# Upgrade from SGP, budget £500.00



## 8144 (Oct 9, 2014)

Hi guys,

As the title suggests, I am looking to upgrade my Sage Pro Grinder.

I only drink 2 cups of espresso per day so am now starting to think a single dose grinder would be ideal but I am not sure that I'd get my hands on a Niche anytime soon.

Have been looking at the Baratza Sette 270wi mainly because I like the idea of grinding by weight and it also seems to be good for zero retention.

Any suggestions will be greatly received.

Thanks.


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## Blue_Cafe (Jun 22, 2020)

Why worry about a bit of retention ?

I did some math when i bought my cheap grinder.

I weighed (lol) the cost of a zero retention grinder vs a normal grinder and grind wastage,

A zero (£500) vs a Mignon (£250)

£[email protected] £25/KG beans = 10KG.

Assuming a horrific 5g purge/dump per brew = 10,000/5 = 2000 brews or, 5+ years payback.

Conclusion? i didn't buy a grinder based on bean economy.....


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## 8144 (Oct 9, 2014)

Blue_Cafe said:


> Why worry about a bit of retention ?
> 
> I did some math when i bought my cheap grinder.
> 
> ...


 Yeah fair point. Lol.

Would the Mignon be much of an upgrade on the SGP though?


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## BlackCatCoffee (Apr 11, 2017)

condy01 said:


> Yeah fair point. Lol.
> 
> Would the Mignon be much of an upgrade on the SGP though?


 Absolutely yes.


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## 8144 (Oct 9, 2014)

BlackCatCoffee said:


> Absolutely yes.


 Would it be worth spending the extra on the Specialita?


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## BlackCatCoffee (Apr 11, 2017)

condy01 said:


> Would it be worth spending the extra on the Specialita?


 In my opinion it is worth it yes. You get larger burrs and the most powerful motor they offer. It is the most consistent and fastest to grind.

Don't get me wrong, the others are great but if your budget will stretch then I would go with it. You will still be left with a decent chunk of change from £500 too.

There are many happy Specialita owners on here, hopefully one will be along soon.

We hope to have them back in stock in the next two weeks or so.


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## 8144 (Oct 9, 2014)

BlackCatCoffee said:


> In my opinion it is worth it yes. You get larger burrs and the most powerful motor they offer. It is the most consistent and fastest to grind.
> 
> Don't get me wrong, the others are great but if your budget will stretch then I would go with it. You will still be left with a decent chunk of change from £500 too.
> 
> ...


 Thank you.

It's also a bit more appealing to the eye (IMO).


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## Tempest (Sep 19, 2019)

I mean I haven't used any other grinders so I can't give you a compare and contrast but I spent the extra for a Specialita and I really like it. The Mignon was the most aesthetically pleasing grinder in my budget to me. The Specialita was more than I really wanted to spend but I didn't want to have regrets and start shopping again a short while later so I coughed up the extra and I'd say maybe like a year on I'm still happy. The grinder has been perfect. Only issue is I bought it to match a bunch of kitchen appliances I already had in red but we're having a new kitchen soon and red will no longer be ideal but I'm not changing it haha. I just toss the hopper full of beans and use them until they're gone, it's never given me any bother doing this but I'm certainly not chasing god shots.


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## 8144 (Oct 9, 2014)

Tempest said:


> I mean I haven't used any other grinders so I can't give you a compare and contrast but I spent the extra for a Specialita and I really like it. The Mignon was the most aesthetically pleasing grinder in my budget to me. The Specialita was more than I really wanted to spend but I didn't want to have regrets and start shopping again a short while later so I coughed up the extra and I'd say maybe like a year on I'm still happy. The grinder has been perfect. Only issue is I bought it to match a bunch of kitchen appliances I already had in red but we're having a new kitchen soon and red will no longer be ideal but I'm not changing it haha. I just toss the hopper full of beans and use them until they're gone, it's never given me any bother doing this but I'm certainly not chasing god shots.


 Thanks Tempest.

Am definitely tempted by the Specialita, I've not come across any bad reviews or even many negative comments online.

