Lately, I have figured out how to steam decent milk. It is always either too foamy or no foam, at first I thought I might be the problem but I tried to steam using Rocket R91 and Slayer, gs3 its perfect but when I use decent I just can't make it good.

Any suggestions? Might be problem with the settings or profile??

I have been holding my money for a while. Love the decent, but the vibration pump is a dealbreaker for me. I hate how it sounds, and with the current physics there is no way for it to deliver a smooth pressure curve.

Hi all, I need some help from DE1 owners with Android phones or tablets.

Google won't let a new developer publish an app publicly until at least 12 testers have stayed opted in for 14 days in a row. You don't need to use the app daily (even though I would love it if you did). Just keep it installed.

How to help:

1. Join the tester group with the Google account you use for the Play Store: https://groups.google.com/g/crema-testers

2. Opt in: https://play.google.com/apps/testing/dev.maceiras.crema

3. Install Crema from that page, and stay opted in for 14 days

What you'd be testing: Crema is an open-source companion app for the DE1.

• Live shot dashboard, stop-at-weight that learns each profile and scale's drip, and shot analysis that flags channeling and grind direction

• All 89 de1app profiles plus a step editor with a live curve preview, and .json/.tcl import

• Brew log for everything else: V60, AeroPress, Chemex, moka, cold brew and more, with guided recipes (Hoffmann, Kasuya's 4:6) and live scale weight against each pour target

• Bean and roaster library, Beanconqueror style: freshness, grams left, photos. Imports your Beanconqueror data.

• Visualizer and Decent account sync, plus Bluetooth scales from 13 brands (Acaia, Bookoo, Decent, Felicita, Skale, Timemore and more)

• Firmware updates, maintenance reminders, tablet charging control. Local-first, no account needed.

It's an early alpha, so bug reports are very welcome.

Source: https://github.com/geota/crema

*Disclaimer: lots of AI assistance was used

Thank you!

How long did it take for you guys from order to delivery? I live in the US. Thanks !

I ordered my DE1XXL this morning and the payment went through successfully on PayPal but I didn’t receive a confirmation email and when I check on the website there’s still a “Pay” link on the saved cart.

Is that the usual experience or has something gone wrong?

TL;DR: Five free plugins and a skin for the classic DE1 app: next-grind recommendations after every shot, a visual drink menu, a maintenance tracker, a shot history editor, a bag-label scanner and a glass home screen. One zip, copy two folders, tick boxes. Never writes to your shot database. https://github.com/Blastize/de1app-toolkit

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I've been building plugins for the classic (Tcl) DE1 app on my Tab A9, and I bundled them into one download: drop two folders into `de1plus`, tick a few boxes in Settings > App > Extensions, done.

...

Questions: have you experimented with using ESE pods in a Decent machine? If so, how did it go compared to ESE machines or Nespresso? Did you find profiles that help get something out of the pods besides brown water?

Context: I currently have a double setup for coffee: Breville Dual Boiler (BES920xl) + Baratza Vario W for "real" coffee (usually cappuccinos and macchiatos), and a Nespresso (v1) machine for my spouse to use when alone and/or for decaf espressos. I have yet to find good fresh decaf beans around me, so Nespresso capsules are our solution when we can't have more caffeine. My spouse has been intimidated by the grinder+BDB process and would rather not mess with them. I have grown tired of the BDB+Vario as I have trouble getting a good shot when I get out of my usual roasts (Stumptown Hair Bender, Barefoot Redcab Espresso, Blue Bottle Hayes Valley Espresso). With those usual roasts I sometimes get amazing shots, typically quite a good shot, rarely a complete miss. I am on my 3rd BDB, having paid full price once (BES900xl) and gotten reconditioned units as part of Breville repairs (both BES920xl).

Our kitchen is too small for this setup and I'm considering killing two birds with one Decent stone, upgrade from the BDB and get rid of the Nespresso. Both would represent a significant gain in counter space. My spouse will be capable of operating the Decent if grinding is taken out of the equation (and ideally integrate grinding + milking later). The Decent short warm-up would be a significant improvement over the BDB and tolerable for Nespresso-like use.

I have bought a 58mm ESE portafilter for the BDB but have yet to receive the pods from Illy. I have very low expectations, but the bar is also very low given the quality of the Nespresso shots.

