MIGNON LIBRA - Can Eureka Teach An Old Dog New Tricks?
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- Опубліковано 6 лип 2024
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Eureka is best known for their Mignon line of grinders, and the new Libra is the first in its long, storied history that features a grind-by-weight technology. Which is also something relatively rare for home focused grinders, especially at a price point under $1,000. But the question remains, how accurate is this tech, and can it compete with a market full of high-performance single dose grinders?
↓CHAPTERS↓
[0:05] INTRO
[1:10] QUICK OVERVIEW
[2:23] PERFORMANCE & USABILITY
[5:00] QUIRKS & DOWNSIDES
[6:04] FINAL THOUGHTS
[7:21] SQUARESPACE SPONSOR
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4:20 that there is a top tier TLC reference.
I salute you my 90's brother
Haha, I had a big crush on Left Eye way back when.
Legitimately made me grin
3:28 what a beautiful shot of the LCD cells, love it
I recommended this grinder based on your video to my "no fuss new to espresso friend of mine". He "added to cart" after watching. Like you said, there is definately a market for this type of grinder, Eureka build and heritage, plus ease of use no fussing around with having to weigh beans.
The other grinder reviews, this month alone on YT was making his head spin.
Thank you for the review, now my friend can leave me alone.... for now. Hahaha.
I've been using my new Mignon Libra for the past 10 days. The filter holder (FH) warning was quite irritating at first. I've learned as I go, how much pressure should I put when adjusting the fork and one of the best tips I encountered online when I have this issue - give it 5 seconds (not less) to rest, w/o the PF. After waiting 5 secs, I re-adjust the PF w/ my dosing funnel and it works fine.
The mignon seems like a very solid hopper option! I think grind by weight definitely has its place for home users especially with ones who share their setup since the average person would dread the full workflow of espresso.
Definitely a solid option, and I’m with you, if I had guests, roommates, or lived with others this would be my go-to option. It’s just super simple, clean, and easy.
That is the why I chose it. I have a volumetric machine and with the GBW Libra the workflow is very simple.
Ceado Life vs Mignon Libra. I have the Life and think to get Libra.
Grinding with the ceado is amazing results the question is if it worth buy the Libra because the weight.
I think the work flow you shared for cleaning is not really the best one. You just need to close the latch that blocks the beans in the hopper and then grind the beans that are trapped below it. After this there is only 1 screw and the hopper and the plate will be disassembled. This the easy cleaning feature that the Eureka grinders have.
I am very satisfied with my libra! I think for home use it does what it designed for!
I have the Libra and it's awesome. Yes it has the FH quirk every so often but it's very accurate so I have no reason to weigh doses. This is especially important for my wife who just wants her coffee.
Best libra review. Thank you
Eureka mignon libra make things easy ! I love the workflow
It definitely simplifies the process that’s for sure.
Have yourself a great weekend my friend.
Thank you.
You as well my friend! Cheers!
For those who don't do single dosing, Eureka is great. I had a Mignon before P64.
I am extremely happy with my Libra. The dreaded FH warning usually shows up in the display when the portafilter is placed on the fork and then the user waits too long to push the grind button. At the beginning I experienced this problem but after understanding the proper tempo needed to operate the grinder, it has performed flawlessly. My only complaint is operating the grinder in manual mode. It is not as intuitive as it appears in your video and does require proper finger placement along with not disturbing the portafilter during the grinding process. Overall a great grinder and I absolutely do Not miss the process of single dose grinding.
I get the FH warning pretty infrequently, and because I’m often running different machines and swap in and out of using the funnel I can imagine it slightly changed the dynamics a bit and how it tares the weight. But overall it’s not a huge issue.
I think when it comes to a touch screen they can definitely be a little wonky in terms of placement and pressure, but to me that was something I expected to certain degree.
I do really enjoy the simplified workflow of the Libra in my kitchen, but I love single dosing as I usually have a variety of coffees on hand and never want two of the same shots back to back.
I have the Libra as well and it has been great. The only realy thing I am missing is manual grinding without scale. Now I am having to place something in the forks to flush out grinds when making a change.
