Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I had a 2006 Bunn Speed Brew for about 10 years, but it started leaking cold water. I found that there were cracks around the spray nozzle, so had to get a new coffee maker. I have been a Bunn fan for many years, but was hesitant to buy another due to several negative reviews and comments about an electrical burning smell, the less inferior construction, more plastic, and being made in China now. I looked at the top three or four brands/models, and all had negative reviews that made me second-guess myself. Ultimately, I decided to take a chance on Bunn again because I like my coffee ASAP, and a 3-4 minute brew time beats out all of the fancier options that other machines offer. My order arrived in two days, was packaged well, and all parts were there. Other than the stainless front (where logo is) and the newer carafe design, this machine appears to be exactly the same in size, shape, and quality as my 2006 Speed Brew model. The carafe is curvier, but I am sure my old carafes will still work (I keep extras in case of breakage, making different flavors, or when one is in the dishwasher). I removed all of the tape and plastic from the brewer and components, and followed setup instructions to the letter. NOTE: after pouring in the second carafe of water, I only got a half pot of water back to dump out. When turning on the water tank, make sure the red part of the switch is visible (RED = ON). The whole I/O thing confuses some people. Instructions said it takes 15 minutes for the water tank to heat the very first time. It was more like 20+ for me. I was starting to worry when the tank wasn't gurgling and getting warm right away, like my old Bunn used to. Fears of repackaging and returning it were not realized, thank goodness. Unlike some of the negative reviews mentioned, I DID NOT smell anything like electrical or plastic melting. The manual smelled worse. 😉 There were complaints of overflowing and grounds in the coffee. It is VERY IMPORTANT to use BUNN brand filters with these machines. If you think you're going to save money by using the cheaper filters, you'll be sorry! They are shorter and cannot handle the rapid and wide spray of water the Bunn brewer puts out; you WILL either overflow or end up with grounds in your coffee. I buy Bunn filters at Walmart for under $2 for a box of 100. Soooo worth it! I have also tried reusable filters, but had issues with those as well. Don't bother. A sample pack of approx 50 Bunn filters will come with this unit to get you started. For newbies wondering about the amount of coffee to use: I prefer to use either Maxwell House or Folgers Columbian or a dark roast coffee. I used half-caff before, but it seemed weaker as time went by, and I started wondering whether it was coffee or ground up tree bark. Also, half-caff is a finer grind of coffee, which may overflow the basket if you use a lot. Because the half-caff tasted weaker, I would use twice the amount of coffee, causing overflow. I like my coffee med-strong, and I normally use 4 level scoops (1/8C or 30ml coffee measure). The new brewer seems to make to coffee a tad bit stronger than my old one, so I might have to cut back to 3-1/2 or so. IMPROVEMENT: The spray nozzle on my 2006 model would fall off constantly, and frequently got tossed in the garbage accidentally. I had to keep a replacement on hand at all times. The new brewer has corrected this issue! Yay!!! So far, I have no complaints!