Skip to main content

Quick Mill Silvano vs Alexia vs Anita vs Andreja vs QM67 Espresso Machine Differences

24th Sep 2020

A customer asked for the difference between the Quick Mill Silvano, Alexia, Anita, Andreja and QM67 espresso machines and we thought it might be helpful to post the response for anyone else that might have the same question. Below are the main differences. 

Silvano has a true boiler for brewing with a PID and a thermoblock for steaming. It does not have a thermosiphon heated grouphead so there is a lot more fluctuation in temperature when compared to something that does. The thermoblock for steam takes longer to steam and has less steam pressure than something that has a true boiler.

The Alexia Evo is the next machine in the line up in terms of price. It has better temperature stability at the grouphead due to the thermosiphon heated e61 grouphead. It also has a PID that keeps the temperature stable, but it is not ideal for steaming as it has a single boiler that is used for both brewing and steaming. In order to use for both brewing and steaming though, you have to wait between brewing and steaming for the boiler to increase or decrease in temp. That makes it take longer to make a drink and there is more temp fluctuation, which effect the flavor of the shots... too hot creates bitterness, too cold sourness. Steady temp is what is ideal.

Anita is similar to the Alexia. It has a thermosiphon heated grouphead, but instead of being a single boiler it's a hybrid between a single boiler and a double boiler. The boiler type is called a heat exchanger. A heat exchanger is a good machine for someone that does primarily milk based drinks. You can brew and steam at the same time without waiting between brewing and steaming.

The Andreja is similar to the Anita, but has a commercial pressurestat that keeps the boiler temp within a more confined range as it is maintaining the boiler temp. If you wanted it also has the option to direct connect, but requires an optional additional kit to do so.

The QM67 is a double boiler machine that has a dedicated boiler for both brewing and steaming. It also has a PID temperature adjuster for each boiler so you can raise and lower the temperature of each boiler independently of the other boiler. This allows you to adjust the brew temp to the temp that works best for espresso (some beans work best at higher temps, others work best at lower temps). It also allows you to adjust the steam temp to something that works best for your preferences... Higher temp means a hotter drier steam, lower temps mean a cooler wetter steam. That effects how the milk steams and how the microfoam turns out.

For more information on the differences between the different boiler types, check out this video:

https://www.espressooutlet.net/espresso-outlet-blog/single-boiler-vs-heat-exchanger-hx-vs-double-boiler-espresso-machine-comparison/