Hario Mugen Switch

The Hario Mugen Switch, sold as the MUGEN x SWITCH Dripper (MUSD-02-B), is the Hario Switch with a different cone: Hario’s one-pour MUGEN dripper sits on the Switch’s valve base instead of a V60. Close the switch and the coffee steeps; open it and the coffee drains through a V60 02 paper filter. Hario UK calls it a modified V60 Switch that brews “like a standard Mugen pour over, or as an immersion brewer”. Here’s what the MUGEN cone changes, and four recipes from Brewers Cup champions that Hario publishes for it.

The short version

• The MUGEN cone on the Switch base: star-shaped grooves instead of the V60’s spiral ribs.
• Steep, pour over, or both, switching mid-brew whenever you like.
• Easiest recipe (Charity Cheung): 14 g coffee, 190 g water at 93°C, open at 2:30, done by 3:00.
• Finished capacity about 200 ml, one cup, with V60 02 filters.
• Plastic and made in Japan: acrylonitrile-styrene body, silicone base, steel ball valve.

What makes the Mugen Switch different from the Hario Switch?

Only the cone. The base, switch and stainless steel ball valve work exactly as on the original Switch, so the way you open and close it doesn’t change. What changes is the dripper above the valve:

	Mugen Switch	Hario Switch
Cone	MUGEN, designed for one pour	V60
Inside walls	Star-shaped grooves	Spiral ribs
Cone material	Acrylonitrile-styrene resin (plastic)	Heatproof glass or ceramic
Filters	V60 02	V60 02 or 03
Sizes	02 only	02 and 03

Hario says the MUGEN’s star-shaped groove lines and flat surface lower the chance of channelling, where water finds a fast path through the coffee. Eight Ounce Coffee adds that the grooves let the paper filter stick to the dripper, which also cuts down on bypass: water running down between the paper and the wall instead of through the coffee.

What is the MUGEN cone?

MUGEN (無限) is Japanese for “infinite”. Hario Europe introduced the V60 One Pour Dripper MUGEN in September 2021 with a video from Tetsu Kasuya, the 2016 World Brewers Cup Champion, and Hario UK says it was designed in collaboration with him.

The idea is one single pour, with no bloom. Hario Europe explains that because the filter clings to the star-shaped ribs, the water flows more slowly, so it spends more time with the coffee, and a cup takes 2–3 minutes. When Kurasu tested the plain MUGEN with Hario’s recipe (20 g medium-ground coffee, 240 ml of water at 91°C, no bloom), a slower pour gave a richer, sweeter cup with more body.

So on its own the MUGEN is a slow, forgiving pour-over. Put it on a valve and you can also hold the water back completely.

How does the Mugen Switch brew differently?

Hario says the MUGEN’s ribs let the paper stick closely to the wall. Eight Ounce Coffee says this means less bypass than on the V60-based Switch: once the switch is open the water has far fewer ways around the coffee and has to pass through the coffee bed. CoffeeGeek calls the MUGEN an “accidental” no-bypass brewer and compares the pairing to the NextLevel Pulsar, with one difference: the Pulsar’s coffee bed is a wide, flat disc, while the MUGEN’s is an inverted cone.

That’s why CoffeeGeek stresses one step: fully wet the filter before you add coffee, so it sticks to the walls with no air gaps.

What are the best Hario Mugen Switch recipes?

Hario’s MUGEN x SWITCH page publishes these four recipes from Brewers Cup champions, alongside a free eBooklet of interviews.

Recipe	Coffee	Water	Method	Finish
Charity Cheung (French champion 2022 and 2024)	14 g, medium	190 g at 93°C	Closed: 70 g; at 0:45 pour to 190 g; open at 2:30	3:00
Weihong Zhang, competition (US champion 2024)	15 g	50 g at 80°C, then 150 g at 92°C	Open: 50 g; at 0:40 close and pour 150 g; open at 2:10	3:00
Weihong Zhang, everyday	16 g	240 g at 92°C	Open: 50 g; at 0:40 close and pour to 240 g; open at 2:00	3:40
Kunie Inaba (Canadian champion 2024)	13 g, medium	200 g, 92°C then 75°C	Closed: 40 g; at 0:40 open and pour to 100 g; at 1:20 close and pour to 200 g at 75°C; open at 2:20	2:30

Hario’s page lists Weihong Zhang’s grind as “medium-coarse?”, question mark included, so treat it as a starting point. Zhang’s recipes use water at 100 ppm, a measure of its mineral content.

I’d start with Charity Cheung’s. She says it works well for most coffees and that the only thing you might want to change is the grind size, with no fiddling with lots of pours or switching.

How do you brew Charity Cheung’s recipe, step by step?

1. Rinse a V60 02 filter with the switch open, pour the water away, then close the switch.
2. Add 14 g of coffee, ground medium.
3. Pour 70 g of water at 93°C with the switch closed.
4. At 0:45, pour again up to 190 g in total.
5. At 2:30, open the switch.
6. At 3:00, remove the dripper.

Brew mode on this page times each stage for you. If it tastes bitter or drains slowly, go a little coarser; if it’s thin and sour, go a little finer.

How big is it, and what’s it made of?

	Hario Mugen Switch
Product number	MUSD-02-B (black)
Finished capacity	About 200 ml (Hario)
Filters	V60 02 paper, not included
Dripper	Acrylonitrile-styrene resin
Base	Silicone rubber
Switch	PCT resin
Valve ball	Stainless steel
Made in	Japan

Retailers don’t all agree on capacity: Nomad Coffee lists “1–2 cups (approx. 300–400 ml)”, while Hario’s own pages give 200 ml finished. CoffeeGeek found the cone can hold up to about 300 ml with 15–18 g of coffee before overflowing, but called it “living dangerously”. I’d stay with Hario’s figure.

Can you build one yourself?

Yes. CoffeeGeek describes popping the glass cone out of a Switch and pressing a MUGEN into the base, where it soft-clicks into place, because the MUGEN’s outlet matches the V60 glass cone. Their own recipe for it is 15 g of coffee to 300 ml of water (1:20), ground coarse, half the water poured with the switch closed and the rest after opening it, for about 4 minutes in total.

Hario UK also sells a Switch & Match MUGEN set: the plastic MUGEN with the Switch & Match immersion base. One Eight Ounce Coffee customer review notes that the switch base takes either the MUGEN or the V60 cone.

How do you clean it?

Throw away the filter and grounds, then rinse the cone and base, opening and closing the switch under running water so nothing blocks the valve. Eight Ounce Coffee lists it as dishwasher safe.

General guidance only. Take care with hot water, and follow the instructions that come with your Mugen Switch.

Mugen Switch vs other methods

• Hario Switch: the same valve with a V60 cone, in 02 and 03 sizes.
• V60: the ribbed cone pour-over, with no valve.
• NextLevel Pulsar: another no-bypass valve brewer, with a flat bed.
• Clever Dripper: steep, then drain by setting it on a mug.
• Valve immersion drippers: how all the valve brewers compare.

Explore every hybrid brewer in the hybrid chapter.