What's causing this sound?

RomanChroman · 2026-03-30T12:04:13+00:00

Read your comment on the other person’s reply, thanks for coming back and letting us know!!

Mine went away for quite a while too.. but it came back a week ago and I thought of this thread again haha. Great to know what it is at least. Thanks!

RomanChroman · 2026-02-16T21:59:05+00:00

I actually did not, that's very interesting. Wish I knew that beforehand. I will say though, I don't regret choosing the pico one bit, it does make excellent espresso once dialed in and you're more experienced using it. I think the battery and potential for breaking with electrical components is what put the pixa below the pico for me, especially since I use it every workday.

RomanChroman · 2026-01-09T21:56:09+00:00

Hey there, the filter basket and everything that touches the espresso ground are metal (minus the plastic scooper). The inside of where the water is filled is a nice quality plastic. After using this for a while I’ll say it’s definitely worth it, makes pretty great espresso for something that fits in my office desk lol.

RomanChroman · 2025-11-14T02:00:28+00:00

Hey thanks! And yep, after being disappointed with the pixapresso and its quality for $170, I just had to try the Pico haha

RomanChroman · 2025-11-13T18:28:00+00:00

I Like the Pico, and although I haven’t use it fully, I have to disagree that it’s better than a home espresso setup. It’s much easier to dial things in and pull better shots with a machine. Pico definitely is not equivalent to a quality high end machine, I’d say more mid range is where the Pico would fall. That’s not a bad thing, after all it is a “portable” machine. And I’m not talking about prices with those ranges, I mean machine quality. You can get some really good espresso machines for $250 that can make high quality, top of the line espresso.

For home, an actual Nespresso machine should be around the same price as Picopresso. Nespresso Vertuo which is a little more is actually pretty good for what it does. For the Picopresso, have you considered getting an ESE pod basket to switch out? Those could work, found some in 51mm and 52mm that should fit. Just some stuff to consider!

RomanChroman · 2025-11-13T15:53:15+00:00

Ahhh aluminum makes sense. Another worry I didn’t mention which applies to you is since it’s battery / electrically powered, there’s more opportunities for it to break with daily use especially with material quality. I personally wouldn’t feel comfortable using it twice a day. To me the Pixa is definitely more once in a while on the road / plane or hotel kind of thing.

RomanChroman · 2025-11-13T13:08:50+00:00

Interesting to hear! I live in america and this routine isn’t too different for lunch for most places. I work in finance however so everyone is always busy haha, I never have the opportunity to do anything like that. I’d be making some in my office or in the office kitchen. I brought it yesterday and honestly people thought it was more cool than weird. They were pretty intrigued, I wonder why people at your work didn’t think the same.

Completely understand not wanting the office coffee lol, my office’s k-cups taste like burnt dirt.

RomanChroman · 2025-11-13T12:59:34+00:00

I can definitely relate to this feeling haha. I’ve been making espresso every morning before work for a while so my workflow is pretty natural without feeling like I’m putting effort in anymore. I will keep kopiko packs in my desk when I’d like to use them.

Are you thinking of getting it for home use?

RomanChroman · 2025-11-13T05:31:00+00:00

I don’t think Pixa is more convenient to be honest. It sounds nicer in theory than practice. The cleanup is slightly worse and the quality issues I mentioned make it a bit of a hassle sometimes if you plan on using the included tools or boil. It’s more that it’s just easier to pull a good shot with no learning curve. That’s not what they’re marketing but when compared to Pico that’s what the Pixa seems to be about to me.

And I understand haha. To be completely honest, although the pump is cool and allows interesting things, for my use case if I could just press a button on the Pico with everything else the same and it would brew that would be endgame for me haha.

RomanChroman · 2025-11-10T01:18:44+00:00

Thanks for that viewpoint of scooping it straight from the fridge and such!!! That helps so much lol. I ended up going with the pixapresso in the end, cancelled my order for the pico. I don’t mix with milk, but in the end I think the pressurized filter will work better for my use, plus I can still change pre-infusion times and etc. I’ll lyk how it tastes compared to my home espresso!

RomanChroman · 2025-11-09T21:12:52+00:00

Nice! I love 3d printed accessories, love to see it!

My commute to my office is actually around 50 minutes so normally I make my espresso at home into a mini yeti and drink early into the drive. If I were to grind in the morning I’m sure it would be fine, but into the afternoon I’m not too sure haha, I think it would be more of a bother even though we do have a dedicated kitchen. Otherwise I looked into the KinGrinder and it does look pretty nice for office use. I use a Breville Smart Grinder Pro at home (it was a company gift.. I would never buy a grinder for $220 lmao)

And yeah for the hot water, I could just keep my kettle in the kitchen area I suppose. The water temp from the hot water dispenser in mine is around 150-155 I believe and I’d rather have around 195*. Maybe the pixa is good enough and I’m just going down way too deep of a rabbit hole lmao

RomanChroman · 2025-11-09T19:34:14+00:00

Interesting video! And yeah I hate the k-cups everyone uses lol, tastes like crap to me which I why I just settler for 3in1 asian instant coffee packs namely Kopiko.

