Quick Mill Silvano Review

[@tomscott4438]

I think another "con" is that in 2024 this machine now retails for $1500 (on sale for $1250). So a pretty significant price increase over less than two years.

[@TonyDL]

Great review Joe! I have this one myself and was interested to hear your thoughts on this excellent machine. You touched on most of the pros, but there is another really good pro of this machine. It has an easily adjustable OPV so that you can dial in your brew pressure. Yes it is factory set at around 9 bars, but it's fun to experiment with dialing this up or down and see what it produces. There's a brass screw to the right of the brewhead where the pressure can be easily adjusted with a flat screwdriver. The other comment I'd make is that I've found a work around for the lack of hot water on this machine. After I pull a shot, I dump the portafilter grounds, give the brewhead a rinse and wipe, then dispense hot water into my mug from the brewhead for a nice americano! Works well for me... The other option is an old school kettle on the stove 🙂Thanks and Cheers!

[@JoeyVaracalli]

Ohhhh wow great point I should have mentioned that…. Great comment thanks so much

[@guusjuh97]

The ticking sound in regular thermoblock machines is the pump pulsing. Since most machines use one thermoblock (and thus one pump) for both brewing and steaming, this is the way in which the machine limits the waterflow for steaming. In the Silvano the two systems are separated, so the steam has its own pump which works at the right flow for steaming without the need of pulsing.

[@JoeyVaracalli]

Wow that’s great knowledge thanks for the info kinda rare to see two separate pumps in a machine

[@chadgregory9037]

"normally you have to pay double for that kind of action"

[@JoeyVaracalli]

@@chadgregory9037 lol

[@evakeizers9670]

The vibration pomp is very silent as well. Compare that with the Profitec Go which is making a huge noise.

[@richterstitcher7936]

Nice review Joe. Glad you could do it. It’s great to see what all these machines have to offer. Makes it easier when you know what your budget will allows and what comes with each machine👍👋

[@JoeyVaracalli]

Yeah totally agree and this one actually has a very unique feature with the hybrid steaming system

[@larrielavoy6814]

Gosh , I would have thought the side load reservoir is a plus given the clearance problems most of us have under the kitchen cabinets with a lop load reservoir.

[@JoeyVaracalli]

Yeah that’s true. Like i mentioned in the video it’s kinda not picky but yeah It could be a benefit depending on your clearance

[@taroman7100]

It is IMO. Owned several different machines.

[@thomasbranconier]

Nice review, thanks for your perspective. This machine with a pid definitely brings some interesting considerations and simplicity vs a heat exchanger and having to temp surf. I have the little brother (820) and the bigger brother (Andreja Premium). Love them both, but with its capabilities and price the Silvano appears to be in a really sweet spot right in the middle. 👍

[@taroman7100]

I owned two Rocket Appartamento. One used, one new. They only lasted two years then failed electrically. Not new to this but never again with a heat xchanger. I’m taking delivery on Silvano this week. I owned one before but PID quit after two weeks. I was upset and returned it.

[@bill81960]

For me, the best feature of this machine is the side load for the water, and you list that as a con lol! If it were not side load you would have to pull the machine out away from the wall to get a top load tank out. Those cabinets above the machine would not give you enough room to fill otherwise. I think you would like that less than the side load.

[@JoeyVaracalli]

My Bianca is up too and behind and never had much of an issue getting the water in. It’s not much of a con but it’s just a bit awkward balancing it off but for others I can definitely see it as a pro. That’s what I love about all the machines there is something for everyone

[@changfachou]

Great review 👍

[@JoeyVaracalli]

Thanks I appreciate the kind words 🤙

[@sms4hou676]

40 seconds to steam seems long. Is that normal? My la spaziale takes about 12-15 seconds (depending on the temp I set the boiler to.

[@JoeyVaracalli]

It’s more normal on thermoblock style heaters. Thermoblocks generally don’t get as hot

[@williamolenchenko5772]

What is the boiler made of? Aluminum? Brass? Lead content?

[@JoeyVaracalli]

Brass

[@chadgregory9037]

My biggest gripe is the switch for steaming... if only it was a knob this would probably be unarguably the best value (that i've found so far)

[@JoeyVaracalli]

Yeah I think there is a ton of value with this machine. But with any value item they gotta skip some stuff. The oldest in my opinion is the lack of a water optio

[@christopherpalmiero6311]

Can you fit a coffee scale under an espresso glass under the portafilter with this machine?

[@JoeyVaracalli]

Yeah I didn’t have to much of an issue

[@kevinjohnson3715]

So I've been using my Breville barista express for over a year now and all of the sudden the pressure goes to the same spot on the gauge every single time regardless of the grind setting, amount, or even if there is no coffee in the portafilter at all. I've descaled it, cleaned it, and I've only ever used filtered water. I've used the same beans and my process hasn't changed ever. The only time the pressure varies at all is when I simply run water through it without a portafilter locked in, in which case the gauge doesn't move. The funny thing, the pressure it's supposedly giving me is in the optimum range; however the espresso I'm getting is super frothy and bubbly. I don't know what to do or how to fix this. Any ideas or suggestions would be very welsome! Thanks Joe!

[@JoeyVaracalli]

Are you using a single or double walled basket?

