3Breville The Oracle BES980

Breville The Oracle BES980

BES980BSS (Brushed Stainless Steel), BES980BKS (Black Sesame), BES980BTR (Black Truffle) · See All

  • Verified company
4.4

685 reviews · Statistics

PositiveNegative
84% · 57579 · 12%
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Product is used
  • Daily (108)
  • Several times a week (8)
  • Weekly (2)
Build Quality
3.9 (116)
Value for Money
3.6 (118)
Ease of Use
4.5 (117)
Cleaning & Maintenance
4.3 (116)
Noise Level
3.2 (78)
Consistency
4.1 (100)
Milk Frothing
4.1 (104)
Grinds, doses and tamps for you
Makes excellent coffee
Free at-home demonstration
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Reviews

Reviewed
Reviewed New South Wales, 2233 · 8 posts
 · Verified

Cant fault it

BES980BKS (Black Sesame)

Purchased for $1,857.99.

  • Product is used: Several times a week
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Lisa Jones
Lisa Jones · 15 posts

Amazing Machine!

BES980BKS (Black Sesame)

This is a pretty amazing coffee machine for a domestic appliance. Some days it would churn out 10 or more coffees and is still going strong. You can get beautiful coffee out of these machines and the maintenance is very low.

Purchased in at Harvey Norman for $2,100.

  • Product is used: Daily
Build Quality
Value for Money
Ease of Use
Cleaning & Maintenance
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Milk Frothing
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Phil
Phil North Queensland, QLD · 10 posts

Better made coffee than some cafes

BES980BKS (Black Sesame)

Was purchased to replace Breville Barista BES870
Large water tank capacity with decent size filter. Water level is easy to read at the front
Automatic grinding dosing and tamping
Variable milk texturing with ability to extract espresso and texture milk at same time so coffee is fresh and creamy
We like our milk hot (69C) and milk temp can be set precisely so no thermometer is required
Quick and easy to use
Comprehensive instructions cover all the features and maintenance
Perfect coffee every time even better than what some coffee shops give you and cheaper to run

Purchased in .

  • Product is used: Daily
Build Quality
Value for Money
Ease of Use
Cleaning & Maintenance
Noise Level
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Milk Frothing
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Dianne
Dianne South East Queensland, QLD · 12 posts

Breville your coffee machine is outstanding!

BES980BTR (Black Truffle)

Purchased our Breville The Oracle 26/9/23 have to admit it's our second purchase of this beauty but purchased the matt black one this time from Joyce Mayne for $2,300 it's such an outstanding coffee machine we wouldn't buy any other so easy to use, great frother, easy to clean, we have our coffee extra hot so you can control the temp to your liking, tampers down well for a good brew, water level indicator is in the front so easy to fill when low, the only gripe I will say is I wish it came with a bigger knock box just so no splatter goes on the bench when knocking. The matt black is so attractive sitting on the bench it's a centrepiece.

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Callum
Callum Sydney, NSW · 7 posts

Must have addition to your Kitchen

BES980BSS (Brushed Stainless Steel)

Purchased in at Myer for $3,200.

  • Product is used: Daily
Build Quality
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GadgetBoy
GadgetBoy AU · 15 posts

Impressive Machine, but will it stand the test of time?

BES980BKS (Black Sesame)

Purchased in at The Good Guys.

  • Product is used: Daily
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Rebecca Anne
Rebecca Anne Sydney Surrounds, NSW

Worst customer service ever - broke after 6 months

BES980BTR (Black Truffle)

Our $2500 machine broke after only 6 months. Breville took a week to send a courier out. Then it has taken over a week and "the problem" still hasn't been assessed or fixed. No offer of replacement. To say I am dissapointed is an understatement. This is a VERY expensive machine. Actually the most expensive thing in our kitchen including our fridge and dishwasher! I was previously telling everyone how great it was but after dealing with their after sales customer service I will not recommend this product.

Purchased in at David Jones Online Store for $2,500.

  • Product is used: Daily
Build Quality
Value for Money
Ease of Use
Cleaning & Maintenance
Noise Level
Milk Frothing
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avgmale
avgmale Sydney NSW · 4 posts
 · Verified

Very hit 'n miss with poor reliability & long wait times should it need repair

BES980BKS (Black Sesame)

Purchased in at The Good Guys.

