Which to buy · Every setting
Fellow Opus vs Niche Zero
Two grinders cross-shopped at the same money. The Opus is numbered 1–11; the Zero is numbered 0–50.
Which to buy
Choose the
Opus if you…
- want fixed steps you can return to exactly — 41 on the dial, plus a micro-adjust ring
- want a timed auto-stop at 30, 60, 90 or 120 seconds
- grind more than one dose at a time — it holds 110 g
Choose the
Zero if you…
- want 63 mm conical burrs and a stepless dial
- weigh each dose — Niche claims zero retention and doses within ±0.2 g
- single-dose — it has no hopper; you pour beans into the funnel
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Fellow now sells the Opus 2 in place of the original; the settings on this page are for the original.
Sources: Fellow — Opus (archived) · Fellow — Opus gear guide · Niche — Zero · Niche — Zero user manual
| Opus | Zero | |
|---|---|---|
| Brand | Fellow | Niche |
| Scale | Numbered dial | Numbered dial |
| Dial range | 1 – 11 | 0 – 50 |
| Burrs | Conical | Conical |
| Espresso → filter | 5.7 numbers | 34.6 numbers |
| Filter → coarse | 3.9 numbers | 9.1 numbers |
The same number means different things
Both grinders use a numbered dial, which makes it tempting to copy a number straight across. Setting 6 sits at grind index 34.2 on the Opus but 0 on the Zero — far enough apart to change the cup.
Converting a setting
If a recipe quotes a setting for one of these grinders, read across for the equivalent on the other. Rows are spaced evenly by grind size, not by dial number — on a conical burr those are not the same thing.
| Opus | Zero |
|---|---|
| 1.2 | 6.3 |
| 2 | 26.2 |
| 3.2 | 32.7 |
| 5.3 | 37.7 |
| 7.1 | 41.6 |
| 8 | 44.1 |
| 8.2 | 45.6 |
| 8.3 | 46.7 |
| 9.1 | 47.9 |
| 9.3 | 48.7 |
| 10.2 | 49.3 |
| 11 | 50 |
| Zero | Opus |
|---|---|
| 6.3 | 1.2 |
| 17.1 | 1.2 |
| 26.2 | 2 |
| 32.7 | 3.2 |
| 37.7 | 5.3 |
| 41.6 | 7.1 |
| 44.1 | 8 |
| 45.6 | 8.2 |
| 46.7 | 8.3 |
| 47.9 | 9.1 |
| 48.7 | 9.3 |
| 49.3 | 10.2 |
| 50 | 11 |
Side by side, by brew method
Where each grinder lands for the same brew, worked out from its own dial curve.
| Method | Opus | Zero |
|---|---|---|
| Espresso | 1.2 | 12.8 |
| Moka pot | 1.3 | 24.7 |
| AeroPress (short steep) | 3.2 | 32.7 |
| Pour over — V60 / cone | 6.3 | 40 |
| Siphon | 7.2 | 41.7 |
| Pour over — flat bottom | 7.3 | 42.8 |
| Steep and release — Clever / Switch | 8 | 43.6 |
| Drip / batch brew | 8 | 44.1 |
| Cupping | 8 | 44.5 |
| Chemex | 8.2 | 45.6 |
| French press | 9 | 47.5 |
| Cold brew | 10 | 49 |
The shape of each dial
Where the connectors bunch, that grinder’s dial is compressed and single steps count for more. Comparing the two shapes tells you which gives finer control, and where.
Fellow Opus
Niche Zero
Dialing in the Opus
Marketed as all-purpose, and it genuinely does cover more range than the Ode, but the espresso end is workable rather than good — expect to chase it. Where it earns its place is the coarse end: cold brew and French press come out notably even. If you bought the Opus mainly for espresso, dial it as a brew grinder first and judge it there.
Dialing in the Zero
Single-dose, stepless, and calibrated so that the same numbered setting means roughly the same thing between units — unusual, and the reason Niche numbers get quoted directly between users. Because it is stepless, the settings below are targets rather than detents: land near the number and adjust by taste. Its espresso and filter ranges overlap more than the dial implies.