For the coffee lover who really has a yen for spending hours getting it right. Well priced and lovely looking. Not for the impatient who merely wants to throw a switch.
Positive Product Points
Delivers a fantastic product if you get her dialed in perfectly. Made well, looks great and well priced.
Negative Product Points
Very tempermental. Change up any of your grind settings or over/under ground quantity, even a tiny amount, and you will be cursing. This machine takes a lot of practice and you have to be consistent in your grind and tapping to get the perfect shot. Small change up and you get ugly results.
Detailed Commentary
If you are looking for an "easy to use" machine you may not want to go with the Silvia. If you are willing to put the time and effort into the art of espresso this is a great machine for the money. It really take time to get your grind, your tap, etc. just right. Once you get it down a small miscalculation will throw the whole thing off. If you over/under fill the portafilter you will be sorely dissappointed. If you over/under do the grind, again, you will be sorely dissappointed in the outcome. You have to line up the sun, moon and stars with Silvia. Once you do the outcome is great. As good as can be. Yet, it can be very frustrating dialing it all in. If you love the idea of tinkering until you get perfection this is the machine. I have the 2nd version and I can easily steam perfect foam with milk and soy. Again, this is something which comes with practice. I bought a second one from my friend for $100 because he couldn't stand the product. Just didn't have the patience and yen for pulling it all together with practice and experimentation. I would certainly go and buy a PID. I went a good year w/o a PID and it was "okay." When I got the PID it made a world of difference. Make sure you invest well in the grinder. Rocky is a great fit. Well built, great product and 100's of hours of pure fun for the hobbyist. Again, if you are looking for "easy" go to your local coffee shop and order your favorite coffee drink. The nice thing about taking your time to learn is all the knowledge you gain about your favorite drink...COFFEE.
Buying Experience
I got this from WholeLatteLove.com. You can really negotiate with them. The warranty is useless. You have to pay for return shipping and then $100 to have them work on it should something go wrong. Don't be a fool and try and save money - ALWAYS BUY AS LOCAL AS POSSIBLE!! All the money you save in shopping your Silvia means you get zip in local service. If you are lucky enough to have a local dealer go with them. They will help you with your machine and help you learn the ropes.
