Z1

Generally id suggest a high quality hand grinder for pour over (as youre already doing) but youre tired of that and wanting to electrify...seems like an 078 or philos would be the middle of the road option (between ode2 and zerno)...but if you really want to spend the money on something cool, a z1 is pretty cool. I own one and love it but i ONLY use it for espresso. I would not own it otherwise, as cool as it is. Id say grab a 078 on sale ($640ish) and spend the rest on nice coffee.

What matters more than anything is burr set and burr alignment. Burr set will set taste profile. Alignment will define consistency. Everything else is diminishing returns. For most, Mazzer Philos and Zerno Z1 (and the upcoming Z2) will be pretty peak for premium home grinding. You can get similar for cheaper if you want to invest time to align the burrs manually. You can spend a ton more but won’t make your coffee much better.

Your grinder is the most important piece in your espresso system. The brewer is the least important. That is, if you are going for the taste and experience. Decide if you want a grinder with a hopper or if you want single dose. The Zerno Z1 or Z2 ($1,500 to $2,500), Kafatek M6 ($2,500), Lagom P80 ($1,800) are just a few very good single dose grinders to consider.

I’m currently going through this exact same issue but from Canada. Our Coffee Shelter has a great [video covering many of the grinder you’ve mentioned](https://youtu.be/OCskQlEUXa4?is=66kObWp4M1H0KHfD) so I’d definitely give it a watch. Personally I’m thinking I’ll go with the Z1, but in your case the P80 (or even the P64) seems like the clear winner. I think over the next few years we’re going to see a lot of new 80mm burrs coming out. The only caveat to the P80 is that it seems like the tolerances are VERY tight and not every 80mm burr will fit it - the YouTube page I liked above did a video on the P80 and they talk about this.

Zerno z1 or z2 if you can wait. I personally use the DF83V and that is massively underrated, but still if you have the budget, Zerno.

Higher chances of having better alignment, a slow feeder and prebreaker auger and somehow a more robust construction. If your df64v is greatly aligned and you have a slow feeder attached to it you might not get much

Not gonna lie, with this budget I would stick to the 064s and put in SSPs that go well with your taste preferences! Or stretch it a bit (double) and get the Zerno Z1! You will get the best grinder around for around 2k shipping + duty included Under 1k, you could upgrade to the 078, but that's not worth the hassle of resselling + buying again. And you get the same grinder quality, just bigger. So at your place I would keep the 064 and get new burrs if you want to experiment around and unlock "new" (more different) highs.

>looks does matter I moved from the 064S to a Z1 because of many things but aesthetics was part of it. I considered the Orbit and everything mentioned so far except the Eurekas.

Ha. Fellow Vivace enthusiast. Was the bean that started it all for me. Here we go: - Niche has great workflow but lamentable for pour over and lighter roasts. Don’t like the Mazzer conical, personally, for much of anything. Bitter, ashy finish and grainy texture. Vivace used to run Niches in shop and I always felt I could do better with a rolling pin and mortar and pestle at home. - Timemore 064s — good build, stock burrs are not bad for espresso and filter. I just spend a coupla months pulling Vivace+Lusso shots with it, alongside H&S ultralight pourovers. Been great. There’s also a plethora of options in 64mm space, sounds like Cast LS v3 might be for you and the wife. Burr swaps not the most straightforward on the 064s, but doable for the slightly mechanically inclined. - 078s is good but I am not a fan of proprietary burr sizes; not a lot of choices yet in 78mm. - DFs are a crap shoot in quality. - Philos - huge, well built. You can replace the burrs, but auger and fixed rpm are tuned for the mazzer i200 and i189 burrs. Which are fine if you like them. - Z1 next best choice in 64mm, but pricey and unobtainium. - Eurekas - avoid like the plague. Antediluvian burr chamber design. High retention. Stupid stupid stupid stupid burr adjustment mechanism, yes even the new one. Dialing in is frustrating, never mind switching between filter and espresso settings. Burrs are proprietary and are ok if you like dark chocolate + nuts. Never mind filter coffee, yikes. Re: used market - usual places. /r/coffeeswap. Home-Barista. FB marketplace. EAF Discord, but you gotta put in frequent flier miles. DM me, I can help you out. Re: Vectis - had a janky early build that needed lots of fixes and some significant modding. - But eventually, made the best coffee for me day to day. Easily preferred it to the LMLM, and even the Slayer, sometimes. Have fun