Sonic S7 | The Newest Challenger On The Lever Market
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 30 ก.ค. 2024
- MHW-3Bomber is usually known for their accessories, like calibrated tampers, baskets, and other preparation gear, but they recently launched their first espresso machine, the fully manual Sonic S7.
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Chapters
[00:00] Intro
[01:13] Aeropress Sponsor
[01:57] Notable Features
[03:11] Performance & Usability
[05:52] Quirks & Downsides
[07:04] Final Thoughts
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Glad that we are starting to see more lever machine reviews - hoping to see more formal reviews of things like the Londinium Vectis or the Odyssey Argos since those are probably the new big name ones on the market.
I've seen these guys all over Aliexpress and have always wondered how their bigger equipment holds up. Thanks for the review!
Yeah it seems they’ve been expanding a lot, and their marketing has picked up on Instagram too.
This was my first experience with their products, and all in all I’d say they’re pretty solid. Curious to see how their transition from more affordable prep tools to rather expensive machines will go. Time will tell.
I'll stick with my Flair. LOVE the process, price, and coffee. If I were to spend more on a lever machine it would be one with a boiler.
Yeah I get you on that. Personally I’m a boiler boy, but do enjoy a short sojourn into the manual world from time to time and something like this and the 58 are great since they don’t require a lot of fiddling or additional tools.
Thank you for the video. I like the look and apparent finish of this machine. The pre-heat puts me off manual machines, although I do like the screw action of the Aram. Stay safe, everyone.
Yeah manual espresso is 100% a niche within a niche. I don’t run it very often, but it’s like a fun novelty when I do.
Just get a manual espresso machine with a boiler, like a La Pavoni Europiccola and add a brewgroup pressure gauge. The price for both is around that of the S7 box of goodies, but you get a more useful machine that requires no preheating and can even steam milk. It can overheat however, like all dipper lever machines.
I personally use and recommend the ROK commercial edition. I find it weird that the ROK is not being mentioned in the manual lever machine discussions these days, especially the commercial edition, which is a somewhat more recent addition to their lineup. For me, the lack of a pressure gauge in a manual espresso machine is a huge deal breaker and all the good machines that have it are pretty pricey (e.g., the flair lineup and Cafelat robot). Which is why I was putting off buying one, that is until the release of the ROK commercial edition. Not only does it come with a pressure gauge, it also features their competition shower screen (which is much better than the default silicon one on the base models). Also, with an addition of the ROK tamper and naked portafilter (all at retail), it still costs half that of the Flair 58 ON SALE. Though, I have to admit that the ROK does have a steep learning curve, but learning its quirks and figuring out a good workflow (good thermal management is key!) was a journey I personally enjoyed. In my experience, the ROK (with a pressure gauge) is an excellent and very capable manual espresso machine that is fun to use, can make very tasty espressos, AND is capable of pressure profiling. I think the Flair 58 is a much easier (and forgiving) machine to make excellent espressos with out of the box, but if you`re willing to spend the time and effort to master it, the ROK can yield comparable results.
While you make some good points, I've personally found the ROK commercial unable to stand the test of back to back shots in a commercial setting. I've used it for my mobile espresso business and have already gone through 2 competition gaskets, at a total of 30-shots each. The BOMBER multi-day reveal event of the S7 showed the company pulling 100's of shots each day with no issues.
Professionally speaking, the cost increase between the two units is WELL WORTH the peace of mind knowing it's not going to blow a gasket & shoot hot espresso everywhere during an event.
I picked one of these up because of the aesthetics and the 58mm group head size. I was initially really excited because it seemed simple enough. Unfortunately my unit is defective. The pop to pressurize the chamber only occurs halfway through the lever action, and it’s missing two screws. Not sure if I got a dud or this is indicative of their quality control.
