r/Masterbuilt

Hi all!

I just got a Gravity 800. It was put together by Amazon techs while I was at work. I've been trying to preseason, but the temp just refuses to go over around 80F. I've cleared out the hopper a couple times and tried briquettes and lump charcoal. Using the masterbuilt fire starter. I hear the fan running and it's giving off smoke, but I can't get the temp to actually rise. I've also tried whacking it to move the charcoal, but that didn't help, ha.

Any advice?

Thank you!

Has anyone found a way to integrate the Masterbuilt app and grills with HA!

I just received a pop-up advertising message from the Masterbuild application on my iPhone for a discount for the up-coming holiday.

This is really shitty practice, Masterbuilt. Please reconsider this decision. At LEAST make opt-out available.

I bought my XT on 04/14/2026. The longer I own this, the more I think I made a mistake buying from Masterbuilt. The app is just barely more than useless. The XT itself has had problem after problem (Random ejecting screws, melting plastic smells, and I still have to use a stick shoved under the baffle handle to get it to close...). But hey, at least it's sturdily built.

I'm eagerly waiting for the Fireboard replacement to come out and I can remove all Masterbuilt related electronics and apps out of my life. This push advertisement just reinforces my feeling.

It's 5AM and Im doing my first brisket. Figured Id do one old school by baby sitting it all night.

Hit the step to raise temp to get past the stall. Checked the hopper before bumping up the cook temp, and WTF? it was basically empty, like a few small mostly-burned lumps left.

I got 7hrs worth of fuel using FOGO Premium X-Large running at 235*F. The bag was pretty normal (ie, all the lumps were crushed into tiny bits, etc). It was filled to the top. The OEM controller was set to 235*F. Added wood chucks to the ash bucket (LLS Mod FTW) for the first 4hrs.

This normal? Would I have fuel anxiety even if I got me a pellet grill?

Long story short, live in a historic town and the brick fence along the back has a tight gate to get anything in or out. Specs say 33" built but can't seem to find the unbuilt width so I know if I can even get it in the backyard.

Am I the only one whose the app never works for? It seems everytime I want to use this grill it takes 40 minutes to get to light correctly and 8 tries of deleting and reinstalling my smoker for it to work in the app

I have a Gravity 800 and I can’t get the fan to start after I’ve started the fire.

I’ve had it happen once before where it kicked off during a smoke but haven’t had that happen since last fall.

I’ve noticed the sensor on the chimney if filled depressed stuck in. Even when opening the door.

I’ve tried the bypass with tinfoil and no luck. Had no issues on my last smoke mid April.

Any suggestions?

I’m loosing patience after I had a wheel break this winter and it took 5 tries and 3 months for them so send me the correct one. If I keep having issues I think I’ll have to switch to a pellet version of a different brand.

[Edit: to avoid confusion, all prices are in CDN. The USD spread is relatively the same after FX conversion.]

Im gonna write a post I wish I had seen prior to purchasing my XT. Masterbuilt markets the XT as the pinnacle smoker, their flag-ship best-in-class product. While absolutely, if you're looking for the convenience of a computer controlled charcoal/wood smoker, Masterbuilt is probably the go-to, the XT is most def not best-in-class (that spot remains un-taken) nor worth the extra spend. Here are my reasons why:

- First and foremost, their cheap-ass controller. The XT costs ~$2600 product, which is ~$1000 more than their 2nd tier 1150. You'd expect you'd get consistency, reliability, and accuracy along with a user experience far beyond the 1150. You do not. At best you get a controller that LOOKS high-end, cause it looks different from all of Masterbuilt's other models, but in actual fact functionally the XT controller is no different from the 1150 and lower models.

- The Misleading App: Masterbuilt fudges the data. The nice clean smooth curves are a lie. The spikes are huge (more on that below) and frequent. Also the App is a mess, no doubt limited by the fact the software is not purpose built but rather skinned to look custom for Masterbuilt. Im almost certain the app & controller software are generic as made by some 3rd party who supplies many brands.

- Related, the ambient & food probes do a questionable, and at best okay job. When the smoke chamber cools and the controller calls for heat, mine consistently overshoots by 25-50f, while allowing the chamber to cool down well below the set temp before increasing the heat. Indeed, according to the app graphs, the temp inside the chamber appears stable, consistent, and smooth, which most def does not reflect the reality of what's happening inside the cook chamber. Many YouTubers note that swings wont impact the cook too much as long temp averages out to around your set point, but the swings with the XT are huge, especially so given the huge sale price.

- As for the food probes, they are ~10f off actual. This is the difference between med rare and medium. In one cook, the food probe froze and showed my steak 30f below actual. Also, the meat probes are so thick Im envious. They create huge holes and again, $2600, you'd expect the XT would ship with better probes.

- Probe & temp reading accuracy is most def a problem, not catastrophic, but something that requires careful attention so you dont end up over-cooking the food. You need to figure out/familiarize yourself with the inaccuracy of the temp readings and adjust your actions based on that. Again, when you pay top dollar, this is NOT something the consumer should expect to have to deal with... ESPECIALLY SO given the entire value-prop of Masterbuilt computer controlled smokers is convenience.

