Baratza - Sette Series

He had the Sette 270 and Mignon Single Dose in his under £500 comparison.

My Baratza, ordered from Baratza, ground unevenly (dust, ground coffee, and biggish pieces) with a loud cracking noise at regular intervals (not just the usual burr grinding sound) from the git-go, and broke irreparably within a year -- as I drink coffee only two or three times a month, that would be more like a few weeks for most users. The on/off switch doesn't have a timer and if you fill the top -- if you put in more than a few tablespoons, actually-- and turn your back for a moment it will clog. As I put up with it for about a year, having no other option for grinding coffee, service was nonexistent. The years old Baratza this was supposed to be a replacement for had a timed switch (the same switch from the outside, and the little glitch of turning on until YOU turn it off wasn't mentioned in any review or Baratza's description), ground delightfully evenly at all settings, and never clogged despite my ex-husband -- the main coffee drinker-- never cleaning it and me only cleaning it (running rice or cleaning grains through it) when I thought of it, which wasn't often. I guess the gist is, be sure of what you're getting if you get a Baratza.

Baratza is the answer. I've had mine for over 20 years. I recently contacted the company to buy the little rubber feet that deteriorated on the bottom and they sent me the feet, some extra other parts, stickers and postcards. Years ago I contacted them to buy a few other normal wear and tear parts and they sent those free too. Buddy at work has one, they've sent him new circuit boards and gearboxes for free. Outstanding product and customer service you just don't find anymore.

I have a few as well. A Fellow Ode with the v2 burrs for pour over and drip. A Baratza Sette with the upgraded fine tuning ring for espresso. A Timemore Chesnut for work and travel.

Baratza is great.

I bought the Baratza Sette 270 burr grinder and I’ve been very pleased with its performance, it’s been a year and my espresso is magnificent

TL;DR: I have only one grinder that I use acros the range. My Fiorenzato AllGround Sense does a great, consistent grid from pour over to espresso. If I did a lot of French press, I might still need a mortar & pestle. I have a Fiorenzato AllGround Sense which, I believe, is just over the 1K$ US threshold. I've had two Baratza's (ESP and Sette 270wi) that did espresso to my liking at the very edge of their range but the motors both died. I then got a flat burr grinder that ground well with more range for espresso but was still in the price range of the Baratzas (400US or so) I won't name the grinder as I neither wish to defend or debate it but the motor also died. I did some research and bought the AllGround Sense for it's beefy motors and because I now had the taste for flat burrs. I've never used the finer third of the dial as for my beans and tastes, it's fine ... enough. I grind some decaf drip for my wife, do some pour overs for friends and have developed a sense of where the dial needs to be. I suspect that the first time I do a dark French press it may not have a fine enough setting bit that day may never come.

Get a used grinder on marketplace for sure. Oxo and Breville are the bare minimum, but if you see a sub-$50 Baratza, that’s even better. If you don’t want to then start buying more beans, just resell it yourself when you finish the bag. Anything lower-end than those and I wouldn’t bother. Blade grinders ruin beans, as do super cheap “burr” grinders like Cuisinart and Shardor. As far as storage, if you brew coffee daily, I’d just keep them in a resealable container (with a “burp” valve if possible; old bags from previous coffee purchases should work) in a cool and dry place.

I got the Sage Barista Pro with the Baratza-Grinder and love it.

☝️this, I have 2 Mazzer Minis for regular and decaf espresso, and a baratza mainly for French Press and cold brew

I use a Comandante hand grinder with a Hario electric attachment to make pour over. I have a Baratza that rarely gets used.

