The full story
By the Espresso Rated editors · Published Nov 13, 2026
The second Ode keeps the first one's shape and fixes most of what annoyed its owners: new burrs, a steeper hopper and an ionizer at the chute. The praise centers on the cup, the clean workflow and the quiet. The complaints are about fines, wide steps and a higher price.
Sweet, clear filter cups from 64 mm burrs, with fines on record and no espresso6.1/10
For filter coffee the Ode Gen 2 grinds very well, and the grind score divides opinion mainly because of what it refuses to do. The 64 mm Gen 2 Brew Burrs give cups that are sweet and balanced, with body and enough clarity to pick out tasting notes. Lance Hedrick's summary of one brew was "just a fantastic cup".1
The new burrs also reach finer than the first Ode's did, which opens up more of the pour-over range. Lighter roasts at coarser settings come out especially clear.
The caveat in the cup is fines. A home-barista.com owner found the stock burrs made "considerable fines particularly with softer/darker roasts", and side-by-side comparisons give SSP burrs a small edge in clarity.2 The gap is narrow, and nobody making that comparison was disappointed with the stock set.
Espresso is off the table. Seattle Coffee Gear, a store that sells it, says so plainly: "This is not made for espresso use."3 The burrs do not go fine enough, and forcing the issue can stall the motor and void the warranty.
An ionizer that keeps the counter clean, and a catch cup that wants a second pour7.3/10
The workflow is widely liked, and the ionizer is the reason. It sits at the exit of the chute and removes most of the static that makes other grinders spray chaff and grounds around.4 The maker lists low grind retention, and the accounts agree: very little coffee stays behind from one dose to the next.
You can skip the water spritz that single-dose grinders usually call for. Lifestyle Lab, which was sent its unit, calls it "one of the cleanest grinders I own" even with dry beans.5 The steeper hopper also feeds beans through without the hang-ups the first Ode was known for, and it takes a larger dose.
The catch cup is the weak link. Thin metal strips inside hold on to grounds, so emptying it can take a tap or a shake. A few grounds also tend to gather around the chute and the base.
“often you need to kind of go back shake a little bit and pour a second time and that just doesn't really Delight me”
This is a single-dose grinder, so you weigh beans into it for every brew. Very oily, dark beans are the one kind of coffee flagged as a poor match.
A low hum that will not wake the house, with one dissent about a rattle8.8/10
Noise and size are the Ode's most consistently praised traits. It grinds with a low note, not a screech, and it is quiet enough to use early in the morning. Daniel Norris calls it "whisper-quiet".6
It is also small. The footprint suits a crowded counter, it stops by itself when the beans run out, and it does not beep when it finishes.
There is one clear dissent, from ARAMSE, who was sent the grinder. He hears a rattle in the stock machine and reports that swapping in SSP burrs makes it worse.7
“if I had to describe it in one word it's just a bit rattly”
31 clicks that repeat a recipe, in steps some find too wide6.3/10
The front dial is easy to use and suits some brewers better than others. It has 31 steps, each a firm click, so returning to yesterday's setting is a matter of counting.8 The settings are forgiving, with a broad sweet spot when you dial in a new coffee.
The steps are the limit. ARAMSE calls them "fairly large steps", while accepting that they are fine enough for a filter-only grinder.9 There is no stepless adjustment out of the box, though a simple modification exists for anyone who keeps wanting a setting between two clicks.
One quirk: the dial can be stiff to turn in one direction. Running the motor for a second frees it.10
10.14 lb of mostly metal, with plastic lids and a motor that stalls if pushed7.1/10
Build is widely liked. The body is mostly metal and weighs 10.14 lb, and the grinder has a record of daily use over long periods without trouble. A home-barista.com owner calls it "an absolute workhorse" of a 64 mm grinder.11
The complaints are about the small parts. The hopper lid and the catch cup lid are plastic and feel like an afterthought beside the metal body, and ARAMSE found the power button to "feel and sound a bit cheap".12
The motor holds a steady 1,400 RPM under normal loads. A big dose of very dense light-roast beans at the finest setting can overwhelm it and trigger a protective stall.13 The burr carrier accepts other 64 mm burr sets, and tighter internal tolerances make alignment easier than on the first Ode.
Hard to beat for filter at $399.95, after a clear rise over the first Ode7.2/10
Value is widely liked, with one repeated objection. As a filter grinder it is hard to match for the money: Lifestyle Lab calls it "a very tough brew grinder to beat" at its price.14 The stock burrs are good enough to keep, and the option to fit other 64 mm burrs later gives it room to grow.
The objection is the increase over the first version. Lance Hedrick, who still rates it the best filter grinder at its price, calls the jump "a hard pill to swallow".15 The higher price also brings it nearer to grinders that can do espresso as well.
If you own a first-generation Ode, a whole new grinder is probably not worth it. The Gen 2 burrs fit the older model and are sold separately.
Our verdict
Buy the Ode Gen 2 if filter coffee is all you grind for and you want a quiet, clean, compact machine at $399.95. Skip it if espresso is anywhere in your plans, or if weighing beans for each brew sounds like a chore. Owners of the first Ode should look at the Gen 2 burrs before replacing the whole grinder. In the shop, turn the dial through its 31 clicks and empty the catch cup once to see whether either would bother you.
8 sources quoted in this story (15 notes)
- 1Lance Hedrick · 7:10 “it was sweet it had Clarity it had body it was just a fantastic cup”
- 2home-barista.com · written review “it produced considerable fines particularly with softer/darker roasts”
- 3Seattle Coffee Gear · 4:34 “This grinder is made just for coarser grinding. Think like French press, cold brew, a Chemex. This is not made for espresso use.”
- 4lifestylelab.ca · written review “They’ve integrated an ionizer right at the exit of the grind chute that does a fantastic job of eliminating static.”
- 5lifestylelab.ca · written review “Even without RDT, the ODE is now one of the cleanest grinders I own.”
- 6danielnorris.com · written review “It’s whisper-quiet, smooth, and doesn’t rattle your entire counter.”
- 7ARAMSE · 5:47 “swap the stock Buzz out for the SSP ones and things get even worse”
- 8Alex Hitt · 4:37 “These physical detents allow you to flawlessly repeat a daily filter recipe by simply turning the dial back to an exact click.” but “Because it is a stepped dial, you cannot make infinite stepless micro adjustments.”
- 9ARAMSE · 8:36 “it's a filter only grinder so this level of granularity is sufficient” but “you have a large step dial that gives you 31 settings with each click moving the burst 25 microns now these are fairly large steps”
- 10The Review Rewind · 0:51 “There is 31 different precise measurements that you can set with this coffee grinder.” but “sometimes it might be a little bit harder to change it one direction, simply just turn on the grinder once more”
- 11home-barista.com · written review “The Ode Gen 2 is an absolute workhorse of a 64mm grinder”
- 12ARAMSE · 2:34 “at this price point the build quality is fine and it has a good mix of metal and plastic parts like the hopper and the shoot” but “the on off button does feel and sound a bit cheap”
- 13Alex Hitt · 2:28 “the PID instantly surges electrical current to the motor, locking the speed at a steady 1,400 RPM.” but “If you load a massive amount of ultra-dense light roast beans at the very finest setting, the physical load can overwhelm the motor and trigger a protective stall.”
- 14lifestylelab.ca · written review “At this price point, it’s a very tough brew grinder to beat.”
- 15Lance Hedrick · 3:40 “that's a big jump and that's kind of a hard pill to swallow”
