Well i'm partial to synesso for sure (but would happily recommend la marzocco as an equivalent), for those that haven't seen the new synesso hydra, check out their website (www.synesso.com). But with the current aussie dollar these machines are priced through the roof! Expobar represent good value for money, particularly the expobar elen, which is a genuine PID dual boiler. At the class of Heat exchangers (see brands mentioned above), for the most part the guts are relatively the same, and most of the price differences come in the form different features. Be sure to hunt around and get something that suits you. One major thing though, is if it is a Heat Exchanger, make sure it has a HUGE boiler or else you'll come into big issues servicing the aussie market (big volumes of steam for milk and hot h20 drawn from the boiler cause big problems on Heat exchangers with small boilers and low watt heating elements). The ECM is good for this. I can't comment much on the rancilios, except that parts (genuine or alternate brands that will do the job) seem to be fairly easy to come by. The 6series look great (i love lever piston machines).
