Making Nice Coffee with the Delonghi EAM3200S

Let's (finally) get this thing started with the important stuff, then.

I've owned a Delonghi Magnifica eam3200s coffee machine for a while now.  

I was initially underwhelmed with the purchase:  it made coffee slickly but it just didn't taste all that good.  (I drink white-without normally, but am partial to the odd espresso when the time is right.)  Either too bitter, or too weak.

Anyway, I went through a phase of trying various settings and various beans. (I remember: Illy, some stuff from Whittards, some freshly roasted stuff from www.hasbean .co.uk.)

I finally managed to get a decent, consistent shot from the thing that's good enough to drink neat and good enough that, if I'm walking past a coffee shop on the way home, I'll walk on by - because my stuff's better.

So...

Recommended coffee beans:  Waitrose Espresso.  (Black tin, red lid.  I think they're still £2.99.) 

Recommended water setting:  third dot from minimum.

Recommended coffee quantity setting:  Max.

Recommended grinder setting: 4-ish.

That produces a smallish shot of coffee (apparently you can't make *real* espresso with these things...  I did try to get it to take the recommended 20-25 seconds to make the shot but it really doesn't produce much worth drinking).   Top it up with hot water from the spout to make a nice Americano.

[I guess that post was java-related?]