Rancilio Silvia Pro X Review: A Prosumer Upgrade to a Time-Tested Gem

I’m both nervous and excited to write this Rancilio Silvia Pro X review. Maybe it’s silly, but I love the OG Rancilio Silvia so much that I’m worried I’ll hurt its feelings by showering the Silvia Pro X with too much praise.

With that said, I am absolutely thrilled about the upgrades to the Rancilio Silvia line with this new model. Really, Rancilio has responded to every minor criticism about the original Silvia and blown away all expectations. Actually, I gave the Silvia Pro X the honorable Best Overall title in my guide to the best prosumer espresso machine, if that tells you anything.

When the time comes to put this machine through its paces, I’ll be sure to order it from the pros over at Seattle Coffee Gear. In my eyes, those guys are the best wholesaler for prosumer and high end home espresso machines.

Seeing as this is my initial Rancilio pro X review, feel free to join me as I drool over basic features of this stellar home espresso machine.

Overview: Rancilio Pro X Review

The Rancilio Silvia Pro X may be a fresh fish, but Rancilio has been a trusted Italian manufacturer for decades now. In fact, the original Silvia has been around since 1977, with very few changes over the years.

Rancilio’s Silvia line has been an industry star since the beginning. The Silvia is widely beloved among home baristas and coffee pros alike, so when the Silvia Pro X espresso machine came around people got pretty excited.

That said, with a $1,940.00 MSRP the Pro X costs twice as much as the original model. Are all the upgrades worth the extra cash? I think so, but read along to decide for yourself.

The Silvia Pro X is a dual boiler espresso machine with dual PID controllers, a 58-mm group and a stainless steel steam wand with impressive steam power. These features alone are enough to elevate the Pro X to prosumer status, but Rancilio wasn’t finished just yet.

Bonus features include soft pre-infusion, a pressure gauge and an independent hot water tap. What’s more, an automatic shot timer, automatic backflush and an auto-on feature add an extra layer of convenience.

It should be clear by now that the Pro X is a pretty awesome espresso machine. Again, the Pro X wins the honor of being the best overall pick in my guide to prosumer espresso machines.

But if superb functionality isn’t your main priority, don’t worry – the Pro X is gorgeous too. It’s got sleek lines and an industrial vibe that’ll fit in practically any kitchen.

Truly, if you’re looking for a prosumer gem that’s rooted in the reputation of a time-tested Italian manufacturer, the Rancilio Silvia Pro X espresso machine may be the choice for you.

Rancilio Pro X Features

Now that you know the basics of this Rancilio Silvia Pro X review, I’ll break it down with a bit more detail. Read along to learn about the ins-and-outs of this beauty.

Size and Design

The Silvia Pro X looks pretty similar to the original Silvia, just with some added oomph. Like the OG model, the Pro X is boxy and industrial with a stainless steel body. But the newbie takes it a step further, elevating the design with sleek lines and a digital display.

What’s more, stylish panels in the color of your choosing wrap the machine.

The Pro X is pretty compact for a dual boiler machine, with about a 10-inch (25-centimeter) wide footprint. That said, as with most espresso machines, you’ll have to make sure that the thing fits underneath any overhanging cabinets. In particular, remember to verify that you have the room to access the top-filling water reservoir. 

On a similar note, you’ll want enough space over the espresso machine to make use of the stainless steel cup warmer on top.

Conveniently, the drip tray is adjustable to three different heights. Still, the cup clearance maxes out at 4 inches (10 centimeters), which isn’t too generous. If you’re planning to drink some joe on the road, you’ll have to pull a shot into an espresso cup and transfer it into a tall travel mug.

Colors

Rancilio doesn’t give you a huge range of color options with the Silvia Pro X, but there are a good handful! Most importantly, all of the colorways feature stainless steel panels. Meanwhile, the color options have a matte powder coating atop the stainless steel. Here are the options:

Am I the only one excited to see pink as an option? It’s certainly a stand-out color choice, but what’s a home espresso machine for if not to show off to visitors?

User Interface

Again, the user interface on the Pro X should be pretty familiar to you old-school Silvia users. That said, this baby has a few extra bells and whistles up its sleeve. 

Most notable, of course, is the PID control panel. It’s located front and center, so you can’t miss it. The PID control panel features an LED display and buttons with plus and minus symbols.

As it happens, the PID display is where you access all the adjustability controls. Simply press and hold the plus and minus buttons to get into programming mode, then navigate the menus using the arrows and the brew switch.

Incidentally, the menu options include adjustable brew temperature, adjustable soft infusion, a wake up timer and more. These are all represented by short codes, which you’ll have to consult the user manual to figure out. I’ll talk more about these features a bit later in this Rancilio Pro X review.

Beyond the PID display, you’ve got a pressure gauge, a steam knob and four switches. One of these is the center brew switch, which you press to start and stop your shots. There’s also a power switch, a hot water switch and a switch for turning the steam boiler on or off.

Overall, the user interface creates an intuitive and seamless user experience. In fact, this machine is ideal for baristas of all skill levels. Beginners will find it easy to use, while intermediate baristas will be impressed with the adjustable shot parameters.

