You can get a pretty good quality espresso with a fairly cheap setup.
To me, the most important thing is the freshness of the roast, then the quality of the grinder, and and actual espresso machine comes third.
I have a $800 setup (machine + grinder), and I roast my own beans, on an iron skillet, once a week.
It's pretty difficult to find anything outside on par with the quality I can get at home (most of the time..)