  • Product is used: Daily
Build Quality
Value for Money
Ease of Use
Cleaning & Maintenance
Consistency
Milk Frothing
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Philip K.
Philip K. Greater Melbourne (Metropolitan), VIC · 6 posts

Ripped off

BES980BSS (Brushed Stainless Steel)

Breville customer service are saying there was an issue with my registration for promotion, now saying I've missed the cutoff date to register. The person I spoke to was very rude, she would ask a question then cut me off before I got to answer, she essentially told to to bad tuff luck. Ill be returning the product for a refund and buying another brand. Shame after buying one of the most expensive retail coffee machines this is the sales service we received.

Purchased in at JB Hi-Fi for $2,300.

Build Quality
Value for Money
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PerthPhil
PerthPhil Perth, WA · 17 posts
 · Verified

Dangerous Burn Risk - Steam Wand activates by itself

BES980BSS (Brushed Stainless Steel)

The steam wand activates randomly (without pressing buttons) on the Oracle coffee machine spurting out 100 Degree steam. Sometimes when trying to use it, other times when it is just sitting there, turned on (is on a morning timer). This is dangerous and I have raised the issue with Breville but got a scripted response about warranty eligibility. They didn't seem to care that it might be a safety issue.

Purchased in at David Jones Retail Stores for $2,199.

  • Product is used: Daily
Value for Money
Ease of Use
Cleaning & Maintenance
Noise Level
Consistency
Milk Frothing
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Ross Clark
Ross Clark Perth, WA · 76 posts

Great while it works - beware the fail period!!

The Oracle BES980

Purchased in at Harvey Norman for $2,704.

  • Product is used: Daily
Build Quality
Value for Money
Ease of Use
Cleaning & Maintenance
Noise Level
Consistency
Milk Frothing
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Ian
Ian Perth, WA

Poor product, expensive to repair and a long wait for repairs

The Oracle BES980

Don’t buy this machine, great coffee for 12 months, then it sprang a leak ,1 month after the warranty ran out, $385 to repair a four week wait for parts and this is from the recommended repairer, I should have known as the ware house was full of broken oracles all waiting on parts, was told by the repairer that Breville are not very fair with warranties and I will need to pay, so $2300 becomes $2685 , which is the price of a quality coffee machine

Purchased in at Harvey norman for $2,300.

  • Product is used: Daily
Build Quality
Value for Money
Ease of Use
Cleaning & Maintenance
Noise Level
Consistency
Milk Frothing
Review your last purchase on ProductReview.com.au
Semi-Automatic and Manual Coffee Machines

Find out how Breville The Oracle BES980 compares to other Semi-Automatic and Manual Coffee Machines

Know better, choose better.

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Digger11
Digger11 Greater Melbourne (Inner), VIC · 28 posts

Makes great coffee and kind of easy to use

BES980BTR (Black Truffle)

Purchased in at Bing Lee Online store for $1,899.

  • Product is used: Daily
Build Quality
Value for Money
Ease of Use
Cleaning & Maintenance
Noise Level
Consistency
Milk Frothing
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Jonathan C.
Jonathan C. · 8 posts

Good semi automatic espresso machine. Saves time.

BES980BKS (Black Sesame)

This machine has been brewing our coffee for the last five months. It is an upgrade from our breville dual boiler. Breville let us top up to upgrade.

What we liked about this machine is that it saved us a lot of time. There is no need to tamp and we can leave the milk jug in the machine while it auto froths. That is about a minute per serving but it adds up over time.

Our previous dual boiler caused so much maintenance issues as well. While this oracle one has been performing perfectly since we got it.

Purchased in at The Good Guys for $1,999.

  • Product is used: Daily
Build Quality
Value for Money
Ease of Use
Cleaning & Maintenance
Noise Level
Consistency
Milk Frothing
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Luke T.
Luke T. Greater Melbourne (Outer), VIC · 3 posts
 · Verified

2nd machine failed and still waiting on the parts

BES980BTR (Black Truffle)

We've now been waiting 12 weeks with our machine at the recommended repairer waiting on parts to arrive for our Breville Coffee Machine...and still have no idea of when we will see it and now looking unlikely for our family Christmas Day. The machine was only 14 months old. This product retails for over $2500 and to not have any replacement or compensation is an outrage. Being without a machine for this long is unacceptable Breville.

Purchased in at Harvey Norman for $2,311.

  • Product is used: Several times a week
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Questions & Answers

Frequently Asked Questions about Breville The Oracle BES980

Why isn't water flowing from the group head?

A common problem is that the machine won’t pump water through the hot water function or group head. When this happens, it’s possible that the steam wand - which uses a different pump - is still working.

If this is the case, there may be a blockage in the water tube - coffee grounds could be blocking the tube leading to the hot water spout.

Here are a few potential causes and options.

