Ok, I'm totally at a loss. I am ready to pull the trigger on a "buy once, cry once" espresso machine.

For a while, I've had my heart set on a Profitec 600 with flow control. It's gorgeous to me, german engineering, just looks like it is something I will have for the rest of my life. Then I see all the love for the Breville double boiler, and realize that I can get it for pretty much half ($1280 vs. $2400) and I fully recognize that there is nothing that the profitec will do $1200 better than the Breville. But the looks of the Breville just don't do it for me the way the profitec does. This will be a focal point of the kitchen, so looks hold some value to me. That being said, $1200 isn't chump change. I can also pick up a breville today at a local bed bath and beyond It seems like there are lots of comparisons between the BDB and things like the Rancilio silvia pro, or the profitec pro 300, and Lelit elizabeth, but the 600 seems like it's in a different league then those. That being said, feature wise, it's not like the 600 has any knock out punch to the specs of the BDB. I'll be using the machine for all different types of drinks, we don't entertain often, but often enough where i'd want to make 3-4 milk drinks in succession every once in a while. Most of the time it'll be 1-2 drinks at any given time.

Ugh, my heart says profitec, my wallet say Breville

I believe the 600 has more powerful steam; perhaps an owner could confirm. There's no denying that the BDB is one of the best bargains in a dual boiler espresso machine, especially when it's on sale or open box. I've had a bunch of Breville espresso machines (not the BDB) and other appliances; although I'm not a big fan, by all accounts the BDB is exceptional for the price. The style is markedly different, as is the footprint (sideways vs fore/aft). The Profitec is undeniably a more solid machine, but you aren't supposed to bounce these things around . I think only you can make this decision.

I guess you are looking for opinions, so I will give you mine.

$1,200 is a good sum of money. To help you rationalize the P600, the cost of the machines per day, spread out over 5 years: BDB = $0.70/day. P600 = $1.30/day. Is it worth an extra $0.60 per day to have the thing that is going to make you happy on a daily basis? Is saving sixty cents a day worth the regret?

All machines will need to be repaired in time. The P600 might be easier to repair yourself especially if the repair is electronic in nature.

I own a BDB. I am a tinkerer so the repair question is looming but I am up for the challenges. That said, I wish the parts were easier to source. For me the Achilles Heel of the BDB is not the annoying leaks that pop up but rather the lack of OEM parts availability.

From a functional aesthetics / engineering perspective, I just can't get behind E61 boxes. Compared to a contemporary cartridge heated group the thermal management strategy is out-dated, less effective, and inexcusable from a energy efficiency standpoint. In 2021, I cannot get behind having a machine in my home that intentionally runs hotter than necessary and sheds excess heat to my home through a big brass heat sink in my kitchen in an effort to brew espresso at the correct temperature. This is just the conclusion I have come to. No judgement on anyone else for making other choices.

Bottom line, the heart wants what the heart wants. If you have the $, don't leave your heart wanting...

IMHO,
You have stated the only valid reason to pick any machine over the BDB.

Because it's the one you want.

It's also my, not so humble opinion that there is no better value in home espresso mchines than the Breville Dual Boiler. There are, arguably better machines out there, just not from a bang for the buck stand point. There are definitely better looking machines out there, though I actually like the aesthetics of the BDB.

As I said, if you have your heart set on the Pro600 because it is what you see as the classic italian beauty, then go for it as you will think about that every time you pull a delicious shot on your ugly BDB. (tongue firmly placed in cheek!)

Espresso machines are like cars -- get what you want to drive if you can possibly afford it. The one great advantage of E61s is that parts and knowledge are super available and assuming you buy from a good dealer, so is help and support from them.

I recently went through a similar decision making process. My head told me to get a BDB. My heart told me to get an E61 DB with Flow Control. For an E61, I wanted a smaller, less expensive DB and I was OK with a vibe pump. I narrowed my search down to the Profitec Pro 600 or Quick Mill QM67. In the end, my heart won out, and I got the QM67.

The reasons I used to justify my decision were possibly better build quality and ease of home repairs, FC didn't require mods or prohibit use of the hot water wand, and visual appeal.

It looked to me like the QM67 and PP 600 are very similar machines, and likely share many internal components. I loved the look of the curved steam and water wands on the Profitec, but I preferred the understated PID controller/display of the QM67. The QM67 was slightly cheaper, and I got great pre-sale support from Chris Coffee which clinched the deal.

No matter what choice you make, you will wind up with a great machine!

I had the same quandary a little while back. Ultimately I bought a BDB because being in Australia they can be had for under AUD$1k vs $3k-4k and upwards for Profitec, ECM etc

It's a brilliant machine - fast heat up, temp stable etc, and with the very simple Slayer mod I find it scratches my itch to experiment with different coffees, brew times etc.

That said... has it stopped me looking at other machines? No... although if I ever did get another machine it's probably a Londinium or similar high spec lever.
The look of the BDB is definitely not the same as a shiny metal European machine, I don't find it ugly per se but it's not something I go 'wow' for.

Why don't you look at Profitec pro 300? Like BDB but better built and cheaper than pro 600