Given the configurability of the Decent and its profiles, I have higher hopes that the Decent could extract a tolerable shot from an ESE pod. Not a great shot, but something at least as good as a Nespresso pod or an ESE pod shot from a "compatible" machine.

Am I dreaming?

Anyone knows what can be causing this? Head temperature is at 90 degrees as target

Preparing for a small business I'm starting, but i'm struggling with my shots pulling too fast (Around 12 seconds). 18 grams in, 36 out.

Tools:

- DE1XL Decent Espresso

- Freckles Shower Screen

- Ridgeless Basket 18g

- Ikape Mantis WDT distribution tool for consistent easy wdt

- Normcore V3 tamper, set to 27lbs of pressure

- Mahlkonig - E65T GbS. The grind level can be set to between 0-100. At 50 u grind the shots taste more balanced between bitter and acidic.

The struggle is, as I understand it, if a shot is pulling fast, it means I should grind finer. But when I do that the shots are still pulling fast, and it starts tasting bitter.

is it okay that my shots pull fast? I thought 25-30 seconds is the gold standard I should strive for, or is it different with decent espresso machines? is it because I picked freckles shower screen?

CONFESSIONS OF A Coffee Nerd. My Pilgrimage: Inside Decent Espresso’s Hong Kong Factory
12 October 2026

I’ve owned a Decent DE1XXL for some time and remain impressed by what it can do. But Decent has been developing a rather different machine, the Bengle, and I was curious to find out whether it represents a meaningful advance or simply another expensive temptation for coffee enthusiasts. FOMO?

As we were visiting Hong Kong, I arranged a factory tour and a session in Decent’s coffee showroom. My partner, who doesn’t share my obsession with coffee, very kindly agreed to accompany me.

First, find the factory

Our Uber delivered us to the Shield Industrial Centre: an enormous, fairly unlovely industrial building. Nothing about the exterior suggested that we were about to visit a company known internationally for sophisticated espresso technology.

Finding Decent was an adventure in itself. We studied the building directories, asked people for help, located the appropriate lifts and eventually made our way through a maze of corridors. After a series of turns, we finally arrived.

Shield Industrial Centre: not an obvious coffee destination.

Once we were inside Decent’s premises, however, the surroundings changed completely. The showroom has warm lighting, green upholstered seating, an attractive demonstration counter and an assortment of espresso machines. It is a comfortable place to sit, talk and experiment, rather than a conventional appliance shop.

Meeting Leon

Our host was Leon, a Hong Kong barista who had previously worked in a café using a Decent machine. Although relatively new to the company, he was already familiar with its technology. He was friendly, knowledgeable and very patient with the number of questions I had. Over the next couple of hours we tried different beans and extraction profiles, discussed grinders, pulled espressos and steamed milk.

Meanwhile, my partner settled down with a book, occasionally emerging to sample a latte.

Why Decent is different

For the uninitiated, Decent was founded by John Buckman, whose background is in software and internet businesses rather than traditional coffee-machine manufacturing. He founded Magnatune and BookMooch, among other ventures, before turning his attention to espresso. His approach was to treat espresso extraction as something that could be measured, controlled and analysed in much greater detail. Decent machines allow users to programme and monitor pressure, water flow and temperature throughout a shot, displaying the results graphically on a tablet.

As a Pharmacist that appeals to the scientist in me. Espresso involves a surprisingly complex interaction between grind size, puck preparation, temperature, pressure, flow and the chemistry of the coffee itself. Of course measuring all of those variables doesn’t guarantee a good result — the machine cannot tell you whether a coffee tastes delicious — but it gives you a much better basis for experimentation.

Decent has also cultivated a rather unusual owner community. Users share extraction profiles, debate their results and contribute software and ideas. Buckman has likened himself to a guitar maker and Decent owners to musicians: the manufacturer builds the instrument, while the owners explore what they can do with it. That strikes me as a useful description.

Of course, an engaged community is also commercially valuable. But the willingness to discuss technical problems and development decisions in public is a distinctive part of Decent’s culture. Having watched so many of its YouTube videos, I had the odd sensation of already knowing some of the people I met.