Of course, any buyer will need to be down with the idea of manual shot pulling. If you’re looking for an experience that’s more tailored to convenience, check out my guide to super automatic espresso machines.

Dual Boilers

The dual boilers are really the stars of the show here. They also happen to be the reason for the Pro X’s hefty price tag – but rather than wallow on that, let’s focus on the positives.

The Silvia Pro X has a designated 33.8-ounce (1-liter) stainless steel steam boiler, plus a 10-ounce (300-milliliter) brass coffee boiler.

As it happens, dual boilers have a few benefits. The obvious one, of course, is the ability to pull shots and steam milk at the same time. Even if you aren’t up for that challenge, dual boilers mean there’s no lag time between pulling a shot and steaming milk. In other words, you can make yourself a steaming hot latte in one minute flat.

A less obvious benefit of dual boilers is improved temperature stability, since you don’t have a single boiler bouncing between brewing and steaming. The dual boilers can build thermal stability in their respective ideal temperature ranges.

What’s more, the Rancilio Silvia Pro X gives you the option to turn off the steam boiler when you’re not using it. This not only conserves energy but further increases the brew temperature stability and brew pressure stability.

Meanwhile, the pressure gauge on the front of the machines measures the boiler for the brew pressure, rather than monitoring the less consistent pressure in the grouphead itself.

All in all, the Pro X’s dual boiler system creates an excellent brewing experience. Oh, and the 68-ounce (2-liter) BPA-free water reservoir means you won’t have to worry about running out of water in the midst of a brunch party.

PID Control

As an extra bonus, the dual boilers have independent PID control. I’ll leave the scientific explanation to good ol’ Google, but basically the PID controllers regulate the water temperatures in the boilers.

Even better, they enable you to select the brew temperature and steam temperature with degree-by-degree precision.

The interface itself is pretty easy to navigate, with an LCD display and plus and minus buttons. Picking your ideal temperature is a breeze, and you can even choose Fahrenheit or Celsius as your temperature unit.

What’s more, the PID display transforms into a shot timer when you start pulling a shot.

Soft Pre-Infusion

Fortunately, pre-infusion has become standard, even on entry-level espresso machines. For the uninitiated, I’ll explain. Preinfusion features pre-wet the coffee puck at low pressure before ramping up to full brewing pressure. This reduces the risk of channeling and helps ensure a balanced, nuanced and flavorful espresso shot. Sounds pretty good, right?

With that said, the Silvia Pro X does things a bit differently. Rather than a traditional pre-infusion, it features soft infusion.

During soft infusion, the vibratory pump isn’t engaged. Rather, the group simply opens to allow some water to dampen the grounds with no pressure. Conveniently, this has the added benefit of emptying a little water from the brew boiler, so when the brew pressure ramps up for full extraction it does so slowly.

What’s more, you can adjust the soft infusion time from zero to six seconds. So, if for whatever reason a balanced extraction isn’t your thing, you can choose to turn the soft infusion setting off.

Finally, the Pro X also has an adjustable brew pressure, but it’s not clear how you go about adjusting it. Perhaps there’s an over pressure valve adjustment screw somewhere, or you need to decode a menu option to adjust the pressure.

Either way, I’ll have to investigate this feature and report back once the Silvia Pro X hits my doorstep.

Portafilter

The portafilter on the Rancilio Pro X is almost as prosumer as it gets: a weighty 58-millimeter stainless steel beauty. It’s quite similar to the portafilter on the Rancilio Specialty and Rancilio’s other commercial espresso machines.

The Pro X comes with a portafilter with split spouts, but if that doesn’t suit your fancy you can opt to buy a bottomless portafilter separately. I mean, those Instagram pour videos aren’t going to make themselves!

That said, the Silvia Pro X includes both single shot and double shot baskets, so you won’t have to go out of your way to buy any of those. And rather than a blank backflushing basket, the Pro X has a rubber backflush disc. More on that in a bit.

Finally, the plastic and brass brew group has a 3 way solenoid valve. This valve helps regulate the pressure in the group. What’s more, it prevents a soupy mess in the portafilter by diverting excess water to the drip tray. For all the commercial features that made it into the home espresso machine world, the solenoid valve may just be my favorite.

Tamper

Towards the end of my Rancilio Pro X review I’ll have some complaining to do in regards to the plastic tampers that come with the Pro X’s competitors. But here? Two thumbs up to Rancilio for including a solid stainless steel tamper in the Pro X accessory kit.

Seasoned baristas know that a quality espresso tamper is a huge help when it comes to crafting a perfect shot of espresso.

Steam Wand

Again, I have no complaints here. The Rancilio Silvia Pro X features a quality multidirectional steam wand. It’s stainless steel with no-burn insulation and four steam holes in the tip. Most importantly, it seems to do a great job frothing up some creamy microfoam.

And since there’s a separate designated hot water dispenser, the steam wand only has one job to do: steaming milk to perfection.

Auto-On Feature

Last but not least, the Rancilio Pro X has a programmable wake-up feature. This works a bit different than most auto-on features, so listen closely.