# **Without philosophizing in the answer, you have two options: a handgrinder, or electric grinder.** — ## **🔹 Hand Grinders** ### **High-End Options:** - **1Zpresso K-Ultra** – External adjustment, versatile for both pourover & espresso. - **1Zpresso J-Max** – 8.8-micron steps, optimized for espresso but handles pourover. - **Kinu M47 Phoenix / Classic** – Precise & durable, great for both. - **Comandante C40 MK4** – Ideal for pourover; needs *Red Clix* for better espresso dialing. - **Timemore Chestnut S3** – Stepless adjustment, more suited for pourover. - **1Zpresso ZP6** – Produces ultra-clean grinds, excelling in filter brews. ### **Mid-Range Options:** - **1Zpresso JX-Pro** – Espresso-friendly with finer adjustments than JX. - **Timemore Chestnut C3 ESP** – Budget option with espresso-compatible burrs, decent for pourover. - **1Zpresso X-Pro** – Compact, external adjustment, slower but espresso-capable. — ## **⚡ Electric Grinders** ### **High-End Options:** - **Mahlkönig EK43** – The gold standard in specialty coffee shops. - **Weber EG-1** – Premium single-dose grinder for all brew methods. - **Lagom P100** – High-performance, SSP burr options for precision grinding. ### **Mid-Range / Prosumer Options:** - **DF64 Gen 2 / DF64P / DF64E** – Affordable single-dose grinders, great for both. - **Niche Zero** – Top-tier single-dose grinder for espresso & pourover. - **Eureka Mignon Specialita** – Stepless adjustment, solid for espresso & can handle pourover. - **Fellow Opus** – Budget-friendly, designed for both espresso & filter brewing. - **Baratza Vario+ / Sette 270** – Great entry-level grinders with micro-adjustments for espresso. - **Timemore Sculptor 078 / 064S** – New contenders with solid grind consistency. ### **Budget-Friendly Options:** - **Fellow Ode Gen 2** (Needs *SSP burrs* for espresso) – Excellent for pourover, but needs mods for espresso. - **Baratza Encore ESP** – Beginner-friendly with stepped adjustments. - **Eureka Mignon Crono** – Simple & effective for both espresso & filter. — 🔎 **Check reviews before buying**—grind quality & user experience vary. Preferences are subjective!

I 2nd that. I got the one with the scale used on eBay. It's been great. Baratzas are great too. Better reliability and fix ability. But they are also a lot noisier.

We've had an OE Lido3 for years, and it's an excellent manual burr grinder. Have a Barazta that was just too damn loud, particularly first thing in the am. It's been collecting dust since the Lido3 showed up. But the Lido is $$$.

I recommend a Baratza coffee grinder. They are a quality product and the company sells replacement parts and stands behind their products.

Couple things to keep in mind: * Never underestimate the difference a good quality grinder will make, a cheaper machine with a good grinder will almost always beat an expensive machine with a bad grinder. Baratza makes excellent affordable machines, start with them. * Like with most products, the more complex it is, the more points of potential failure it will have. This is why I avoid all-in-one machines and fully automatic machines. Keep the grinder and the espresso machine separate, it will save your dad headaches down the road— and if he really gets into it, will give him the option to upgrade components independently * Espresso machine market is changing. Good home espresso is becoming increasingly within reach. You can get good value with some of the newer brands like Casabrews— but it'd still TBD how reliable these machines are, time will tell.

I have a df64 and kept my baratza sette 270 for doing pour overs and cold brew. After over a year of not using the sette, I gave it to a fellow coffee enthusiast that lost their home in the Eaton fire earlier this year. So, I'm glad I kept it as much as I did as I am now glad I don't have it anymore (and am confident I wouldn't have used it)

Baratza is AWESOME! I dropped off my Encore—which always ground perfect espresso for my La Pavoni—they fixed it and mailed it back to me FOR FREE! I didn’t even need to pay postage. When I upgraded to my Sette I sent them my old grinder to refurbish and sell because they are so great.

Agree. Barritza ($150?) plus Aeropress ($60?) work great together for me.

baratza is really bad, idk why people keep recommending it for espresso. K4 is also good and cheaper than K6. And lastly, even timemore C3 is a good option if you want something cheap and decent.

>it's really not that much time or effort to grind the beans by hand It actually is tiresome. Secondly, people in general want their coffee asap and grinding manually for 2 minutes in the morning is not that ... entertaining, let's say. And I would know as I've used one on and off for a year because baratza's bad qc.

I’ve got the Sunbeam Mini Barista (same model as the Breville, in Australia at least) and it mostly does the job for me without any bells or whistles. I’ll upgrade eventually when it konks out (4 years in) but hard to justify atm when I’m pretty happy with what it puts out, and I’m not a perfectionist. I did have the matching sunbeam grinder for a few years but upgraded to baratza sette 270wi which improved things a lot, I mainly make milk coffees. Essential is getting a non-pressurised basket and wdt tool. Distributor and a better tamper are also good idea but not essential.

