Has any of you made this upgrade? E-61 double boiler to Linea mini? Is it worth it? If so, why?

What kind of grinder do you have? How many drinks to you make a day? How many in a row? More shots or more milk based?

Frankly, I have trouble seeing how a Linea Mini is much of an upgrade over a Profitec Pro 700. You still don't have pressure profiling, you lose the ability to plumb the machine, and the boilers are roughly the same size. You get a different brew head design but the E61 is already very good, they put some nice barista lights on there, and the heating elements will work simultaneously on 110V albeit at a smaller power rating.

Aside from getting the street cred of having a La Maz machine, I struggle to see why one would move to it from the Pro 700. I'd consider real upgrades to be a GS3, Slayer, Speedster or even for the Linea Mini price a Vesuvius which gets you pressure profiling.

I think it's really a looks thing. IMHO, I would "upgrade" from any E61 just to get that gorgeous La Marzocco styling, and quality.. If and only if money was no object.

I can't say whether it's worth it for anyone else, but for me it was definitely worth the extra money to upgrade to the Mini.

I had an Alex Duetto II, not a Profitec, but they are pretty similar machines as they're both e61 dual boilers with roughly the same specifications.

By going to the LM Mini, I lost the plumb in option, which I do miss, but you can now get a plumb in kit for the Mini which should solve that problem.

On paper, the Mini seems about the same in terms of performance, since it has double boilers and a PID just like any number of e61 DB machines that cost less. However, the specs don't tell the whole story, as I definitely found a noticeable improvement in shot clarity and overall flavor from the Mini compared to my Duetto, which was no slouch. This is using the same grinder and beans, with the same weight of grinds in and coffee out, so the machine was the only variable that changed.

Steaming milk is also faster, and the texture seems smoother and more silky. Again, the Duetto was not at all bad, but the Mini is just better. More commercial than prosumer, if you will.

Also, the Mini is a more solidly constructed machine. It's quieter and feels more substantial than my Duetto, which seems kind of flimsy and loud in comparison. The paddle is smooth and efficient - a real joy to use. The steam and hot water knobs are similarly substantial, yet silky smooth. The case is made of very thick stainless steel, and seems to damp the pump noise much more than the Duetto's comparatively thin case. Plus, there are no ugly panel gaps like with the Duetto. Everything is built very tight and seems made to last forever. The drip tray is also large, easy to clean, and locks in solidly with magnets, so it won't rattle. Plus, I like that you can get colors other than the ubiquitous polished stainless steel that we see on every e61 box machine.

I would also disagree with the other poster's statement that a GS3 or other high-end machine offers better performance than the Mini. I haven't tried those other machines myself, but most experienced users who have tried the Mini and the other machines have not found any loss of flavor or quality by going to the Mini. Indeed, many seem to prefer the Mini for its simplicity and ease of use, rather than offering features that may not improve shot flavor but do complicate the process of pulling shots. See Chris Tacy's excellent review of the Mini for his thoughts on this question.

There's already a long thread here that discusses whether the Mini is worth the extra money over other DB machines. It's ultimately a question that only the individual user can answer for themselves. For me, the answer is a resounding "Yes."

+1 to everything that Beezer said. I upgraded from an E61 HX and found the Linea Mini to improve shot clarity and mouthfeel. Overall it's a joy to work with and it really feels like a smaller commercial machine compared to an E61 box. Performance, according to those who have used both, is on par with the GS3 but at a lower cost.

One other important benefit (to me at least) is the much quicker warm up time. If you have the $ then you will probably be very happy with the Linea Mini.

In addition to the previously mentioned differences, non-heat exchanger E61 espresso machines will always be handicapped by the reduced thermosyphon effect of cycling brew-heat water, instead of steam-heat water, through the brewhead. E61's were designed for heat exchangers, and I say that as a former owner of a single boiler, double use machine (Isomac Zaffiro, the cousin of the Alexia).

I have a Linea Mini, that I just plumbed in, There is a kit available (purchased from Chris Coffee).

I can't comment on the Profitec, had a La Spaziale Vivaldi 1 for 10 years, that my son now has. The Vivaldi did a good job. I like the build, looks and the features of the Linea Mini (Stainless Boilers and Portafilter, great steaming, Pre infusion, PID) and it does provide excellent repeatable shots,perhaps some better than Vivaldi, but Vivaldi was a great machine for the dollar and I had not one issue or failure! My hope is that this will be my last machine!

After Time Wendelboe recommended home users buy an expensive commercial grinder and then get a Silvia with the change, I'm skeptical of any espresso machine that retails for more than $3,000. He made it sound like all espresso machines are functionally the same and the grinder was responsible for the vast majority of variation.

With all due respect to Mr. Wendelboe, anyone who has pulled shots on a Silvia or similar single boiler machine and then tried a prosumer or commercial machine knows that it is substantially harder to pull good shots on the cheaper machine, and that the more expensive machine has significant benefits. Yes, you can get good to excellent shots with a Silvia, but you have to work much harder to do it, and it still won't be nearly as consistent. I would argue that the reduction in the number of failed shots, and the accompanying reduction in aggravation that goes with it, make a more expensive machine worth the money.

It's also true that the law of diminishing returns applies to espresso machines. You will notice a much bigger difference in convenience or consistency if you go from a $500 to a $1,500 machine than if you go from a $1,500 to a $4,500 machine. The improvements become much more subtle as you move upward in price. However, I do believe that there are noticeable improvements going from the prosumer DB class to the commercial class of machines (and I believe the Mini falls into the latter class), even if the difference is only a subtle one. It may be only a 2% improvement, but it is enough to notice, at least for me.

The better question to me is whether it's worth the money to go from a Mini to a GS3/Speedster/Slayer. As far as I can tell, those machines offer some extra features, but not necessarily better overall performance despite the substantial increase in price. Perhaps the better profiling/preinfusion abilities make it easier to pull good shots with certain types of coffee, but I haven't heard anything that shows that they are actually "better" at making good shots than a Mini.