It does look cool but I have to agree with you. It gives me very little reason to question my robot in the slightest. Simpler, smaller, easier to pre-heat (i.e. I just don't) and half the price are a pretty competitive package. And if I'd be into the 58mm pportafilter and all those extras, I'd absolutley go for the Flair. Only reason one might be tempted would be if one were to really like how it looks.
as always great review. what if I put some foam around the body of the piston chamber, well that eliminate the need for multiple preheat?
@Sprometheus I have the machine only being delivered today. What’s the minimum temperature in the group you would recommend to pull a quality shot?
I found that quick preheating about 3 times, with letting the water stay in the chamber just for about 10 sec. each, is enough to make great shots when it comes to it. Due to small chamber capacity, any longer than that will just waste time as the temp starts to go down and heat dissipated from water into steel. The bulky steel chamber has plenty of heat inertia once preheating is done.
Every time I look at this particular machine I think it's supposed to be the spring lever answer to the Flair/No Boiler market. Like it's a pretty machine but a viable cheaper spring lever machine would be way more interesting
Although you didn't mention it, I chose the Newton Brua. Their sale of blemished models made its price quite compelling.
I was in the market for a lever machine recently and eventually went with a Flair. Which is a shame because the S7 is a beautiful machine, however at this price point the 58 not only is similar in quality, it also has the heating element which basically eliminates the whole faff with preheating.
The Flair 58 being cheaper than the S7 makes no sense. Even without all the addons(tamper, leveler..) the S7 is still more expensive. The Flair 58 is simply a better machine mainly because of the heating element.
I'm sorry, I want to buy the electric version of 58. The question I want to ask you is: Can it produce double espresso? Is the coffee that comes out hot? Are you satisfied with the density of the coffee? I am currently using Melitta's automatic machine. I did not like the density very much. Also, a Port filter is separately included in the box to make Double espresso. I would be very happy if you could answer my questions.
Love your Dark Horse shirt? I go the one in North Park (San Diego). Surprised to see you sporting their shirt 👍🏻
Japanese coffee ceremony vibes with these machines. Unless you really enjoy a huge amount of faffing about for an espresso with many multiple fail areas (mostly around temperature) then for the money any of the entry level prosumer machines will give you a faster more consistent result. There is plenty of opportunity to faff with grinding and puck prep to get your ceremonial fix if you have the time, but you can also choose to get a quick decent coffee if you need to.
I love my Flair Pro 2. It's a beautiful machine that produces incredible espresso. The modularity makes it super easy to preheat the brewing chamber (use lower part of a Bialetti - no further interaction needed, just let it sit there and the steam does the work for you), and to keep the machine clean.
Also the machine is very well balanced so it won't tilt no matter what you do - I use it two-handed every time, which you can't do on many other lever machines.
I do like how the Sonic S7 looks, but I don't see how it would stick out, especially for its price. Also the Flair, while not looking as "noble" as the Sonic, is a very well constructed little machine with high quality parts that are a joy to work with.
I do love manual espresso, for me it's something simply magical, I enjoy the ritual a lot.
Flair 58 all day. Would have been cool if this thing came in cheaper than the already established premium brands. I don’t think the quality or ergonomics of this machine set it above any of the other levers
Exactly, especially at this price with no self heating element.
Thank you for sharing. While an interesting looking machine, I would not replace my Cremina. I do love the idea of the fancy suitcase and extra doodads in the kit. But I don't love them enough to add this to my bar.
I remember looking at this on Taobao when it first came out in China, and thinking it should cost half as much to really be competitive in the market. Glad to see I'm not the only one.
Interesting note: MHW-3Bomber is apparently coming out with a spring-loaded version, which will cost close to twice as much. Seems like they're confident in their brand image to charge that much.
Taking the Elektra MCaL head on? Good luck with that.
I Like the aesthetic and look
Like an excellent machine to work on, my issue like most of these is the amount of water waste with the whole preheating that make it a bit of a faff and that almost never exceeds or even hit 90 degrees Celsius, the F58 that has an isolated outer sleeve and electric heating actually can relatively easy hit 93 degrees Celsius this makes it the better fit for light roast users, already the 90ml capacity is a limiting factor meaning you can barely just squeeze a 1:4 out.
