Anna Series

I know! lol. My wife has been super and gifted me the grinder for Christmas. I also considered the Lelit Anna but was put off by the lack of control over pre infusion etc. The Gaggia is great if it works for you. I was just put off by the need to invalidate warranty in order to get anything out of it.

First you need good grinder because it is soul of making decent espresso and if you don't want to change your espresso machine in 10 yrs go for Lelit Anna or gaggia classic .... ...followed by Grinders 64 mm burr like Rift 64 or DF64 v2.... Total budget will set you off for around 90k.. Invest in quality product and brew decent espresso.. Don't waste money on cheap espresso machines and grinders...

You're coming from a pretty competent entry level machine, so your budget is tough. The Lelit is probably the best of the 3 for usability, but I don't think you'll notice much difference in output, and the workflow will be slower. I don't really like the BDB (cheaply made, common failure points) but they offer *a lot* for the money, especially here in Aus - you can regularly get it for $1000-$1200. Expect issues after 5 years and you can decide whether that's a worthwhile investment for you. Quick Mill Silvano is an interesting machine that flies under the radar a bit here. At $1650ish it's a decent chunk over your $1000 - but it's not much more than a Silvia... Good built quality, 58mm, PID controlled, steam & espresso at the same time. Ticks a lot of boxes.

I like the setup - but why go for a dual boiler version if you just occasionally need milk? I’d go for the cheaper Lelit Anna with PID to check temperature.

I've had an Anna for 7 years, making 2 flat whites back to back twice a day, and I absolutely love it. I got a precise fit tamper for it and have never felt I've missed anything at 57mm. In terms of maintenance I backflush weekly and descale monthly and haven't had a single issue until this year when I've had to replace the steam valve stem. It's also a compact, beautiful machine. Can't recommend highly enough.