We're also changing our kitchen in a year or so so I'm going with the white one as it should hopefully match whatever colour we go with! Haha


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## 24774 (Mar 8, 2020)

condy01 said:


> Thanks Tempest.
> 
> Am definitely tempted by the Specialita, I've not come across any bad reviews or even many negative comments online.
> 
> We're also changing our kitchen in a year or so so I'm going with the white one as it should hopefully match whatever colour we go with! Haha


 +1 for the Specialita. I've been looking at them and I'm same as you, 2 coffees a day and until now have been single dosing. When I get one I will be moving to keeping the hopper a little full, say 100g in it, I've been told that will be enough. On the quality side they are excellent and the next best grinder would be the Atom at £700 apparently (this forum rates the Niche highly, I just haven't found professionals that agree as wholeheartedly, so I'm just talking 'mainline' products). I was advised not to get a Silenzio, it's either a Facile or a Specialita.

Forget the Baratza Sette 270wi, I've read nothing but problems with that on this forum.


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## 8144 (Oct 9, 2014)

CocoLoco said:


> +1 for the Specialita. I've been looking at them and I'm same as you, 2 coffees a day and until now have been single dosing. When I get one I will be moving to keeping the hopper a little full, say 100g in it, I've been told that will be enough. On the quality side they are excellent and the next best grinder would be the Atom at £700 apparently (this forum rates the Niche highly, I just haven't found professionals that agree as wholeheartedly, so I'm just talking 'mainline' products). I was advised not to get a Silenzio, it's either a Facile or a Specialita.
> 
> Forget the Baratza Sette 270wi, I've read nothing but problems with that on this forum.







I was originally interested in the Niche due to this review.

The Baratza seems quite expensive and the plastic exterior doesn't really scream "quality". Although I did like the idea of grinding by weight.


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## 24774 (Mar 8, 2020)

> 2 hours ago, condy01 said:


 Me too, I like taking 18g out of the Airscape and just using that. I don't drink enough to have a hopper full up. I was planning on the Niche for a while despite disliking the design, as I wanted to single dose and that's the only purpose built single doser that is in my budget. I'd seen that Hoffman video, it's got a cult following on here, and despite reluctance to be a beta tester, thought I'd get in the queue. But after talking to BB and others I've decided against it and am going to get a Specialita.

I'm sure, like many on here can attest to, the Niche would be good, don't imagine you'd be disappointed if you did go for that.

More experienced members warn people off the Baratza, it isn't well made, they say it'll break down at some point and I've seen enough posts of users that echo those sentiments. Whole Latte Love seem to like it, no-one else does though.


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## 8144 (Oct 9, 2014)

CocoLoco said:


> Me too, I like taking 18g out of the Airscape and just using that. I don't drink enough to have a hopper full up. I was planning on the Niche for a while despite disliking the design, as I wanted to single dose and that's the only purpose built single doser that is in my budget. I'd seen that Hoffman video, it's got a cult following on here, and despite reluctance to be a beta tester, thought I'd get in the queue. But after talking to BB and others I've decided against it and am going to get a Specialita.
> 
> I'm sure, like many on here can attest to, the Niche would be good, don't imagine you'd be disappointed if you did go for that.
> 
> More experienced members warn people off the Baratza, it isn't well made, they say it'll break down at some point and I've seen enough posts of users that echo those sentiments. Whole Latte Love seem to like it, no-one else does though.


 Hoffmann certainly brings some 'star' quality selling power but it looks like a great product for it's intended use.

I wonder if because Whole Latte Love are more American focused that's why they seem to lean more towards the Baratza models?


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## 24774 (Mar 8, 2020)

condy01 said:


> Hoffmann certainly brings some 'star' quality selling power but it looks like a great product for it's intended use.
> 
> I wonder if because Whole Latte Love are more American focused that's why they seem to lean more towards the Baratza models?


 Could be, they might have some kind of tie in with them. Either way I've seen some 'old heads' on here warn people off them as they aren't reliable. It's a £500 machine so if it's between that and a Niche, from what I can tell it's a no brainer.


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## Tempest (Sep 19, 2019)

Hoffman liked the Niche enough to keep it and buy a new one to give away on his Patreon so I'm sure they're great. I don't like the look of it one bit and to be honest single dosing wasn't the workflow I was after personally. I'm also an instant gratification type of person so the wait until 6+ weeks later was never going to work for me. Once I have a new bean dialled in the timer on the Specialita stays pretty accurate anyway. From what I've seen around lately the Sette has some high traffic parts made out of plastic that cause it to fail prematurely. The Mignon is solid. It's not the slightest bit plasticy. I bought a second espresso machine for work - if we ever get to go back to the office anyway - and I'll likely end up with a second, much cheaper used grinder for that machine so I don't have to drag a coffee grinder back and forth and who knows what I'll get for that. Maybe a Mignon that better matches the new kitchen 😂. I knew I should have splashed out on the chrome lol.


