Ascaso UNO | Thermoblock Or Thermo-NOT?

The Ascaso UNO is a single thermoblock espresso machine that promises a lot of sought-after features in an affordable, attractive package. So the question is can it live up to its broad spec-sheet? In this video I aim to answer that question...

Chapters
[00:00] Intro
[01:15] Notable Features
[02:56] Usability & Performance
[06:18] Quirks & Downsides
[07:26] Final Thoughts

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[Kaffeemacher]

Thanks for your video. We were mentioned here, so here are our 5 cents on the topic. We haven't tested the Uno ourselves, but we have tested the Duo PID, the Baby T, and the Dream PID. We have conducted temperature measurements with the Scace, both following our own protocol and using the WBC protocol.

We can attest to the very good temperature stability of Ascaso's thermoblocks. However, resistance in the puck is a prerequisite for this. This can actually be calculated, as the energy applied to the thermoblock is directly converted into temperature. If the flow is too high, meaning if there is a lack of resistance, the machine cannot mathematically bring the temperature up to +90 degrees. As long as you are not brewing more than +/- 90 ml (resulting in 45 g of Espresso) in 25 seconds, the temperature will be reached. We have measured standard deviations, depending on the machine, between 0.8 and 1.3 (from second 4 to 25 of the extraction), which can actually be compared with many dual boilers. For example, the Bezzera Duo had 1.19, the ECM Synchronika had 1.21, etc.

[brendansmith]

As an owner of the Ascaso Baby T Plus, I'm blown away by how well this machine is designed. That being said, my coworker owns the Duo and that might be the sweet spot for a lot of people, frankly.

[klizzt]

I've been daily driving a Duo at our place for more than two years now, actually learned to make espresso on the machine. And I have to say, you're right on several of your points: the included baskets are way too small, by the time the thermoblock is at temperature the portafilter is still completely cold, the setup of the steam wand makes steaming small quantities without producing a huge mess difficult and the volumetric "automation" varies so much that I manually stop my shots every time using a coffee scale (my single is programmed for a quick flush and my double is programmed to run very long and i just interrupt it).
But so far I've not had great trouble with overly sour shots due to the water being to cold for proper extraction. Now granted, i use 18g doses, not 20, and my roasts are medium, not super light. but so far this machine has been rock solid at making great espresso for us. (we struggle to enjoy most coffee we're served at cafes these days, that seems to be an unforseen downside to owning an espresso machine)

[goose-lwjs]

Great review!!!
I have an Ascaso Dream which is the same as the Uno just with a different shell. I really like the workflow with a thermoblock in combination with a hand grinder. The machine is heated up by the time you are done with dosing and grinding. Just needs a flush to also get the portafilter heated up quickly. Extremely low energy usage.

Some additions:
- The screw on the side doesn't adjust the pump but the overpressure valve and unfortunately the volumetric sits before the OPV. So if the OPV kicks in, your shot volume will be off (always do it manually!).
- The included baskets are all trash. The holes in the double basket don't reach all the way to the side and the other 4 you get are completely useless anyway.
- Definitely get the machine from a good seller who will configure the temperature offset. The PID works great but always has an offset which is different from machine to machine and you need a Scarce to properly configure that.
- Steaming for a single capuccino works great with some practice but more is a huge pain. Theres also the Ascaso Duo which is a dual thermoblock but it has practically the same issue (only difference is that you can do it while pulling the shot).
- Heavy vibrations are often a problem with Ascaso machines. I would love to see a thermoblock with PID and rotary pump.

[robertw]

I like the comment that it's made for a dark roast, european and a quick espresso shot. It was entirely why I bought it and served this function well so far. I will say that I am very happy with the steaming function for the secondary function for the occassional latte.

[TheDustyne]

Interesting that you had this dropping temperature experience. I saw reviews from "Kaffeemacher" from Switzerland who tested the steel duo PID and the Dream PID (Basically the uno in a smaller shell) and they stated it excellent temperature stability (they said in fact it's even more stable than most boiler machines including the LMLM and GS3). They use an extensive test protocol with a sensor portafilter. But they also said that you have to make sure to pre heat the portafilter properly as the thermoblock is at temp way earlier than the portafilter. I don't doubt you or your experiences though. Maybe it's a problem of different voltages or something. Or maybe your temperature offset wasn't good. It seems to be a problem with this machine as with many PID controlled machines.

[ihavenospacebar]

Declining temp profile is a good thing, experimenting with temp profiles on a decent will make this very clear. If your light roasts are sour on this, crank the starting temp to max and run the shot longer. The initial higher temp as well as the increased water volume will decrease sourness.

