Masterbuilt Classic Reviews

I was contemplating on buying a Traeger grill since I’ve used Traeger over the years but it wasn’t great for grilling at high temps. I’ve also been thinking of buying the new masterbuilt gravity series grill as it looks to be more versatile. What was holding me back from going with masterbuilt was the overall technology that Traeger offers. I decided to take a look today to see how MasterbuiltClassic layout is and to my relief it actually has some nice features and is easy to navigate. It has overall helped my decision in going with the new masterbuilt gravity series grill. I’m looking for to being a masterbuilt cook moving forward. I hope this helps those who are questioning the transition.

This is my 3rd or 4th Masterbuilt Smoker and I paid extra for the Bluetooth connectivity. It took me over 30 minutes to get my iPad to connect the first time despite following the instructions. Trying on my iPhone as well. Deleting and re-installing MasterbuiltClassic , and it finally connected and worked on my first cook. Now is a week later and it will not connect regardless of what i try. It will not let me connect to the pre-connected device, and will not connect when i try to “Pair Again” as MasterbuiltClassic suggests. It is frustrating to pay extra for iphone and iPad connectivity, but it does not work. I have never had such a difficult time getting Bluetooth to Pair to something. The response from Masterbuilt is a link to troubleshoot. Why didn’t I think of that????? Duh!!!

While I am here, the display is so bad you can’t see it in the daylight.

I’ve read all the reviews and am happy to report that I am not experiencing the issues that some people are reporting. Bluetooth works throughout my two story house. When MasterbuiltClassic stops working after the door is opened (safety feature) a simple push of the Bluetooth button on the display reconnects it to the smoker.

However I think there are a couple things that could improve MasterbuiltClassic :

1 - MasterbuiltClassic only shows the count DOWN timer. I always count UP and MasterbuiltClassic should show that if selected.

2 - on the screen that shows the inside temperature of the smoker, I think the set temperature and time remaining font could be a little larger (for us older folks).

3 - I would change all the readings that are displayed in a red font to another color that is easier to read (for us older folks) against the dark background.

I develop mobile apps and this one is terrible. Drops connection to my WiFi, takes many failed attempts to connect, gives failed to connect messages when it is actually connected, loses probe temp feature every so often. 3 friends that I suggested the smoker to have never got theirs connected. Only timer based alarms show in my app. Hey Masterbuilt, if you want help, holler. Your tech and electronics are not good. Many other switch and safety feature failures on the actual smoker, although not an app problem. 1050 Gravity Fed

I’ve found MasterbuiltClassic to be fairly reliable. The latest update (a while back) improved it a lot. I’ve found that turning on the smoker and then connecting MasterbuiltClassic results in a much more stable connection. Love the smoker (1050) and, with MasterbuiltClassic , make the cook a really good time.
It would be nice if Masterbuilt could do updates a couple times a year. There’s always room for improvement.

The main issue for me is that MasterbuiltClassic lets you set the grill temp but not the meat probe temp. If you set up MasterbuiltClassic to be a remote it will shut off the smoker completely because the grill has reached the temp set point which is not correct. How does one set up the meat probe temp because obviously that’s the priority temp??? Why would MasterbuiltClassic be set to shut the grill off once the grill temp setpoint is reached?

I had no issues with connectivity with my wifi network or Bluetooth so that’s a small plus. The main issue overrides all. I’ll just stick to the manual settings

The Bluetooth option is terrible on these. Don't count on it working after the first couple of uses. You can go through the full trouble shoot and just be mad so don’t consider Bluetooth an option. Maybe it’s MasterbuiltClassic ? Maybe the hardware? I don’t know but I have abandoned Bluetooth after all the deletes and re paring attempts. The smoker works great but they have a lot of work to do on a widely used technology that my garmin watch never has an issue with or any other piece of Bluetooth equipment I have. Disappointed.

Opening the door makes this safemode prompt partially block on top of the temperature.

Please remove safe mode.

All the changes have made ease of use much better along with better connectivity. It is working consistently and so much better experience.

User friendly, great recipes, and I love how it connects to my grill! I connect through Bluetooth and get signal all the way in my kitchen. It makes cooking dinner a lot easier when I am connected

Was a very happy customer- old app was fine for my use- Bluetooth only on my smoker, MasterbuiltClassic on my phone deleted itself or updated to newer version. Since then can’t connect, my phone Bluetooth is connected, however MasterbuiltClassic does not see my device, why would you change something that works, I had an event to prepare for, disappointed ,

MasterbuiltClassic has some serious drawbacks. There seems to be two apps but I could only get this one to work. Even then I kept losing bluetooth connection and finally it gave up and forgot the device. Apparently have to re-connect from scratch and I was mid-smoke. So far the meat looks great just plan on using a supplemental digital temp unit I guess.

