gregE I added flow control to mine (I was the 1st one)….I liked it, but I found the slowing ramp rate of the Minima gave a great shot as well.
Get a price with and without and then decide. It has come a long way since the early machines and is a mature product now (they know how to build them and they do it well. Drip tray grids are thicker, accessible drain valves for both boilers underneath (on copper tube extensions, nicer looking PID display etc..
The main thing I love about it is the solenoid group, just super low maintenance, unlike lever E61s. Don’t worry about the lack of a preinfusion chamber, makes no difference when using a vibe pump. In fact I wish more manufacturers would move to these E61 solenoid groupheads (It’s marketing fear that they don’t!).