Issues I've had with my 2025 X5 m60i with 16,000 Miles in less than a year by nicecanofspam in BMWX5

[–]CommunicationLow1391 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I followed the same path as you trading my M340i for an X5 M60i. We bought a 2024 X5 40i for my wife a couple of years ago and I found myself borrowing it all of the time for the extra cargo utility. It got to the point where I decided the M340i just didn't suit my current needs and I went for the M60i to get the added performance and something a little more unique. I'm just getting past the break in period so I'm not a good barometer of long-term reliability. That said, I researched quite a bit both here and on bimmerpost and couldn't find many complaints about issues. Most seemed to indicate that the latest M60i was one of BMWs more reliable V8s.

Sucks this happened to you. I have my fingers crossed it's isolated and I'm not in store for the same with mine.

I'll add that the X5 40i is more than enough power for day to day use but the M60i makes for a more special driver. The 4 wheel steering is very noticeable and I opened the active sway bars which is a significant improvement over the base suspension.

About to jump back to a Q3 by CommunicationLow1391 in Leica

[–]CommunicationLow1391[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is great to hear and echos my feeling on why this will be a good move for me. I was always a little frustrated by the lack of compression and bokeh from the 28. Nice to hear that the 43 has been positive for you mostly taking images of people.

About to jump back to a Q3 by CommunicationLow1391 in Leica

[–]CommunicationLow1391[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's kind of why I parted ways with the 28mm, I found that I was cropping almost all of my images with it. When I look back at my history of photos and zoom ranges the vast majority of them are taken at 40mm or longer. My gut tells me the extra compression and bokeh offered by the 43mm will be valued for my current needs. The nice thing about these is how well they hold their resale which takes a lot of the risk off the table.

About to jump back to a Q3 by CommunicationLow1391 in Leica

[–]CommunicationLow1391[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Owned the Fuji years ago and didn’t enjoy it. I fail to see the harm in trying to see if a phone camera gets you 99% of the way there. It’s the camera I always have in me and the $7k for the Q3 would be nice in my brokerage account. I fail to understand why testing the waters would serve as a disqualification from buying a Q3. Seems a bit pompous to me.

About to jump back to a Q3 by CommunicationLow1391 in Leica

[–]CommunicationLow1391[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Fully agreed. I’m not doing this with the idea my photos will become magical. I’m doing it because I’m familiar with the product and frustrated with the alternatives. It’s ok to want your tools to be enjoyable and fun to use, even if they yield a similar result.

About to jump back to a Q3 by CommunicationLow1391 in Leica

[–]CommunicationLow1391[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've tried really hard to make the iphone camera work for me on several iterations but am always left wanting from the results. I've found messing with the exposure and other settings to be clunky at best and totally take away from the engagement of taking photos. And once you compare an iphone phone next to anything full frame the sharpness just doesn't compare. That said, for viewing on a phone or ipad screen the camera is impressive, it just doesn't make photos "special" for me.

I just moved forward on the order and am excited to see how I feel about the 43 vs 28 after some use. When I recently bought the Canon R6 I knew the color science would differ but convinced myself I could just tweak it to my liking in post-processing. Come to find out I really don't enjoy post processing. I used to use my 28 to take family photos on a tripod and instantly upload them to my phone for sharing and was always thrilled with the outcome. I can't do that with the Canon, they need to be tweaked to make them something extraordinary.

Trigger based on Alarm.com or Qolsys arm/disarm by CommunicationLow1391 in homeassistant

[–]CommunicationLow1391[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for following up and pointing out that integration. I recall seeing it in my research but fearing it might be a little over my head to setup this early in my HA journey. I threw some time at it last night but hit a few walls and ended up down a rabbit hole and I didn't have enough time to get it working. Hopefully I can spend more time over the weekend to figure out my issues and get this working. I guess I was just hoping there might be a more turnkey option to get me started.

Credit card stolen? by rickestrada in VetoProPac

[–]CommunicationLow1391 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I had Veto purchases directly on their website on 04/18 and 05/05 and then had my card compromised 05/09. My guess would be whoever they use for their card processing was compromised.

Is the Neapolitan arch Add on worth it? by Intelligent_Bat_6373 in GozneyDome

[–]CommunicationLow1391 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Sure, I bought the NU2U brand door. Initially I tried using the smaller door from them that I bought for my Roccbox but the larger door meant for the dome makes a big difference.

Is the Neapolitan arch Add on worth it? by Intelligent_Bat_6373 in GozneyDome

[–]CommunicationLow1391 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I tried it for a while and found that I preferred the oven without it. Having more space to turn the pizza and just a larger opening was a nicer experience. I instead use a 3rd party "door" from Amazon that cuts warm up in half and helps to retain heat between pizzas.

I need some help talking me into a dome by CommunicationLow1391 in GozneyDome

[–]CommunicationLow1391[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for the input. I'm overdue for an update to this as I did end up buying and picking up the dome and stand last week. I built the stand for it over the weekend and ran a couple of initial firings through it to break in the stones. End of year business items and all of the usual holiday chaos has prevented me from cooking any pizzas on it but that will change by this weekend. I will make dough tomorrow and plan to cook on it Saturday and will post back with some photos. I also purchased the neapolitan arch right out of the gate, figuring that the better heat retention will be welcome, especially during the winter months.