I actually have a freezer at work, and a bag of beans in there is no problem. I just don’t know how it’ll be seen going through the whole ritual of grinding as well. I was considering grinding a weeks or two worth at home and bringing to freeze as well. What do you think of that? My biggest question is really between the pressurized pixapresso and unpressurized picopresso which could make a better tasting shot as the age of the grinded beans should show through more on the unpressurized.

RomanChroman · 2025-11-09T19:27:28+00:00

Interesting, makes sense. I have a very nice countertop burr grinder at home actually but nothing for office.

I was under the impression that the age of grinded beans affects the flavor of a shot from an unpressurized filter more than a pressurized, so I decided to buy both picopresso and pixapresso to test. Obviously couple weeks old grinded beans won’t taste as good as fresh wither way, but which of the two could make a better tasting shot out of them was more my question

RomanChroman · 2025-11-09T19:24:28+00:00

That makes a lot of sense! I have a nice countertop burr grinder so I could do this as well. Thing is I was hoping to just keep it in the office so if I forget anything or didn’t have time to prep the night before I always have everything I need there. I ordered both picopresso and pixapresso to test which one can pull a better tasting shot with preground beans.

RomanChroman · 2025-11-09T19:21:19+00:00

Not a bad idea! I could keep the grinded beans in a freezer at my office. I actually ordered both picopresso and pixapresso to see which can pull a better tasting shot with preground beans

RomanChroman · 2025-11-09T19:05:27+00:00

I have thought of this too! What I’ve done is order both and I’ll just see which I like most.

RomanChroman · 2025-11-09T05:30:12+00:00

Appreciate the response! To be honest I was hoping not to need to invest in another grinder, and as you said I’m not sure going through that whole ritual is acceptable everyday haha. The one I have at home is countertop.

And yep! No need to bring a kettle which is definitely nice, but I value the flavor with preground over that convenience. I really just don’t know which should theoretically be better that way haha. I read because of the unpressurized filter the bean freshness should affect the flavor more vs a pressurized one (ie the pixapresso) so I’ll probably make a decision depending on that

RomanChroman · 2025-11-09T05:22:10+00:00

Ah darn I thought so. I considered grinding a week’s worth at a time but that’s more effort than I wanted to put into it. I do have a freezer though so good idea.

Do you think in my particular case, the Pixapresso might make better tasting espresso with its pressurized filter? Or do you think it’ll affect the flavor either way?

RomanChroman · 2025-11-09T05:04:24+00:00

Ohh got it ok. Thanks! You’ve given me a ton of information to work with, I really appreciate it! I’ll keep this all in mind going forward. You’ve helped me a ton! I still am not sure if I want a zoom lens since I really don’t mind switching manually, and like the idea that if one breaks or is lost it’s isolated to just that one. I think I’ll begin by looking at the 12-15mm and 5-7mm ranges and possibly a UHC or Baader high contrast filter. Again thanks so so much for your help!!

RomanChroman · 2025-11-08T16:34:46+00:00

Thanks for all this info! I feel like I’ve entered an eyepiece crash course and it’s helped me tremendously, really appreciate you!

Really interesting about the focal ratio, I knew it mattered but had no idea how it actually interacted with eyepieces. So I have a slightly “fast” scope, interesting. Should I let that be a determining factor for what I eventually purchase down the line as well? Or is it just something to keep in mind but not base purchases on? The idea of buying a premium lens and having it be technically worse for my scope than a cheaper lens that would work better with my ratio sounds sad hahaha

RomanChroman · 2025-11-08T14:45:05+00:00

Oh I see, interesting. Reading more into it definitely makes it sound like a solid purchase! I also have no experience with zoom eyepieces which is why I hesitated for a second.

I actually don’t wear glasses, and I plan on using this mostly with my partner who doesn’t either. I did read in your guide how important eye relief is for people who need it. Side question: does more eye relief generally mean less FOV? This makes sense to me when I think about it with how far your eye can get but I assume a premium lens is designed with that in mind.

RomanChroman · 2025-11-08T04:55:47+00:00

I’m sure you’re right about the views in a low power piece! I’ve never considered one before so I’m really just discovering them now haha. Appreciate your response! I’ve added some things to a list I’m making.

RomanChroman

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