IS THIS THE BEST HOME ESPRESSO MACHINE?: What You Didn't Know About The Breville Dual Boiler

Many people who jump into coffee tend to not give Breville products the time of day, mostly due to two things: 1) their aesthetic and 2) their reputation as a kitchen appliance brand.
While these are valid, they should not detract one from doing one's due diligence in researching every aspect of every machine.

NOTICE- none of this are approved by or endorsed by Breville. Do these mods are your own risk. They could void your warranty.

On top of the incredible features listed in the video, here are some I didn't hit:

b) More about the heat stability- HX line goes through the steam boiler to the brew boiler. The brew boiler itself and the group head heater are all PID controlled. (thanks, @shaysub from EAF)
d) Can add a replacement flow control valve that allows for finer control over flow rate (thanks, @kharmic from EAF)
e) Clippard Valve Guide:
f) Important to note!- the OPV prevents the pump from getting majorly damaged during blooms, which CAN be done without the kill switch. Simply close the valve after preinfusion.

Here are links to the modifications mentioned:

ESSENTIALLY, if you have a BDB, the following link should be something of a Bible for you:

Join my Patreon community at:

Find me on IG at:

FREE Smart Espresso Profiler App referenced:

[gkntsmz]

Had mine 10 years, used every day, no drama. Surprisingly good.

[LanceHedrick]

NOTICE:

As I clearly said in the video, while I am affiliated with Breville by way of teaching classes for them, this video was not expected, sponsored, or even approved by Breville. I strictly teach classes.
I've even decided NOT to use an affiliate link for these videos even though I have sold dozens of machines (losing out on lots of money) from my videos.

Please do not come in the comments thinking you're sly by pointing out my very willingly admitted connection to Breville.

Authenticity is my main staple, my muse, my highest priority. I wore the Breville shirt and made the disclosure to be above reproach. I could've easily kept mum about it, but the fact I'm confident it doesn't sway my opinion, I decided to disclose.

I get no payments from any machine sale.

I get no money from this endorsement.

I simply teach people at home to make better coffee through Williams-Sonoma by way of breville

End of story.

Thanks for reading and I sincerely hope you all will maintain the trust I've hopefully cultivated with you all.

Cheers!

[ZeriteI]

Just to add on. I originally purchased my BDB refurbished, and after 9 years I had to send in my machine for repairs. Breville support was great. They gave me two offers since my machine was so old - After some discussion they offered to just send me a new model (they made some changes to the BDB over that time) for what was ~50% off, and reduced the repair quote by about half. The repair ended up that they just shipped me the newest model anyway, and since I ended up with 2 machines I then resold one. Between the discount for the original refurb, and the extra machine that I pawned off, the total cost of my BDB is so small, and is crazy that they'd just do a solid replacement for something that was around for so long.

[robertjason]

Excellent. Anyone that questions your integrity has obviously no knowledge of the legit coffee community. You deserve your positive reputation.

[jackMcRyder]

B “the Infuser” owner here with 7 years and one pump replacement. Glad the brand is getting lots of love and that this upper model is more solid and can be modded. My machine is fine with a good grinder but sadly I can’t control the temp nor the flow so towards the end of the shot the pressure always increases. Cool video, ofc now I’m considering this model, someday 😅

[therealghost]

Man. Lance, you're hitting it out the park. So natural in front of the camera, super easy to follow, really entertaining - you make a 19 minute video seem too short!

I have the UK version - Sage - and I have no remorse whatsoever, it's been such a fantastic machine, especially the quick group head heating, and the cherry on top is pre programmed time for it to wake up and begin heating. Absolutely love it. I'll probably hold off on mods for some time, as the rabbit hole that is espresso is already so deep, but the flow mod is certainly something I'll consider in the near future!

Thanks for the amazing content, and keep it up, my dude!

[DamnZodiak]

I love how this machine seems like an intersection of the espresso and maker community. This seems like an absolute endgame machine, I just wish it would look a bit better.
It seems hard to justify spending so much money something I hate looking at, especially if I'll use it every day.

[OneIdeaTooMany]

Just got a fairly well used 900 for free and really enjoying fixing it up, descaling, etc. For a consumer product it's really well designed, spare parts are a plenty and there's a good community around it. Comparing that to the 2 group head commercial machine I have where I have to call the manufacturer whenever I need to ask if a spare part exists.. the Breville dual boiler is awesome.

[DrJum]

I have a BDB w/ niche combo too, it’s a great machine! Would love to see videos of all the mods from you!! I like the sound of making it a quieter machine!

[crispyfrank]

Lance, so glad I found your channel. I’m on my second Breville infuser and have really liked them. 7 years for first, 2 years for second. I’m thinking some day of upgrading and want to learn how to control flow rate, temp, etc but am too scared of making any modifications.

[jessejackson]

I’ve had two breville coffee machines first one I got second hand and it lasted me 10 years. I’ve now got the dual boiler ( replacing a small delonghi) and swear by it. They are a great machine without mods and just so much better afterwards

[lloydthompson]

Thanks for your in depth review. We bought our BES860XL from Williams & Sonoma in September 2009. It's still working after all these years with some work-arounds [the grind quantity is no longer reliable, and there is some corrosion on the base at the rear]. We'll invest in a new Breville Double Boiler in the next few weeks.

[Delmar]

Great information. I had the older version of this for around 10 years. It is still in operation w my son. Got the 920 and as you I really like this about 4 yeas now and working good. Thanks for all. God Bless

[craigm]

I love this video! I'd love to see you walk through the mod in another video

[inukaka]

Just got this 2+ years old BDB 2nd hand 790USD. 1700 shot counts. With PID, pressure control and Slayer mod potential. Totally worth it and love it very much. Thank for the suggestion Lance!!

[shukriemmett]

because of this video, I bought BDB last week. haha. thanks Lance. I learn alot from you.

[vex]

Lance, thank you so much for sharing your experience!

These E61 grouphead espresso machines are getting all the craze these days but really, they're considerably much more expensive and less functional than the Breville dual boiler. An equivalent dual boiler, PID and flow control machine would cost atleast 3000$!

[fortheloveofbikes]

Thanks Lance, after watching your review I ordered BDB, currently I am using a Lelit Kate. Matching it with Baratza 270. ✌️

[LatteDude]

I love my Breville DB, however, it cannot be stressed enough about the maintenance issues. If you are a DIY type of person, then the link Lance indicated is quite valuable and you will almost certainly encounter many of these issues within a year or two (which is unfortunate). However, some of the replacement tasks are quite hard to do and require quite a bit of dexterity with the tiny parts. The other issue regarding maintenance is that most espresso machine repair places won't touch Brevilles. I live in Seattle, which is a coffee mecca town with lots of cafes as well as espresso repair places. There is only one place (Seattle Coffee Gear) I'm aware of that touches Brevilles and they're not cheap. You can certainly send in your machine to Breville but that will be costly as well. Anyways, I love my DB and just hope it survives until something equivalent with better durability and maintenance simplicity comes along.

[mtthwh]

Thanks for this video Lance. Really appreciate it. Always wondered about the longevity of these but as you say everyone has different experiences. Having owned various Italian made machines over the last 10 years and had parts on them fail I'm at the point of wanting the features that have been in the BDB for ages. It certainly helps to be able to self repair whatever machine you own but having a community of modders and support around with information is a massive plus. Breville launched the BES900 back in 2011 and some in the coffee forum community said at the time it was too good to be true. Well 10 years later Breville have improved on that base and still have features that outperform other manufacturers. 💪💖