- The All-In-One lie: I think many here already know this, but thanks to the massive shill-network of YouTubers being shipped free product in exchange for saying Masterbuilt's are all-in-one smoke & sear BBQ unit, I was expecting I could easily transition from smoke to sear (notwithstanding the grease fires steaming from smoking). Yes, I can and yes it does sear and does a pretty good job of it, HOWEVER, the fuel cost is astronomical. You burn A LOT of charcoal getting up to & holding temp, then the burn off phase when you choke the fire. The all-in-one of the XT is convenient in the same way using 3/4tonne pickup truck is convenient for daily commutes.

- XT Build Quality: Yes, it's well built, but again, cause YouTuber shills, the 'rock solid' feeling of the XT vs the 'flimsy cheap feel' of the 1150 is waaaay overblown. The 1150 is quite stable, sure a little less vs the XT, but in no way something worth pointing out as a "differentiator".

- XT vs 1150 Question: Ultimately I truly couldnt tell you if there is a difference. Sure, the XT has that nice lever to open/close the baffles, but is that worth $1000? Um, no. I expected the controller to be better; accurate & reliable. Again, nope. Perhaps the difference in the heat manifolds? Again, doesnt seem so based on many people's biscuit tests (in fact, in one test I saw, the 1150 was better for heat distribution). The one test YouTubers WONT DO for content (cause they get free product from MB), is to measure the insulation properties of the two units, side by side in the same environmental condition. Heat them both up to the same temp, then close the baffles (snuff out fire -of course this assumes the air chokes for both units function the same) and compare the rate of heat loss. This test would be the ultimate proof and settle the question: is the XT worth it? Is the XT just the $1000 more expensive version of the 1150? I suspect yes.

BOTTOM LINE: You pay A LOT more for the XT. You are not crazy/entitled/woke to expect MORE from it. I thought the baffle lever would provide more value vs. using the 2 removable slides method on all the other Masterbuilt models, but no... in fact, I think the slides would be better as they are probably better at snuffing out the fire thus spending less on fuel.

Unless someone proves the insulation with the XT is waaay better, frankly I see absolutely NO REASON other than "a fool and his money are easily parted" to spend the extra for the XT. No doubt this statement will upset XT owners cause having spent that extra money, opinions are now vested.

Frankly, between the misleading app & graphs, cheaping out on the controller, plus the heavy marketing investment by Masterbuilt trying to get consumers to believe there's a true value-add jumping up to the XT, you really FEEL the Private-Equity influence on Masterbuilt philosophy: their customers are no more than $$$. I wont say I have buyers remorse, the XT is still a great smoker. I just feel cheated and stupid for being duped by marketing & misleading YouTubers who talk about the XT as if it were the panacea of automated smokers. These YouTubers truly do an exceptional job of hiding/glazing over the negatives, ESPECIALLY the price.

If I were to do it again, ABSOLUTELY 1150 + after-market mods. Sure, this means you end up spending almost the same as the XT, but you will get real value. Indeed, I suspect the best value solution (unless you do massive cooks for large groups) is a pimp'd out 800.

Anyways... there's my 2 cents. Hopefully it helps people who are on the fence about which MB they should go with, especially if they are considering the XT. And most def, if you own an XT and dont agree, please do share your feedback & comments, and tell us why the XT is in fact worth the extra spend.

Considering buying a Pit Master Kit from LSS Mods for my 900 series. I'm eyeing a larger cooling rack and folding front shelf too. Thoughts?

I've been doing some small-ish volume catering and have a few pellet smokers / grills I've been using. I've been cooking 1-2 packer briskets and 2-4 pork butts once a week. This last weekend was nothing but issues. Night 1, my backup smoker (Pit Boss Elite Series 6 my sister passed on to me) died taking down 6 pork butts due to backburn into the hopper. Night 2, my main vertical (Grilla Mammoth) somehow just quit feeding pellets in the middle of of the night and I had to swap everything over to my Traeger. I'm getting to the point that I'm over pellets.

Could I fit a couple full packers (~14-16lb) and 2-4 pork butts (6 seems like a stretch) on the XT? I'm very interested in eliminating moving parts and backburn issues. I obviously know it's not a silver bullet, you can still get grease fires or other issues, but I'm tired of having issues with auger motors, moisture in pellets etc.

A 'lightly used' Masterbuilt 560 is for sale near me. It looks to be in great condition from the pics (clean cooking chamber, no obvious signs of damage, appears to have been kept covered, and is in a dry climate). The price is great ($125) compared to the others I have seen advertised.

What should I be looking at closely? Are there known issues? What should I do to 'kick the tires/test drive' before deciding?

Recently ran into problem where I finished the cook and inserted the damper plates as usual. Came out next day and ALL the charcoal had burned up. Noticed the seal on top of the hopper was half gone. Can't seem to find a replacement. Anyone know of source(s)??