My Innova (Ascaso) Dream is done. 12 years old, have bought it twice over in repairs and now needs a new boiler. I need to buy a new machine.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:
- I have a Rancilio Rocky grinder and plan to mod it so it becomes stepless. I will NOT be replacing the grinder.
- Usage: my wife drinks 1 Americano a day. I will drink a variety of drinks including Americanos, Cortados and latte's periodically. Maybe will drink straight espresso once every couple weeks. On average, pulling 3-4 double shots a day, with 75% of those shots being americanos. Daughter will steam milk a couple times a week to drink straight up or in hot chocolate.

- No real complaints with the Dream. Looks good and seems to pull reasonable shots. My significant others preference is to buy the current Dream as she loves the aesthetic and the footprint (or lack of one). Accessing water from the side is also nice.

- I prefer to move up the foodchain. I have identified the Astra Pro as the best bang for the buck and would not be willing to spend more than that on a machine. In Canada and with the exchange it is getting close to double the price of the dream.

- The Silvia seems to be the compromise machine; perceived upgrade in quality from the Dream but still quite a bit less money than the Astra pro. Aesthetically though...not so much.

So, some lingering questions are:
- Given the grinder is not being replaced, can the Astra Pro pull a better shot than the other two?
- Expected reliability? I only have experience with the Dream. I think its lifespan and maintenance was as expected but as I said I bought it twice over twelve years. Comments about reliability and Total Cost of Ownership over a ten year span across the three machines would be appreciated.
- I have read many times over about the Silvia losing its lustre and now there are other machines that are preferable in that price range. However, I don't know what those magical machines are. Can someone help me out offering up some other alternatives with a cost less than an Astra Pro that would be preferable to a Silvia and / or a Dream?

Thanks in advance everyone.

I applaud you for not replacing the Rocky as it's bashed quite often and I find it to be a rather capable grinder. Yes I've had experience with much more expensive/larger grinders for those wondering.

Yes I'm sure the Astra Pro is a great machine that will function well and last a long time. The main reason for choosing it over a single boiler machine would be speed at which you can steam/extract. I've owned/used a handful of HX/double boiler machines (home and commercially) and currently own a Silvia. I can honestly say the Silvia is a very capable machine for espresso once you find the sweet spot via time/temp surfing. Once you do it's very consistent.

I've had a few FrancisFrancis machines and from what I gather they're the same under the hood as most of the Ascaso machines. I can say without a doubt the Silvia is a far better machine in terms of performance/espresso quality/texture, build quality and steam pressure/volume. Scored my Rancilio combo at a killer price (used) and couldn't be more satisfied with it. Under the hood the Silvia is heavy duty and as basic as a machine can be. Heavy brass boiler/group/steam valve, copper plumbing, heavy gauge wire/rocker switches, no circuit boards to take a dump down the road. It's also very user serviceable. All the metal takes a bit of time to heat initially, as with most machines. Once I give mine 25-30 mins. from a cold start it's rock solid on temp. stability/heat retention.

For espresso, put new burrs in the Rocky. Besides its other often discussed shortcomings, the burrs do not have a long lifespan. I replaced mine twice and they needed it a third time when I sold it after about 8 years of use. Each time they were replaced the difference in the cup was quite noticeable. I would roughly estimate that 3 years of use for me at that time would have been around 100 pounds of coffee. The burrs would have been fine for other methods of brewing, but the difference in espresso was easily discerned after each change.

I read a lot of good things about this machine for its price https://idrinkcoffee.com/collections/qu ... -return-g7

Good luck!

Randy

That's crazy how the new stuff breaks. I love my 82 La Pavoni pro. A cave man could literally work on them (ie me)... What is your budget if you're thinking of going up the stack?

Budget?

How about a Breville Dual Boiler? About the most bang/buck out there, at least until the Decent is released.

If the Decent machine is ever released... They are trying to address every shortcoming in espresso machines and build a perfect machine at a fair price. Not likely that will happen and the technology is far from proven, so I surely wouldn't invest in one for some time. Guess time will tell though!

Silvia seems like the logical choice at this point. Thank you for your detailed reply; it was very helpful.

Espresso_Junky wrote:I applaud you for not replacing the Rocky as it's bashed quite often and I find it to be a rather capable grinder. Yes I've had experience with much more expensive/larger grinders for those wondering.

Yes I'm sure the Astra Pro is a great machine that will function well and last a long time. The main reason for choosing it over a single boiler machine would be speed at which you can steam/extract. I've owned/used a handful of HX/double boiler machines (home and commercially) and currently own a Silvia. I can honestly say the Silvia is a very capable machine for espresso once you find the sweet spot via time/temp surfing. Once you do it's very consistent.

I've had a few FrancisFrancis machines and from what I gather they're the same under the hood as most of the Ascaso machines. I can say without a doubt the Silvia is a far better machine in terms of performance/espresso quality/texture, build quality and steam pressure/volume. Scored my Rancilio combo at a killer price (used) and couldn't be more satisfied with it. Under the hood the Silvia is heavy duty and as basic as a machine can be. Heavy brass boiler/group/steam valve, copper plumbing, heavy gauge wire/rocker switches, no circuit boards to take a dump down the road. It's also very user serviceable. All the metal takes a bit of time to heat initially, as with most machines. Once I give mine 25-30 mins. from a cold start it's rock solid on temp. stability/heat retention.

Will do. I think my Rocky is a good 8 years old and the burrs have never been replaced.

Randy G. wrote:For espresso, put new burrs in the Rocky. Besides its other often discussed shortcomings, the burrs do not have a long lifespan. I replaced mine twice and they needed it a third time when I sold it after about 8 years of use. Each time they were replaced the difference in the cup was quite noticeable. I would roughly estimate that 3 years of use for me at that time would have been around 100 pounds of coffee. The burrs would have been fine for other methods of brewing, but the difference in espresso was easily discerned after each change.

Saw that one. I take this is more or less a Siliva quality machine with a PID?

slipchuck wrote:I read a lot of good things about this machine for its price https://idrinkcoffee.com/collections/qu ... -return-g7

Good luck!

Randy