Also the price seem excessive especially with no cartridge heating
Thank you my friend.
Of course! Thanks for watching and have a great weekend.
need the link of that table where you keep all your espresso machines!
I am happy with their small gadgets and I feel that this particular lever machine is built to last, but I cannot find a reason to buy this over flair 58 with temperature control
Very well explained. Enjoyed the video. How long would you estimate it would take this lever machine to extract TWO back-to-back (TASTY) espresso shots (including preheating, and cleaning)? It's my normal process.
Thank you for the kind words and watching.
In terms of back to back shots, as long as you preheat for the first and pull the second closely behind it there shouldn’t be much added time. If you don’t have the coffee for the next shot ground and ready to go after your first I’d do a short heat soak while it grinds and you prep it.
But all in all two back to back shots at a comfortable pace would take you about 3 minutes for the first, and another 1-2 minutes for the second.
@@Sprometheus Hey, thanks! That makes things clearer to me. Actually, I'd be grinding 20g straight into the portafilter each time, Short heat soak in between it would be.
I've received the Sonic S7 as a present. My experience has been somehow mixed. The suitcase is beautiful, and the construction feels solid. A single preheat flush is definitely not enough. You need two of them to heat the chamber to a decent temperature. Second, the pressure gauge stopped working reliably after only about 20 shots. Since this is one of the fun parts of it, there is little joy left on the machine for me. It does make decent espresso, but consistency is very hard to achieve.
I’m going to buy it in a couple weeks, I’m my opinion it’s beautiful. Wins over the flair in my book! (Not price tho so don’t hate on me in the comments)
Perhaps some of the price point can be explained by the superb looking accessories that come with it. The tamper, high extraction basket, distribution tool etc all look to be quite refined
Well I can say it definitely adds $120 to the cost of the machine, which alone as I said is $730. But the $730 price point is still high compared with the Flair, Robot, etc.
esthetical piece of art
Good balanced review.
I think the flair 58 is a much better option, especially with electric preheating, since brew group temperatures seems to be the most inconsistent and the troublesome issue with manual espresso. Even the older flair machines are more convenient, because you can easily heat up the cylinder together with your water and you don't have to wait for both the water to boil and then for the machine to get warm. But, for this price, I feel like picking the flair 58 over the sonic s7 is a no-brainer.
It looks to me like a heat gun would make an ideal way to pre-heat the brew chamber with or without water in the chamber.
Nah, this is the world of specialty coffee you’re talking about. A custom fitted halogen multi-beam heater with built-in temperature sensors is the way to go. I’m sure Weber Workshops could make one for around $3K.
Aeropress sponsorship wow!
I’m just not a manual espresso person. I have a Flare (old style Neo), never use it, and honestly regret buying it (cheap as it was). So much fuss in setting up the machine and preheating, shot volumes are small, clean up is a hassle, and back to back shots are a nightmare. The new style of manual lever machines which use standard portafilters seem less absurd, but at the price? I consider a Flair 58 to be a yikes, and this even more so. With the sonic specifically, the small reservoir really seems inconvenient, cutting off a lot of shot styles.
Went with a then-$300 Breville Bambino. Between grind, dose, ratio, technique, and coffee selection, there’s so much going on already that I’m willing to give up on fine-tuning pressure in order to vastly improve my experience while lowering my price point compared to a Flair 58. Plus, I can make milk drinks. A win on nearly all fronts, IMHO.
I can get my ritual from filter coffee, where the manual process is actually enjoyable.
I haven’t tried the machine. But it looks like it has premium fit and finish. While other devices like the flair, fell cheap. Is this your experience ?
It’s been some time since I used the Flair 58, but there are some portions that feel a little cheap. But I’d say much like the Sonic S7 the portions that carry a lot of the weight, like the frame and lever felt pretty substantial. But I can say the frame on this one doesn’t flex as much under pressure.
@@Sprometheus Thanks for the feedback
I love the premium look and feel of this machine. But for that money I'd want a machine with a boiler and a steam wand.
