Deciding on a Dual Boiler Espresso Machine - Page 2

#11: Post by **bored117** » June 9th, 2023, 12:29 am

What do you mean no space for roaster?

I am enjoying Kafelogic Nano 7.

#12: Post by **headcase** » June 9th, 2023, 5:04 pm

Mark_Barista_CA01 wrote: I just ran across a Lelit Elizabeth V3? you guys heard of this...looks like a good machine. Any thoughts on this one?

I've been running my Elizabeth for 18months or so now, its been preforming great. The only slightly strange thing is the PID programing, not super intuitivebut once you know what you are looking for its easy to use.

June 9th, 2023, 10:14 pm

That Lelit Elizabeth Looks like a sweet machine, will have to look more into it. Anyways guys....I called Whole Latte Love in regards to the Rancilio Silvia Pro X and the Profitic Pro 300....the guy said to go with the Profitic Pro 300..all the way!!! He said its designed in Germany and Italian made...he told me to stay away from anything Breville....Chinese made! Profitic is made by ECM??? He recommend 2 other machines if I had the money for them...ECM Synchronika ( The only espresso machine you will ever need ) he also talked about the Bezzera Matrix with a touch screen. The guy has been in the coffee business for 20 + yrs, He seems to know about a lot of stuff...super cool dude.

He also talked about a grinder....and said how important it is to have a good quality grinder, Ceado E-37S 1800 dollar bean grinder...whoa.....I need to step up my game. I just bought a Burr grinder from amazon...check the link out below

https://www.amazon.com/SHARDOR-Electron ... ast_sto_dp

They even have a 15 dollar off coupon, I got mine for 86 dollars????

#14: Post by **Jeff** » June 10th, 2023, 12:36 am

Please, please slow down

Step one - cancel that grinder order

Step two - consider that almost any salesperson is going sell you what they have

Step three - get a budget

An entry-level grinder for espresso is going to start at around $160 for hand grinders and $400 for a motorized one. They go up from there, but there are some very good ones without getting into the thousands.

#15: Post by **GLT** » June 10th, 2023, 1:06 am

"I do plan to...own a Linea Mini...."
If you're determined to get there, "eventually," well then you will (get there). Why don't you save yourself the most valuable component of all (your time), and go straight there and get what you plan to own: The Mini!
That's my recommendation.

June 10th, 2023, 2:56 am

Lol no kidding huh, he sold me on the spot!! So do grinders REALLY make a HUGE difference with shots??? That 86 dollar amazon grinder, does a good job.

Jeff wrote:Please, please slow down

Step one - cancel that grinder order

Step two - consider that almost any salesperson is going sell you what they have

Step three - get a budget

An entry-level grinder for espresso is going to start at around $160 for hand grinders and $400 for a motorized one. They go up from there, but there are some very good ones without getting into the thousands.

June 10th, 2023, 3:00 am

Yeah...I do agree with what you are saying. Just go big or go home kind of stuff, save your self the $$$$ on a machine that you will eventually sell or give to a relative to get the good stuff down the road. Its good advice what you are saying...I just don't have the space for a large ass machine. If I had the space i would not mind getting it...I even thought of getting one of those E61 group head espresso machines..but they are soo darn big. Rancillo Pro Silvia X or Profitec Pro 300....meet the dimensions of my counter space without hitting my kitchen cabinets.

GLT wrote:"I do plan to...own a Linea Mini...."
If you're determined to get there, "eventually," well then you will (get there). Why don't you save yourself the most valuable component of all (your time), and go straight there and get what you plan to own: The Mini!
That's my recommendation.

#18: Post by **Paris92** » June 10th, 2023, 3:17 am

Mark_Barista_CA01 wrote:That Lelit Elizabeth Looks like a sweet machine, will have to look more into it. Anyways guys....I called Whole Latte Love in regards to the Rancilio Silvia Pro X and the Profitic Pro 300....the guy said to go with the Profitic Pro 300..all the way!!! He said its designed in Germany and Italian made...he told me to stay away from anything Breville....Chinese made! Profitic is made by ECM??? He recommend 2 other machines if I had the money for them...ECM Synchronika ( The only espresso machine you will ever need ) he also talked about the Bezzera Matrix with a touch screen. The guy has been in the coffee business for 20 + yrs, He seems to know about a lot of stuff...super cool dude.

