Breville - Elizabeth

Lelit Elizabeth’s steam preinfusion is great for pulling low pressure soup shots. I just got one a week ago and it’s been delicious.

I had a similar question a while back. Someone suggested Elizabeth for dual boiler vibe and I went with it. I agree it doesn’t look as fancy as Mara X but I believe it is much better in terms of the demand of upgrading. Dual boiler is really a huge thing. Otherwise if you insist between those two, i would say go with cheaper and spend the extra on grinder. Instead of DF64v go for DF83v or 78s on other brand.

I don’t understand why you’re being downvoted for this on an espresso cup. Elizabeth all the way. Dual boiler, timed shots, line of pump pressure pre-infusion, 58mm group head. Electrically heated. Stupid fast warmup. Great styling.

Get an Elizabeth v3, $1.8K. After ten years you deserve it.

I would get a [Lelit Elizabeth](https://www.seattlecoffeegear.com/products/lelit-elizabeth-espresso-machine-open-box) in that budget. It's a dual boiler at a great price. PID of course. $1500 for that open box I linked to, and not much more new. Small footprint. Doesn't have the popular E61 look, but that's not a problem (and you wrote you don't mind the boxy look anyways). Plus with the success of the home Lineas, boxy-ish is back for sure.

Lelit Elizabeth to the rescue. 1.2k, also a workhorse. And easy to fix if it breaks. Source - am dummy, shorted my Elizabeth adjusting the OPV. Fixed it, runs perfect

Lelit elizabeth or bellezza bellona. Both very similar machines, both dual boiler. The bellona heats up faster. I love my dual boiler, and I'll never go back to single boiler or single thermoblock machines. The steam power is great and the ability to steam and brew is huge for me.

There have been multiple questions regarding quality/reliability/value for many so let me try to generalize my experience here. Lelit is best value for money. Quickmill and Bezzera are mid tier. Rocket, ECM and Profitec are top tier.  E61 heat exchange machines are good example. You get the same coffee starting at 1000 € with Lelit. QM and BZ you pay 1200-1400 €. Profitec and Rocket starts at 1500 €. The more you pay, the better quality you get, regarding overall built as well as component quality and therefor better reliability.  Lelits are more likely to have issues already within warranty. Bezzera are quite solid but the use low quality hearing elements which fail regularly.  Rocket and ECM/Profitec are the most reliable while ECM still gibes more attention to detail and built quality. Just a bit more 'german' I'd say.  La Marzocco I can't say much about. The haven't been in the repair shop often but when they did things got expensive fairly quick. But I had the impression that they're built super solid at least on the interior. Exteriorwhise LM wasn't worth the money imo. Common failure points on any machines are anti vaccum valves, leaking steam when hot and loosing steam pressure when steaming. With any machines using soft water and descaling regularly could prevent lots of issues. 

Grinders are easier to use because they are much more robust and break less often. Eureka offers the best value for money, but this comes at the expense of slightly lower quality workmanship on the housing and components. Displays and switches break regularly. However, you get great espresso quality for 100-200 less than with Rocket or ECM grinders. For me, the new Specialita Compatto is currently the sweet spot in terms of value for money. For any older Eureka grinder with a small adjustment wheel for the grind size, I recommend the king-size wheel. It makes a huge difference. ECM, Profitec, and Rocket grinders are also very good. Mazzer makes the best and most solid grinders. We've never even had an old Mazzer Mini in our workshop. They just keep on running. In general, you can rely on reviews when it comes to grinders, because there are few hidden differences in terms of reliability.

See general answer above. With Lelit you get best value for money. ECM/Profitec make the best/most reliable machines. 

To me the Elizabeth is the best value for money dual boiler peroid (European prices). Which is why i own one and i love it. Form followed function for me, it's not the prettiest, but the steam pre-infusion made a huge difference for my medium and light roasts. It has some issues though. The brushed surface needs to be cleaned often so that the stains don't burn in. The steam wand has to be closed very gently to not wear down the gasket faster (general good tip for any steam wand with rotary knobs). The plastic steam knob and portafilter don't feel great but can be replaced with wood.

I can't which is why i let the full time mechanic handle this :D

All of the grinder options are good other than the Ode - Fellow themselves say it’s not for espresso. It depends on the taste profile, if you want it manual, etc. Consider GBW for the wife. As for machines, provided you understand what’s a boiler and what’s a thermoblock, and impact on workflow, I wouldn’t suggest the boilers other than a Lelit Elizabeth or similar dual boiler. Simply because making multiple lattes on a single boiler doesn’t sound fun.