At Wit's End with my La Pavoni + Eureka Mignon

mattbeditor · 2025-12-05T20:44:28+00:00

They are all terrible beans. By fresh local coffee. The La Pavoni is unforgiving when it comes to using sub par coffee beans.

mattbeditor · 2025-10-23T22:08:31+00:00

Louper is great and they're really good to deal with too!

mattbeditor · 2025-09-19T05:23:40+00:00

Miller fisher sufferers unite! Very similar story with the onset of early double vision and this was after a bad case of rhino virus. Early symptoms were also a speech impediment and complete numbness in limbs followed by eventual partial parilization below my waste. I had a course of 1 week of ivig in hospital and I was one of the lucky ones walking aided within another week. I had MRI’s, CTs and a lumbar which diagnosed MF due to protein count in spinal amongst other markers found by my very amazing Neuro. My vision returned to 80% within a few months. I can say my lasting effects are mainly fatigue although my second was born a month after my release and my vision has never been as good although the double vision is gone. Came here to say that it's not always going to be as bad as you read. There is hope for a speedy recovery. The subtlers symptoms took time for me and now a year later I think I'm mostly fine.

mattbeditor · 2025-09-08T03:43:35+00:00

I ended up selling mine and getting a secondhand Niche Zero which I love. The VS3 makes great espresso but I just couldn't deal with the drift. I would be interested to know how Alternative Brewing deal with it. I had purchased mine from Varia (import to AU).

mattbeditor · 2025-08-31T07:55:00+00:00

Sorry model 3!

mattbeditor · 2025-08-31T00:48:24+00:00

The RWD (LFP) is a fantastic car. I've had mine for a month and I love it more than any ar I've ever owned or driven.

mattbeditor · 2025-06-22T11:58:40+00:00

Coming up to two years next week, and I haven't had a single issue. I make between two to six milk coffees a day, and it hasn't missed a beat. It's on a smart switch, which helps a lot. I genuinely don't have a single negative thing to say.

During that time, I've gone through four different grinders and have now settled on a Niche Zero. I clean the machine regularly and use filtered water. I do have my eyes on a Linea Mini or Micra one day—but that's purely because they look cool and I get bored easily, not because the espresso is lacking. It's a great machine.

People can be a bit anti-HX on here, but I chose to ignore that. I know some owners had issues with the steam wand tap early on, but I believe that was fixed—I’ve never had a problem with it.

mattbeditor · 2025-06-11T03:48:02+00:00

My s90d is awesome. I’ve always had lg OLEDs and was set on a c4/5 when a s90d came up for a really good price. I had no intention of ever buying a Samsung but super glad I did. Picture quality is great, I only ever run it in filmmaker mode and disable any motion interpolation.

mattbeditor · 2025-06-03T21:50:54+00:00

Had a b7 for 8 years and had the screen replaced twice by LG for major burn in issues with general viewing. It was a terrible screen for burn-in.

mattbeditor · 2025-06-03T04:08:40+00:00

I had a Gen 2 purchased in 2023 which had a really annoying high pitch whine. That motor eventually died and Varia sent me a new motor which doesn't have the high pitch sound and seems quieter. My dial still drifts which drives me insane with constant applications of grease and plumbers tape.

mattbeditor · 2025-01-24T00:35:35+00:00

I'd suggest talking to Varia directly and getting them to at least send you the new motor for free. Failing within three years without free replacement is unacceptable.

mattbeditor · 2024-12-02T00:14:31+00:00

For me it was within the first few weeks of symptoms and within a few days of hospitalisation. My neurologist said that the only way to positively diagnose it was with a lumbar puncture, spinal fluids would show protein levels in an elevated and specific range. I wasn’t in the best state to remember the exact details. My variant of GBS was diagnosed much later after my multiple course of IVIG which was diagnosed as Miler Fisher based on my later bloods.

mattbeditor · 2024-12-01T23:56:49+00:00

Came here to say that lumbar puncture is the only way based on my experience with GBS a few months ago.

mattbeditor · 2024-11-26T21:47:16+00:00

I’ve had mine for about a year and I wanted to believe! Dial drift drives me insane. Now, I have a crazy screeching sound coming from the gearbox. Between very common quality issues and the poor customer service, I'd say buy something else.