Really hoped that the Varia would make a better showing here.  I wonder if the dial can be modded a bit to keep it from wandering (add friction material somewhere, maybe?) The noise of the Baratza puts me off, too.  I get offended these days by design decisions that don’t seem to care about the end user’s happiness.  I shouldn’t be forced to hate grinding coffee in the morning even if it’s just for thirty seconds. I did a lazy “noise analysis” vid of the earlier £500 grinder video to help me visualize their differences: https://youtu.be/3ELGcSK1G_4?si=5QGq5dh2InxT0DlP

I got a home grinder initially so that my coffee wouldn’t go stale as fast.  Whole beans last longer than preground.  Part of the bonus was, hopefully, that I could buy a larger bag for cheaper and still get good coffee for less money per cup. Then I got better at dialing in my grind size and getting the smoothest flavor I could, so now rather than spending ten dollars per kilo of commodity-grade coffee, I’m happy spending twenty per 300g of specialty coffee. 🤣 For the same money, you’ll get much better grind quality in a hand grinder than you would for electric.  Get a Timemore or 1ZPresso and it’ll rival electric grinders costing double or triple as much.  It’ll take a bit longer, but with the modern class of hand grinders, you’re only looking at maybe 45 seconds for a 3-cup pot without working very hard (which is much better than multiple minutes in a Hario Skerton). In electric grinders, the bare minimum I’d recommend would be an Oxo or a Baratza.  But I’d rather step up to, say, the DF54, Eureka Mignon series, Urbanic, and some others.

Side bar, but I would actually get the grinder first (I love my Bartaza). I got both at once and I found myself drawn to grinding the beans fresh for a French press makes wonderful coffee, to the point I hardly use my espresso machine anymore. You can use a grinder with any coffee method to make better coffee pretty quickly. Plus, using pre ground coffee for an espresso machine is .....not advised.

I got the Specialita and I believe - from my multiple reviews - the DF54 is up there is due to it's pricing. I've had the Baratza but the level up from previous to current one is not comparable. Eureka is just solid!

I love my Baratza Sette 270Wi. It's served me well over about four years. No regrets.

I have the Sette, upgraded from the Encore, and I've been really happy with it. Surprised Baratza didn't make the list at all

Just looking at it, I can see it's got the same internal design as the burr grinder Cuisinart has been making for decades now. It's better than a blade grinder, but it's on the lowest quality rung of electric burr grinders. The cheapest baratza is significantly better.

Baratza makes repairable grinders that will improve the taste of the coffee as well by having a more uniform grind.

+1 for this analysis!! Like yes a Ferrari is a great car but if you’re frequently going to national parks, camping, gravel roads, and/or need some carrying capacity, then a Ferrari will be a nightmare. I'd get a combo of the Baratza and K6; the former will get through volume when you need it, and the latter will be a fun way to treat yourself when you have more time or want a slightly more fun cup.

For your needs you could look into the Fellow Opus or a Baratza. ETA: top end of your budget but the Niche

If it's volume you want go for the Baratza or Baratza ESP (this will future proof it if you decide to drive into espresso) That has a hopper that you can load with a bag of coffee. You just press go and stop it when you've ground the amount you want. It can act as a single dose grinder too, you just weigh out the amount and grind that.

not sure if the issue has been fixed but I had big problems with my Sette 270... went thru 3 power boards failing before giving up & getting a DF64 instead. (much happier now as it's a simpler machine that does one thing very well).

I was in the same boat just a week back. Have sette 270 was looking for a decent flat burr grinder. Shortlisted couple of options, Eureka SD Pro (just launched, in future can be used with different burr offerings from Eureka they about to launch them), Eureka Libra 65 All Purpose and Fioranzato All Ground Sense. Finally took a plunge and ordered Fioranzato and could not be happier. Though it is just a couple of days only but blown away with the build quality, user interface and easier burr access. Note: I would not be selling my Sette 270, as conical have their own perks. https://preview.redd.it/188zpnpuof6e1.jpeg?width=4160&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e350a9c03b376d20edf8de9112a590f9e6473b10

For espresso, the Baratza Sette 30 or 270 is very good. You could probably find a used 30 for around your price point. And if any of the parts fail, you can easily repair it using their original parts from Baratza. Another option is to go manual. Kingridners are all good, with the very top one competing with some of the best entry grinders out there.

Exact same situation as me. I just ordered the baratza as it seemed to have the best overall reviews for the $

Baratza Sette with the aeropress attachment. Consistent grind and dosing right into the aeropress.

