DE1XL

I moved from a Dual Boiler E61 to a DE1XL. There is no way I am going back to a boiler based machine after using the thermoblock. Having water constantly being heated and reheated in a boiler seems very outdated when we have better technology now. The fast heatup time (4 mins from cold) is a total game changer. The DE1 is the most versatile machine in the market. I even use the filter 3.0 attachment to make filter coffee when I can't be bothered to do measured pours manually. It makes a very good cup. I have done so much more with the profiles on the decent than I have ever done with the E61 machine (flow control included). If you are into light roast coffees the DE1 is certainly one of the best in the market to get the best out of them. The tablet makes for some nice quality of life improvements. Brew by weight with a paired bluetooth scale is something I will not live without. Using the Describe Your Espresso plug in and visualizer uploads makes for a very compelling learning tool. I was using a BT group pressure gauge and my scales flow rate and Bean Conqueror to do similar things on my E61. With the Decent this whole thing is more integrated with the machine itself. There are many skins that make the UI as easy as you want or as detailed as you want. For example, the DSx2 skins have a feature where you can setup the weights of your milk pitcher. You set how long it takes to steam a quantity of milk to the temperature you like. For me 200g takes about 38 seconds to steam to 65 Celsius. Once you have all this setup, you place your pitcher in the scale and pour the milk. Press the steam adjust button and it will automatically set the time based on the weight of milk you put in. So if say I am using 160gm of milk, it will reduce the steam time to 30 ish or so seconds so you will hit your temperature and the steam will stop. It will then auto purge once you are done. This way you can focus on texturing the milk and not worry about when you need to stop steaming. Once you are done wipe and hit the stop button and it will purge (it can be set to purge without hitting stop too).

I paid 0 tariffs on it. It shipped and was in my hands in 2 days.

Just get a Decent DE1. I got one after faffing about using an E61 with flow control, there is no substitute if you want to control every aspect of the shot.

I got mine as a cosmetic defect unit in the end of Sept this year (barely noticeable nick at the back of the machine) otherwise perfect.

Decent DE1

Ill informed. EDIT: What I paid doesn't change the fact that you are clueless. Clueless people are easily triggered when their ignorance is pointed out!

I'd recommend checking out Decent. If you're patient you can nab one with a cosmetic defect for 20% off. Edit: they make a video for each unit, so you can see the defects and pick the one you want. This is the video for the one I ended up picking. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=MaMNfVZIQ0U#

I was espresso making nerd mode for a few days hahaha.  Thought about many things… When you choose high-end machines, it’s about… How serious you want to be since you will spend a lot of money.  If you want to be serious like nerd then Decent will be the machine since you can change brew temperature during extraction. It’s only machine which can do then rest of machines make “outdated machine.” But current decent model looks outdated too… new Decent bengal can be the one but… we don’t know when will be available and also price of bengal.  If you will never be “espresso nerd” then HX machine can produce decent coffees.  Dual boiler like data S will benefit more since it will give slightly more control and temperature stability than HX machines.  Today my wife told me that I made really nice coffee. I used flow control and my HX machine can’t save “ shot profile” so I told my wife that I can’t duplicate since my machine can’t save “shot profile” and implied future upgrade hahaha then she said that’s part of coffee making. I realized my HX machine will be endgame machine hahaha.  Anyway… upgrading from Breville to any $1200+ machine will give improvement. When I upgrade from BBE impress to HX machine, the first initial shot was already better without dial-in. 

Yesterday, I had long discussion with brewing temperature with AI hahaha.  I concluded that If you want flexible thermo stability and various different brewing temperature… Decent DE1 will be the one.  I have HX e61 machine, after I thought about this matter, I tested my machine today and I had data. I brewed light roast bean starting at 97.5 degree and ended with 94.5 degree (25sec extraction/1:2 ratio). There was 3 degree difference. There was study which found that steady high temperature throughout extraction might bring bitter taste at end of extraction so it might not be the best (but it might be depending on beans too).  Dual boiler e61 might give better temperature stability than HX but it might not be better than decent or Wendougee. Wendougee style machine will give good temperature stability from beginning to end but you can’t change temperature middle of extraction that’s why Decent machine will be better choice since you can set the temperature whatever you want during the extraction.  My question (for myself) was…. Do I want to be this serious about extract coffees since my HX machine can make great coffees now??? (And actually the temperature change might bring less bitter tastes naturally???). 

The Flair 58 platform is pretty much my ideal. I’ve got full BT graphing with scale and pressure sensor, and combining that with the manual feel of the lever interacting with the puck is the right combination of data- and human-driven coffee-making for me. I have a 46 mm step down basket and I’d maybe like a heated Flair version of that (like the 49 but heated). There are maybe other ways to optimise the platform but the Meticulous is too detached from the human side for me, as are the Decent machines, but I definitely feel like they are taking the best alternative approach. Other lever machines like the Strietman seem excellent, but take a more proprietary approach.

