Alex Duetto IV - First impressions

[SilentBoB]

One thing I've only just noticed.... my brewhead pressure guage isn't moving at all... it just sits on zero. The extraction seems fine but it was only when I remembered that I could check the brewhead pressure that I noticed it wasn't moving. I hadn't really been paying attention to it prior as I'm not use to having one

Is this something I can easily check and fix myself or am I going to need to box it up and get the store to take a look?

[artman]

Check the hole diameter too, it plays a big part in the volume (obviously). I have found the 4 hole 1.0mm dia tips to be a good compromise between speed and microfoam.

Cheers

[CafeLotta]

My wife was a barista and is the one who talked me in to stepping up to the Duetto and she's loving the machine too. So much so that I had to wait until after she made everyone coffee this morning before I could get my hands back on it

As if we weren't envious enough, now you're just being cruel!

[SilentBoB]

Angled ports filters are amazing

The microfoam it’s just learning a new machine.

My advice go back to real basics. Angle steeper into milk, off the edge a bit more and go from there.

Given what you’ve come from it’s just the learning of a change. I fought that battle from a Linea Mini as I wasn’t use to the extra power but got there after struggling for a week or to till someone mentioned to me every new machine go back to basics and learn the machine.

Good points. I've only attempted three cups with the four hole so far. It is just having some patience and adjusting but I got perfect microfoam on my first attempt with the two hole so felt like I should go back

[rusty888]

A little thing I've been admiring on the Alex Duetto is the angled handle on the portafilter which means it basically sits flat on my tamping mat instead of using the edge of the bench when using the spouted portafilter.

Also played with the four hole steam tip... not finding it as easy to get microfoam with the four hole tip but my wife prefers it over the two hole so I'll probably need to just practice more

Angled ports filters are amazing

The microfoam it’s just learning a new machine.

My advice go back to real basics. Angle steeper into milk, off the edge a bit more and go from there.

Given what you’ve come from it’s just the learning of a change. I fought that battle from a Linea Mini as I wasn’t use to the extra power but got there after struggling for a week or to till someone mentioned to me every new machine go back to basics and learn the machine.

[SilentBoB]

A little thing I've been admiring on the Alex Duetto is the angled handle on the portafilter which means it basically sits flat on my tamping mat instead of using the edge of the bench when using the spouted portafilter.

Also played with the four hole steam tip... not finding it as easy to get microfoam with the four hole tip but my wife prefers it over the two hole so I'll probably need to just practice more

[SilentBoB]

Nice work Bob. You will love it.

You will most likely find that you have a hot group and are ready to roll in 15-20 min from switch on. Duettos come up really quickly.

Happy shot time!

Yep, found the warm up really quick last night but the morning dog walk routine means it will usually get a good 45 minute head start, with the exception of some weekends

[SilentBoB]

They are a fantastic machine. And the really only upgrade you’d be looking at is usability.

Performance wise there’s nothing more.

yep, I don't see the upgrade itch taking hold again. This should serve us perfectly for many, many years.

[Caffeinator]

Nice work Bob. You will love it.

You will most likely find that you have a hot group and are ready to roll in 15-20 min from switch on. Duettos come up really quickly.

Happy shot time!

[rusty888]

They are a fantastic machine. And the really only upgrade you’d be looking at is usability.

Performance wise there’s nothing more.

[SilentBoB]

As mentioned in my other thread I ended up going out for a Rocket and came home with an Izzo Alex Duetto. Figured I'd add my initial first impressions to the existing thread.

Only got it home last night and set it all up and pulled a couple of shots. Was really quick to get it dialled in.

Have had my parents Expobar Brewtus on loan while they were out of the country and while the Expobar has been a great workhorse the build quality on the Duetto definitely seems to be a step up.

Also, I always said that I wasn't bothered about rotary pumps as a vibe pump generally isn't louder than my grinder anyway... but now I've experienced the quietness of a rotary first hand I'm not sure I could go back. When I switched on the Expobar it would wake up the whole house. Now when I flick the Duetto on in the morning it's basically silent. Heat up time doesn't seem to take long but my morning routine is to generally switch the machine on, take the dog out for his morning walk and then make a coffee when I get back 45-60 minutes later so warm up time has never really been an issue for me.

My wife was a barista and is the one who talked me in to stepping up to the Duetto and she's loving the machine too. So much so that I had to wait until after she made everyone coffee this morning before I could get my hands back on it

The steam is great out of the Duetto too. So far not experimented with the other tips and have just used the two-hole tip that was already on the machine and that has been excellent so far for making great microfoam and latte art. I've attached a photo of a cup my wife made as her art is much better than mine

Also had a few espressos out of the machine so far as well and the consistency is spot on and will probably see me going back to drinking bit more espresso as I found it to be a bit hit and miss when I had to step back down to the Silvia when my Breville dual boiler died.

All in all, so far really glad that the wife convinced me to take the step up and get the Duetto, probably assuming rightly that it will prevent me getting the itch for another upgrade in the near future.

[Casa Espresso]

We have two wood options available. Oak and a slightly darker walnut.

Cheers

Antony

[robusto]

The oak is OK, and the shower screen sexy! Nice.

[Dimal]

Just beautiful Antony...

Mal.

[juk]

That's actually a bit of a furphy...
Fitted with a decent enough PID Controller that's been properly setup and tuned, it doesn't really matter what you do with the Boiler...
40+ years of knowledge and experience gained designing and maintaining a wide range of process control situations.

Mal.

And the dead time is didly.