Breville - Mara X (V1) PL62X

Man I hear you. I have first one since it came out.   I have replaced the computer due to over heating when turning on. Would make so much noise.  My leds are hit and miss. So haven’t fixed them.  My gauge was half busted pretty much since new. Now it’s fully busted so I have just replaced that. I will actually see what steam pressure it’s at finally.   It has had so many leaks as well. Hopefully after this service I willl be leak free and a working gauge.   And yes the worst bit. No steam!  But I have had it for a while and made a buttload of coffees from it. So it’s not all bad. 

I see people saying Ascaso has QC issues, and perhaps that’s true but I have had nothing but problems with the Mara X (first gen) and all the parts are custom Lelit sized and outrageously expensive, just spent $40 CAD on a group head gasket (a $3 dollar piece or rubber), $200 to replace the water tank (plastic must be expensive in Italy), both of my indicator lights stopped working after 2 years and I refuse to pay $150 dollars for a wiring harness replacement two cheap LED lights, and more recently my steam pressure has disappeared and the machine will not generate steam as expected, can’t wait to see what that fix costs me.

I’ve had the original Mara X for I guess 13 years, and this thing is built like a tank. After 7 years my on/off switch had blew up and the repair was very cheap. I also had problems with that valve on the boiler (that should go up and block the steam, not sure how it is called). I repaired it by myself (changed the o-ring and used some thread seal tape), it would hold for about 4 years and currently I need to revisit it. Other than that this is a very reliable workhorse. I do want to get something new but I can’t justify the purchase.

The MaraX makes no sense at its US price. Ive owned and used both and hands down I would save the money, buy a Bambino (regular unless you want the color options, or auto milk) and spend the other $600 on a mid range grinder. Pocket the difference and spend it down the road on an actual upgrade. The difference between the Bambino and a $1-1.6k machine are all about aesthetic and durability. IMO you don't need that, you don't know what you want/need for long term satisfaction and all of the machines in the mid range price point have compromise that you don't understand or know whether you care about or not (at the moment). Bambino is fantastic and you'll very likely be happy with it for a few years. If you're done with it quicker than that, you'd also almost certainly want to move on from the MaraX just the same, but your resale on the Mara will tank while you can sell the Bambino used for a much better return. 0.02 Eta: if it's an aesthetic or brand decision, you don't really need to consider the usefulness because aesthetic answers your question/need

You get the Bambino because it makes sense and is "worth it". You get the MaraX because you "want it". It's not worth the price difference, unless you want it...

Lelit Mara X v1. Did the boiler routing mod (not required on later models as they come with it). Sits on a smart plug so it’s ready to go when I wake up. In more than five years it has been entirely problem free except for recently needing to replace the OPV, which is normal given its age. Used every day for multiple coffees, sits switched on for around six hours. Usually make cortado, occasional flat whites and cappucino. I keep it in brew priority mode. Love the machine, love the way it looks, visitors often comment on how good it looks. If I was to look today I think the only other machine that might draw my attention is ECM. I’m in the UK.

The Mara X is not overkill, but as I wrote in another comment, it doesn't offer the reproducibility you get from an Elizabeth or even a Victoria. I know many will disagree, but in my book a Silvia is an entry-level machine, not a mid-tier one.

I would swap the Mara X for an Elizabeth and the DF54 for a DF64. Both are pricier but worth the extra money. The Mara X takes longer to warm up and, IMO, provides less consistent outcomes. The Profitec Pro 300 is an excellent alternative too. While I don't love the DF64, it's a good grinder for your use case. You can't go wrong with it within this budget.

What you have here is a Ferrari vs a Malibu. Yes both will grant espresso but the quality and control with the Mara x is very different than the bambino.

I have a MaraX with a smart switch and a Mignon XL so I pretty much sleep walk my way through the first cappuccino in 2-3 minutes each morning. I don’t dial in new beans everyday, I start a bag and finish it and the roast level is generally medium to medium dark and close to the last bag so I’m not spending more than 3 shots to dial-in the next bag. I use a scale, the stock metal tamper, and sometimes a WDT tool. I don’t have any other home barista gadgets.

MaraX for me, added flow paddle and I don’t need anything else in a machine.

With MaraX I would only upgrade if it breaks.. thats actually my stance with anything which is good enough.

For same reasons I went for a good HX. Wanted flow profiling and good thermal stability inside of small footprint machine. I think at the moment MaraX rules these waters (when you add flow paddle onto it). Happy to learn about alternatives if there are any.

I think more or less the same. Grace has slightly smaller boiler and 57mm portafilter. The internals outside of that (and related sized parts) are the same. I used to own Grace, replaced the pump for the quieter MaraX version and the steam wand for Elisabeth’s cool touch one. It was decent machine, only moved on because I wanted better flow profiling. You can still do that on Grace by opening the steam valve while brewing but it causes temp stability issues. Now I have maraX and added flow paddle.

Same as MaraX.. this is not even dual boiler territory and steaming while brewing is just no bother

MaraX with flow control does the trick for me.. not really sure what else can be improved. Maybe reduction of water temperature for the second half of the shot.

Mara X owner here. Can confirm I can simultaneously brew and steam. Amazing performance for a single boiler HX. Cost me about $1,300. What’s cool is if I spent another $250, I can add on the flow control valve. At that point, I don’t really know how it’s really any less than a $6k LaMarzocco.