Breville Dual Boiler with Smart Grinder BES920 / BCG820

Best machine I have owned. Easy to operate manually or automatic - makes perfect coffee time after time. Steam wand has great manouverability for perfect silky milk. Easy to clean. Recommend!

This combo is by far the best we've had. We have owned numerous expresso machines for years and these ones is up there. Very easy to operate. Love the designs.

I bought this coffee machine back in March 2016 and to tell you the truth, it hasn't missed a beat. The unit is easy to clean though descaling has been a little tricky on a few occasions but in the end it all worked out.

The coffee still extracts to a consistent standard. I only perform double shots with this unit with fresh (under 2 week roast) coffee. The group head after three years still doesn't leak, amazing. I have had two Sunbeam 6900 series, the 6900 had issues though the 6910 was a lot better. The tech between the two is very wide though. You will consistently get great shots and the steamer does a good job utilising a separate boiler for frothing milk.

The boiler unit of this machine is a lot quieter than the thermal blocks of the Sunbeam. The only slight leak I can just barely hear is the steam wand and this is usually during cool down though a quick open and close stops the leak.

Near three years on, I can see this coffee machine lasting another three years.

I have owned an number of espresso machines over the years and my world of coffee changed when I bought my previous version of this machine which I had for over 6 years with no issues. It started to leak after 6 years and was going to take a weeks to get fixed so I ended up buying a new version of it which I am now reviewing here. People have asked me why I didn't change to a different machine and my answer is why you should seriously consider buying it:
1. it is a dual boiler (only when you have had a dual boiler compared to the majority on the market that are only a single boiler and you like your coffee with milk do you understand why this is soooo important. You can heat your milk at the same time as doing shots without destroying the shot or wearing you boiler out quickly - this happened on first single boiler until I started releasing steam out of it before I did the espresso shot which added time to making my coffee.
2. It allows you to set either a timed shot of volume of shot - how many machine offer this - not many
3. It reminds you on the digital screen when it needs cleaning and this process is very simple - pop a tablet into the holder and press the button to clean and it is done in a couple of minutes
4. You can program it to start-up so it is primed and ready to make a coffee when you get up of a morning
5. It has a one shot and two shot holder
6. It gives perfect crema - you just need the right espresso grind and tamper it correctly like with any machine

I have it for just a bit over 2 years..until last week it just stopped working. I have this err2 message and the machine just wont turn on. It is out of warranty now obviously. I need to take it to Breville service centre which is actually not as convenient, Breville probably isnt aware that some of their customers actually have to go to work 5 days a week.

For this price, I really expect the machine to last longer. I made like 1 coffee a day...

Dont get me wrong, its a great machine..it does the job. It s just....its lifespan isnt great, support wasnt the best either...customer service just basically said...try to do factory reset if that doesnt work, you gotta go see a technician...

If i ever get another machine like this...i ll proly spend a bit more for a better brand..

The 920 is a good machine. Good coffee.

When you go to descale it, when you search for info, make sure you’re aware of what generation software your machine has. I didn’t know there were different generations, and ours is a 3rd generation machine. The descaling process is different for each generation and the initial instructions I got from the web didn’t identify they were for a specific generation. I suspect the product manual that you get on a search is for a first generation machine. Descaling is tricky and it seems to cause many people angst.

Final word on descaling - to get rid of the “descale me” indicator - hold down 1 cup button, then press power to get to advance menu and landing on “rset”. Then press menu to get to “hrd3”. Press menu. Machine will then heat up and descale indicator will be gone.

As an ex demonstrator for another coffee machine manufacturer I knew that I need a double boiler machine. I did not want to go up to the oracle range as I had previously had one and the computer panel is just a pain and something always went wrong. I looked at the barista plus (the one down from this) but was only a single boiler and the trick is that the cheaper ones only had a tamper size of 54mm and this had the industry standard of 58mm. Its tamper handle is decent, nice and heavy and the machine is easy to fill the water tank from the front. The grinder is excellent and the equivalent of the commercial grinds. Altogether my set up cost me $1199 and the advertised price if around $1400. Watch when they are on special or negotiate. Bonus was that I also got 4 months supply of coffee beans. Great coffee, great frothing well done.

Great machine. easy to use and produces consistent quality coffee.
I would recommend the Breville dual boiler to any coffee lover contempllating a coffee machine purchase.
I believe this particular model is no.longer available but it's replacement is almost identical.
Bought the machine and grinder separately from different retailers which was 200$ cheaper than buying the combination package.

Great machine that is easy to use. Has never skipped a beat and with the right settings and coffee beans provides an excellent coffee. We have tried a number of coffee beans and settings to determine what the ideal brew is for use. The dual boiler is quite handy when making multiple coffees as it allows the coffee to be prepared whilst the milk is being frothed. This model was bought upon a recommendation which it has lived up to!

After having a couple of the smaller cheaper lower end Breville machines, I decided to bite the bullet, and fork out for the next level.
Never would I have expected the difference from the same beans, to be staggering.
The real time clock is a bonus, allowing you to program it to be on and ready when you awake.
The Dual Boiler is the best part about it, allowing you to steam the milk while you brew the coffee at the same time.
This machine is so good, it turns mediocre beans, into a quality coffee.
I will replace this when it is required, with yet another Breville machine, given that the replacements, are just a face lift of the same tried and proven machines.

