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Breville BES920 The Dual Boiler Espresso Machine $944.10 + Delivery ($0 C&C) @ The Good Guys
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Three times more $$ than breville infuser for $300 ( $261 from jb commercial, according to comments https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/743373
)..hmmmI started with the Infuser and quickly moved to this - they are not comparable in my opinion, coffee is noticeably better and much quicker to make multiple cups.
The person advice above gave the best take on this; if you're not interested in tinkering then there are other machines which are better value.
The only other reason I can think of to get a BDB is if you're making lots of coffees on a regular basisThere are lots of reasons to buy the BDB over other Breville machines. It’s by a long way the best Breville espresso machine imo. Well worth the extra $$, I just recommend purchasing extra warranty as they fail pretty regularly. The warranty will come in handy.
No-one is arguing that its not a better machine. But it's considerably more expensive than some alternatives which many people will get better value out of.
There’s no comparison with the infuser and this
I'm stuck between this and the Barista Pro.
I know this is definitely going to be better but the bench space, price and how much of an enthusiast I really am (low) leads me to lean towards the more basic all in one Pro… Thoughts? Will I have fomo?if you're not a big enthusiast then save the money and go for the pro. I have the dual boiler and smart grinder combo and sister has barista pro and when using good beans the pro puts out great coffee. So long as you concentrate on high quality fresh roasted beans then the extra steps that you can control with the Dual boiler/seperate grinder aint gonna be worth it.
You will have fomo as you get into the coffee making experience. It is a good starting machine though. I started with bambino plus and smart grinder and threw out the dual wall filter for a single wall. Ended up with the BDB in the end. Definitely much better. Your call really, can't go wrong with both
I am a noob and my first espresso machine is the pro and don't think I need anything more. Works well and is enough for two people I think.
I'm about 4 months in now and making some pretty good coffees, can't really tell a difference compared to local cafe apart from if I cheap out for a week and get shitty beans.
if you get into it you definitely will have fomo.
What I would recommend is considering a grinder thats around the 500$ mark then maybe considering getting either the bambino used or something like it.
So in the case you do have fomo, you can always consider ditching the bambino for a better esspresso machine like the dual boiler bes920 or Gaggia Classic Pro.I have used the Barista pro and the dual boiler with the Eureka Mignon Specialita, I can tell you right now, the grinder on the barista pro is awful. Its convinent for the average users who are willing to buy super market coffee or some lesser coffees and use pressurised baskets, however I personally would beware of these;
The Breville smart grinder or the built in grinder aren't very good. They clump a lot and require lots of puck prep that will be messy with a smaller portafilter and will cause something called channeling.
Both the barista pro and bambiano are single boilers, they will take roughly the same amount of time to be optimally heated up and be ready for operation, using the bambiano to steam milk might bit a slight more effort but you will still get the same result since they both "pump" steam when required. You cannot produce both espresso and steam at the same time for both machines.
More premieum machines tend to use 58mm portafilters that are easier when you want to adjust dosage, from memory the barista pro (54mm portafilter) when going above 19 grams was a definite struggle. I'm able to comfortably go up to 22grams with the 58mm portafilter.
If you have limited bench top space, even if its more expensive (roughly 200$), I would recommend a grinder like the Eureka Mignon Specialita + a bambiano, they will require less benchspace than the barista pro.
The barista pro while nice to have, didn't feel very pleasant to use. When using light to medium roast, there were a couple of problems. The grinder setting for some reason would change, my suspcision was the vibration potentially, and even with using a scale, you would get wildly different times. Since when grinded, light to medium roast actually have more volume when grinded, so when using 18 to 19grams, the coffee grinds would always overflow and make a mess.
Its up to you whether you want to buy the barista pro or not, but from my previous experiences I wish I had bought a good grinder from the get go, and purchased a simpler espresso machine. I bought the Barista pro for 460$ I believe pre covid, whilst it was nice to have, I wouldn't buy it again tbh. Having a nicer grinder and a decent puck prep gets you an incredibly velvety espresso texture and balanced flavours and leaves the window of using lighter roasts as less intimidating.
For someone who appreciates consistency with their morning coffee, thats my advise for you. Let me know if you have any questions :)
I love my DF64E
Out of curiosity where'd you get yours from?
@Save Medicare: @Save Medicare that pricing is in USD, and once you factor in shipping costs, the actual total price isn’t worth it
@Discoaus: Yeah $700 aud shipped, about $90 more than the eureka Mignon specialita. I think still worth it as there are some strengths over the specialita and it's not a crowded space in this price range
@Save Medicare: $710 for cheapest burr option, vs $550 for Eureka Specialita.