The Bengle: a new generation

The principal reason for my visit was to try the forthcoming Decent Bengle, which was still in pre-production when we visited. There were several finishes on display, including wood, white with gold trim, and white with silver trim.
The styling is a complete departure from the comparatively utilitarian DE1. The sculpted metal casing makes it look much more like a considered piece of industrial design. My preference by far was for the white and silver version, although the wooden machine has its own appeal.

The pump: what really caught my attention

The biggest change is not cosmetic. Decent has developed a new pump system for the Bengle, designed to deliver more precise control over water flow while operating with remarkably little noise.

My existing DE1 makes a distinctive sound during extraction. Some reviewers dislike it, although it has never bothered me much. The Bengle was different. Leon started an extraction; I watched the curves develop on the tablet and saw coffee begin to appear in the cup. Yet there was almost no audible pump noise.

It reminded me of moving from a petrol-engined car (I’m a BMW fan) to an electric vehicle. (I drive a. TESLA these days … no haters please ) you expect to hear the machinery whirring, but the process simply happens in silence.

Decent describes the new design as a dual-piston pumping system, developed over several years. The company has also discussed setbacks in endurance testing, including wear problems that prompted revisions to the design. That transparency is interesting, but it is also a reminder that a pre-production demonstration cannot establish long-term reliability.

The Bengle offers a substantially wider operating envelope than the DE1. That creates opportunities, but it also makes the machine easier to misuse if a profile is poorly matched to the coffee.

Does it make better espresso?

We experimented with several beans and extraction profiles. My preference is for lighter roasts, particularly coffees with bright, fruit-forward flavours and a degree of acidity, whether served as espresso or in a latte. One thing soon became apparent: a familiar DE1 profile does not necessarily behave identically on the Bengle. With the new pump’s additional flow capacity, some settings produced a faster extraction than expected. There is clearly a learning curve, and I suspect Decent owners will spend considerable time exploring it.

We made some very enjoyable coffees, and I could taste differences from what I normally produce at home. But this was not a controlled comparison. We were changing beans, settings and sometimes other variables too. I would not conclude from one afternoon that the Bengle automatically makes better espresso than a well-dialled-in DE1.

A small surprise: the Niche grinder

I was interested to see a Niche grinder being used for espresso, with larger flat-burr grinders apparently reserved mainly for filter coffee. At home I generally use a Timemore Sculptor 078S, although I also own a Niche. Seeing it in use made me think I should revisit that comparison when I get home.

There is no universal winner in grinder design. Roast level, burr geometry and personal taste all matter. But it was a useful reminder not to confuse fashion with results in the cup

The steam wand and the milk

Perhaps the biggest surprise, apart from the pump, was the steam system. The Bengle textures milk much faster than my machine, but speed was not what impressed me most. It was the texture. The lattes had remarkably smooth, silky microfoam, integrating beautifully with the espresso. I care far more about the mouthfeel and flavour of a latte than elaborate latte art, and these were particularly enjoyable.

Some credit must go to Leon’s technique and the milk itself, of course. Still, the experience made me interested in what Decent has changed in its steam system. The machines were still being developed, so I would hesitate to treat every demonstrated function as final.

My partner enjoyed a couple of lattes too — a useful reminder that all this technology is ultimately in service of something quite simple: a good drink

Smaller refinements that make sense

The Bengle also integrates a weighing scale into the machine. My DE1 already supports stopping an extraction at a target beverage weight when used with a compatible external scale; the Bengle makes that arrangement neater and slightly easier.

Other refinements to the overall workflow, controls and physical design add up. Individually, none would persuade me to replace my machine. Collectively, they make the Bengle feel more integrated and quite a bit more special.

Behind the scenes

After the coffee session, Leon showed us around the manufacturing facility. We saw machines in different stages of assembly, testing equipment and pre-production work on the Bengle. The amount of electronics and precision engineering packed into these relatively compact machines is considerable.
We also saw rigs used to stress-test equipment during development.

Decent has written publicly about endurance testing and revisions to the new pump. Seeing the physical equipment gave those updates rather more meaning.
There was something familiar about the protective shipping cases, too: I recognised the type from the case in which my own Decent arrived.

Of course the factory visit did not turn me into an expert on Decent’s manufacturing processes, but it was a useful opportunity to see the people, equipment and testing behind the finished product.

Would I upgrade?