Bro, a manual grinder? I don't think that's a great idea for a first espresso setup... Manual grinders are a huge pain in the ass, and are a great way to turn someone off to the idea of making espresso every morning. The Bambino alone is already going to be a lot for a newbie to learn. I did the same thing with my wife: we already had an Nespresso machine, but she would often remark that coffees from coffee shops were so much better than the Nespresso. I got the Bambino and a nice grinder (Sette 270wi), and some accessories. The winning strategy that made the whole thing worked: part of the gift was that I'd be her "personal barista" for a few months, during which time I'd learn how to best use all the new gear, and slowly teach her how to use it herself. I'd make both of us coffee every morning, and she loved it. And she did eventually learn how to use it herself too (but she still prefers when I do it, and I'm happy to do it anyway). But this took the pressure off of her having to learn how to use all of this new complicated stuff, while delivering on the immediate promise of muuuuch better coffee every morning. I don't know if you live with your gf, so it might not be practical for you.

Why wouldn’t Baratza be a good pick?  People clamored over the Fellow Ode but they botched the launch hard and had to offer replacement burrs.  I’ve never heard of Baratza doing anything like that. 

Df64 is under $400. That seems to be a great flat burr grinder in your price range Setter 270 is $400 from Amazon. Conical, grinds like the 1Z, I have both. Drop through grinding means fluffy grounds with anything but the most oily beans. Don't bother with the WI version, just single dose.

Get the best grinder you can afford. There's no substitute for freshness in coffee grounds, no matter what the bag says! I have an Etzinger etz-i, but if you're unwilling to spend £200 on a hand grinder, there are plenty of other choices! James Hoffmann did a review on the [KinGrinder P1](https://youtu.be/EPbVUR6Y83k?si=LdQ82LSeqs3EpFdm), which only costs £30ish. It's reviewed well, it might be a good starting point if you're on a budget. Stepping up, you could look at other offerings from KinGrinder, Timemore or 1Zpresso, they're the big names for budget grinders. Check the reviews, but it's my understanding that you can't go too badly wrong with their offerings. If you want to go electric, look at a Sage, Baratza Encore or Sette, Fellow Ode or Opus, or Wilfa Svart for good starting points, they can all be had second hand for not a lot, but I do see the odd Fellows going for £150 or so new. There are bargains to be had here and there! I kind of gloss over electric grinders not because they're no good, but because the money you spend is put to better use if the manufacturer doesn't need to pay for electric motors. Grinding as coarsely as a moka pot needs isn't too onerous, and the money just goes into making a decent grinder. Electric grinders start at well over £100 for anything worth looking at, so unless you're grinding for 4 espressos every morning, you'll get much more bang for your buck grinding by hand. I do make 4 espressos every morning though, for which I have a DF54. Worth a look for an espresso-capable grinder you can grow into, and you want a nice kitchen gadget. (Who doesn't?) Another wise investment is a jeweller's scale, or drug scale, depending on your upbringing. It doesn't need to be anything expensive or fancy, as long as it measures to 0.1g. Use it to measure out your beans before grinding them, and weigh the water into the base, so if you find a recipe you like, you can repeat it. A standard kitchen scale is no good for the coffee world if it only measures to the nearest gram. If you're weighing out 500g of flour, you'll end up between 499.5g and 500.5g. Pretty negligible in a loaf of bread. When you're working with 20g of coffee, you'll taste the difference between a 19.5g and 20.5g cup. Amazon is the place to look, they're a tenner well spent. Finally, when you make the leap, hand or electric, get yourself a burr grinder. If it costs three eighths of bugger all and has a little spinning blade at the bottom, don't waste your money on it. Blade grinders are near-universally regarded as crap by the coffee world because the "grounds" they produce are so horrendously inconsistent. You want a nice uniform(-ish) particle size, which blade grinders just aren't capable of by their design. You'll have coffee particles ranging in size from half a bean to icing sugar in the same batch. Unusable for making anything you'd want to drink. Also, avoid grinders with ceramic burrs like the Hario Skerton. They aren't as awful as blade grinders, but they don't produce good grounds either. Ceramic burrs are the very cheapest you can get, which shows how much thought and effort went into the rest of the grinder, and the quality of coffee it'll produce. You get what you pay for.

No complaints from my Baratza.

K6 is best bang for buck. Baratza is the same for electric

I have the kingrinder and the baratza, go for the second. My coffee tastes so much better and it's way easier to operate.