Do a clear water backflush

This helps keep any residual coffee oils from blocking espresso paths. Insert the grey silicone cleaning disc (in the tool storage tray underneath the drip tray) into the filter basket and run a few shots of espresso without any coffee. This flushes clear water back through the espresso path. Do this 3-4 times. Breville recommends doing this after every coffee-making session.

The hot water solenoid has jammed

The solenoid valve controls the water that goes through the coffee machine and out the espresso discharger or hot water outlet. It has an over-pressure relief valve built into it - a safety mechanism to stop the water pressure getting too high if you have a fine coffee grind.

Sometimes, the solenoid valve can become sticky, wear out, or stop working.

You can fix it yourself if you have a new solenoid valve, after taking off the back and top plates off your machine by removing 4 Phillips heads screws from the front left and right of the machine, and two just above the water dispenser. Once at the exposed top of the machine, you’ll need to remove another 4 Phillips head screws and a cable tie on the old solenoid valve to replace it with the new one.

If this sounds tricky, you can also send the machine into Breville for assessment and a repair.

Broken water pump

If the issue is caused by a broken water pump, then sending your machine into Breville for a repair or replacement may be the only solution.

Inadequate temperature

In other cases, the water might not flow because the machine isn’t reaching the right temperature.

What do I do if my machine isn’t heating up to the right temperature?

Sometimes the Breville Oracle heats up to a certain temperature then stops, never reaching the desired temperature. In the experience of reviewers, this can often happen after descaling (though not always). Here are a few reasons that this can happen, and some possible solutions to try out.

Air lock

Sometimes pressure can build up in the boilers, which is also known as an air lock. Some air will need to be removed from the boilers. To do this, turn the machine off, let it cool down for an hour, then open both boiler valves, by looking at the lower right of the machine, where a small rubber plug covers two indents with screws inside.

Turn the machine on, and while it’s running open the left valve by turning the screw on the left - all the way to the left, using a flathead screwdriver. This should drain water from one boiler into the drip tray. Once no more water is coming out, turn the screw all the way to the right again. Repeat this process with the screw on the right.

Incomplete descaling

If you recently commenced a descaling session but it was interrupted, Breville suggests doing another descale (without inserting the descaler cleaning product).

Reset the machine to the original factory settings.

You can do this by following the instructions to ‘Reset Default Settings’ in the Breville Oracle BES980 user manual.

Other reasons

Breville and reviewers suggest making sure the steam wand level is in a neutral vertical position (not pointed upwards) and the water tank is locked in completely. Breville also says that a recent change to soft water could cause inadequate heating, in which case you can try spring water instead.

<FAQ> <Question>

Why don't I get enough coffee, especially from the first shot?

<AcceptedAnswer> Breville states that it should take around 25-30 seconds to get 60mL of espresso, including crema. This amount means your machine is using the optimum range of pressure during the extraction.

However, getting less coffee than you should from your first pour is a common problem. The coffee should start coming out of the machine in around 7-8 seconds, and if it takes longer than this, you’re probably getting less coffee than you should.

This can sometimes happen if your grind size is too fine. You can adjust the grind size by 3 numbers to make it more coarse - at least for the first shot. As the group head heats up, any successive shots may naturally be thicker, even with a lower grind size.

Try a coarser grind if your espresso is too bitter as well, as it may be over extracted. Also make sure you’re using beans 4-10 days after roasting, to get the best possible flavour.

If you’re getting too much coffee, change the grind size to make it finer.

If adjusting the grind size isn’t helping, you can send the machine into Breville to check that the circuit board, air pump and solenoids are working correctly. Or you may prefer to request a Breville representative from the White Glove Service to come to your home and teach you how to get the maximum use of your coffee machine. </AcceptedAnswer> </Question> <Question>

Why isn't my milk texturing properly?

<AcceptedAnswer> When milk automatically textures, it uses a combination of air and steam to both heat and stretch the milk to give it a thick volume and creamy texture. If your milk isn’t thick and shiny (and doesn’t look something like white paint or chrome) it may not be texturing properly.

Here are some possible reasons and what to do about them.

The steam wand tip is clogged

The steam wand tip has tiny holes in it. While the steam wand will auto-purge after each use, if the wand tip isn’t manually cleaned (and even if it is, sometimes) it can become blocked. To clear out these holes you can use the wand cleaning tool, in the tool storage tray behind the drip tray. Insert the needle into the 5 holes, taking care not to damage the o-rings.

You can give it a more thorough clean by unscrewing the wand tip off once it’s cooled down, and soaking it in a glass of hot water, or with a sachet of Breville’s cleaning powder dissolved in the glass.

Breville recommends manually cleaning the steam wand in addition to auto-purge after every use.

