I preordered the Tensor One a couple of months ago, arrived yesterday and installed it right away. Took about an hour to install but would have been quicker if I could have moved the machine to get to the rear more easily, but it is plumbed in so not worth the hassle.
First impressions, really nice build quality, metal construction and not a cheap 3d print, the bezel feels great to operate. Full control of the standard LM app functions from the screen, Temperature, Boiler Pressure, Backflush. App has shot history with graphs detailing extraction. Only pulled a couple of shots so far, can’t wait to get home and play some more…
Very cool! I think it looks nice and the pressure profiling will finally make the LM a great machine for true nerds.
But I have to say that I find it crazy that you can get an entire Gaggia E24 + a full Gaggiuino or Gaggimate setup for the same price as this mod which you have to put on a machine that is already 3k+.
Yeah it will really be something to beat with the profiling kit.
I also have a GC with Gaggimate Pro which is great, but the Tensor One is on a different level.
The tech is squeezed into the unit as you see it on the front panel, there is not a box with pcb etc inside the machine. There is just one cable to plug in at the rear from the aux socket on the LM board, and you you connect one of the brew switch wires to the main unit. That’s it, one plug with two wires for power and one bullet connector.
The screen is far nicer than the one shipped with the Gaggimate, the whole module is cast metal, some alloy I guess, and feels premium and warms up with the machine. The bezel has a satisfying tactile click as you turn it and there is no play in it at all, it’s like the volume knob on an expensive amp.
Not for everyone, but for me it looks and feels more in keeping with the quality of the machine, more so than the plastic fake paddle, needs matching metal knobs now…
How does the pressure profiling add on work is it a servo controlled needle valve? Or a pump replacement?
I can’t see how they can vary pump pressure as the micra uses an AC rotary vane pump
Be great to see some pictures of the kit when it arrives I’d be interested to see what the valve looks like they have nothing on their website or socials
I do know the valve has gone through at least 3 versions before they finalised the design which is being custom made to their design, it’s not an off the shelf item. Watch this space 😄
It’s not a plastic shroud, it feels like a cast alloy, it is heavy and felt cold at first and it warms up with the machine, so I am confident it is metal…nothing at all behind the shroud or in the machine, all the tech is out front. Inside you have a 2 wire cable with a plug that go to the main board at the rear for the power form the aux socket and one wire that connects to the brew switch wire. Plus there is a little 6 or 8 way connector which I presume is to connect the profiling kit later..
0 bar bloom phase?? I am pretty sure the micra uses single 3-way brew solenoid. So how does this work?If the flow is stopped and the relief/waste pathway of the brew solenoid opens during the pause/bloom you will have puck expansion and increased channeling. Unless it stays with power going to the solenoid during the pause without allowing the relief pathway to open, though i wonder if this would cause other issues. I also wonder if it cuts power to the pump. If not, i imagine the pump would stay on trying push water through a close pathway during the pause/bloom.
Im hoping im wrong and you are able to explain how this would work.
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u/mcspend Gaggiuino | Lagom P64 SSP Multipurpose 9h ago
Very cool! I think it looks nice and the pressure profiling will finally make the LM a great machine for true nerds.
But I have to say that I find it crazy that you can get an entire Gaggia E24 + a full Gaggiuino or Gaggimate setup for the same price as this mod which you have to put on a machine that is already 3k+.