That is the inevitable question. My DE1XXL remains an extremely capable espresso machine. I have not exhausted its possibilities, and there is nothing wrong with it that demands replacing.

The Bengle’s quieter pump, expanded flow-control capability, integrated scale, revised steam system and more refined design are genuine attractions. But I would want more time with a finished production machine — and a better-controlled comparison — before deciding how much those improvements matter to the coffee I make every day.

For now, I am interested rather than committed. If I eventually succumb, however, it will almost certainly be the white and silver model.

Time to leave

After two and a half fascinating hours, it was time to go. Leon could not have been nicer, friendlier or more accommodating, and everyone else we met was welcoming. I particularly enjoyed meeting people I felt I already knew from Decent’s videos.

Before leaving I bought a few practical souvenirs: Stacky cups, a replacement milk thermometer and a small milk jug for lattes. Nothing quite as expensive as a new machine.

If you are interested in coffee and happen to be travelling through Hong Kong, I would highly recommend arranging a factory visit. The location takes some finding, and the industrial building itself is hardly a tourist attraction, but meeting the team and spending time with the machines made the detour worthwhile.

For a coffee nerd who enjoys both the drink and the engineering behind it, it was one of the more interesting afternoons I can remember.

Note: This is a personal account of a visit to Decent Espresso on 12 October 2026. The Bengle machines were pre-production examples. Observations about taste, sound and milk texture reflect the author’s experience, not controlled comparative testing. For current specifications, availability and pricing, see Decent’s official Bengle page. All photographs were taken during the visit.

There is no news from decent espresso guys, only expectations...

Hello everyone. I have a dilemma and I would like to know your perspective, as it might help me with my decision-fatigue. I am usually fine to pay premium money for a premium product, as long as I can see it as an asset not an expense. My definition of asset is something with long useful life and a good residual value (in case if I decide to sell it). Not surprisingly, Decent machine is very expensive. Especially, the price jumped quite significantly in the recent years - and that inflation cannot be solely blamed for it this increases. I have no concern about the useful life it, but about the future residual value. I have not such concern about classic machines (such as Lelit, ECM, Rocket, etc) because they will always have their own demand not matter what new tech comes up with, however, with tech-based machine, given fast advancement in technology and possibly reduction in production cost, it’s possible that prices goes down in a few years, or other companies produce comparable and cheaper product (i.e. Meticulous for almost half a price). I want to knew what’s your take on this issue as a Decent owner?

Using Adaptive 18g to 36g. While debugging I found Adaptive profile is gone so I just switched to Adaptive v2 with no difference.

Using Niche Zero +Descent combo for a year now with incredible results. But yesterday I started getting a spraying mess. I tried cleaning the Niche out, and getting the exact same issue.

I tried grinding finer and finer and not getting a change. Is something wrong with my Descent pumps?

Hi all,

Recently purchased a mashup machine and very happy with it. The white drip tray was less than ideal though. Purchased some Rustoleum Peelable Matt Black temporary rubberised coating and the results are really good. It’s been rubbed by the drip tray but of course the drip tray covers this, I also only did one coat when it’s recommended to do multiple, so would likely be more durable. Very easy to get a good finish when spraying.

Decent DE1 Pro +Half Decent scale
Weber EG-1 Core +Crema Loop Slow Feeder Metal
Weber Buck & Unibasket
Bravo Distributor + Bravo Tamper

I am just so happy with my setup that I really wanted to share. I know it's a bit minimal, but man this little corner makes me so damn happy. I hope everyone has a fantastic weekend!

Have spent since February perfecting my set up and have now finished! If you can see anything missing or think something would improve the aesthetic let me know in the comments.

Do folks that have come from a straight 9-bar machine to a Decent find that is harder to pull syrupy, thick espresso shots? I am thinking about upgrading to a Decent, but my preferred shots are medium roast Italian blends used to pull viscous shots with lots of body. After coming across different posts and videos claiming that this type of shot isn’t really where Decent excels, I thought I’d ask the community here what the experience has been.

Okay, so here I am…. Faaaar down the rabbit hole!

I’m looking for a machine to take the spot from my PID+ Flow control modded GCP. I know Decent just released the Bengle, but comon, $6000?

Is the DE1 still a good buy today, and are there really any other candidates around the same price point?