Hi everyone, I would like your advice on how to start my espresso journey. I was about to pull the trigger on Jura Z10 super auto but have now gone down the rabbit hole of semi-auto machines.
I'm a buy once cry once type of person (and don't like to sell/upgrade if not broken), so I wanted a bulletproof machine and was strongly considering the Rancilio Silvia. However, since I'm such a noob I figured I would need a PID, so that version of the Silvia was another couple hundred dollars which put me in the realm of other machines with similar/better functionality like the Lelit Victoria, Profitech Go, etc.
I'm sure all these machines are great and will last me for years without a justifiable reason to upgrade, so should I just go ahead and buy the Classika with the PID, awesome E61 head, flow control, etc. and call it a day? It looks intimidating, but I figure I can ignore the flow control for a while and focus on the basics if the learning curve isn't too crazy compared to a GCP or Silvia.
If the ECM is a bit too complex for my skills, I can just keep looking for a used unit at a good price that I won't mind upgrading or modding at some point.
Also, my rationale for wanting a single boiler is that I may only make one milk drink a week and I don't like the idea of water sitting in the steam boiler unused for a long period of time. If I am off base with this assumption please let me know. The only HX machine I've seen is the Lelit Mara X, but I've heard that it creeps up in temp pretty bad.
So Reddit, please guide me down the right path with advice, alternatives, and any recommendations.