With the Silvia Pro X, Rancilio is bringing a dual boiler machine to the market that comes across like its big sister, the iconic "Miss Silvia". There's much that's tried and tested, but also some innovations. Will Rancilio succeed with the Silvia Pro X in making the leap into the new millennium without losing its cult status? We tested it! As always, we bought the machine ourselves and can therefore speak our minds freely. Of course, we'll also give you some tips on how to brew delicious espresso with the Silvia Pro X.
Many more dual boilers are on the test list and other espresso machines are on the test list.
Rancilio Silvia Pro X at a glance
The strengths
- For a dual boiler, the Rancilio Silvia Pro X has a relatively fast heat-up time of just 8 minutes without the steam boiler. With the steam boiler, the espresso machine is ready to use in 11 minutes.
- Good temperature stability, especially with our tips for use below.
- Relatively low energy consumption for a dual boiler.
- Possibility of pre-infusion, even though longer programming time would be desirable.
- Shot timer that displays the extraction time of the espresso. Many espresso machines skimp on this, but it's such a practical little helper.
- Robust construction and Rancilio Silvia design. Timeless and with cult status.
- Few sharp edges, as the sheet metal is bent at visible points and ends smoothly.
- Solid portafilter, although also with some weaknesses.
- Quality tamper that fits flush with the basket.
- Good espresso performance. The coffee tastes good thanks to the well-balanced overall concept of temperature, pressure and consistency.
The weaknesses
- Tiny drip tray. In fact, the Silvia Pro X's drip tray competes for the last place in this category when compared with other dual boilers.
- Drip tray is not permeable enough and thus repels drips and splashes more than a grate would.
- Relatively low steam power, even though you can work with it.
- Portafilter not balanced.
- Spouts of the portafilter positioned close together, making it sometimes difficult to hit two cups well and not extract over the rim.
- No cool touch steam wand.
- Pre-infusion maximum 6 seconds
Test videos for the Rancilio Silvia Pro X
Here are our two test videos on YouTube.
Since our test video turned out quite long again, we've condensed and shortened the video.
The exterior of the Silvia Pro X - The old Volvo among dual boilers
The Silvia Pro X is not a design marvel. Rancilio stays true to itself and has designed a machine that in terms of design could have belonged in 1998: practical, solid and understated. The comparison to an old Volvo isn't far off the mark. Anyone who buys an old Volvo doesn't want to show off with design, but rather drive a solid and safe car.
The Silvia Pro X has a width of 25.5 cm and is therefore relatively narrow. In height it measures 40.5 cm and in depth 42.2 cm. Even with the portafilter locked in, it only has a total depth of 51.5 cm, so it fits on any countertop. At a weight of 20 kilograms, it stands solidly on the table and doesn't move.
Inside the Silvia Pro X are two boilers: a small 0.3-liter espresso boiler and a switchable 1-liter steam boiler. In our case, the steam boiler was actually disabled upon delivery and had to be activated first.
Our machine had no significant offset, so the displayed values were quite accurate. Still, we recommend having your specialty retailer re-measure when you purchase. The machine has no volumetrics built in, so a scale under the espresso cups is a must!
All in all, the machine makes a high-quality impression. The metal edges are bent on the sides, so there are no sharp edges. The gap tolerances are also within limits, and the accessories fit into the overall picture – practical and solid. The baskets are neat and well-dimensioned. There's also a blind basket for cleaning and a really nice, well-fitting tamper.
The included portafilter also appears solid. Aesthetically, the home barista world is divided. Unfortunately, the portafilter is "top-heavy" due to its large mass and doesn't really lie balanced in the hand. Besides, the spouts are very close together, so you have to aim carefully to avoid hitting the rim of a cup when making two espressos.
The machine's old design is robust and time-tested, but has some disadvantages. The 2.2-liter water tank comes with two tubes that suck up the water. If you're not careful, you'll quickly run dry with this system. When refilling and cleaning the tank, you must always ensure that both tubes are in the water. What used to be standard is rarely found in modern machines today.
Another significant disadvantage is the tiny drip tray. Almost nothing fits in it. This is very annoying because not only water from the purge shots, but also water from the relief valve empties into it.
In everyday use, this means you have to empty the drip tray after what feels like every other espresso. The mechanism for emptying the drip tray is also so flimsy that you always spill a bit when doing it. To make matters worse, the grate design isn't really well thought out and water dripping onto it pools there. While there are alternative drip trays with grilles available online, Rancilio could have easily avoided this criticism point.
Temperature performance
Anyone who knows us coffee makers knows that we measure every machine down to the smallest detail. Especially when it comes to temperature and temperature stability.