You were right the first time - I have the 58. I used to have the Pro2, and it was quite fiddly assembling it every time (although you get used to it), and the heat loss even with good preheating made everything quite a rush. So I was talking about my experience after upgrading. If anything, the 58 mm diameter reduces the cup quality, that’s why I have the step down basket to 46 mm. That way I get the best taste like the Pro and Classic but don’t need to worry about heating. Your Classic probably has less issues with heating than the Pro2 since it’s thinner, and they made the chamber thinner on the Pro3, probably for similar reasons

Start with an Aeropress You can make very good pseudo-espresso drinks, hot coffee, iced coffee, cold brew, Americano's and more. It's travel friendly and durable. Even if you get an espresso machine later, you'll find uses for your Aeropress. You might later want to add a $15.00 V60 or a Hario Switch for pourovers. Again, you'll find uses for them for yourself or guests, even when you get to espresso If you really like the Aeropress, then you could look into adding a moka pot to your collection It only does one type of brew: thick, strong coffee. Good for milk drinks and Cuban coffees. If and when you're ready to get into espresso the first of many decisions is whether you want a manual lever or electric pump machines. Many have already posted about their favorite electric machines, here so I'll present just a partial case for lever machines in general and the Cafelat Robot in particular. I'm firmly in the lever camp and a Cafelat Robot enthusiast, because: 1. There are no pumps, relays, switches, PIDs, etc. that go bad. Manual lever machines like the Robot are entirely mechanical. 2. Maintenance is almost zero No back flushing/cleaning required. One gasket on the Robot every few years. 3. The espresso is as good as you will get from machines costing several thousand dollars more. 4. Leverare extremely flexible. I can pull any ratio, I can pull soup shots, I can use ultra light to very dark roasts and more.. In fact, the closest pump machine in flexibility that might equal the $500 Robot, to my knowledge is a $4000+ Decent Machine. 5. The Cafelat Robot cleanup is very easy, even compared to other manual machines. 6. I personally get satisfaction from pulling and crafting my shots, rather than pushing a button. 7. With a little experience, you almost never waste a shot. Flow too slow? Just stop applying pressure and wait a minute until the puck saturates, then resume. Flow too fast/not enough resistance in the levers? Just ease up and slow the pull manually. 8. Time to pull shots versus pump machines is debatable and gear dependent. Many boiler machines take at least several minutes to twenty minutes or more to heat up before you can pull shots. You can walk in the kitchen, heat the kettle, prep, and begin drinking your shot in less than five minutes with the Robot. I usually make a Cortado in the mornings. It takes me around 9 minutes to pull the shot, heat and froth the milk, clean up the gear and counter, and then put everything away. Robot specific advantages? The Robot needs no preheat for medium or darker roasts. Light roasts probably will need basket and/or piston preheating. But this adds at most an extra minute to the work flow. This is superior to non-electric competitor levers. Cleaning is much easier as well. Some argue that if you consume mostly milk drinks you should go with a pump machine. Maybe. But I have a Dreo BaristaMaker for Lattes and a hand wand for Cortados, my usual. If I regularly had to make milk drinks for more than two, I would consider pump machines, but still would look at other steaming options first. I know this is a bit long but I've really just started. Okay, Paul pay up! ;-) Pax

My decent DE1 xl has all the bells and whistles you could ever want, but you can just pick the “classic Italian espresso” profile, tweak the weights (if desired) and voila…never think about it again. If you want to think about it, just pick another profile. You can have as much or as little information about your shot as you want on the screen. You can mount the screen anywhere, or put it in a drawer…it works either way. Paired with the niche zero, it’s utterly joyful to use. It’s plumbed and drained, countersunk (in my case), has a tiny footprint and a 3 minute warm up.

Not sure how quickly you want to order, but the Decent Bengle videos are shockingly quiet. It will be a new machine, which may come with some quirks, but Decent's are hardware upgradable and they sell kits. I have a DE1XL and have updated hardware, it's great. The DE1 definitely isn't that quiet, but given the programmability (and there is a Home Assistant plugin) it may be a good one to look at.

Not sure how quickly you want to order, but the Decent Bengle videos are shockingly quiet. It will be a new machine, which may come with some quirks, but Decent's are hardware upgradable and they sell kits. I have a DE1XL and have updated hardware, it's great. The DE1 definitely isn't that quiet, but given the programmability (and there is a Home Assistant plugin) it may be a good one to look at.