Features: MACAP M4 Grinder
The MACAP M4 Grinder is not your typical consumer grade coffee grinder. Instead, this coffee grinder is a monstrous prosumer grinder that can hold its ground against many commercial coffee grinders in the market. It’s quite big, measuring 12.5 x 7.5 x 17’ (31.8 x 19.1 x 43.2cm). The grinder is also quite heavy; it weighs 25lbs (11.3kg) – this helps a lot in stabilizing the machine.
The M4 uses 58mm flat burrs, comes with a wide-range of easy to adjust dosing levels (5.5g to 9g), and uses the extreme precision worm gear technology to change the size of grinds it produces.
Who's the M4 Suitable For?
The M4 Stepless Doser Grinder is suitable for two different groups of people who satisfy two critical conditions.
This machine is suitable for home users who are serious in brewing coffee at home, especially if you’re planning to use an espresso machine. That’s because of the worm gear technology. It allows the user to make micro-adjustments more precisely by not jerking. This is crucial if you’re trying to brew the perfect cup of espresso.
I would also recommend this grinder to small café owners. This is because of two reasons. The machine makes a barista’s life easier by using a doser, which helps them pre-measure the grounds in advance. The second reason is the ground speed. The MACAP grinder uses large 58mm flat burrs and rotates 1600 per minute. By producing grinds at a higher rate, the time it saves per coffee is invaluable for café owners.
This MACAP grinder is expensive, and it’s only suitable for those who have the budget and appreciate that a good burr grinder is the most important part in brewing a quality cup of espresso. If you don’t satisfy these two conditions, then this grinder is either too expensive or not worth the price for you.
You can currently buy the MACAP M4 Espresso Grinder on Amazon. If you buy now, you can also buy an additional 3 – 4 years protection plan directly from the manufacturers.
The Pros Of The M4 Grinder
- The conical burrs produces high quality grinds across all ranges.
- Easily programmable and precise grind settings using its worm gear-driven adjustment settings.
- Provides the extra level of stability (and grind consistency) by being heavy and robust.
- Takes very little space - small footprint and cord placement designed efficiently.
I’m an espresso lover, so obviously I’m in love with the worm gear driven, grind settings. When you want to make micro-adjustments and perfect your espresso, instead of applying lots of force on the dial and hoping it won’t jerk (which messes everything up and brings you back to square one), all you have to do is turn the knob on the side. It’s so simple; it’s liberating!
Other than the control, I’m quite impressed by MACAP’s small footprint. The M4 is probably one of the smallest grinders at its price range. Bigger isn’t always better (sorry!), and the performance of this grinder is on par with the Mazzer Mini and other entry-grade commercial coffee grinders. This pro grinder will fit well on most kitchen tops under the cabinet, and if the bean hopper gets in the way, you can easily remove it. Lastly, storing this burr grinder in the cabinet will definitely save you some space if you plan to use this with an espresso machine (which are typically quite large).
The Cons Of The M4 Grinder
- Poorly engineering outlet - the chute is too big; it's larger than a typical portafilter. As a result, the coffee grind gets spilled everywhere.
- Long adjusting time required - if you run a cafe and plan to use this grinder for different grind size brews, then be ready to be changing the settings all day.
When I first used this coffee grinder, I immediately noticed that I got coffee grounds everywhere on my kitchen top. Upon further inspection, I honed down on the fact that this is because of the unnecessarily large chute. The doser’s exit chute is simply too large; it’s larger than a typical portafilter. To fix this, I borrowed a larger catch tray so it’ll be easier to clean.
Other than being messy, I think this grinder might be a problem for cafes who offer different brews. The coffee grinder I’m reviewing here is a stepless version. It takes time and experience to adjust a stepless grinder. However, if you mark pre-defined positions on your grinder, it should make things easier and save a lot of time.
Products Similar To The M4
Read our full review or see what other customers are saying on Amazon.
Of course, there are other choices too. Check out my guide on picking the best burr grinder for you – it’s different for everyone, there’s no one size fits all!
The Coffee Barrister’s Verdict [CONCLUSION]
Contrary to what other reviewers say on here, I actually like the MACAP M4 more so than my Mazzer Mini. I understand that the MACAP grinder creates more mess than other prosumer grinders at its price range, but it’s easily fixable. More importantly, I’m really in love with how easy it is to adjust the grind size.
As such, I think this will be an excellent choice for espresso lovers who have the budget, or cafes that plan to make one or two types of coffee.
