1Zpresso · Dial-in chart
1Zpresso X-Ultra grind settings
Where to set the 1Zpresso X-Ultra for every common brew method — worked out from this grinder’s own dial curve rather than a one-size-fits-all chart.
The shape of this dial
The top line is the universal grind index every BrewMark recipe uses. The bottom line is the X-Ultra’s own dial. The connectors show how one maps onto the other.
Settings by brew method
Start at the recommended setting, brew, then move within the range by taste. Sour or weak means go finer; bitter or harsh means go coarser.
| Method | Setting | Range |
|---|---|---|
| EspressoFine. Aim for a 25–30s shot and adjust from there. | 62 clicks | 36 clicks – 95 clicks |
| Moka potFiner than filter, coarser than espresso. No tamping. | 101 clicks | 95 clicks – 104 clicks |
| AeroPress (short steep)For 1–2 minute recipes. Go coarser for longer steeps. | 106 clicks | 104 clicks – 107 clicks |
| Pour over — V60 / coneThe reference point for most published pour-over recipes. | 108 clicks | 107 clicks – 115 clicks |
| Pour over — flat bottomKalita, Orea and similar. Slightly coarser than a cone. | 115 clicks | 109 clicks – 133 clicks |
| Drip / batch brewAutomatic brewers. Coarser to suit the longer contact time. | 127 clicks | 115 clicks – 153 clicks |
| ChemexThe thick filter needs a coarser grind to avoid stalling. | 153 clicks | 133 clicks – 179 clicks |
| French pressCoarse. Too fine here is the usual cause of a muddy cup. | 193 clicks | 176 clicks – 208 clicks |
| Cold brewCoarsest setting you have. 12–18 hours of contact. | 221 clicks | 208 clicks – 240 clicks |
How much room you have to adjust
That is the resolution you actually have to work with on the X-Ultra. Where the number is small, a single step moves the cup more than you would expect — so change one at a time and taste before moving again.
Dialing in the X-Ultra
The X series is 1Zpresso's more affordable line, and the X-Ultra is its all-rounder — positioned between the espresso-focused J-Ultra and the filter-leaning K-Ultra, and happy at either end without being optimised for one. The external dial gives 60 clicks a rotation across four rotations, so 240 settings at 12.5 microns each: the same step size as the JX-Pro and half that of the Q2, which is why espresso is genuinely dialable here. Seventy-three clicks separate espresso from filter, so small moves really are small. The one practical annoyance is that nothing tells you which rotation you are on — lose count and you return to zero and start again, though the dial lifts off to recalibrate.
Coming from another grinder?
Convert a grind setting to the X-Ultra
If a recipe quotes a setting for a different grinder, this maps it onto the X-Ultra’s dial using the same curve the chart above is built from.
Converting between two grinders that are not this one? Open the full converter.
How these numbers were worked out
Every grinder gets mapped onto a shared 0–100 grind index, where 0 is espresso-fine and 100 is the coarsest useful setting. Five reference points on the X-Ultra are placed on that scale — espresso, moka, filter, French press and coarse — and the settings in between are interpolated.
The X-Ultra’s five reference points have been checked against the manufacturer’s published grind chart and cross-checked against an independent source, and that check is written down in the repository. It is one of 46 models, out of 78, where that is true.
Because the X-Ultra uses conical burrs, the curve between those points is fitted with a monotone cubic spline rather than straight lines. Conical burr dials are rarely linear, and the spline guarantees the curve never doubles back — a coarser index always produces a coarser setting.
The result is that “medium-fine” resolves to a real number on this grinder rather than a vague instruction. It is a starting point, not a guarantee — burr wear, bean density and roast level all move the target, which is why every row above gives a range as well as a number.
Free wall chart
Put the X-Ultra numbers next to the grinder
Every method on one sheet, laid out on the X-Ultra’s own dial so you can see where the settings bunch up. Print it, pin it, stop reaching for your phone with wet hands.
Or have the X-Ultra chart emailed
The same settings, sent once, for when you are standing at the grinder and nowhere near a printer.
One email with the chart. Nothing else unless you ask.
Make these numbers yours
This chart is the same for every X-Ultra in the world. Log what you actually brewed and it stops being — the app remembers the setting that worked for your beans and shifts the starting point toward it. Free on iOS.
Get the iOS appCompare the X-Ultra
Side-by-side dial charts and a conversion table, so a recipe written for one grinder becomes a real number on the other.
Grinders that dial in like this one
Similar burrs, scale or dial range — which means settings translate between them more predictably than across the whole catalog.