I bought this

Serious hardware.