I think these are really cool, but the big down side is - the new class of 1K-ish, single boiler machines. I know it's not a comparison one should make. If you look at it economically though, you're spending 850.00 on a machine and you can get a small single boiler for nearly the same money and much less fuss in the process so economically at least, it's a tough call. Personally, i like espresso for what it's meant to be - quick. That's how it fits into my life today. If i have extra time I make a ChemEx. I frequently make several drinks back to back so i would be constantly messing with the temp swings, topping up a kettle so i have enough water - it's way too inconvenient for me now. They should drop the price to get it in the sub 500.00 market if they can. Even if they take a per unit hit they stand a better chance in selling more units.
Would love to see someone include an open boiler, like a more affordable Streitman, with rock solid temps and quality construction. I'd pay $1k for that.
I bought a la pavoni to scrach this kinda itch.
Manual as it gets with built-in water.
I only break it out here and there.
Hey man. Been following you since some 600 subscribers. Might i make a suggestion. Please change the colors behind to warmer tones like reds yellows browns. The corporate and tech blues don't go too well with a space and channel with coffee/café. I apologize if I'm overstepping but i genuinely like your content and would be very happy to see these warm and complimentary tones behind you. Best regards
Any chance you could get your hands on a Slayer single group for a review? Would love to see it against the GS3
I’d love to. I’ve asked them before for a loaner and they’ve been somewhat stand-offish. I’ll try again in 2024, and if I can find one locally even better.
Im interested in manual espresso machines, because you can switch temp easily from shot to shot. BUT it seems to be active group heating is a must like flair did with the pro model. That learned since a couple of years now im asking myself why bringing a shot brewer without heating elements? But im amused anyway because my bezzera lever machine wich is a true bomber calls itself a strega while this small profile MHW calls itself a bomber. Probably only pilots understands why? Have a nice weekend everybody.
At that price point I could buy 3 Robots and gift two. I love the manual process and the single lever, but need makers to solve the sliding problem or spring load the lever. The Robot solves this with opposing levers.
plus point, it does look good and I like the handle. That just isn't enough to convince me. I prefer to see electric pre-heat (but better implemented then the flair 58) as it's too much of a struggle with water (and a waste of water/energy). The lower volume and high price are the biggest obstacles tho.
I like the idea of a lever machine (something about a 9 bar vibratory pump just feels so restrictive). But I’ve never enjoyed MHWs branding and I can’t see myself spending more than $500 on a lever.
I just cannot be bothered with fighting for temperature, and this thing is simply too large to justify the lack of a heater element. Aram with a heater element is still the most appealing option (that pressure gauge!), apart from the inconvenient fact that it doesn't exist except via modding.
The machine looks great but I don’t think there was too much thought put into functionality. Thermal stability seems like an issue if you were to make this your daily driver and the lack of water volume feels limiting. I would group MHW-3 in the same category as Turin, maybe slightly below, where the name of the game is to push out machines fast enough to always stay on the edge of the most recent trends but by doing so, not enough engineering goes into functionality
I don't know why there hasn't been a single company that's been able to make a manual (ie. no heating element), single-lever (ie. not screw-in or robot-style), upright machine like this that's 58mm, has no weird gimmicks, and is just affordable. This is beautiful, seems so wonderfully straightforward, but is just way too expensive.
My god I saw that price tag and almost died lol I have an electric flair 58 on sale for 420 bucks. The sonic is gorgeous tho I do like it a lot.
nice
Noice even
This machine has a build quality that is lacking in other manual machines but missing a heating element like the flair is I think a miss at 800 dollars.
So, it seems that this machine is not just about the capabilities, but also about the build quality and esthetics, without being over engineered nor much more expensive compared with the alternatives (and I'm looking at you, Weber)
I get what you mean, and I can say the build is very solid, and it’s most definitely not over engineered, every piece has its purpose and the purpose is simple. But I do feel like the price is quite a bit higher than the alternatives. So I think in the long run it’ll treat most folks who buy it well, but it’s definitely a bigger outlay of cash up front.