But they are two different grinders for different workflow, for someone who not into single dosing, then DF64E does not make sense!
I owned the Barista Pro as a newbie….a couple of years later I have the Dual Boiler.
The main differences are:(1) Well, dual boiler versus thermoblock.
(2) Has a pressure gauge - this is very useful actually. Tells u about puck prep, amongst other things
(3) Higher steam pressure (better textured milk)
(4) Easier to fill water at the front
(5) Has got wheels at the bottom to allow for better manoeuvrability (and u can turn the knob to retract the wheels when the machine is positioned)
(6) Does not come with a grinder - but at this level u get your own grinder of choice. One thing I hated about the Barista Pro was the grinder. I currently use a Niche Zero
(7) 58mm portafilter. So many more accessories available at this size compared to the 54mm of the Barista ProI also own the Flair 58 manual lever machine for the same price.
IMHO for $950 the Dual Boiler is a very capable machine for the price.I have the pro, used it for a few years now and like it a lot. We get good beans (coffee alchemy) and really like our coffees much better than coffee shop coffee
The barista express, pro range suit those who don’t want a separate grinder and just want an all in 1 machine. To be honest, you will get much better results out of the BDB and a dedicated grinder than you will on the barista range. And no, purchasing the smart grinder pro separate will not be a good option, as the barista range all incorporate the same internals and burrs that the smart grinder pro share. IMHO, purchasing something like a baratza sette 30/270, rancilio rocky, SD40, or even a hand grinder in the same 200-400$ category as these hand grinders will outperform almost all electric grinders in the same 200-500$ category
Thanks all for a great lot of input and discussion, hopefully it helps others in the same place on future deals.
I landed on the Pro for $801, paid with 15% off gift cards, $70 store credit and Breville bonus pack ($610 cost total).
Appreciate BDB is better, but the price difference, space savings was my driver for a newbie purchase, and can always upgrade later if I get into it enough.
Also shame 2 days away from 15% off gift cards…
15% off ultimate cards from Coles right now. Home work with TGG but I don't know if you can convert them online to actual TGG cards to use online tonight.
Great machine! I've had mine for 7 years now. I also made it wifi controllable so I can turn it on and off with my phone!
Do you need to though? Haha.
Even on my pro the heat up time is like almost instant?A "proper" espresso machine takes about 45 minutes to warm up.
Nobody except an owner of an antiquated HX / E61 machine goes "this 45 minute heat up time is great".
Is that simply a smart socket or do you need to open/close the on/off switch with a relay?
How? This machine does not come with wifi connectivity
Smart plug $20
You prefer that to the timer function?
Picked up a free used BES860. Still figuring it all out and dialling it in. Any tips for a newbie?
watch youtube
I am on a breville barista express and thought about the dual boilder as an upgrade, but after doing homework i went with gagggia classic pro and eureka mignon grinder. Waiting delivery.
Bdb is not for me who only make 2 cups of coffee in the morning
Where did you get eureka mignon grinder from?
If you're not worried about buying via an Australian reseller, you can save hundreds importing a grinder from Europe.
I bought a Macap M42D from an Italian online store. It took less than a week to arrive, and delivered I paid $420 vs $1100 buying it in Australia. The only difference is the plug, so basically I got a top of the range grinder for the price of a bottom of the range grinder… I've a Giotto, so the grind is really important.
Here's where I bought it.
Yep, just ordered from them after receiving promo code. 391.45 euro including shipping
That’s an amazing price. I’ve checked and looks like they’re not selling them anymore.
Maybe out of stock?
@megaalc: Sorry, I was replying to @AN Other and the Macap M42D they bought. Looks like a heap of Macap machines are no longer available on that site.
The hunt for a decent ~$400 grinder continues!
@AaronR: Yeah, I'm guessing I was on the right place at the right time as it looks like they've discontinued selling them. Must have had a few left they wanted to move on. I originally wanted the silver one, but they'd sold out, but was happy enough with the black one at that price!
I was the same as you by the way; I wanted a decent machine (not a Breville etc) but the prices here are so unrealistic, like everything else in Australia…
When you order from Espresso Coffee Shop - put "Australian plug thankyou" in the order note and they will send you an Australian plug for it
@thelegbonesconnected: Its AU adaptor (huge) which plug neatly into the EU plug with antitheft screws, right?
@huntabargain: Yep, it has a latch mechanism that keeps it sturdy and contains it inside the adapter. Not bad at all.
@thelegbonesconnected: My wall plug switch is on the side wall where I place my grinder, so found this arrangement of using the adaptor too bulky, so I ended up cutting the EU plug and bought a slim side entry AU plug from Bunnings for $4 to use, it was much better option for me.
