Hi guys))

Looking for a new espresso machine just faced tough choice. What is the sweet spot for today's most advanced espresso machine????
Probably the main option is pressure profiling, 2 boilers, E61 group, what else? I see many brands with these options but with different pricing.
The last one was Rocket Epica with heavy price tag)) Why is so wide price difference between VBM, Rocket, La Marzocco, Dalla Corte, Slayer, Decent, Crem, etc.? What makes some be more expansive, brand name, quality of components, reliability ? I really doubt))
The construction of a good espresso machine is not a Newton's binomial theorem))
Will pressure profiling machine beat spring lever one, is also very interesting to hear yours experience because I was also looking at the new Vesuvius Evo Leva and Nurri L-TYPE LEVA espresso machine, which looks gorgeus but totally new without any track records.
May be this question already was discussed, sorry to raise it again in this case))
Thank you in advance for sharing your thoughts))

I think the sweet spot is the Cafelat Robot. Past that, you're primarily trading convenience, appearance, or name for money and space, along with some significant compromises in the mid range.

I'd read and listen to How to choose an espresso machine and grinder at the "right" price if you haven't already. That should cover some of the general questions. Then you can get opinions about specific trade-offs.

Some things that will help then include:

What is your budget for machine and grinder both?

What espresso experience do you have already?

What kinds of roast levels do you think you'll be pulling?

How many drinks in a session do you make? Of those, are any or most milk drinks?

Do you consider espresso a hobby to explore, or a process to get drinks?

Hi Jeff, thanks))
Budget no matter but it doesn't mean I will pay 10 grand for ambitions, only Italian blends with robusta, milk drinks also, Ceado SD ordered, just for hobby and good coffee))

Lelit Elizabeth for me. Right there in the middle.

I'd grab a lever with a "commercial group" and good thermal management. I'd guess half of an Italian roster's market is that class of machine. The better lever machines do a great job across the range of coffees.

I think that extraction profiling's primary advantages, as I think of them, are mainly beneficial to light roasts.

Pressure profiling is of course new trend for light roasts but also for emulation lever machine shot plus you have choice for some variations to play.
Lever machines are very interesting for me also and La San Marco lever is everywhere in Napoli but they don't produce for home use and I don't have possibility to connect it to water. ACS Vesuvius Leva an Nurri Leva with LSM group. It's also very important for me aesthetic appearance of the machine most levers like Cadillac of 50s.

I think 'most advanced machine' and 'sweet spot' - which I infer as meaning biggest bang for your buck - are two different things. I would suggest that biggest bang for your buck is indeed something like the Robot as Jeff mentioned, or a BDB. Most advanced machine in my eyes is a DE1XXL, but again these two categories should be seen as two different questions.

I'm not sure how DE1XXL to buy in EU, didn't see them in person. I suppose Decent mostly for US?

Hmm-m, from their website it says: "From our headquarters in Hong Kong, we ship our products everywhere in the world."

Will have a look, thanks. Interesting what Decent can do that VBM super electronic can't