In advance: The Rancilio Silvia Pro X does a really good job!
If you only want to drink espresso, you can turn off the steam boiler. On one hand, this helps reduce the already low power consumption of the machine, and on the other hand, it shortens the heat-up time. The espresso boiler reaches temperature after about 8 minutes and uses only 0.13 kilowatts per hour during heat-up. This is a value that can compete in the thermoblock league!
We determined that after 10 minutes plus a purge shot to heat up the portafilter, we achieve sufficient brewing temperature (see graph above).
When we measured using the WBC protocol, we found that at higher cycling rates, the machine comes out of thermal equilibrium and brews sometimes hotter and sometimes cooler. Nevertheless, the standard deviation of the Silvia Pro X at 1.22 degrees is in a mid-range.
We achieved the best results when we allowed 90 seconds between individual espresso extractions. Then the temperature of the Silvia Pro X stabilized very well and delivered consistent results.
If you want to offer yourself or your guests a cappuccino, you should start the machine with the steam boiler already switched on and wait about 11 to 12 minutes. Although Rancilio claims the machine reaches target temperature after 5 minutes, our measurements show we're only at about 70 degrees at that point. You can't brew a drinkable espresso at this temperature. We therefore strongly recommend giving the big Silvia time! The machine consumes about 0.24 kilowatts per hour to heat both boilers, which is also a very good value and outshines many machines.
In our WBC protocol, we tested the temperature stability of the Silvia Pro X under extreme load. We found that too high a frequency can overwhelm the machine. However, this is not a big deal, since we're not talking about a commercial machine here.
Pre-infusion – A great innovation!
And then there's something new! Rancilio gives us the option to set a pre-infusion on the Silvia Pro X. In this process, the coffee puck is wetted with hot water for between 0 and 6 seconds. The vibratory pump doesn't run during pre-infusion, but rather kicks in afterward.
What is pre-infusion good for? Ground coffee has a hydrophobic, i.e., water-repellent surface. If you pump water at high pressure through the coffee grounds, it can happen that some areas of the coffee cake "accept" the water earlier and let it through, while other areas react later. This can cause so-called channeling. With channeling, the extraction of the espresso is not uniform; small channels form in the coffee cake through which the water flows too quickly. The result is an unbalanced cup of espresso.
With pre-infusion, the entire coffee puck is wetted with water. So it comes into contact with water without pressure and is essentially "persuaded" to let the incoming water flow through more easily. When the vibratory pump kicks in and the water flows through under pressure, the extraction is more uniform.
Pre-infusion is not a must! Some coffees, especially lighter roasts, benefit from it more than others. Nevertheless, pre-infusion is an innovation we really welcome. It's simply fun to experiment a bit more with different coffees. If you ask us, it could have been 10 seconds, but the 6 seconds Rancilio offers are also fine!
Espresso and cappuccino – We like the taste!
An espresso machine should make good espresso – and the Silvia Pro X does! When properly adjusted, it brews us really delicious espresso with consistent quality. Thanks to the pre-infusion and PID control, we can set all parameters exactly and achieve the most perfect extraction possible. That's fun!
Cappuccino preparation also works well. Since it's a dual boiler system, we don't need heat-up time between the espresso shot and milk steaming. Steam is available immediately, and that can really help when making several cappuccinos in a row!
The steam pressure of the Silvia Pro X is not outstandingly high. Even when we set the PID control for the steam boiler to the maximum of 125 degrees, the steam power stays modest. Rancilio doesn't use a "cool touch" steam wand. Also, the steam wand puffs a bit after it's switched off. So don't pull the wand out of the pitcher too quickly, otherwise you'll end up pushing large bubbles into your milk foam at the last moment!
Conclusion: A really interesting machine!
"Anything but boring". And with this Volvo slogan, we'll end the last Volvo comparison in this blog. But this comparison is also spot on. Yes, the design seems understated, almost a bit old-fashioned. The drip tray is a disaster and the water tank is anything but a modern, clever solution. Nevertheless, the Silvia Pro X is a really interesting machine.
The machine is very quick to get going for a dual boiler at 8 or 11 minutes. Temperature stability is excellent! The possibility of pre-infusion invites experimentation and gets even more out of many coffees. And most importantly: The espresso tastes great! Every single espresso, as soon as the machine reaches operating temperature.
It becomes really interesting when we look at the price of the machine. In Germany it's available for around 1400 euros and in Switzerland for 1600 – 1700 francs. For this money, Rancilio makes a really good offer and delivers a solid machine that you really can't go wrong with. Almost like a Volvo… ok, we'll stop!