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## 8144 (Oct 9, 2014)

Tempest said:


> Hoffman liked the Niche enough to keep it and buy a new one to give away on his Patreon so I'm sure they're great. I don't like the look of it one bit and to be honest single dosing wasn't the workflow I was after personally. I'm also an instant gratification type of person so the wait until 6+ weeks later was never going to work for me. Once I have a new bean dialled in the timer on the Specialita stays pretty accurate anyway. From what I've seen around lately the Sette has some high traffic parts made out of plastic that cause it to fail prematurely. The Mignon is solid. It's not the slightest bit plasticy. I bought a second espresso machine for work - if we ever get to go back to the office anyway - and I'll likely end up with a second, much cheaper used grinder for that machine so I don't have to drag a coffee grinder back and forth and who knows what I'll get for that. Maybe a Mignon that better matches the new kitchen 😂. I knew I should have splashed out on the chrome lol.


 Yeah the Mignon looks much better build quality than the Sette and probably a lot quieter too.

I was actually thinking the same thing. Once I'm back at the office I'll take my current set up, Sage Duo Temp Pro and Sage Pro Grinder there and keep the Mignon at home and upgrade to a Lelit of some sort.


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## Tempest (Sep 19, 2019)

condy01 said:


> Yeah the Mignon looks much better build quality than the Sette and probably a lot quieter too.
> 
> I was actually thinking the same thing. Once I'm back at the office I'll take my current set up, Sage Duo Temp Pro and Sage Pro Grinder there and keep the Mignon at home and upgrade to a Lelit of some sort.


 We were buying a drink from a van at 9am walking in the door and a second one at 10am daily, it soon adds up to a lot of money. My husband and I work in the same building so we'll be able to share the machine instead of going out and to be honest while one of the vans that comes to our office is an indy guy with good coffee, the other one is McDonald's level and while I used to say McDonald's coffee wasn't bad, after over a year of speciality coffee at home, I can't drink McDonald's, Starbucks or Costa at all any more. It's just a cup of bitter disappointment amd enough of my life fills that brief without the coffee doing so as well 😂. I'd rather go without.


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## Stan Stalinson (Jul 1, 2020)

I'd recommend taking a look at the Silenzio as well. If you are not interested in timed dosing then the touch screen is irrelevant. As for difference in taste, it's worth checking for reviews by people who have used both grinders. I was in your position and learned from a few people that they couldn't tell the difference between espressos made using each grinder, so I ended up going for the Silenzio.


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## 8144 (Oct 9, 2014)

BlackCatCoffee said:


> In my opinion it is worth it yes. You get larger burrs and the most powerful motor they offer. It is the most consistent and fastest to grind.
> 
> Don't get me wrong, the others are great but if your budget will stretch then I would go with it. You will still be left with a decent chunk of change from £500 too.
> 
> ...


 Hi, I've just seen that you now have stock of the Specialita. How many do you have in stock as I will be hoping to order one on Friday?


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## BlackCatCoffee (Apr 11, 2017)

condy01 said:


> Hi, I've just seen that you now have stock of the Specialita. How many do you have in stock as I will be hoping to order one on Friday?


 We have plenty currently 👍


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## 8144 (Oct 9, 2014)

BlackCatCoffee said:


> We have plenty currently 👍


 Perfect 😁


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## 8144 (Oct 9, 2014)

condy01 said:


> Perfect 😁





BlackCatCoffee said:


> We have plenty currently 👍


 Looking forward to receiving the new grinder soon!! 🙂


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## 8144 (Oct 9, 2014)

BlackCatCoffee said:


> We have plenty currently 👍


 Hi,

Just to say the grinder arrived yesterday, thanks again for the update on the delivery, that was much appreciated.

It looks beautiful and this morning I managed to very quickly dial in to something approaching good with a (to me) lighter roast. I've now just put some of your Signature Blend in and so hoping I can fine tune the grind. I did have a mild panic that I'd broken it as when I filled the hopper with beans last night and went to grind nothing happened. I did a quick 'Google' and realised that I had set it way too fine. I then went coarser and a beautiful waterfall of fluffy grounds flowed out... panic over!!


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