What sold you on the gaggia? I’m considering the same two machines. My main concern with the breville is reports of it not lasting very long
My decision was GCP is cheaper even with PID and spring mod, but that gap is now 200 instead of 600 at the BDB price when I was looking.
Definitely would have considered the BDB now.
Comment/review of bdb not very long lasting is one of the main reason. Also i dont make a ton of coffee so bdb might be oberkilled and more expensive. Lastly i got hit by a review comment that "bdb is a coffee appliance, gcp is coffee machine".
nah, the dbd are built well and they do last, as long as they are taken care for. Most importantly the forum for it is insanely extensive.
Waiting for $8XX
$905 from Goodguys Commercial, that's pretty damn close to $8XX if your current BDB has just about shit itself.
I was just about to pony up the $2.5K for a Lelit Elizabeth when all that was available was the dynamic duo for $1600, now that they are selling the coffee machines by themselves again I'm more than happy with spending $905 for a replacement machine.
Also worth calling out there’s Breville promotions going on at the moment but Dual Boiler on its own it not part of it tho.
https://promotions.breville.com.au/bonus-deluxe-coffee-exper…
Purchase one of the following Espresso Machines:
• BES920And receive a BONUS Gift Pack valued up to $130
• 2 x 250g P&R Porter St Coffee Beans • Live Roaster Online DemonstrationAh sorry I didn’t scroll down enough.
It was a good machine while it lasted but I'll offer my routine post to not recommend this machine. Mine lasted 4 years before a cheap plastic part broke rendering the machine useless. The part no longer available from Breville and no local parts suppliers for coffee machines stocked it either.
It was the the part that screw locks in the portafilter, so I could no longer make a seal when pulling shots.
The part cost $20 when it was available. In reality a $2 part. But I would have been happy paying $100 if it meant not replacing the machine.
This is Big Warehouse. I had a terrible experience with them. Check them on productreview.com.au. "Instock" means up to 12 weeks.
At that price and ultra-slow delivery, it's a toss-up to buy a new machine.
$905 for those with access to Good Guys Commercial.
Mine lasted 3 years! Broke last week when one of the boiler lines leaked and stuffed the electronics. Last Breville I'll ever buy. The longest I've ever gotten was 5 years on a Breville. This was the fourth we've had and it is always a leak that does it in. This was the most expensive and lasted the shortest time.
Oh, also the cleaning of this machine took ages to do it properly (90 mins) and the sensor would come up for me to do again after a week or so. Was so sick of it.
Are you going to sell it for parts?
I'll attempt a repair but hit you up if it doesn't work.
did u use soft water and maintain it, ie. check for leaks periodically and change o-rings?
Didn't know this was a thing! Checked out a video on YouTube and ordered a set of o-rings. Thanks for the idea.
I love my BDB. Makes a fantastic coffee. I just had a leak coming from the steam wand. Didn't really affect making coffees just a little annoying. My machine was six months out of warranty but I emailed Breville anyway and they organised a repair and covered the entire cost. Going strong again. Lots of Youtube videos online too, to do your own repairs if you're handy.
What other machines fall in a similar $/perf budget value?
they don't exist, breville has had this market segment cornered for a decade, particularly if you are going to slayer mod it to add flow control.
Assuming you’re being serious, but the answer is none. You’ll be looking at triple this price minimum for another comparable machine
Have a 11 yr old dual lever machine that's been used 2-3 times a day every single day but has recently blown it's heating element. Was keen to research a semi auto that's as good and as robust but without the slow heating times, has larger shots and some more minute control while I get the other repaired. Pretty sure I have one of these at work paired with a BSG and havnt been super impressed
The BSG is a pretty mediocre grinder so assuming you have the skill to pull a shot proficiently (not everyone does and it takes a lot of practice), that could be causing some of your disappointment.
Otherwise what part of the machine doesn't impress you? Genuinely curious.
@OzBrogains: Needs a heap more dialling in compared to my lever which is impossible in an office full of numpties, doesn't froth anywhere near as quickly and generally doesn't feel robust but quality wise seems good (opposite of essentially hand made lever).
Will get to know it better, pouring perfect and see if the cup can at least match (or hopefully exceed) a 70s designed lever
Thanks just bought one, hopefully stakeholders will notice and it will be a foot in the door to a entry level role at PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Best bang for buck enthusiast espresso machine in the game.
The Barista Express or the Bambino Plus are better value for most people, go with the Dual Boiler if you're an enthusiast who likes to tinker with different aspects of your espresso.