He also talked about a grinder....and said how important it is to have a good quality grinder, Ceado E-37S 1800 dollar bean grinder...whoa.....I need to step up my game. I just bought a Burr grinder from amazon...check the link out below

https://www.amazon.com/SHARDOR-Electron ... ast_sto_dp

They even have a 15 dollar off coupon, I got mine for 86 dollars????

+1 on the Sync and a Ceado grinder. My set up, so yes I am biased. I purchased from WLL.

#19: Post by **BodieZoffa** » June 10th, 2023, 4:27 am

Mark_Barista_CA01 wrote:That Lelit Elizabeth Looks like a sweet machine, will have to look more into it. Anyways guys....I called Whole Latte Love in regards to the Rancilio Silvia Pro X and the Profitic Pro 300....the guy said to go with the Profitic Pro 300..all the way!!! He said its designed in Germany and Italian made...he told me to stay away from anything Breville....Chinese made! Profitic is made by ECM??? He recommend 2 other machines if I had the money for them...ECM Synchronika ( The only espresso machine you will ever need ) he also talked about the Bezzera Matrix with a touch screen. The guy has been in the coffee business for 20 + yrs, He seems to know about a lot of stuff...super cool dude.

He also talked about a grinder....and said how important it is to have a good quality grinder, Ceado E-37S 1800 dollar bean grinder...whoa.....I need to step up my game. I just bought a Burr grinder from amazon...check the link out below

https://www.amazon.com/SHARDOR-Electron ... ast_sto_dp

They even have a 15 dollar off coupon, I got mine for 86 dollars????

Personally I've never been that impressed with 'German' engineering, but to each their own. I will say I've never been at all impressed with anything WLL goes on and on about. I will gladly say if you want a dual boiler that very simply gets the job done 100% and will do so indefinitely the Silvia Pro (X) is tough to beat. I have never felt/seen the need for 'must have' flow control or preinfusion as I can make every change I need with grind quality, green selection, roast development... those types of real world changes that work for my use/expectation to dial in any coffee I choose to pursue. Rancilio has done a great job sticking with the tried/true build quality as well as increasing performance/consistency with a much improved flow rate (much better than early versions of the Silvia) as well as killer temperature consistency and recovery. Sure, there are lots of good/solid machines available, but don't get caught up in the hype and/or analysis paralysis.

#20: Post by **Jeff** » June 10th, 2023, 10:42 am

Mark_Barista_CA01 wrote:I do like "Light Roast - coffee" its what I prefer to drink even on espresso and want a machine that can fully express the light roast well.

So do grinders REALLY make a HUGE difference with shots???

If all you're trying to do is get a passable espresso-like drink from traditional dark-roast blends from the top Italian roasters, you can probably grind with a brick and use a moka pot. A lot of this is due to the expertise of the roaster and their blends. For anything else, you need a grinder that is uniform in its grind, repeatable, and has the ability to adjust the grind infinitesimally. You don't need a $1,800 grinder. There are ones that I'd recommend over the Ceado, especially if you are expecting to pull US-style filter roasts. If you are thinking about light roasts, it becomes even more important.

I can understand that someone who is only pulling classic espresso roasts doesn't find preinfusion to be of value. However, lighter roasts tend to be harder to extract. You often have to grind finer than for a darker roast to be able to get a balanced set of flavors. Preinfusion helps the finely ground puck hold up to the pressure without channeling -- where the water rushes through cracks or holes in the puck and doesn't do a good job of extracting the coffee.

Neither the Silvia Pro X (which is a very different machine than the single-boiler Silvia) nor the Profitec 300 have any meaningful preinfusion capabilities, despite their marketing. The Elizabeth has some, though I have not used one myself.

Budget first, total including grinder, then people can give you some meaningful options.