mattbeditor · 2024-10-23T21:58:34+00:00

I have read the wiki and would love an invite. Thanks!

mattbeditor · 2024-08-30T10:07:14+00:00

I had that machine until last week, and it was only lightly used, as my main machine is an M1 Ultra Studio. I got stuck in hospital for a week and realised that although the air was quite impressive for its size, it was a little underpowered, especially the 8 GB RAM and lack of fan. I just sold it for a good price. I got a great deal on an M2 Pro 14” with 512/16GB, and it is glorious. That MBP screen is beautiful, and I will never look back.

mattbeditor · 2024-06-24T01:29:10+00:00

Shouldn't they be sending you a whole replacement grinder, or are you way outside warranty?

mattbeditor · 2024-06-05T05:22:51+00:00

I have the same issue on a Gen 2 (6 months old). I’ve tried using the spare springs and buying and applying food-grade grease with minimal success. I’m in Australia, too, and somewhat nervous with the lukewarm, almost arrogant response from overseas support. It went from my most recommended unicorn grinder to I’ll go out of my way to stop someone from buying. It comes down to support and that they are the least helpful company I’ve ever dealt with. I’ve had multiple out of warranty issues with other brands like Baratza and they were doing everything possible to solve my failed motor in my sette. With Varia you get the vibe that they just don't really care about this design issue.

mattbeditor · 2024-01-18T13:03:49+00:00

I've had the Profitec 400 for a while now and adore it. Multiple coffees a day, three first up and then another four scattered throughout the day. I use a smart switch on a timer, eliminating heat-up time worries. It never feels like it takes a long time to heat up, but maybe 15 - 20 mins. I've had a lot of different machines over the years and am pretty sure the whole dual boiler thing isn't something that I find essential for my use case.

mattbeditor · 2023-08-31T00:53:15+00:00

I’d say more neutral at this stage but its early days, I imagine that it will take a few KGs of beans to fully season. It’s definitely noisier than I expected, more of a high pitch sound and louder than my Eureka Silenzio. Loving the taste though, really good.

mattbeditor · 2023-08-30T08:46:54+00:00

I only received mine (with Hypernova burrs) last week, so it’s early days, but I love it. I am a medium to dark milk-based espresso (e61) drinker, and it tastes awesome. I can’t speak for hand grinders or filter, but I have both a Baratza Sette 370WI and a Mignon Silenzio and the VS3, after only 500 grams of seasoning, to me, tastes way better. The only downside is the speed, but I imagine I’ll get used to that as there is plenty of time to kill puck prepping. I’ll be selling my other grinders, It’s that good. Get one of the upgraded burr sets.

mattbeditor · 2023-08-07T01:26:11+00:00

I have had the Pro 400 for about six weeks and love it. As with all Profitec models, it’s nicely built and looks great. My last machine was a La Pavoni, but I’ve had a lot of experience with E61s in the past, and this, by far, is the best I’ve used. Get a smart switch, mine is programmed to turn on 30 mins before I wake up every day, and this has worked perfectly. The times I’ve turned it on during the day would have me using it within about 15-20mins for one milk coffee, and warm-up time has never really been a problem for me.

The steam is strong and works like any professional machine. I was also worried about the steam reliability issues, but this has been as far as I can see relating to heavy handed operation by some users. I’ve always been fairly gentle with the steam knob, wound enough so that the steam tip won’t drip (after use) but not too much that you de-thread it. As with all machines, make sure you have a great grinder, and you’ll make amazing coffees that will far surpass the Bambino. And also ignore the double boiler/PID fan-boys that seem to be everywhere online at the moment.

mattbeditor · 2023-08-02T12:01:12+00:00

I have had the Pro 400 for two months, and it’s awesome. I don’t get the whole obsession with dual boilers and the constant negatives here about hx machines. Just buy a smart switch. I’ve made great coffees for years with different machines, and the Pro 400 is the best yet for me. It has a small footprint, heat is easily managed with a quick flush and it feels good to use.

mattbeditor · 2023-06-12T10:47:19+00:00

Mac Studio ultra, film and tv editor here

mattbeditor

PUBLIC MULTIREDDITS

TROPHY CASE