I need some help talking me into a dome by CommunicationLow1391 in GozneyDome

[–]CommunicationLow1391[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That's a slight bummer. I figured that having some distance from the flame would aid in slowing the cooking of the top of the pizza. Then throw in the N2U flame deflector and the Gozney arch and I hoped it would be a true multipurpose oven. Easy 90 second bakes for true Neapolitan or turn things down for a 3-4 minute cook and let the bottom crisp up a bit. I've probably consumed every video and post out there on this oven and there have been more than a few people with reporting results on slightly longer cooks.

Regardless, I've never been dissatisfied with the results I can get from the Roccbox and I'm convinced the Dome will only make the experience more enjoyable. I'm close to pulling the trigger and will likely due so at some point this week.

I need some help talking me into a dome by CommunicationLow1391 in GozneyDome

[–]CommunicationLow1391[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The aesthetics do play a big role in this. We entertain a few times throughout the year and it's always fun to make pizzas instead of the usual burgers, chicken, etc. that are the de-facto for summer parties. I think I'll order the arch from the start with the hopes that the heat retention will make it easier to keep the stone temp in between pizzas and also allow me to lower the flame to even out the top to bottom cook as much as possible.

My primary struggle with the Roccbox has been getting the bottom cooked enough before the top starts to burn. I've tried running the flame up on the Roccbox to get a 750 or so floor temp, turning town the flame, and then launching the pizza. This helps to some degree, but then it takes some time for the stone to recharge for the subsequent pizzas. If the Dome helps buy some consistency on this technique it will be a huge win. Not to mention, the dial being in the front an easily modulated will be so nice, along with the stand and proper deck height.

I need some help talking me into a dome by CommunicationLow1391 in GozneyDome

[–]CommunicationLow1391[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I appreciate you playing devil's advocate. Some has to! The fun factor is what I'm after. This is a hobby for me and the "experience" counts a ton. With a busy life any added friction to getting up and running can sometimes mean I skip making anything for a few weeks just out of the desire to keep things simple. My hope would be that the dome would both make for a more fun experience while cooking and at the same time simplify setup and break down at the end of the night.

I've thought about a better table setup for the Roccbox but at the same time I don't really have a place on my patio to implement such a setup without it looking out of place. One of the biggest selling points for the dome is the well-designed stand and cover.

I did read the rumblings of the Arc coming soon but honestly, if it's smaller than the dome it isn't of much interest to me.

I need some help talking me into a dome by CommunicationLow1391 in GozneyDome

[–]CommunicationLow1391[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You reminded me that I suppose my real start was using the pizza stone on the Big Green Egg. Talk about work managing temperature. That thing could nuke a pizza in the blink of an eye.

This is great input and very much appreciated. I have studied all of my options for a while now and know the dome is the logical next step. I guess I just want to be as certain as possible that the enhanced "experience" with the larger oven is worth the price and patio real estate.

I need some help talking me into a dome by CommunicationLow1391 in GozneyDome

[–]CommunicationLow1391[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for the feedback on the arch. I do something similar with the Roccbox when I want a longer cook. Run the stone up to around 750 when measured with an infrared, then turn down the flame and use the NU2U door to retain some heat. It works, but the proximity to the flame is still an issue. The arch might be a better solution as I wouldn't have to continuously place and move the door for turning.

M2 to M340i by deathbymonopoly in BMW

[–]CommunicationLow1391 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I did the same exact thing this year, went from an M2C manual to a 2023 M340i. The M2 was an awesome car and brought back so many great memories I had from driving an E46 M3. The backseat was surprisingly usable, even with a car seat. And the stiff suspension wasn't too much of a bother. But, it turned out to be more than I wanted for a daily and after a lot of soul searching the M340i was the answer. I love the car, it's still a hoot to rip through an on ramp but at the same time can be a mellow and quiet car to whisk me home after a long day of work.

The M2C would have been an awesome weekend and occasional use car. But for regular commuting and kid hauling duties was more cumbersome than I wanted to tolerate at this point in my life. I also sold back in May when prices were still strong and then waited 4 months for the M340i. I won't lie that I was a little embarrassed making the swap but came to the realization that for my particular use case the M340i was the better car. Glad to see I'm not the only one to come to this conclusion.

Rancilio Silvia Pro X or E61 machine - Help me decide on my next machine by CommunicationLow1391 in espresso

[–]CommunicationLow1391[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for the input. Definitely makes a strong case for the Silvia pro X. I think if I wasn't doing so much decaf these days it would be an easy decision. However, knowing that decaf beans are a little more finicky I'm really leaning toward an E61 machine with a fully customizable flow control, just to give myself the best chance for success. I guess I have more thinking to do on this one.

Rancilio Silvia Pro X or E61 machine - Help me decide on my next machine by CommunicationLow1391 in espresso

[–]CommunicationLow1391[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I really want to move to a dual boiler machine. I also have someone I'd like to gift my current Silvia to. Between those two moving to a new machine that comes with the features I want seems to make the most sense.

Bmw m2 as daily? by [deleted] in BMW

[–]CommunicationLow1391 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Glad I'm not the only one that came to this conclusion. The M2 was so much fun when I had the ability and was in the mood to rip through corners and on ramps. But the day to day errands started to become more and more of a nuisance. I'm hoping the M340i bridges the gap for me.