The Rancilio Silvia Pro X doesn’t have a built-in clock. So, rather than setting an alarm, per se, you set a timer for however long you want it to sleep before it wakes up again.

For example, if it’s 11 pm and you need to wake up in 7 hours, set the timer for 6.5 hours so the Pro X is toasty warm and ready to go by the time you stumble into the kitchen.

Otherwise, you’re stuck turning the coffee machine on first thing in the morning, then waiting 15 minutes while it warms up.

Incidentally, the concept is the same for the auto-off feature. And setting these timers is a breeze, thanks to the intuitive user interface I mentioned earlier in my Rancilio Pro X review.

How to Use the Rancilio Silvia Pro X

I already gave you a quick intro on the programming mode earlier in my Rancilio Pro X review. As it happens, learning how to decode the menu options in the programming mode is the hardest part of operating the Silvia Pro X.

Otherwise, you use it just like you would any other espresso machine. Fill it with water, turn it on and wait 15 minutes for it to heat up. While you wait, you can prep your espresso puck. 

Of course, you’ll need a quality espresso grinder for this endeavor.

Once the espresso machine is ready to brew, grind some espresso beans into your portafilter, then distribute and tamp the grounds. Then, tare an espresso cup on a coffee scale that can fit on the drip tray.

Secure the portafilter in the group head and place the cup and scale beneath the coffee spouts, then press the brew switch to start the extraction. Keep an eye on your scale, and when the shot gets to your preferred yield, press the brew switch again to stop the shot.

If you want steamed milk, you know the drill: fill a milk pitcher with cold milk, submerge the tip of the steam wand and steam away.

Rancilio Silvia Pro X Cleaning

Cleaning and descaling an espresso machine is really quite easy. I won’t go over the whole shebang right now, but I’ll say this: filtered water goes a long way.

What’s more, the Pro X espresso machine has an automatic backflush feature, which makes clean-up even easier. Plus, professional baristas know how important it is to regularly backflush your machine. You don’t want to be drinking old coffee oils in your espresso shots, do you?

Fortunately, Rancilio includes a rubber backflush insert in the accessory kit to make the process all the easier.

Rancilio Silvia Pro X Specifications

Rancilio Silvia Pro X vs Other Espresso Machines

Any time you buy a new espresso machine, it’s a good idea to consider a few alternatives before going all in on your chosen model. The Pro X may be a stellar choice, but there are tons of options out there. I’ve highlighted two of my favorites, particularly because they have similar features to the Pro X but with lower price tags.

Rancilio Silvia Pro X vs Lelit Elizabeth

Rancilio may be one of my favorite Italian espresso machine manufacturers, but Lelit is pretty up there too. So, let’s put the Pro X head-to-head with the Lelit Elizabeth espresso machine.

With an $1,800.00 MSRP, the Lelit Elizabeth certainly costs a pretty penny, though it’s a wee bit more affordable than the Pro X. What’s more, it’s got all the goods:

In addition to these basic features, it’s got a couple extra functions. In particular, the OLED display is pretty snazzy. What’s more, programmable single and double shot buttons mean you don’t need to pull shots manually. Rather, you can program in your favorite recipe and pull your next shot with a simple press of a button.

Still, the Pro X is superior in a couple ways. The steam boiler on the Lelit Elizabeth is a bit smaller, and the Elizabeth only comes with a cheap plastic tamper.

That said, these quirks may not bother you. Plus, buying a new tamper isn’t all that expensive anyway.

See Also: Lelit Elizabeth Review

Rancilio Silvia Pro X vs Breville Dual Boiler

I can’t finish this Rancilio Silvia Pro X review without first comparing it to a legendary home espresso machine, the Breville Dual Boiler. With a $114.99 price tag, the Breville machine is quite a bit cheaper than the Silvia Pro X – and it has a lot of comparable features.

In fact, the Breville Dual Boiler may even be a better deal than the Pro X. Similarities between the two models include dual boilers, PID controllers, a 58-mm group, an LCD display and adjustable preinfusion.

That said, the Breville machine has volumetric control that allows you to pull automatic shots. Basically, you can program a shot volume or shot time into the single and double shot buttons.

What’s more, it’s quite easy to adjust the brew pressure on the Breville Dual Boiler, so it’s got even more shot customization than the Pro X. Incidentally, Breville is all about ease of use – the Dual Boiler model even has a nifty storage space for your espresso tamper.

On that note, Breville definitely loses points for including a plastic espresso tamper in the Breville Dual Boiler kit. But that’s really the only category in which the Pro X is clearly superior to the Breville machine.

That said, you really can’t go wrong with either choice.

See Also: Breville Dual Boiler Review

Rancilio Silvia Pro X vs Others Comparison Chart

Verdict: Rancilio Silvia Pro X Review

There you have it, my Rancilio Silvia Pro X review. As you can see, I’m pretty excited to tinker with this prosumer gem! Having used the original Rancilio Silvia for many years, I can only imagine how awesome this upgraded machine is going to be. So, if you’re interested, keep checking back for my hands-on review.

Rancilio Silvia Pro X FAQ