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  • Thundergod
    replied
    Re: Budget Coffee Machine

    Originally posted by porschemad911 link=1208660501/15#17 date=1209205192
    I second the Sunbeam Cafe Crema (EM4800C) recommendation. Ive had mine for a month or so and its a great little machine.

    Even with the standard baskets and preground coffee I was very happy, but since buying a Breville BCG450 grinder yesterday, I am loving the espresso it pours using nice fresh beans.

    I dont know how much improvement moving to unpressurised baskets would bring, but I dont think my grinder would be up to that, so Ill stick very happily to what I have now. To my palate it already beats all the local coffee places quite handily!

    Anyway, this combo gets a thumbs up from me (and my guests).
    Welcome to Coffee Snobs.

    When youre ready to move to unpressurised baskets you can find a modification online for your grinder that will allow it to grind a little finer.
    That should do the trick until you can afford a better grinder.

    Leave a comment:


  • psaigh
    Guest replied
    Re: Budget Coffee Machine

    I must say, the difference on my breville 800es (non-pressurised) between when it was paired with the sunbeam480 and the (current) compak k10 is amazing!! Ive always agreed with the idium of spending the $$ on the grinder before the machine, but i was truly amazed to notice the difference on a meager 800series.

    If i was short on cash and wanting decent coffee, id spend as much as possible on an amazing grinder, and pair it with an aeropress till i could get the cash together for a decent espresso machine. And then match that with amazing and fresh roasted coffee.

    Leave a comment:


  • porschemad911
    replied
    Re: Budget Coffee Machine

    I second the Sunbeam Cafe Crema (EM4800C) recommendation. Ive had mine for a month or so and its a great little machine.

    Even with the standard baskets and preground coffee I was very happy, but since buying a Breville BCG450 grinder yesterday, I am loving the espresso it pours using nice fresh beans.

    I dont know how much improvement moving to unpressurised baskets would bring, but I dont think my grinder would be up to that, so Ill stick very happily to what I have now. To my palate it already beats all the local coffee places quite handily!

    Anyway, this combo gets a thumbs up from me (and my guests).

    Leave a comment:


  • Stan
    replied
    Re: Budget Coffee Machine

    Does that mean that the Mazzer is no good for my machine

    No - switching from the Sunbeam em0480 to the Mazzer even on my very low end machine, using the same beans and procedures revealed a world of difference in the taste.

    The coffe had more flavour and appeared sweeter to the palette. The same coffee on the Sunbeam gri9nder was on the throw away list because it tasted burnt. So yes the quality of the grinder does appear to make a difference. :P

    Leave a comment:


  • Lizzie
    replied
    Re: Budget Coffee Machine

    A retailer gave me some sound advice: dont buy a grinder that is more expensive than your coffee machine!!  


    Chris is right.. get the best grinder, even if it means you have to play catch-up with your machines quality later on; at least you will get the best coffee from your lower-priced machine!!

    Kes, i challenge you to use a plunger and put a bag of beans through both your blade and any burr grinder from the Sunbeams up... and tell the forum how the resulting coffees taste!  

    i am travelling with a vintage Trespade simply because i could not recognise the beans i was using when they went through the blade grinders my friends have on hand; now at least my coffee tastes like coffee.
    and the difference in aroma... blades = burnt, burr = beautiful! :

    L

    Leave a comment:


  • ozscott
    replied
    Re: Budget Coffee Machine

    snap Chris

    Leave a comment:


  • TC
    replied
    Re: Budget Coffee Machine

    Originally posted by Kes link=1208660501/0#12 date=1209189403
    Derrick
    A retailer gave me some sound advice: dont buy a grinder that is more expensive than your coffee machine!!   Ive got a Sunbeam EM3600 which works fine.  I use a small blade grinder (also Sunbeam but the top of of that particular range) which is fine.  I ignore the settings and effectively overgrind.  This gives a me a fine enough coffee to use with pressurised baskets without clogging them up, which Ive seen a Sunbeam barista do whilst demonstrating!

    I tamp with a fair bit of force.

    Theres a raft of opinions on this site so try out different things and experiment a bit.  One thing that most members say which I FULLY agree with - grind yourself.  It is much better,

    Kes

    Well I clearly know nothing then!  : Perhaps I had better trade in the K10WBC and get me a Sunbeam.

    Rule #1 of coffee at home: Buy the best grinder you can possibly afford. Blade choppers may be satisfactory for spices but they have nothing to do with coffee.

