So this morning I had a marzocco gs3 mp offer (second hand 1,5 year old) now this is though! I woke up and wanted to buy the l r 24

How is the flow profiling of the gs3 mp?

Can it match a lever?

and then i mean... can you with the MP... get the lever and other profiles?

How much is the GS3?

second hand... 4.5 k...
londinium L R 24 is 4.1 K


So tough decision! Both machines I love.

Only not sure about the flow profiling of the GS3... how are you guys experiences?

Is it easy to make a lever profile?? what are your taste experiences??

help me out

I'd go with the GS/3. Try something different .

Absolutely, it's upgraditis. Since I bought my Cremina, I'm cured! The design is so incredibly simple yet beautifully realized. I had complex E61 machines with all of the involved mechanics. Stick with the lever and enjoy your coffee.

I'm a bit late to this discussion. Did you go for the GS3 MP?
The GS3 MP is a bit cumbersome because when you restrict flow all the excess water gets directed into the drip tray and you have to empty it very often. It's even worse when you waste filtered water this way.
I also own a Strega and do not have the urge to change this machine at all. The Strega gives you a lot of possibilities with its pump filling the group and being an hx machine you always have fresh water and are able to adjust brewing temperature by flushing for different amounts of time.
I did not have the chance to test another spring lever machine like a Londinium next to it but I don't think the differences could be big if you adjust preinfusion and spring force to the other machine. (filling the group only partly reduces spring pressure)
I own and test a lot of machines and before the Strega I mostly used an Izzo Alex Duetto (dualboiler with PID) with flow control. This machine is really great for light roasted coffee and you can also simulate a declining pressure curve for dark roasted beans. But I was never able to get the creamy and smooth shots of the Strega on another machine (with dark beans). Only a cremina and a very old Europiccola came pretty close to it.

So my suggestion would be to stick withe the Strega if you still have it and instead invest in a better grinder.
The Niche Zero is by no means a bad grinder but If you like dark roasts I would test out a DRM burr grinder like the MC3 or MC4 or get a Ditting grinder with cast iron burrs which I still prefer to the MC3. The Levercraft Ultra grinder is a really good option if you can get one. You could put in the cast iron burrs from the Lab Sweet if prize is not a problem.
By testing a lot of different machines I also came to the conclusion that the grinder plays the biggest role after coffee beans.

True for the grinder but there's a lot that can be won when upgrading the Strega. A Londunium of GS3 will give much more options and better espresso. Those latter two are in a different league. Compared to any E61 a Strega will do a great job but compared to these more high-end equipment it's not gonna hold up.

The Strega is great for it's price but also has a lot of downsides to. I've owned one for 4 years and loved it but can tell you there's a whole world to discover after the Strega.

Hey! I'm glad you replied.
What do you think are the differences between the Strega and the Londinium resulting in a better espresso?

The Strega needs a very fine grind and most modern specialty filterbaskets don't work with the Strega. I kind of see the Strega as being in between an E61 and professonal lever. It just isn't as smooth as a Londinium, Bosco etc. It has a kind of hard taste for a lever just not as hard as an E61. It's a different beast which performs superb in it's priceclass but real professional levershots are just better if you look at it from a lever point of view.

ilVecchio wrote:Absolutely, it's upgraditis. Since I bought my Cremina, I'm cured! The design is so incredibly simple yet beautifully realized. I had complex E61 machines with all of the involved mechanics. Stick with the lever and enjoy your coffee.

Well said.
I don't believe a Londinium or GS3 is going to make better espresso than a Strega.