[AchieveBusinessCoaching]

I have the Ascaso Steel Duo PID and overall I am quite happy with it. The Duo means I don't have to wait for steam (unlike the Uno) as it has two thermoblocks. I drink mostly darker roasts and use a 18 gram basket. The one negative for me is the volumetric presets are not very consistent from shot to shot, so like others I set the duration for much longer than I need and just use a scale to stop the flow at the correct volume.

[tikityki]

Hi there, I’d really appreciate your help with a few questions:

1 – On the UNO model, do you really have to wait about 2 minutes after brewing espresso for the water to reheat before you can activate the steam?

2 – You mentioned that the UNO isn’t great for making longer drinks. Do you think the DUO model would perform better when making espresso using 18g of coffee? Or would the UNO handle it just as well in terms of quality?

Thanks a lot!

[kennethash]

I had the uno for a couple weeks. The adjustable OPV is what really sold me, but sadly I had very odd issues with chirping and sputtering during brewing when I attempted to adjust the brew pressure below the factory setting of about 11 bar. The machine produced high pitched noises while also struggling to remain at that constant brew pressure. I returned the Uno and now have a Profitec pro 400. Absolutely love my setup now. The uno was beautiful to look at, but just did not feel trustworthy enough for the price.

[espressopool]

I saw you used the Preinfusion with 0 Seconds water flow and 5 seconds Pause. That means you just waited to start the shot 5 seconds later. If you extracted fruity and complex coffees that way, it may explain why you did not like the results in the cup. Our attempts with fruity coffees were definitely delicious but with a different setting of the Preinfusion… best regards from Hamburg/ Germany!👋🏼

[jjpaq]

"Its quirks and..." — Doug DeMuro's finger hovers over the lawsuit button — "...downsides."

Doug relaxes, and sits back to enjoy the video.

[Levinator]

Just a quick FYI. The two preinfusion numbers indicate preinfusion time and a post-preinfusion pause. So the setting shown in the video [0-5] is 0 preinfusion with a 5 second pause. Just tested this out of curiosity on my Duo and it does nothing. Just pulls the shot without any preinfusion or pause.

[nomadsolos]

I have used an Ascaso Dream PID fir a couple of years now. I agree there are some downsides to the machine but that said I have learned to make good espresso drinks with it. I did find that turning down the pump pressure really was a game changer for me. It came out of the box with the pump pressure maxxed out. That made it difficult to make a decent shot as the pump pressure destroyed my coffee pucks.
Turning down the pressure to 9Bar max made quite a consistent double shot and I make double latte drinks daily. It only takes about a minute for the steam to be to pressure on the Dream machine, and that is about all the time I need to go to the fridge and fill the pitcher and place my thermometer on my frothing pitcher.
Good review of the Ascaso Uno.

[Kiaulen]

I've been considering the steel duo (I drink mostly milk drinks and medium/dark roasts). Honestly I love the smaller shot sizes too. Dialing in my single shot basket for my wife has been tough on my barista express, and I'd bet we could meet in the middle at a 14g basket.

Also so many haters in these comments 😅 Keep up the good work, man, I love your videos. ❤

[fredericl]

I don’t know if it’s already written, but the Uno sold in Europe is a 240 volt machine, with a power rating of over 2000 watts. It’s way more than what is sold in America. I guess the electronics and pumps consumptions are the same, so the Thermoblock there should be on another level. Ascaso should offer this same model here. I’ll be happy to have a special electrical circuit just for it.

[sotirisdiamantopoulos]

Thanks for the unbiased review! A question: how did you manage to constrict the flow of water in the Ascaso at 120ml/20''? Or was it unconstrained water flow, i.e., full water debit (which would mean that the water debit is 180ml/30'', rather low)? Would you consider that for normal and normalish shots (1/2, 1/3 ratios in 25-35'') the temperature would remain stable? I guess that most of the times, most of the people are using this kind of espresso machines for this kind of shots (not that I have anything to back this up :) )

[tyxx]

The Swiss German YouTubers / coffee geeks „Kaffeemacher“ tested the Duo PID and came to the conclusion that this was an exceptionally temperature-stable machine, better than most. They back this up with an extensive test protocol including multi-shot temperature curves. What you saw could be limited to the Uno, but I would not write it off so easily.

[cruiser]

Excellent review, thanks! Do you have some sense of when temperature stability falls off with grams in the cup? For example, would 18g in and 40g out be temperature stable?

[rafraf]

I love this Coffee machine, for a competitive price you get lots of high end features thus saving energy costs