    If you want to ditch the pressurised baskets and make true espresso, a blade grinder will be absolutely useless. Id suggest that your retailer might be best to stick to selling toasters and vacuums

    Chris

    Leave a comment:


  • Kes
    replied
    Re: Budget Coffee Machine

    Derrick
    A retailer gave me some sound advice: dont buy a grinder that is more expensive than your coffee machine!! Ive got a Sunbeam EM3600 which works fine. I use a small blade grinder (also Sunbeam but the top of of that particular range) which is fine. I ignore the settings and effectively overgrind. This gives a me a fine enough coffee to use with pressurised baskets without clogging them up, which Ive seen a Sunbeam barista do whilst demonstrating!

    I tamp with a fair bit of force.

    Theres a raft of opinions on this site so try out different things and experiment a bit. One thing that most members say which I FULLY agree with - grind yourself. It is much better,

    Kes

    Leave a comment:


  • Dennis
    replied
    Re: Budget Coffee Machine

    Originally posted by derrick28 link=1208660501/0#10 date=1208759839
    Breville Ikon is out of my price range at the moment(Target Breville Ikon $350)....i am willing to spend $200 on the coffee machine, and later on i can get a good grinder.
    As for second hand...not sure it would be an good option for me.

    Derrick
    How about $205.00, incl postage? Or if youre in Sydney you can pick it up and save $30 postage...bay of evil

    Leave a comment:


  • derrick28
    replied
    Re: Budget Coffee Machine

    Breville Ikon is out of my price range at the moment(Target Breville Ikon $350)....i am willing to spend $200 on the coffee machine, and later on i can get a good grinder.
    As for second hand...not sure it would be an good option for me.

    Derrick

    Leave a comment:


  • davmatt
    replied
    Re: Budget Coffee Machine

    Derrick, what about the Breville Ikon... I got one recently for $129 (standard price from Breville seconds outlet) and also a Sunbeam 4050 grinder for $130 (Myer - got them to price match DSE). I then got the Breville Bar Italia unpressurised basket for $9 (Breville seconds outlet) and a 52mm tamper $19 (The Coffee Company) the Breville plastic one is crap.

    All up approx $290, and I couldnt be happier.    It may not be the greatest coffee in the world, but it definately beats all of the dodgy cafes out there.

    The Ikon heats up in around 2-3 minutes... but I leave it a good 10-15 to warm up the PF as well. In my opinion it does nice silky milk and good froth (if you like that kinda thing). The extraction process is unique if you just press the button, it does a pre-soak of the grind before it does the final extraction... but this can be overridden just by keeping the espresso button depressed.

    Good luck.

    Leave a comment:


  • Dennis
    replied
    Re: Budget Coffee Machine

    Hi Derrick

    In the under $200 bracket, I think the Breville Ikon has had pretty good reviews. You might just need to change the basket to one thats non-pressurised.

    Theres more info on it here...

    http://coffeesnobs.com.au/YaBB.pl?num=1178803379

    Leave a comment:


  • derrick28
    replied
    Re: Budget Coffee Machine

    I have a look at The Ristretto...dont really know if its good quality i mean most of the thing are plastic.
    Anyway is there any another budget options???

    Derrick

    Leave a comment:


  • ozscott
    replied
    Re: Budget Coffee Machine

    The Ristretto with boiler only takes about 7 mins to full temp and you can turn it off after. It is much better than the thermoblock steamers unless and until you get to the EM6910 which is better again with the steam TB turned up to full.

    Cheers

    Leave a comment:


  • mitchell_bb
    replied
    Re: Budget Coffee Machine

    Derrick,

    I too am new to this coffee world. After having only a handful of what i would deem good coffees, and far too many average ones over the past couple of years at cafes, i decided it was time to get my feet wet and buy a machine and grinder. After a fair bit of research over the past week i decided to get the Sunbeam Ristretto, since im a uni student and wanted to also get a grinder for no more than $250. I picked the little Ristretto today for $69.95 at the Good Guys (cash price). While i am yet to make a coffee with it (i just gave it a flush to clean it out for first use), i am going to pick up a non-pressurised basket for it and some grounded beans tomorrow and give it a while. I will let everyone know how it goes. I am looking to pick up a Sunbeam EM0450 grinder in the next couple of weeks (Myer last time i check had them for $149, but im sure you could do better elsewhere). Have a read of the articles in the Entry Level forum, lots of good reviews of the Ristetto. So for about $250, you should be able to get a little Ristretto, a Sunbeam Grinder, a non-pressurised basket (about $12 or so from what i understand) and possibly a better tamper than the standard one provided. I will fill everyone else in on how my very first coffee from a home machine turns out.

    Cheers

    Leave a comment:

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