I have the Specialita, which is essentially this grinder minus the scale. It's bee a work horse, and very easy and reliable to use. When i clean it, i find using a hand-held vacuum greatly reduces the mess factor. I would also add there arn't many hopper-grinders that feature burr carriers which do not require either realignment or recalibration to find your grind setting again. Eureka is one, especially in this price range. If you clean once you spend up all your coffee, it's really a 5-10 minute task with hand held vacuum. That said i would like to upgrade to something with larger burr's as i have also noticed it's hard to find that sweet spot where the floral/fruit notes shine brightest.
Do bigger burrs do that?
"i have also noticed it's hard to find that sweet spot where the floral/fruit notes shine brightest."
No way will another grinder improve that in a blind test.
What I would really like to see on something like this is a hopper designed to be sealed and maybe even with a vacuum. Be able to close the bottom off with a lever and have a sealed top. I have the Facile setup as a single doser with an aftermarket bellows, but thinking about adding the Libra for my morning dark-roast milk drinks. Having less steps first thing in the morning sounds great! Also like to play with the specialty light roasts throughout the day and the Mignon are kind of difficult to set back to original setting when switching beans.
@Sprometheus Really enjoyed that TLC " Waterfalls" song reference that you snook there. Nice...
Currently using a specialita, but will switch to this one! Great review 👍🏻
I’m sure you’ll definitely enjoy the switch! Thanks for watching.
I’m thinking I might get this for my work office setup. I want to simplify the workflow for that setup. At home I have the Ceado E5P. I weigh everything. I know at work I won’t always have the time more patience to do the full process.
Did you try the Libra with the packaged metal dosing funnel with your GS3 portafilter? Did it fit? I got a new Linea Mjni and Libra. The dosing funnel with the linea mjni portafilter do not fit in the Libra with the forks at the bottom.
Thanks for the review!
I have a couple of questions: do you thing the Oro XL is better for lighter roasts? (65mm burrs vs 55mm burrs)
The other question is: I want a very low retention grinder but I also love the display with either timer of grind-by-weight... Would you go for the Oro Single Dose or do you believe I could but a hopper with blow-up bellow to either the Libra or the Oro XL and achieve a near similar low retention? (do you believe the Libra and the Oro XL's grinding chambers are prepared/designed to push aire through them or do you think this could cause leaking of grinds into the motor?)
At the end of the day I would love a perfect merge between the Oro XL, the Libra and the Oro Single Dose... but don't know if that is possible...
I just want to be able to easily switch beans back and forward without wasting much.
I would like a short about some book recommendations. I see some in the background. As always thanks for the Content
really thankful for your reviews :D and have to ask for short opinion...so would you reccommend this one for catering barista stuff? it's percise, has flat burrs and not so loud...can it be used for grinding 500grams - 1 kilo in 4-8 hours? but not every day of that kind of usage.
thanks :D
Great video! Would the GBW technology work using a dosing cup? Or would you have to use the portafilter system? Thanks!
Works great with the dosing funnel - and mine came with a 58mm funnel - perfect
That TLC reference.. 👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽
Do you think this would be a good grinder for a low to medium volume cart?
It looks like a nice grinder but I'd be curious how much coffee is sitting in the burr chamber/exit. If it is 1g then it might be fine to shortly purge it before use but if it is say 3g then I'd have my doubts about whether I'd want to use it.
Personally I always have a few hours between shots so I'd always have to purge it. I also use 15g at a time and purging more than 10% of coffee seems like a bit of a waste. It would be nice if they could have a grinder that measures the weight of the input and then just empties the burr chamber as much as possible like a good single dosing grinder.
For now I'll just keep using my kinu m47 classic instead.
You mentioned the need to use wdt and that this grinder produces clumpy ground? In a different review someone mentioned the specialita produces super fluffy ground that doesn’t need wdt. Will you help clarify a bit please?
I have a opus that i love for pour overs but find it doesnt always produce good espresso, its alright and their good but i want a dedicated espresso grinder and i almost always drink medium roasts so im thinking this is a good choice for me. Thanks for the video . Their always great
This one will be perfect for a pop up or food truck
Yeah it coffee isn't the only thing a business is producing, or if the the pace is on the higher side it should be fine. It does take about 10 or so seconds to grind a 20gram dose so that can be a lifetime with a long line.
“Don’t go chasing…” Well played!
Word of caution for Mignon owners when disassembling for cleaning. Be careful when tightening the screws holding the front panel. Don't over tighten. I stripped the internal lining of one screw insert and the screw no longer tightens. It's still usable but the grinding is slightly louder.
I will agree it doesn't do the best with light roasts but compared to the Niche for me anyways the Mignon does a much better job.