App is clean, and easy to use! Great for those who have multiple thermometers and want to manage all of them from your mobile device.

I really like the Masterbuilt app. I use it with my 1050 almost every time I cook. I use it mostly to check in on my grill temps. It is super easy to use and navigate through.

This would be an excellent app if The safe mode could be dismissed. What’s the point in having an app on my phone to look at the temperature of the probe without having to go look at the machine, if I have to go reset the machine every time I open MasterbuiltClassic … If I wanted to go to the smoker, I’d just go to it. Otherwise MasterbuiltClassic is basically useless.

The smoker itself works great. However I rely on the Wi-Fi to connect the smoker each use. It never remembers the device that I have named & setup Each time I want to use the smoker I have to add as a new device. Pain in the %#
Not to mention the digital display on the smoker is so dark you cannot see it if you are using your smoker in bright light such as sunshine/ outdoors!!

Masterbuilt has really improved MasterbuiltClassic and connected experience

Makes cooking on my Gravity Series simple and straightforward. Love being able to monitor on my phone.

If you can’t figure it out this many years in, why even continue to have an app and sell smokers with “BLUETOOTH!”? Open MasterbuiltClassic to pair it and BOOM, “give us your data!” As if that isn’t bad enough, select “add” and what happens? Smoker connects via Bluetooth... But app says “Sorry. Can’t find it.”

MasterbuiltClassic makes cooking on my masterbuilt that much easier. It’s definitely my preferred way to cook now.

The Master Built Smoker app works with my brand new 30 inch smoker and has some neat features. Aside from registering my smoker and giving me access to some recipe ideas, MasterbuiltClassic should be all about operating the smoker without having to go to the smoker, and it does do that but there are a few things that could be improved to make it a five star App. #1, MasterbuiltClassic needs an option to set a notification based on the probe temperature reaching the desired threshold. #2, the light button on MasterbuiltClassic makes no sense because it also turns on the flashlight on my iPhone, and additionally, the light on my smoker doesn't do any good unless the door is opened, so I just assume use the light button on the smoker itself vs. using it on MasterbuiltClassic .

MasterbuiltClassic is pointless. Great, you can adjust the temperature of the smoker from your phone, but once you put the meat in, you really don’t need to adjust the temperature. The main function you need, is to know when the meat hits the desired temperature. MasterbuiltClassic doesn’t do that. It has an alarm for a timer but not a temperature of the probe. I don’t need a smoker app to set a timer, my phone does that already. A useful app would tell tell me the temperature of the meat, not just the smoker, and alarm me when the meat hits the desired temperature. Have the developers buy the smoker, trying using it, then they can see how pointless this is. The next day after using the smoker, perhaps they can work on an update that makes this have the basic functions that should’ve been there from day one.

I bought the Gravity 560 Series a few days ago, and hesitated in writing a review on MasterbuiltClassic right away. I’ve used the smoker every day since I bought it and MasterbuiltClassic connectivity seems to get worse. If you walk away from the smoker with your phone you have to reestablish a new connection every time essentially. What a waste of time. This could be an amazing app, but every time you open the lid of the smoker/grill you have to reconnect to MasterbuiltClassic on the grill itself. Don’t let this stop you from buying the G560, just know MasterbuiltClassic is awful at best. This company should have better tech than this, and if this is your standard you should stop promoting the wireless and Bluetooth connective “capabilities”. To date MasterbuiltClassic seems to be in testing phase. Get it together Masterbuilt.

I should have been weary when I saw the ** rating of MasterbuiltClassic . However, 2 weeks into smoking I would not rate it even *. How can you sell such a crappy APP/Cotroller. You have to completely shut down MasterbuiltClassic every time in order to change set temperature or -time. That means new connecting/programming from scratch. Even worse….when you set the time interval for example for 4 hrs, it does not stop the smoker after 4 hours. While the time goes to 0, the preset heat keeps on going. Not to talk about reconnecting after a couple of days….MasterbuiltClassic will not find your Smoker. What is the Remote control APP for if I have to babysit the smoker? I have tried all instructions ...in vain. Are you coming out with a new system or do I have to continue in manual?

Since the update I really like new look and temp functions that it gave. Mulch easier to use. BUT. You took away the ability to turn on the smoker or turn off the smoker remotely. WHY? WHY would you do that? I could get up, go to kitchen, remotely turn smoker on and set my meat out on to the table to get up to room temp. Now I have to go outside walk down some very dark stairs and physically turn it on. And in the winter it was awesome to be able to turn it on remotely. I realize this may sound petty to some but it literally was the best feature about the smoker. Now it’s gone.

