[Delonghi EC890] - help

Hey All,

I just recently got an EC890, just as a starter machine to get into making espresso. I'm using a normcore 51mm portafilter, just for context. Not the pressurized basket that comes with it. I'm also using a breville smart grinder pro.

I'm having a lot of trouble dialing in a double shot. I'm not weighing anything, which I know isn't helping. Just relying on my grinder settings to carry me through. The machine seems to pull a 34 second shot no matter what I do because it's a volume based system. This sometimes results in a sour or bitter shot. Any good way to start pulling better shots with this machine given the limitations?