Masterbuilt MES 430S Bluetooth Digital Electric Smoker, 30"

The new MasterBuilt electric smokers are a disaster and the customer support behind them is no better given the rather lengthy and detailed complaint email I sent to the company and their response. Both are below:===================MY EMAIL TO MASTERBUILT CUSTOMER SUPPORTTo follow is why I am asking for a refund on my purchase of this top-end, latest and greatest MB electric smoker model (MB20077419).Background:• I’ve been a loyal customer for 5-6 years telling many a backyard griller how wonderful smoking meat is and how easy it is to use MB products• I’ve owned at least three previous MB electric smokers (two generations), one a warranty replacement for a temperature sensor / motherboard that was not performing properly• My latest smoker died mid-July when rain got into the electronics and fried them• I needed to be ready to smoke food for up to 35 people the weekend of Aug 1-3• I immediately went to Amazon to order a replacement discovering older models could no longer be purchased• Because of my history above, I jumped into the latest and greatest model believing it would be of great value and performance• I have been highly disappointed by its performance and it no longer provides the value I had come to rely uponFailures:The following components must be considered a failure when using the smoker:• Smoker heater stopped and indicated ERROR on the display 3 times in a single brisket smoking sessiono Temp set at 275 degrees for 12 hours and level 3 smoke in 90 degree external temperatureo First time cost me at least an hour of cooking time for me to realize it had shut downo Second time was discovered after returning to monitor smoker every 20-30 minuteso 3rd time discovered by placing a 3rd party Bluetooth thermometer in smoker and monitoring the temperature for a dropo I had to unplug smoker to reset and start heating againo Estimated cost of 2-3 hours of cooking time on the brisket causing my dinner to be served late• Masterbuilt iOs app / Bluetooth connectivityo Would constantly drop connectivity between app and smokero Bluetooth technology is line of sight / connection would drop as soon as I would enter the houseo This made Bluetooth range less than 10 feeto Leaving me unable to monitor smoker (see above) unless I stood right next to ito Would consistently take 3-4 attempts to re-establish connectiono The Bluetooth pairing upon selecting button on smoker would not be immediate and would not take more often than it would connecto The overall app is very rudimentary, not reliable, and yet hard-to-use (quite a feat to pull off)• Wood chip volume is triple what was needed with previous models / Smoke levels does not really worko Perhaps to you this is just an inconvenience but not for someone who was owned two previous MB electric smokerso Regardless of smoke setting (1-5) any amount of wood chips would be gone in 30-40 minuteso Noticed that the wood would sit right on top of smoking element – a curious design decisiono Placing chips into the smoker box required I wear a heat resistant glove because The knob to open the smoker box could at times get very hot (especially if there was any flaring / fire created) Throwing the chips into the smoker box required my hand to be far too close to the “door” and touch it at times which could cause burns I tried to use wood chunks with little change in outcomeo Previously, I could go up to an hour or more with the old MB smoker I had also purchased the smoker attachment which allowed for up to 3 hours of continuous smoke in one loado I used far more chips than at any time before Therefore my associated cost of smoking food has increased – perhaps significantlyInconveniences• Smoker box will flare into fire upon door openingo I’m clearly being told that opening the smoker door leads to flare ups in the smoker boxo This was not an issue in the old MB smokerso There are times when there is wood in the smoker box and the door needs to be opened For instance, spraying briskets with liquidso Fortunately, per above, the wood is used in 30-40 minuteso But this feels like going backwards from a feature available in previous MB smoker units• New interface is confusingo I’m a tech guy and pretty smart; I even read instructionso I still had a terrible time without the manual in front of me, figuring out which combination of buttons to press on the display to establish heat settingso I came to rely on the app - but see above discussion regarding the appo And even the app took me some time to figure out how to actually get to the settings to be able to set them• Water pan getting dirty quicko The water pan is now a single componento After a day of cooking brisket, the entire pan was covered with burnt drippingso That burnt drippings are very difficult to removeo It’s large and takes much effort to cleano I can foresee in two to three weeks that it will look rather unclean despite all my efforts to keep it cleano And I can imagine your answer will be to purchase the drip pan accessory• Unit build / initial set upo It took me between 3-4 hours to build the unit out of the boxBased on the above, I believe this unit was rushed to market without much in-the-field testing. And any correction likely requires resending a unit. Given the time it takes to set up, I’m not sure I’m interested given the effort required.=================MASTERBUILT CUSTOMER SERVICE RESPONSE AS FOLLOWS (no other follow up occurred):Thank you for contacting Masterbuilt Customer Support. We are sorry to hear you are having these issues. Any refunds, returns or exchanges must be completed via the origial retailer in accordance with their return policy. We apologize for the inconvenience.