I replaced mine with the Niche because of how many screws you had to remove to clean the grinder. It's about 15 min compared to 1 minute on the Niche to fully disassemble. (I might be taking longer to manage all the screws that need to be removed. Plus the shoot was clogging up a lot more often than I would have liked.
Which means that one might need an accurate torque wrench to tighten.
What do you mean front panel? I just removed the top to get to the burrs. I do think having a torque wrench is probably ideal for placing the top burr back on the grinder though, so you can be sure you are maintaining alignment.
And yeah, I think because it’s more of a traditional style, Italian grinder it’s intended more for those further developed, darker coffees, which I find is where it shines.
And yeah, the cleaning is definitely more time consuming than most current single dosing options. The Niche also gives you the bonus of being able to break all methods on the fly.
You should pull the front panel off to properly clean the chute and behind the clump crusher, which I also remove. Full disassembly is a bit involved and you do need to take care not to over-tighten screws on reassembly, but only through feel, doesn't need a torque wrench.
It isn't hard to do, but one of those tasks I set myself up on my workbench to do, rather than a quick clean in situ.
Nice vid!! Which filter paper did you use to negotiate on your Orea v3?
Thank you. On that one I believe I used the standard Orea flat. When I tested it on a grinder intended for filter I was getting EY near 25% so that no bypass is no joke.
I’m using V60 paper filter currently, but I’m getting clogged brews maybe 3 out of 4 times. However the brews come out quite tasty, I’ve come to realize that when it clogs I pull the filter a bit during brew and it helps unclogging it, which indicates that it seals the brewer. Would you have any suggestions? I was thinking in gettin Kalita cause it is too expensive to have orea papers shipped to Brazil. How is EY with kalita papers?
I have troubles getting the maximum dose in a double basket. (19 grams) I always end up with a lot of grinds on the funnel / bracket that do not fall in the basket. Didn’t you experience this?
How much retention does the Libra have? (I didn't hear it in the video, but I might have missed it).
I have a love-hate relationship with my Eureka (an Atom 60): it's rather quiet and very easy to use (I grind into the PF sitting on a scale, the timer gives 90% of the dose and I add the remainder with a short pulse), BUT the retention (about 10g) makes me waste a fair amount of coffee every single day, even more when adjusting the grind size.
So I am regularly tempted to swap it for a single doser, but then I worry that I might be losing on grind quality (I did notice a change when the hopper is empty), and a Lagom or a Niche are above my budget. So for now the Atom stays, imperfect yet reliable.
None according to his video.
I've had a Specialita for about 4 years. The knob is irksome, but you learn to manage (there are also excellent 3d printed mods now that solve this problem.) The main issue I've had concerns the chute. Even with RDT and bellows you're going to get a lot of accumulation in the chute over time. Eureka makes great grinders, and they're priced competitively. I just can't say I'd buy another given that there are other options that better serve my wants and needs in a grinder.
I have the silencio that worked great for three years. The chute definitely accumulates. Now the unit will not grind, stalls, at the fineness required for espresso. Replaced motor capacitor to no avail. It is a $700 decoration while I try to find the next grinder and my Kinu handheld gets the workout.
What did you eventually buy? I have a similar situation at home.....
@@renatab1809 I haven't replaced my Specialita yet.
Thanks very much for the detailed video!
What would be your choice if you had to choose between the mignon XL or the Libra? I still wonder which of the 2 would make a better choice to purchase
I have the same question. If you are 1-2 coffee a day kindda guy, i think xl with 65mm diamon would be better if you are not chaning your beans frequently ofc
Did you feel the consistency vary when the hopper was close to empty and there were less amount of beans pushing down?
Nope. I didn’t find any issue there because unlike grind by time the weight is measured so as long as you have enough beans in the hopper to reach the dose it should be pretty accurate.
This is a grinder that I am very interested in! Having said goodbye to my beloved E65s GBW, this seems like a budget-friendly alternative that is suited more for home use. Whenever I look to add another hopper-based spro grinder to my bar, this is a top contender!
Absolutely. I think that’s truly what it is. A solid option, quick clean workflow, designed for home. If you pick one up I’m sure you won’t be disappointed.
Begs the question: Why did you say 'goodbye' to your beloved E65s GBW?
I think this is also a great alternative to the Barratza Sette 270w, grind by weight grinder. Although it’s fast, it’s unbelievably loud.