The absence of pre-heating mechanism is the deal breaker for me. That much metal would absorbs lots of heat just from boiling water. They really should have include heating mechanism like Flair does
I purchased the standard kit in preparation for the arrival of the meticulous. I have learned a great deal about levers. Interesting that the standard comes with a tapered basket and not the 20g basket. I have been using it for the past month and love it and the espresso it produces. Indeed the family comment that the coffee is better than from my profitec pro 700
Wow, thanks for this comment. I had a Gaggia Classic Pro and had modded it to try and squeeze every ounce of performance I could out of it. I contemplated upgrading to either a Profitec or Lelit but spending the extra money was hard to swallow. As soon as I got a Robot the second shot I did was way better than anything I could have gotten out of the Gaggia. Always still wondered “what if” about the upper tier of machines but I keep hearing comments like your with manual lever machines so I think I’ll stay put for a while. The Meticulous though would be the best of both worlds I think. Have you received yours yet? Been waiting to see some user reviews.
Manufacturing delayed until at least Feb. We've been told not to expect delivery until at least March (and I was an early backer). Don't be too misled by my comment; the Profitec pro 700 makes outstanding espresso, but there is something about the manual process of a lever that adds to the pleasure of the extraction.@@tomy2988
Man the prices for manual espresso machines are really going into the new heights in a last few years, it's getting almost ridiculous. No way I'm buying this :D
Flair 58 is still king 👑 imho ❤
I think it could sell on modern look but without electric heater really can’t compete with flair58
Looks alot better than the flair
It is a properly designed and build machine. Standard 58mm basket, with a heavy and open base no limitations on the size of your scale like others. A beautiful and solid piece for any bench top. It look and feel more solid than the Flair for sure. 👍
All the gear included. Looks nice and expensive
I like coffee
That makes two of us
Plenty of room for any scale. That's a frustrating part of most lever machines.
Yeah that’s true. A big flat base compared to being caged in like the Robot or having to fit in a frame like the 58.
Where to source gaskets and seals when the company goes tits-up?
Very good review. A couple criticisms (of the product, not the review). Build quality looks quite good, but if the base flexes during use that is a big deal! It may not affect the shot quality but it would affect the tactile experience, which is a big part of manual machines. I think it would feel poorly made. Another big part of manual espresso is its accessibility from a financial standpoint. This product costs WAY too much!
Lastly the size is flat out ridiculous! And including an option with a case that is even more ridiculous only makes the whole product design more laughable. Good product design accomplishes a task well for the target market while abiding within certain parameters. This company accomplishes a good shot but asks its market to give up on some pretty basic parameters. In my opinion, this is at a prototype level, not a production. And to cost this much when you can get SOOO much better for way less, is the kind of thing that deserves to fail.
This should be a 300 dollar item, to move units.
Water capacity is too low for me
I don’t pull long shots too often, but I would definitely miss the capability on those occasions where a Lungo would hit the spot.
No chance someone should get this over a Flair 58.
Flair 58 is still the king of manual espresso
At this price range I don't see why you wouldn't just buy a La Pavoni.
My thoughts are that this is WAY too much money. It's a nice looking rig and all, it looks full-featured, but the price is just insanity. If I am going to spend that much on an espresso maker, I would just start looking at pump and boiler machines.
Good review, though. Enjoyed this one.
These manual espresso machines are all very low (production) volume and art pieces. I'm waiting for something to be extremely disruptive by 1: not having a huge moment arm to tip the machine 2: costing less than $200. Also, you'd expect a far better gauge with a high point indicator or just a higher resolution in general for $800.
-While typing this I saw the Flair Neo Flex, and that plastic body creaking does not inspire confidence.
Jeez this thing is expensive. Why would you ever buy it over a Flair 58 or the Robot...
Hmm... double the price of an Espresso Forge which has standard 58 mm baskets, smaller footprint and years of tested reliability, made in the USA. The competition has to do better.