Ive never written a review before but I felt compelled to do so with MasterbuiltClassic. It’s absolutely awful. Literally every time I leave MasterbuiltClassic or let my phone go black after ten seconds, it gets disconnected and I have to go out and press the sync button on the smoker again. Totally defeats the purpose of having MasterbuiltClassic . And there used to be a ringer that goes off when the time is up, but for some reason that has stopped working. So I just have to time it myself, further defeating the purpose of MasterbuiltClassic . Oh, and yesterday I tried to raise the temperature by five degrees through MasterbuiltClassic and it turned the smoker off!!! Can’t say enough bad things about MasterbuiltClassic. Please fix it as I use my smoker a lot!!!!

I’d love to say MasterbuiltClassic is amazing, but it just isn’t. It has the potential to be there with a little work though. Every cook I have to remove my 560 and add of back on order to get it to work properly. If I don’t I get what could be correct readings but it says it lost connection to the grill to reconnect. I can disconnect and reconnect, same issue. When it’s like this I can’t create notifications. The only way I can get it 100% operational is to remove the grill from MasterbuiltClassic and add it back. With some work this would be a great app paired with an amazing grill. Get it fixed Masterbuilt, can’t wait!

Believe all the other bad reviews. Even if I keep my phone next to the smoker MasterbuiltClassic has to reconnect every time I unlock my phone which takes about 10-15 seconds. And twice now, within 3 hours of use, it wants me to re-pair the Bluetooth connection which requires you to walk outside and hold down a button on the smoker. When it does work it has a control for temperature and a timer that does nothing. The timer will not stop the smoker when it runs out and there is no way to have the smoker stop after the meat probe hits a specific temperature. Masterbuilt should be ashamed of MasterbuiltClassic and pay someone to make one that woks.

MasterbuiltClassic will not open on IOS after most recent update. Please fix the bug/ crash.

Update I deleted and reinstalled MasterbuiltClassic working great now. Did a comparison with grill temp prob and it’s spot on. My only wish with this smoker is that the water tray was stainless it takes a beating foil has helped but it’s still ugly. All this tech and no one has developed and auto sprayer from the top of the smoker .

One of the biggest thing that will keep me coming back to purchase new or better products from a company is how well they keep it supported. Replacement parts, updated app, very important. So far MasterBuilt has kept MasterbuiltClassic updated frequently enough to fix bugs, add new devices, and improve features/usability.
Very pleased, app functions great

The smoker is amazing! Since having it (about 3 weeks) we’ve used it on average 2x a week. We haven’t been disappointed in what we have cooked so far.

MasterbuiltClassic on the other hand is terrible. Half the time it won’t connect to the Bluetooth (even while standing right next to it) and we have to re-pair. There isn’t any sense in having a Bluetooth option if you are going to have to go out there to check/adjust the temperature anyway.

If I could give MasterbuiltClassic zero stars that would be my choice however 1 it is. What can I say that the rest of the 1 star reviews don’t? Not much. Just another connection/reconnection nightmare when your phone locks and unlocks. Completely awful. You clearly see it’s connected with the ability to control the smoker but the connection error message takes up prime real estate on the screen. Masterbuilt, if you cannot figure out how to fix this error for good could you at lease MOVE THE MESSAGE To the top of the screen in smaller font??? Come on, it’s just crap. Please fix.

New update turns the flashlight on my phone on when I use MasterbuiltClassic to turn light in my smoker on also why in the heck does this not have a feature to set alarm when meat probe hits target temperature? Love Masterbuilt products but MasterbuiltClassic is junk and seriously lacking in design features and functionality would’ve bout the much cheaper RF remote model if I had known and used the money I saved for an aftermarket meat probe/thermometer with alarm to alert with probe reaches target temperature

MasterbuiltClassic is the absolute worst app I have ever tried to use in my life. If you are lucky enough to get everything connected you are good but the very next time you are ready to use it you have to delete MasterbuiltClassic and reinstall because it just will not find your device when your phone is sitting on it. And even when you do that it still probably will not find your phone to connect or it won’t find your WiFi network that it is showing and you select and type in password lol.

There are other reviews here saying how there is no alarm. Maybe MasterbuiltClassic now has added an alarm feature for when the probe hits a temp, but the alarm doesn’t actually have the ability to make a sound, thus actually getting your attention that it is done. I just get a notification, but no alarm. Perhaps I need to tweak my settings? Either way, it’s not working for me and MasterbuiltClassic doesn’t provide any troubleshooting so thus my two star review.