@@bacca71 sale of the grinder helped buy a house, so it was worth it. But I miss that grinder every day 🤣
@@MistaDJ2532 😁👍👍👍 OK! Good one! Reply prize of the week!
To me this grinder is a really good choice for an office where you have different people use a machine. This together with a volumetric espresso machine will be perfect there. But for me as a home user, I think at this price point there are better single dose options out there.
This is exactly the reason I’m looking at this grinder. I’m setting up a setup for my office. I’d be the only one using it. At home I weigh everything. At work I’d like a consistent grind and bean weight. Then I’ll do volumetric shots. There I need a simple workflow.
Hey Spro! Considering the Eureka Mignon Libra or the x54 for espresso specifically. I drink light roast mostly and wondering what would be the best fit for clarity and still be able to taste some flavours notes when introducing the espresso with milk for flat whites. Thank you!
I think both would be perfectly acceptable, but if you’re going for espresso only I use the Mignon as my personal kitchen grinder and have shots from it daily and love the grind by weight.
@@Sprometheus oh perfect thank you. Lastly, do you think the Libra still struggles to bring out the delicate notes of a light roast? was considering putting the vario steels into the x54 to get the clarity.
I think the Baratza Sette 270Wi is an alternative GbW grinder that's worth a mention. It produces super fluffy ground coffee that from my tests doesn't need or benefit from WDT; it doesn't display any errors and doesn't require to be convinced to work, and it's also a lot faster. The price difference compared to the Libra is enough to add a brew-dedicated hand grinder like the 1Zpresso ZP6. On the other hand, it is also a lot noisier and has a gearbox that needs to be replaced every several years (not that difficult to do). With that said, my single experience with the Libra didn't make me want to replace my Sette with it.
That’s exactly what I use in my setup. These two grinders, one for espresso and one for pour over. The only thing is it’s kinda loud but it’s been going strong so far.
My 270W (without the i) actually produces errors. Sometimes when pressing start it just beeps. I guess it's trying to calibrate itself. Sometimes it starts right after that, sometimes it beeps a bit longer before starting and sometimes it gives up completely. And if it's in a really bad mood it just starts grinding without being calibrated and spits out about 10g. It's a diva sometimes...
Did they fix these issues with the newer Wi?
I'm probably gonna replace it anyway because we cannot stand the noise anymore. It's really a shame because everything else is nearly perfect to me.
What portafilter basket do you use?
At the moment I’m using a 17g IMS competition basket
Nice video sir, when are we expecting the df64v? I heard big things
Thank you. I’m wrapping up testing on that one today. Should be in production by the weekend and out I’d say not next week, but the week after.
@@Sprometheus looking forward to it!
Should they produce Libra XL at 65mm?
Does the 65mm solve the clumps problem ?
I want a grind by weight grinder but maybe one with more power
they def should produce oro libra xl 65mm diamond. then i'd buy it for sure
A Minecraft Hoodie? Love it haha
I would love to know how this one compares to the baratza sette.
It’s been a hot minute since I’ve used a Sette, but it seems there are a few Baratza options people would like to see this up against.
Love my Libra. Wish there were more grind-by-weight grinders out there, not just Sette and Libra.
agree .. i've been using the weight based Vario and will probably replace it with the Libra
@@rayo1371I think you'll enjoy Libra.
how well sealed are these hoppers? i typically prefer to single dose, but wonder if its an easy idea to put a week's worth in the hopper, say 6oz, then do this
I’d say not all that sealed. You could modify the top to seal more tightly if you wanted to. It’s the bottom into the grinder that flows directly out from the chamber. But I would often put a weeks worth of beans in it and didn’t have a noticeable effect on the cup quality. Two weeks I’d say would be pushing it.
@@Sprometheus thanks! i wish the single dose had better reviews, i was really interested in it
I've got an old Mignon, picked it up second hand for $100. I use it as a single dose grinder & the coffee it produces is pretty good. Next of the wish list is a new set of burrs. Any suggestions?
What size burrs does yours use? I find that the Mignon tends to use odd sizes that they produce so there’s minimal options to swap.
@@Sprometheus I think that its a 50mm But I should pull it down & measure. Thanks for the reply.
@@Sprometheus Just checked, it's 50mm.
