erkal MediumRoastSteam Thanks for the test! So maybe I am being a little dramatic but I am pretty sure there was nearly no heat on the wand after frothing. I just made two drinks back to back and yes the tip is scorching which is normal but the middle elbow bit is also warm and as you get closer to the top nut it gets very very hot again.
erkal MediumRoastSteam Yeah I have now noticed that it’s not even due to the flush anymore, it shoots up to 101C right after pulling a shot. I am going to go through the settings again and compare them with Dave’s.
erkal KPc = 0.2 (PID Proportional value coffee boiler) KIc = 0.07 (PID Integral value coffee boiler) These settings on mine are much different to Dave’s. I found another value which was very different (Bs) and set it to Dave’s. It seems to get even hotter now
MediumRoastSteam erkal - Can you please list ALL the values here, of all parameters, please? The derivative and band/range values are also important. (e.g.: KDc and Bc), as well as the offset value (EC). And same again for the Steam values, so KPs, KIs, KDs, Bs, Es) Many thanks.
erkal Sure, here we go: KPc 2.0, Klc 0.04, KDc 1.0, Bc 30, KPs 2.0, Kls 0.00, KDs 0.0, Bs 1, Ec 10, Es 0, F01 1, TR 1, ToT., EVS 1, BLS1 3, BLS2 3, BLP1 2, BLP2 5, PRG 3 What do you think?
MediumRoastSteam erkal - Well… erkal I believe, copied from Dave’s settings. I think you haven’t copied the settings as suggested by @DavecUK :-) See below, key in the correct values and we go from there :-) (e.g.: KPc should be 0.2, KIc should be 0.07) https://sway.office.com/S5J4d9Jp4Y9LdVFx Let me know if that fixes the issue :-)
erkal MediumRoastSteam Right! This is pretty perfect now, thank you so much for your help! I don’t know why I didn’t think I could change the initial values, totally my stupidity, I have adhd and reading instructions doesn’t always lead me to the intended result :) I pulled a shot and it dropped to about 88 and slowly creeped back up (about 30-40s) and its lingering around 93-94 now. Never went above the set value of 94. I guess this is what we wanted? Now I just need to upgrade my grinder, get a bottomless portafilter and I will be rocking, get out the way James Hoffman!
MediumRoastSteam erkal Good stuff. I’ve tried many different settings before, but just kept coming back to these ones. Give it a go, see how it works for you. Enjoy the machine and have fun in choosing all the accessories!
erkal MediumRoastSteam Hello again, So it seems I have a new problem now which I cannot decide whether if its the Elizabeth or my grinder. But it seems that when I pull back to back shots, the second one always seems to run faster. I use my scales to measure the time/weight manually in the hopes that I can repeat it by setting one of the programmable buttons to the same time length, yet this hardly ever works. For example, I have just measured a pretty decent tasting shot which took about 33s to yield 38g of espresso. I record 33s on button 2 and then set up a second shot, press button 2 and I get about 54g of espresso. Where do you think the issue is? Thanks! PS. I have a Baratza Encore with the Virtuoso burrs which are relatively new (replaced them about 1.5 years ago)
MediumRoastSteam erkal But it seems that when I pull back to back shots, the second one always seems to run faster. Try flushing the machine for a couple of seconds - until water comes our of the group - before your shots. I found that for the first shot, it takes approx. 2 seconds for water to drip from the shower screen once the button is pressed. - Which could be leading to your slower first shot. Saying that, I had a similar issue with my Profitec 700 back in the day. Annoying as it is for the perfectionist, I wouldn’t loose any sleep over it.
erkal So how do you make consistent shots? Do you weigh every single time? About 10g extra water at similar timeframe is quite a big change in taste as well
MediumRoastSteam erkal So how do you make consistent shots? forget timed buttons. Weigh in, weigh out.
erkal MediumRoastSteam Ahh OK. That’s a shame as I chose this machine part for the timed buttons so the others in the house who don’t know much can easily pull programmed shots. Bit of a let down then :/ Anyway thanks again for the tips!
erkal Cuprajake Hey! No unfortunately not. They are Americano drinkers. I cannot believe that the whole programming feature of these machines is just a fake gimmick. Why even bother putting these features in if they cannot work with consistency
DavecUK erkal Hey! No unfortunately not. They are Americano drinkers. I cannot believe that the whole programming feature of these machines is just a fake gimmick. Why even bother putting these features in if they cannot work with consistency There are 3 other sources of inconsistency not being mentioned grinder puck prep and tamping roasted bean quality/age If you do everything the same and are consistent in the 3 things above, then the volumetrics on the buttons should be right be within a couple of seconds or so.
Cuprajake i wouldnt worry too much bud, as long as you are there or there about’s you will be fine, i have the grinder set for the mrs brew, she knows the dose so grinds and tamps, on the lever she moved the cup at 8bars, and on the bianca i tell her 30s she has milk in hers but she gets 16.5g in 30g ish out
erkal Cuprajake Yeah true but then I just purchased this machine and now I’m thinking maybe Mara could’ve been just as good and cheaper too. Anyways life goes on!
MediumRoastSteam erkal - Unless you have a fully controlled and stable environment, a grinder that is 100% consistent and a coffee that never ages. So it’s said that, for consistency, it’s best to control the ratio of the beverage over a period of time, but just roughly. Of course you don’t want for your 18g in, 36g out to last 50s nor 20s. But something between 30s and 35s is acceptable. Maybe a Sage/Breville Dual boiler would have been a better choice for you, as it has volumetric capabilities. Saying that, I have no idea how accurate that volumetric flow controller is.
Cuprajake no, dual boilers much better - you did right people just get ate up chasing perfection when theres so much variability in coffee
erkal MediumRoastSteam Yeah it was an option but coming from a very very old first gen Sage Barista, getting another Sage did not excite me at all. I have just ordered a more accurate scale so that I can do it your way. Maybe a Sage/Breville Dual boiler would have been a better choice for you, as it has volumetric capabilities. Saying that, I have no idea how accurate that volumetric flow controller is.
erkal DavecUK Hi Dave! I mentioned my grinder being a bit less than ideal for now. It’s a Baratza Encore with Virtuoso burrs. I find the lowest setting almost clogs it so I move between a few ticks up and down just above the lowest setting. I grind 19g and I get about 18.7, I then dump it into the portafilter. I then use the Normcore tamper with the lightest spring, I think this should be kind of consistent. I don’t have a leveler nor wdt tool. Beans are from local roasters, I presume they are OK. I hope this would keep it somehow consistent but sometimes the second shot is clearly visibly way too runny.