Holy moly. 800 bucks for a made in China machine with no heating element? Looks like my flair 58 is safe for now
❤❤❤ Love Is Important ☕☕☕
La Pavoni all day
The price is too high for non established brand.
I get that to a certain extent, but they have been putting out accessories for awhile it seems. This is my first experience with them though, so I can imagine I can’t be the only one.
It seems reasonable for it’s built and the accessories that comes with it. But I get what you mean, even in China they are not quite established.
@redchen3682 they are established as an accessories brand. Imagine if normcore comes out with one. They're not exactly established yet. Also a flair is basically the same with a heated group head.
A new company can never compete with established companies in the economy-range. They don't have the supply chain nor the volume to compete. In addition they will mostly sell products to prosumers/enthusiasts, who aren't that interested in a run of the mill machine.
This is why Tesla launched the roadster first, they wouldn't stand a chance with a family car.
@vegardberget7277 Rivian launched their truck first and did fine? So did Lucid with a sedan. And MHW isn't a new brand. They're just entering a new market for them. And they are also know for being good quality yet cheaper than other accessory brands like crema or normcore.
To me, it’s far better looking than the Flair.
Robot is still superior. No preheating needed, small and fun form factor. Why are these water chambers so thick anyway?
I've been paying attention to this brand for a while, mostly because of their affordable accessories and tools. But I just think it's a shame that all their products have a big fat label with their logo on them. First of all, the name sounds like something a 14 year old gamer would come up with and the logo of a warplane isn't something I want to look at when I do my peaceful coffee ritual in the morning. Strange decision making there for sure. If they just made all their things unbranded or more discreet, I would buy all of it 🤷♂️
Just like Newton brue or robot better and less $, all wait for odsy if getting close 1000 anyway...all bet someone will come out with one under 500 that's better than this one or others
Ill sound like a broken record but i have the flair 58 and the ALM KOPI 58mm with pid and the ALM KOPI is miles away better than the flair . Its the best lever i ever touched , its 100ml full stainless grouphead with all e61 standard parts and seals and is heated up by a very good quality PID , fixing pretty much all issue that machines have
I can't get my head around why you would buy this
7:49 I wouldn't say the flair 58 functions almost identically, I'd say the flair functions in a superior way because of the brew chamber heater. it does make a big difference. I wouldn't say the MHW product is bad, it's just that for the money you can buy a strictly superior product for the same style of espresso, for cheaper ($730 for this press? really?) sure the build quality and aesthetics look decent but, I'd like something more than a worse version of the flair58 since at the end of the day for me, whats in the cup is more important than whats on the counter top
That’s why I said Flair 58x, that’s the non-heated option as far as I understand.
@@Sprometheus ah my bad, I totally didn't realize they sold an 58x since its not really marketed well on their main product page. checking it out, it's just the 58 without the plug which is....idk, weird to sell? it seems you can always just buy the plug if you want which is nice at least. I would have just liked to see this espresso press come in at a cheaper price point.
To whoever is reading: You are going to get tired of the preheating process.
Why on earth would anyone want an airplane and the word "bomber" on their coffee machine?
Planes that drop bombs are bombers
Nobody cares dude
Bomber as in a military aircraft, not as in a person who is bombing a place. 😭
All of these machines are too much fuss imo
Yeah yeah we get it this machine sucks
Meh, 80ml? Lame.
Lever machines were supposed to be to help make this terrible hobby (don't @ me) more affordable. This is just a waste
Another expensive and derivative boy toy.
Preheating is a huge pita in two cases: people that live at altitude, and people that don't brew with tap water.
Where I live, water boils at 199.4F -- significantly cooler than at sea level. So the brew chamber can never really get hot enough for proper extraction of light or medium roast coffees.
And for us that don't brew with tap water, preheating is just wasteful (or you have to boil water twice, which is a bad workflow).
I can't imagine that adding PID to help preheat the brew chamber is actually that expensive. It should be table stakes at this point.