Quote:
Originally Posted by Hondaracer
Damn I want a double boiler..
Will have to start saving now in anticipation of my 870XL biting the dust, knock on wood lol
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Your 870XL is capable of pulling excellent shots. Dual boiler is great if the volume of shots/coffees require it, but unnecessary for the most part. It will be a while before it craps out, unless you intentionally and maliciously do not maintain it.
Since I moved from the Rancilio Silvia to the Rocket Giotto Evo v2 over 4 years ago, the only big difference is the time for heat recovery and being able to steam and pull shots at the same time. Being an E61 grouphead and a heat exchanger, temperature stability is consistent. Otherwise, the Silvia was great at pulling excellent shots. I never had enough people over often enough where it was a problem. And even if I had company over, nobody ever mind waiting.
Over the course of years, the most significant improvement to shot quality was getting a better grinder. I picked up a Quamar M80E for cheap (clearance sale) and it made a huge difference. If there is one thing I would highly recommend to people when considering upgrading, is to spend more money on the grinder over a machine. I thought people were crazy when they told me this, until I jumped at the opportunity to do it. No regrets.
When I move to my new place in October, I'm tempted to get a traditional lever machine. Quite frankly, I'm tired of all the tech and gadgets of new machines, and miss dialing in my technique. I miss that about my Silvia. The Rocket made me lazier because it's so much more forgiving. And when going out for coffee, despite shops having nice machines like Slayers and the like, it usually equates to just an "okay" shot of espresso. While there are exceptions, it's rare to find a shop and a barista who can consistently do an excellent job.