I'm interested in buying a Decent machine because I think it'll help me explore and learn. But if I'm honest with myself, I'd only tinker with recipes less than half of the time, probably on the weekends. The other times, can I expect to rely just on the group head controller with no tablet visual feedback to full their default recipe consistently? I prefer not to use a screen unless I want to play with adjustments and get feedback.

There are about 30 presets . You can simply browse the descriptions and choose one. Then use the group head from there on out. I can't say enough about the machine. I am not a techy person . I don't even have social media or a computer. Dont let the tablet scare you. Its actually very useful. I honestly don't know how you couldn't be happy with a DE1.

I've used my DE1 without a tablet for a while now, and now use my iPhone's browser with some custom software. The online Visualizer, provided by Miha Rekar, also lets you view past shots and compare at your leisure.