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The Gaggia Classic has rapidly become our most popular home espresso machine, following a trend you'll observe worldwide. This latest edition of the classic home espresso machine, originally released in 1991, is just what you need to get started on your espresso journey. It has all the basics you might need, including standard size, 58mm components, and a reputation for reliability and ease of use.
Out of the box, the Gaggia Classic is relatively basic. There's nothing stopping you from making a delicious cup of coffee with it, but some owners have taken to making a few modifications to make the Gaggia Classic even better. That's why we're excited to be able to offer you this ultimate edition, incorporating the most popular modifications available, so that you can just open up the box and get to making coffee. Even better, these modifications are fitted by the South African Gaggia agents, meaning that the quality of work is guaranteed, and your 1-year warranty remains intact.
Gaggia Classic Ultimate Modification 1: OPV
Out of the box, the Gaggia Classic's pressure can be higher than the industry-standard 9-bar. If you really want to perfect your espresso extractions, dialling down the pressure at the group head should be helpful. This can be achieved by swapping the factory-fitted over-pressure-valve (OPV) with a modified version, ensuring that your Gaggia does its thing at 9-bar, just like the real pros.
Gaggia Classic Ultimate Modificaiton 2: PID
Espresso is all about consistency, and one of the most important variables for consistent espresso extraction is consistent temperature. Most single-boiler, thermoblock machines, like the Gaggia Classic, will experience some variation in temperature at the group head. This can be controlled manually with some purging and timing, but true temperature stability is achieved by the use of a PID (proportional integral derivative) temperature controller. Higher-end machines sometimes come with one of these factory-fitted, but entry-level machines typically do not.
As part of this ultimate bundle, the Gaggia will be fitted with an external PID controller with white LEDs, easy to configure and use. It will allow you to maintain a more consistent temperature, but also to set the temperature at the boiler and experiment with different extraction temperatures.
What's included in the Gaggia Classic Ultimate Modded Edition bundle
In this bundle, you will receive everything you would normally receive with a Gaggia Classic, plus:
- A pre-fitted OPV 9-bar valve
- A pre-fitted PID controller with white LEDs
Please note that these modified Gaggia Classics are assembled to order, so please allow up to a week to dispatch. We may have some pre-built units in stock, but we would encourage you to enquire first if you definitely need the machine sooner. Please understand that the machine will be opened to fit the modifications and tested thereafter, so you may find some moisture inside and the box seals will be broken.
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Almost Great, but still worth the upgrade
Manual all the way, with a nudge for extra flavour.. After looking for a bigger machine to upgrade to from a Delonghi Dedica, the Gaggia Classic was the item that kept on creeping back after removing it from my shortlist over and over again. People may say the Steam is not great or the unit lacks in features, but at the end of the day you get a manual machine that pulls good coffee and heats up much quicker than other machines due to it's small boiler. Having the option to get a unit with the 9bar spring pre-installed, along with a PID for temp control and being able to see what is happening inside the boiler changes everything. The best part of it all is that you don't loose the warranty by doing the Mod's yourself!!! The only thing I could have hoped for is that the PID unit was a better or newer version as there is no Steam control wired in and no method to add it without replacing the entire PID and Relay unit inside, which will void the warranty. Pre-Infusing is also not a supported feature with this old version of PID module installed. Overall, I am more than happy with my upgrade as I have not had a single bad espresso pull and after the 3rd attempt, I started doing Latte art out of nowhere. Solid build, enought mods to please a tech-head and coffee quality to make most people smile over and over again.
Gaggia Classic Ultimate Modded Edition
The Gaggia Classic Ultimate Modded Edition is a great first sewing machine to get, the temperature control works great and helps you to get a great cup of coffee. You will need a a better tamper and it does not include a milk jug so you will need one of those
Amazing upgrade after Breville Barista Express
This is an amazing coffee machine for the price. The PID temperature controller is very easy to adjust, and comes very well tuned out of the box. It's worth noting that the brewing is manually actuated, so you have to start and stop yourself (it's recommended to have a coffee scale for this). The steaming is ok out of the box. I could make better steam with the Breville, which I think is due to it's single-hole nozzle. This Gaggia comes with a dual-hole nozzle, which is quite a bit more tricky to use. However, with the insane amount of upgrades available, it's possible to get a single hole nozzle amongst many other things. Overall, I'm very please.