@@MDCDiGiPiCs I know SSP released Some unimodal / MP burrs for the Specialita '55mm' (which should also fit this Libra I'd think) actually that would make this a more attractive grinder for someone looking for doing light roasts, but I'm not sure if they did any in 50mm, so you might not have many options there, but look into it, maybe I'm wrong.
@@BensCoffeeRants Hey Ben thanks for the suggestion, but I'm pretty sure that the 55mm burrs wont fit. I had a good look at them when I measured them & theres no room to go bigger. Looks like the only option is one of the stock Eureka burr sets.
☕☕☕
Love Is Important 💖
Indeed my friend!
I'd be awfully curious to compare shots between this and the Vario W+.
I don’t think I’ve had the chance to try a Vario W+.
I've had the Specialita and Vario with ceramic burrs, which are basically the same as these. Vario was similar profile to the Specialita, I think Specialita was a bit nicer grind quality technically with a cleaner aftertaste but I found the Vario more interesting (I was more used to the Vario though). You can put steel burrs in the vario though and those were supposed to be very good for light roasts, similar to 64mm SSP MP burrs. I'd recommend that especially if you already have a Vario or can get one used cheaper, the burrs are a relatively cheap upgrade. Oh and retention on the Vario was better than the Specialita by a big amount. Vario was the original low retention single dose grinder and it wasn't even trying to be that :D
I think the Vario W was based on earlier tech (maybe they improved it since the original design though) but I remember hearing it wasn't THAT accurate.
I think if the grinder had bit bigger burrs it could have been better, another thing i find not home friendly is the commitment for 1 type of coffee inside the hopper, i like the eureka line but I find the oro a better option.
When it comes to burr size I can take it or leave it really. Only complaint is not a lot of options in that size to swap in. Although I agree I don’t want to be locked into one coffee, I think the market they are aimed for are folks who want to make their own coffee, but also don’t want to fuss about with too many additional tools. Most of the “normal” people in my life who like to make their own coffee go through a bag and then move to the next. We are the outliers haha.
@@Sprometheus I agree. But I roast my own coffee usually in 1/2 lb batches and find myself using the entire half pound before moving on to the next variety ( which is at this time resting / degassing waiting in the on deck circle for its turn at bat).
I think the reason WHY Single dosing took off, is mainly because there was NOT very many options for grind by weight grinders! I was expecting more GBW grinders to come out, still there hasn't been too many! There's the Acaia Orbit (combined with a Acaia Lunar scale) a bit pricey, Sette 270w, Vario W, and Mahlkönig E65gbw and E80gbw (which are pricey and higher retention commercial grinders).
I'm not sure why they added this tech to a Specialita basically instead of their Oro Single dose / XL which I think is better overall, besides noise by a small amount. I think the taste profile is much nicer on the 65mm burrs (more flavour clarity, good balance of body and clarity, good all rounder for high quality light roasts while working nicely for good mediums and milk drinks too and likely darker roasts too, where Specialita's 55mm burrs was mostly body, best for roasty medium-dark coffees and milk drinks maybe. Like you said, sure it works for light roasts too but I feel like I'd be missing out on a good light roast coffees potential.).
E65S GBW and E80 GBW are Mahlkönig, not La Marzocco
@@benedekvali1398 lol YES you are correct. Brain fart! I'll change that.
Of course. Or even grind by time grinders. A Smart Grinder Pro is repeatable enough to make single dose not worth it.
@@rsilvers129 is it? I never used it but I thought it was similar to the grinder built into the Barista Express and that was pretty awful when I tried to use it. Output Consistency wise at least
Isn’t retention another reason people single dose?
cool!
Although of course much better looking and more polished, the fact I, following a quite easy online tutorial, did basically the same grinder for 275€, (Mignon Manuale + simple ESP32 mod) I feel the price here is extremely steep. Although the execution seems quite good.
I’ve noticed when grinding light/medium beans the dial is just a click above Zero. Anyone else notice that?
It is because the 0 when both burrs touch is not actually at 0 but before that. Mine touch at around 9.
i know that you're gonna have it your way or nothing at all on these reviews
This vs Sette 270Wi
Grinder grinder on the counter
Which grinds the best among them all? Lol!
Haha there’s just so many out there. It’s wild how the home grinder market exploded.
lol Don't go chasing pour overs :D That's great.
Dry engineer 29
Great review. The poor maintenance design is a deal killer for home use.
Too cumbersome of a cleaning. Wasteful.