Most definitely not "like new". Arrived today and immediately noticed broken pieces of plastic in the box. Upon further unboxing, I found the chip box smashed, front door badly dented, door switch broken, plastic trim broken all over, and the grease tray broken in two. It looks like it fell off of a moving freight train. For the price.. I will see if it seals up well and works. Cosmetic damage is no concern at this discounted price. Hopefully Masterbuilt will at least send me a new grease trayand door switch. I had to tape the door switch shut just for it to heat up to season.Update: Masterbuilt immediately got back to me and are sending replacement parts free of charge. There customer service has always been phenomenal.

Updated again:Amazon agreed to let me return the smoker due to the initial damage and the lack of assistance from the manufacturer in resolving the issues. I did incur a 20% restocking fee and then the cost of buying a new box which, I lost about $150.UPDATED: Do not buy!!!After about 3 months, Masterbuilt has not honored sending the replacement parts, which I was told would be a few weeks. I was now told "maybe" another month.On top of that, I tried to use the smoker, for the second time, and it says "Er r2". Read the other reviews (440S and 430S), it's very common. So now this goes into storage as it's fully unusable after less than 3 months.Do yourself a favor and look for something else, this smoker has significant quality issues at a premium price and Masterbuilt needs to sort these out. Additionally, if they are going to sell a product, they should have spare parts to support it.Original Review:I had a similar issue as the other reviewer where the door had significant dents on the outside and inside as there is no additional packaging to protect the smoker within the box. Additionally, the door wasn't really snug/closed within the box and the sensor/push button, which tells the smoker the door is closed, had broken off. Without this, the smoker won't pair with my phone or fully operate without the door being told it was closed.I called Masterbuilt and they said they would ship me a new door and sensor, however a month later it's still on backorder.The wheels are not the large ones as shown in the one picture which was disappointing. I store mine in my shed so it would have been nice for moving it through the grass. Instead the back legs have small caster-like wheels that don't move as easily through grass.I have only used it twice for smoking (once seasoning), but so far, I like it more than my previous Masterbuilt smoker (which I had to throw away after only 3 years, due to electronics failure). It's really nice having the separate heating element for smoke vs. heat. What I didn't realize as well is that you can only use the different smoke levels for wood chunks, not chips- but overall the function seemed to worked well. The additional meat probe feature (up to 4) is nice but they seem to be a non-standard size so you might have to buy the Masterbuilt ones. The probes go through the cabinet which stops them from getting in the way of the door. Overall design seems much better than my previous model and I am hoping the electronics don't go on this one like the 340 and they addressed that issue- especially at this price point. The one feature I wish it had and liked of other brands is WiFI connection- bluetooth range is too short.

I am new to smoking and went with electric for the ease of use. I was attracted by all the features the 400 series had and I am so grateful I went with it. The side load option for wood is great and although I use chunks I like the option to also use chips. Set up wasn't hard for me but only because I have a lot of tools in my shop. the angle at which most bolts/screws go in could make this a difficult job if you don't have the right attachments. I live where it's very cold and have used this in temperatures ranging from 75 down to 15 degrees F. Temperature fluctuates a bit and sometimes I have to raise the setting 5 or so degrees so that it will steady where I want it. The bluetooth is great so I don't have to go outside to check/change the temperature but I wish it could handle greater distance than the 10-15 feet it does for me. I got the rotisserie, side shelf, and extra gauge and they all work flawlessly.