Purchased together with a BES840...this grinds the beans perfectly, & the BES pours the perfect cup.
It is extremely simple to operate, takes up minimal real estate, looks good and is easy to clean.
The ease with which one can alter both the dose and the grind is a major point.
Breville did a fantastic job with this machine.

We bought this so we could use our own coffee beans as their much cheaper than buying pods and they are more expensive in the long run. Makes excellent coffee shop style and simple to use and clean. The power cord could be a little more longer but that's all that's bad with it

Very consistent coffee machine, and has worked without any issues for 3.5 years.

When the steam tap failed, and the coffee machine was taken in for an assessment Breville would not accept their responsibilities or my claim under the Australian Consumer Law. They kept stating that the 2 year express warranty had expired therefore they would not do anything.

Breville's entire customer service team (including management) need some serious educating on the automatic consumer guarantees that apply beyond and separate to any express warranty.

Most of the time when buying a coffee machine you only get the coffee maker itself and have to buy a grinder. The grinder with the coffee machine is optional but it's available with or without. I recommend getting it as it dose a great job saving time having to get a blender out

I recently purchased a new (second) BES920 machine.
Its a model B. woo hoo, maybe they've improved some features.
It seems the only NEW and improved feature that it simply powers off completely after 20 minutes.
Seriously, it takes 5-6 minutes to just get the boilers up to temp, and the warming plate slightly warm.
So if you turn it on, put your cups on it, then have some food, and then want to make your coffee, o ryou wanta second cup. Oh look, the machine has turned OFF.

Who would do this stupid change?

I bought the new one because
1) it was on special (<$800)
2) my current one no longer worked "volumetrically" and the Steam lever leaked steam unless you adjusted it "just right"
3) I thought a Service to fix the above issues, would probably end up more than half the replacement price, so i may as well buy a new one, and since a model B, maybe they'd fixed some things.

I also own two Sunbeam EM6910's (had a third). Volumetric works almost perfectly everytime, never issues with that, stays powered up, or goes into low power mode. and no leakage of steam (although one has slow startup of stream).
Should have stuck with them, but thought the dual boiler would be better

After struggling and being disappointed with the Breville Barista Express coffee machine BES870BSS for three years, it was time for an upgrade. At first I wasn't going to buy anything Breville as the BES870BSS left a bad taste in my mouth but after extensive research, everything pointed to the Breville BES920.
I bought it on special for $880 at Harvey Norman along with the Breville Smart Grinder Pro for $288.
The dual boiler is fantastic. So easy to use and perfect coffee everytime. I love that I can steam my milk while extracting coffee at the same time. The pressure on the steamer is super impressive and the shot clock on the display for the coffee is such a great idea.
However, I think that my love for this machine is also because of the smart grinder. It is PERFECT! After finding the right grind and time for the beans, just hold the button and it's locked in it's memory.
I have a double shot while the rest of the family has a single. You just press the memory button and the you'r ready to go.
Both machines are super easy to clean.

Great grinder, extremely easy to clean. However, it does take time to master the skill of knowing the exact coarse or fine levels for the coffee. Every coffee is different so do not get angry when your coffee is running too fast. The coffee machine used is also Breville and it is also brilliant. Makes me feel like I have a cafe at home.

I purchased the Breville Dual Boiler BES920 with Smart Grinder BCG820 back in May 2015. After a couple of warranty issues it’s now not missing a beat.

As a casual barista I appreciate good coffee and this Breville machine can deliver a good consistent product. It has heaps of features to assist the novice and enough flexibility to produce the full range of products you might want at home.

Cleaning and maintenance is, for the most part, easy and relatively automated.

My only issues have been twofold.

Firstly, when I purchased the machine the boilers would not drain properly when I needed to descale it. They would take 2 to 3 hours to fully drain. Ultimately this has disappeared since I had it serviced last year due to a small leak. Since that repair they drain within minutes. I suspect that there was a manufacturing fault which was corrected when the repair was made.

Secondly, I have had to replace, 3 times now, the plastic inner ‘shower screen’ that sits above the metal outer shower screen in the group head. Why it’s made of plastic rather than metal I have no idea given the pressure and heat that it is subjected to. Mine have all cracked and needed to be replaced and none have been covered by warranty. The blame has always been placed on me overfilling the filter with coffee and/ or overtightening the portafilter. However I’m convinced that at least part of the issue is poor design. The plastic shower screen parts are about $20 each and easy to fix yourself though.

I've just sold my cafe after 5 years and needed a home machine for us. As always i search product review and saw this unit was highly rated. Did some research on price and got a great deal from the Myer ebay store on the BES920 dual boiler and BCG820BSS Smart grinder. After using a 3 group commercial machine for so long it took me a while to get the hang of such a smaller machine but after making well over 200 coffees I've really started to appreciate its compact little size and great features. Really well designed with front and back water refill, great steam wand, magnetic holder for the tamp , quick startup and easy cleaning. The only thing they should have included was an LED light on the work area, as it can get dark under the group head. Also gets tedious when making more than 1 -2 coffees at a time, but that's only cause im used to a high production commercial machine. Great job breville.

This coffee grinder is so easy to use. Easy to read display. Good instruction book, with table setting out grind settings for different brewing methods, i.e. Espresso, percolator, plunger, etc. Can grind direct to coffee filter basket or supplied container. Jagged it on special at Myers and couldn't be happier.