I had to smile at the outcome of this thread. A budget of $1500 ended up being double.

Just FYI. I'm still a newbie but have had a Niche and Sette side by side. For me the taste in the cup was really close. Too close for me to tell apart in most cases. While the Niche grinds slower the lack of noise, better aesthetic and smoother workflow were really pleasant. Your likely going to very pleased with your new machines. Please report back your impressions.

Niche is a great choice. No timed grinder will let you easily switch beans, it will frustrate you dialing in all the time and you will waste a bunch of coffee.

Not sure if you already decided on the lelit Bianca but why not the Mara X? It's half the price, give or take, and if you're only occasionally using steam it's going to have the same temp stability as the Bianca. There's not need to switch or wait between water/steam/coffee. You can add the same flow control paddle to it as the Bianca has.

I own the Bianca and while I do like the features of the v3 with the programable valve, it doesn't add anything you can't do manually with the paddle. It has only 2 settings, full and reduced flow, I think that really limits what you can actually do with it in practice. You can create a profile but it's going to be super basic. If I'm ever messing with flow I would use the paddle, I see very narrow band of time when you want the programable valve. Maybe if your SO wants a coffee but not to learn the machine then you can create a profile for them, but in this case are they really going to be drinking light roast that need that flow control in the first place?

Just something to think about

Well, this is interesting. No, I have not buy it yet. I still want it and is just waiting for pricing from one of the sellers.

Yes, ease of use is somewhat of a pre-requisite, but with the option of going all out experimentation (for me). It seems like to me that you're you saying there's no need for flow control/pre-infusion if we don't drink light roast? If I have they Niche, I will want to try all sort of beans since it'llbe easier to switch beans. I've done a basic read/search on Mara and it seems pretty good with the flow add-on. I will definitely look for into this before I pite.

Even though I don't do milk, the double boiler aspects do draw me to the Bianca...for when having guests.

Thanks for letting me know about the Mara.