La Cimbali M100 versus Elektra Indie

johnmichelle73

I am looking at purchasing the Elektra Indie or La Cimbali M100, would anyone have any feedback for me please on these machines?

Brett_H

Wow... great machines. Will you get to play with them prior to purchase or is it an internet ‘click and pray’ arrangement?

johnmichelle73

I am purchasing from reviews and hoping for the best. No-one local has either of these machines, they seem to stick to La Marzocco here. I also found a San Remo Verona RS that I like. I absolutely need an auto-milk frother and would like the digital group head temperature controls and 15 to 20amp. We have the worst water in Qld here, I like the Indie because the water for the coffee is not sitting in the boiler, they tell me it comes from the mains and is pre-heated through the steam wand boiler. I am still learning and very confused but would appreciate any feedback. A huge factor in my decision is servicing and repairing too, the Technicians here only fix the popular brands (La Marzocco, Expobar etc) because they don't know much about the aothers. I was also considering the Expobar Diamont or Expobar Onyx pro purely because they are easy to get parts for and a technician here could fix it quickly if I have any issues.

mycuppa

JM73, I think you have already answered your question in the last sentence. If you have bad water, then steer clear of most those machines, especially LM or anything with stainless parts as these will not last unless you are an expert in controlling the water pH and you install multiple filter systems. Sub-standard water = expensive service and repairs full stop. No buts or maybe's - it's the cause of most failures on espresso equipment. In this regard, stick with an Expobar if your local techs have access to parts and expertise. The return on investment and reliability should be your #1 priority, then followed by features. Forget brand reputation or "promise" - means nothing. Machines are only as good as the nut behind the wheel. If you are planning on running a machine in a cafe and likely to experience "busy" periods, even if it's only a few times a day, then go with traditional style machines, otherwise stability and recovery are going to result in greater inconsistency.

johnmichelle73

Thanks for the information, greatly appreciated.

Brett_H

mycuppa wrote:

JM73, I think you have already answered your question in the last sentence. If you have bad water, then steer clear of most those machines, especially LM or anything with stainless parts as these will not last unless you are an expert in controlling the water pH and you install multiple filter systems. Sub-standard water = expensive service and repairs full stop. No buts or maybe's - it's the cause of most failures on espresso equipment. In this regard, stick with an Expobar if your local techs have access to parts and expertise. The return on investment and reliability should be your #1 priority, then followed by features. Forget brand reputation or "promise" - means nothing. Machines are only as good as the nut behind the wheel. If you are planning on running a machine in a cafe and likely to experience "busy" periods, even if it's only a few times a day, then go with traditional style machines, otherwise stability and recovery are going to result in greater inconsistency.

Wonderful advice!

askthecoffeeguy

neither of those machines would be my first preference but if i had to choose one over the other if choose the elektra it has cleaner lines and looks more looks smarter as a machine. i dont know about la cimbali I dont think that they have been at the forefront of innovation for a long while besides to me its an ugly looking machine so i wouldnt choose it on those reasons alone yes reliability and performance are important, but so is after service care and the availability of spare parts and someone reliable to service your machine as someone who owned my own cafes for 12 yrs I would also say that, depending upon your location, customers (some , not all) are still going to judge you by the equipment that you have on the bench, and having a bit of added bling can send a message to your customers that yu care about whats going into the grinder and the coffee that you are making. of course none of this makes any difference if the coffee is not freshly roasted, and the person behind the machine is not highly skilled and equipped with adequate knowledge to make a great cup of coffee tyhe current 'trend' for overly programmable machines is I think (I hope) a trend that will eventually go away (at least I hope it will) and be replaced by the barista's skill, and not so dependent upon weights and measures - I cant say that more functionality in machines has necessarily lead to better results in the cup - most of the innovation I think has come from bean selection and changes to the way that we roast the coffee god luck with whatever you decide and make sure to keep us in the loop and yes, photos please! Best, Pat