SO, i've decided to sell my Silvia, it is currently on eBay. After getting my Espresso tasting pretty much perfect i've come to the realization that I want a machine with more power, especially within the steaming category, I'm looking at buying used and I have a budget of about 800-900 dollars, Below are the machines I have found.

• Nuova Simonelli Oscar.
  Breville Dual Boiler

I am open to suggestions!

Dan did a nice video showing a newbie (his neighbor I believe, he's been doing a series of videos with him). Watch it it gives a great visual of the differences.

Ehh, i'm not too worried about differences I am mostly aware, I'll honestly be happy with either one, I'm just looking for something within my price range.

From everything that I read as far as espresso making is concerned Breville Dual Boiler is light years ahead of Nuova Simonelli Oscar, they are really not playing in the same league.

I've found them pretty cheap on ebay ~800 would you say go for it?

I've had the Oscar, and loved learning espresso with it. I would never pay anything close to $800 for one by itself, because I don't think they're worth that much. The Oscar stock is a good, solid machine, but to really shine it will probably need a couple mods. I consider it a great starter machine, like your Silvia.

Used BDBs... I have reservations about service in the future, but as long as it's working it should be a great machine by all reports. Definitely should be a better performer than an Oscar.

I would recommend against buying a BDB used when you can get refurbs for under $700 with a warranty. One of mine was purchased through SCG with a 15% off coupon. Shipped to my door it was $685. You can find them in their outlet section, and if you sign up for their newsletter they email coupons with discounts. If you have to have it now, when you sign up you get an instant 10% coupon for a single item, making the machine $720, which is still phenomenal.

Both of my machines are the 900 A-model, and both have been trouble free, the oldest with over 3,000 shots and counting.

Best of luck with whatever you decide.

uscfroadie wrote:I would recommend against buying a BDB used when you can get refurbs for under $700 with a warranty. One of mine was purchased through SCG with a 15% off coupon. Shipped to my door it was $685. You can find them in their outlet section, and if you sign up for their newsletter they email coupons with discounts. If you have to have it now, when you sign up you get an instant 10% coupon for a single item, making the machine $720, which is still phenomenal.

Both of my machines are the 900 A-model, and both have been trouble free for over 3,000 shots and counting.

Best of luck with whatever you decide.

:O Thanks for the tip!!

I also have a BDB and it's the greatest thing since sliced bread in terms of espresso. It's so good that if I ever get upgradeitis, I'll probably skip right over the $3500 class of machines like the Izzo Alex or La Spaziale Vivaldi and similar and go straight to the saturated group class like the GS/3 single group Synesso Cyncra.

The BDB is a magnificent steamer, too. It's ridiculously easy to get incredible quality microfoam. The steam tip is engineered to perfection. But just to cover all bases, you said you wanted "steaming power". And it does not have that in great abundance. If you are the sort who routinely steams up 20 oz of cold milk to make a couple of giant lattes, you will be disappointed in how long it takes.

So while it makes commercial quality espresso, it does not have that intoxicatingly powerful steaming horsepower of one. I would say that for steaming 6 oz to make a 10oz latte it's perfect. Or steaming 12 oz to make a couple, but I would (subjectively) consider that the outer limit of acceptable performance for the BDB's steaming power.
But I also consider that outside most people's typical usage.

Two and a half years with mine and I still wouldn't have gotten anything else.

-Peter