Fat Freddy
is Blowin Smoke!
Today I had no intention of doing a head to head test of anything. My wife went to the grocery store this morning and they had Loin Back ribs on sale for $1.79# so she bought 12 racks and had them sold before she got home at 10am. Thats how I got informed I was cooking ribs today.
I had to get out my two 22inch WSM. Each cooker was the same, fueled by the same charcoal(Stubbs) and same amount of Peach wood in roughly the same spots. Same rubs, same sauce. Except maybe for a slight size variations on the ribs everything was the same except for the automatic temperature controller. The outside temperature was in the mid 20s* and both temp controllers set for 275*.so people may have different opinions and results.
The DigiQ when coming to temperature was very steady with a constant fan. I could hear it but it wasnt too loud. The Auber seemed to take a while to raise to temp enough to concern me at one point. The fan was noisy in general and was more of a pulsating type than steady.
When they reached target temp the DigiQ locked on and I think maybe once I noticed the readout said 276* instead of 275*. The Auber when reached target temp still raised a bit 284* before coming down. They both took about 45 min to an hour to reach temp(i was inside warming up).
I loaded each cooker with 6 racks 3 on each grate. The DigiQ took quite a while to get back to temp, well over an hour. The Auber was back to temp in about 35 minutes. After getting back to temp the DigiQ was rock steady at 275*. The Auber seemed to bounce around a bit from 263-281*.
When I foiled I purposely left the lid of for longer than I should have. I set a timer for 3 minutes for each one. The DigiQ dropped to 171* before raising. The Auber dropped to 202* before raising. The DigiQ hit 275* fairly quickly but did not overshoot. The Auber did not hit target temp as fast but not bad but did overshoot up to 327* before going down.
I finished my cook, pulled everything off and put everything up.
So when comparing these two Auto temp controllers I learned stuff on both and actually really like both. The DigiQ seems better built(maybe) and held a more constant steady temp. But did seem to take longer to get back to temp after putting on COLD meat, but after foiling was quick to get back to temp.
The Auber was noisier and didnt hold a steady temp but was still well within a reasonable range. The Auber did overshoot when my lid was off for a bit, but to be honest I expected that. The plastic computer body makes me nervous and I think it is a bit harder to use than the Guru. But again not too bad.
I realize this isnt a perfect comparison of similar Controllers but with all the variables the same it might be useful to someone. I will be happy with both controllers but I think each has their own advantage. If strictly a chicken or rib controller where a meat probe is not needed. I think I would go with the Auber. Mainly because there is not a need for a meat probe with those meats and there is not a meat probe with the Auber. Plus at about $100 or so cheaper this make sense. If I wanted a more versatile one I think I would go DigiQ. There is a meat probe and it seems a bit user friendly. Just by feel and appearance(and it could be wrong) I would expect the DigiQ to last longer.
I had to get out my two 22inch WSM. Each cooker was the same, fueled by the same charcoal(Stubbs) and same amount of Peach wood in roughly the same spots. Same rubs, same sauce. Except maybe for a slight size variations on the ribs everything was the same except for the automatic temperature controller. The outside temperature was in the mid 20s* and both temp controllers set for 275*.so people may have different opinions and results.
The DigiQ when coming to temperature was very steady with a constant fan. I could hear it but it wasnt too loud. The Auber seemed to take a while to raise to temp enough to concern me at one point. The fan was noisy in general and was more of a pulsating type than steady.
When they reached target temp the DigiQ locked on and I think maybe once I noticed the readout said 276* instead of 275*. The Auber when reached target temp still raised a bit 284* before coming down. They both took about 45 min to an hour to reach temp(i was inside warming up).
I loaded each cooker with 6 racks 3 on each grate. The DigiQ took quite a while to get back to temp, well over an hour. The Auber was back to temp in about 35 minutes. After getting back to temp the DigiQ was rock steady at 275*. The Auber seemed to bounce around a bit from 263-281*.
When I foiled I purposely left the lid of for longer than I should have. I set a timer for 3 minutes for each one. The DigiQ dropped to 171* before raising. The Auber dropped to 202* before raising. The DigiQ hit 275* fairly quickly but did not overshoot. The Auber did not hit target temp as fast but not bad but did overshoot up to 327* before going down.
I finished my cook, pulled everything off and put everything up.
So when comparing these two Auto temp controllers I learned stuff on both and actually really like both. The DigiQ seems better built(maybe) and held a more constant steady temp. But did seem to take longer to get back to temp after putting on COLD meat, but after foiling was quick to get back to temp.
The Auber was noisier and didnt hold a steady temp but was still well within a reasonable range. The Auber did overshoot when my lid was off for a bit, but to be honest I expected that. The plastic computer body makes me nervous and I think it is a bit harder to use than the Guru. But again not too bad.
I realize this isnt a perfect comparison of similar Controllers but with all the variables the same it might be useful to someone. I will be happy with both controllers but I think each has their own advantage. If strictly a chicken or rib controller where a meat probe is not needed. I think I would go with the Auber. Mainly because there is not a need for a meat probe with those meats and there is not a meat probe with the Auber. Plus at about $100 or so cheaper this make sense. If I wanted a more versatile one I think I would go DigiQ. There is a meat probe and it seems a bit user friendly. Just by feel and appearance(and it could be wrong) I would expect the DigiQ to last longer.
