Overview:
I got the MaraX because my coffee space was limited in width, and I wanted a very narrow machine without compromising on performance. So far the MaraX has delivered. The features that were included - dual PIDs, temperature and pressure gauge, complete set of accessories including IMS baskets - also tipped me into buying this over other comparable machines such as the ECM Mechanika V Slim, Profitec 300/500 and Rocket Appartmento. The lesser price was the icing on the cake! The 9" width is the slimmest on the market that I've found so far, which comes with some pluses and minuses - the narrowness means that the controls are a bit more cramped, the cup tray isn't as wide, and the drip tray isn't as large as the competitors. On the plus side, it meant that I had space to put the knock box, grinder, accessories and coffee containers on my workspace without completely cramming everything in place.
The brewing:
Mechanical pre-infusion is nice to have, the slow ramp up helps to make the MaraX a very forgiving machine in terms of extraction. Even the shots that were very fast or very slow were still drinkable, and it dampens the grind/tamp variations if I don't get it exactly right. Having a switchable PID seems nice but to be honesty I haven't played around with the temperature settings - the light roasts that I have done so far seems fine with the default setting. Huge water tank means less filling for me. The steam wand is decently powerful, but because the steam temp/pressure is lower in BTP it means that you're not quite going to get the same power as a dedicated dual-boiler machine or HX. Still more than enough to steam milk for 2 lattes at once, though it might take a bit longer. No cooling flushes needed, quick recovery time. I've banged out 4-5 cups in a row with no problem when hosting guests.
Overall, a great home machine, and pretty much the only HX machine I'd recommend!