Damaged o-rings

If one or both of the o-rings in the steam wand are damaged, it can result in hot milk, with no texture. Two spares are provided by Breville, or you can order new ones and replace the existing o-rings, to see if this works.

Using cow milk alternatives

The Oracle machines were designed to be used with full-cream cow’s milk. Sometimes using a milk alternative (or even skim milk, etc.) can sometimes result in thin, untextured milk. Try experimenting with different brands and types of milk to find the right type of milk to texture using the machine.

Another error

Try a factory reset to change all of the machine’s settings back to their default/ original setting. </AcceptedAnswer>

Manual texturing

While this is a little more time consuming, manual milk texturing is also an option.

Latest Consumer Questions

Caroline W.
Caroline W. ·  · The Oracle BES980

Hiya - my machine has started to ask me to “change filter” but nothing in the manual talks about which filter - could it be the water filter? I don’t remember putting one in as we have rain water so don’t get limescale …. Thanks!

Guest
Peter D.
Peter D. ·  · The Oracle BES980

Hi, filter change keeps coming on and i have replaced filter?

Guest
Trevor
Trevor ·  · The Oracle BES980

The coffee machine will grind coffee but will not tamp any ideas

Digger11
Digger11 · 

Probably broken.

Guest

Get an answer from our members and Breville representatives

Select a listing for your question
Breville The Oracle BES980

Details

Breville The Oracle uses a fully-integrated conical burr that grinds, doses and tamps 22 grams of coffee inside the portafilter for you. After adding the beans to the hopper, you just need to move the portafilter to the right, then release it slowly back to the centre again. You can also select whether you want to make 1 cup or 2 cups.

Features

  • In terms of capacity, Breville the Oracle allows you to place 280g worth of beans into the bean hopper at a time, and 2.5 litres into the water tank.
  • Designed with dual boilers, one for the espresso shot and one dedicated to steaming.
  • Water is brought to the precise temperature for coffee flavour extraction, due to digital temperature control in the heated group head and boilers.
  • A powerful 15-bar pump pressure allows for maximum flavour extraction, and thick crema on top of your coffee.
  • The boilers, portafilter and milk jug are constructed from stainless steel, and the machine has a brushed stainless steel exterior, for both a resilient and stylish finish.
  • Designed with the following settings: Adjustable grind control, programmable milk temperature and texture, option for a single or double shot, long black, and hot water.
  • Comes with the following inside the box: A mini grinds bin, conical burr, portafilter, 1 cup and 2 cup single wall filter baskets, 16oz milk jug, steam wand spare parts, cleaning kit, water filter, water filter holder and water hardness test strip.

Points of praise

Plenty of reviewers reported that Breville The Oracle makes a delicious and consistently satisfying cafe-quality coffee. Once you get the hang of using it, it’s easy and a pleasure to use. A high number of reviewers felt no need to visit the cafe anymore.

The White Glove Service that Breville offers was widely appreciated by reviewers. With this service, a Breville representative visits your house and demonstrates how to get the best use out of your new coffee machine.

Points to consider

Finding the right setting on the grinding dial can often require a bit of trial and error at first, but once you get this right for the coarseness of the beans you are using there’s no issues.

Secondly, some reviewers, including those giving positive reviews, reported that the machine doesn’t always work the way it’s meant to. However, reviewers who had minimal issues in this regard stated that this machine does require regular maintenance and regular cleaning, especially when it comes to cleaning or replacing certain parts of the machine (like changing the filter regularly). If you do this diligently, this helps a lot.

Compare all Breville The Oracle BES980 listings
CategorySemi-Automatic and Manual Coffee MachinesSemi-Automatic and Manual Coffee MachinesSemi-Automatic and Manual Coffee Machines
Price (RRP) $2,799$2,799$2,799
Pump Pressure15 bar15 bar15 bar
Input Power2,400 W2,400 W2,400 W
Dishwasher Safe PartsNoNoNo
Water Tank Capacity2.5 L2.5 L2.5 L
Dimensions 409 x 453 x 373 mm409 x 453 x 373 mm409 x 453 x 373 mm
FeaturesDisplay PanelDisplay PanelDisplay Panel
Milk FrotherSteam WandSteam WandSteam Wand
Bean GrinderIntegrated Burr GrinderIntegrated Burr GrinderIntegrated Burr Grinder
Coffee Bean Capacity280 g280 g280 g
Manufacturer Warranty2 year(s)2 year(s)2 year(s)
Colour / FinishStainless SteelBlackBlack Truffle
Compare all Breville The Oracle BES980 listings
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