Product review (4 stars): Its OK...Not great but not bad...Great after performing a few MODS
first of all as someone else mentioned all the bad reviews are from people that have little knowledge of homebrewing. This system by no means is plug n play or should i say..its not plug n go. By spending an extra $25 this system is great ($15-ish for 5ft hose and $5-ish for digital thermometer and $5 for some putty...keep reading for explanation). But by spending an extra $150 this system works like a champ and a top of line kegerator!!

MOD#1  This system is more European than American. Its like a mix. They used Euro fittings so i just replaced the entire 2-1/2" black Column Tower with a Chrome one and "Standard" (USA) fittings (this was $60)...i admit replacing the colomn was not needed but it just looked nicer and i wanted to customize / my handles.

MOD #2
Avanti supplied a 3 foot hose which is way short and at least a 5 foot hose is needed for proper "foam control" between the temp/beer/co2 mix. The #1 reason for foam is pople not having properly dialed in the co2/temp to the specific beer. Anyways be sure to get a 5' x 3/16" I.D. hose with 3/16" tailpiece and hex nut connection - available at micromatic or beveragefactory or your favorite brewery part seller. this should about $20 shipped

MOD #3 This is not needed either but i recommend buying a good external temperature controller if you want "better control" of the temperature as i noticed the stock temperature controller would fluctuate 4 to 6 degrees Fahrenheit on average however there were times i seen it fluctuate by as many as 8 (8 was rare). i bought this "Johnson temperature controller" from Micromatic [...]
Without a doubt though please do yourself a favor and go to your local fishstore and buy a digital thermometer with a chord for $5 and stick it in your kegerator to make sure you have a good temp.

****** TIPS for those buying this Avanti unit: *******

TIP #1 KEEP THE DOOR CLOSED!!! if u keep opening the door its like BBQing and opening the lid...you are letting all the warm air in!!! SO KEEP IT CLOSED!!
TIP #1.5 MAKE SURE TO SEAL OFF all "Air-holes" in other words make sure no air can come in or out of the unit when it is close, i sealed the hole off in the back (the hose hole) with some silly putty type putty that they use for posters from office depot.

TIP #2 REPLACE THE STOCK HOSE with 5ft

TIP #3 Buy a cheap digital thermometer (the one with the chord) as this will save you the headache of guessing temp. I bought one at Pectco/Petsmart in the Fish section. Dial in your temp

TIP #4 Make sure you have the right temp/Co2 mix for your specific beer

TIP #5 let the keg sit inside the kegerator at the desired temerature for 48-72 hours to let the keg "settle in", if you try to use it right away then don't be surprised by foamy beer. LET THE KEGGED BEER SETTLE!

TIP #5 after all that if u still have foamy beer its something you are doing wrong but its not the machine. check this site to troubleshoot [...]