[@kevinjohnson3715]

@@JoeyVaracalli I ordered a new basket and it fixed everything - go figure. Thanks Joe!

[@JoeyVaracalli]

@@kevinjohnson3715 there ya go perfect thanks for letting me know

[@kevinjohnson3715]

@@JoeyVaracalli Best grinder with a $400 budget?

[@JoeyVaracalli]

@@kevinjohnson3715 sette 270 or def64

[@topjets5616]

Hey Joe just wanted to ask does the Quick Mill Silvano Evo steam better then the BBE ?

[@JoeyVaracalli]

Yeah 100 percent faster and no wait time

[@seanaitchison9806]

Hey Joe! I'm currently shopping for my first home espresso setup. I have bought a used fiorenzato f64 Evo and am looking for a machine to pair it with. It will be for a household with two people who both enjoy milk drinks. I am in contact with someone selling a quick mill silvano Evo for $500. Dual boilers and HX machines seem to be out of my budget. Do you think this is a fair price, and will the machine will be a good fit? Thank you!

[@JoeyVaracalli]

That’s an amazing deal for Silvano im and it’ll last you a very long time they are built so nicely

[@opinionatedfool]

Great video:)

[@JoeyVaracalli]

Thanks joe I appreciate it

[@rogerclark3545]

Very well done (again) joe, although this machine does not interest me, you did an awesome job with the "pro's and con's". I was just surfing around and landed on your channel, and like your presentations so I staid and watched!!

[@JoeyVaracalli]

Wow thanks so much Rodger I appreciate the kind comments we try hard to make good videos

[@JPC326]

How would it compare to Profitec go ?

[@JoeyVaracalli]

That’s a good question. I think it might be a bit of a wash but this seems like it could have the edge using that thermo block for steaming

[@BensCoffeeRants]

I'm wondering how it compares to your dual boiler Lelit Bianca temperature stability and drink quality wise, if you're just pulling one shot with the same grinder and prep. The side loading and VISIBLE water tank is probably the best feature of that machine for countertops like yours where you'd have to move the machine forward in order to refill it from the top otherwise. Also you can see you water level and refill it before it's too low. I had the older model of the Silvano and 'upgraded' to a Rocket Heat Exchange machine and was surprised the drip tray was SO MUCH smaller than the Silvanos even though the Rocket machine was much larger overall, there was room for them to make a larger drip tray but they didn't so it seems like a design flaw there (on the rocket). One flaw for the Silvano I noticed, which they may have fixed on the EVO version, is that the steam power does die down sometimes immediately if you have the timing bad. Basically when the steam power light comes on it's recharging / heating, after it goes back off or just before that, that is when it's at max power and will give you the best results before running out of steam. What I'd usually do if I wasn't watching the light and know what stage it was at, is just let out all the steam and force it to recharge, it takes maybe 30 seconds or so to recharge, then you steam milk at the full pressure.

[@JoeyVaracalli]

Yeah the the steamer is nice you can just leave it on and basically it doesn’t die down. I will do a little comparison with the lelit soon. I think it’s worth seeing what the extra 2k gets you

[@BensCoffeeRants]

@@JoeyVaracalliYeah I think people would enjoy that video even though they're in very different ranges. Regarding the steam they say themroblocks never run out of steam but on my Silvano it did die down before it recharged, but maybe yours is different. I have a similar machine now to the Lelit Bianca an ECM Synchronika dual boiler, I'm curious since I've stepped up my espresso prep and my grinder, how much of the improvement is from that or the espresso machine. I would say based on the Rocket HX machine which I had between the Quickmill Silvano and ECM Synchronika, that I don't think HX machines are great if you want to control your brew temperature accurately. That thing was unpredictable sometimes. Dual boiler is the way to go.

[@JoeyVaracalli]

@@BensCoffeeRants yeah heat exchangers tend to over heat

[@TonyDL]

@@BensCoffeeRants As you suggest there were some improvements on the Silvano EVO version. I have the EVO and it never runs out of steam. Coming from a Breville Infuser I was so impressed with the Silvano EVO's steam capability for being a thermoblock. As Joe mentioned, it can steam 7oz of milk in about 40 seconds, very fast.

[@BensCoffeeRants]

@@TonyDL it never really ran out of steam but it did drop noticeably in power. If yours doesn't do that, that's pretty awesome.

[@zilliq]

Damn I'm in a pickle, I'm hesitating between this and the Profitec Go, I'm planning on doing only 3-4 milk drinks per week so it basically comes down to whether the instant steam of the silvano is worth the better design (imo) / cup clearance / steam knob of the Profitec Go. Also I gotta say I really like the clunky switch buttons of the Quick mill machines as well as the side water tank. Anyhow, thinking out loud, thanks for the hand's on review ! Edit: wouldn't it be easier to use water from the group head for americanos ? I guess you'd just need to purge it for a few seconds to clean it beforehands

[@hardnose_]

@Babeetlebum, which one did you end up going for?

[@KevinLitman]

Nice.

[@JoeyVaracalli]

Thanks Kevin

[@coolkid111111100]

Amazing machine and I could just buy a kettle for Americanos and long blacks they only cost 30 dollars 😂

[@JoeyVaracalli]

Yup very true

[@bisem433]

I never drink hot water out of my boiler....😑

[@JoeyVaracalli]

Lol