Grammie Sharon

I've looked at the Symphony sewing machine today by babylock. Does anyone have one? Can you give me the pros and cons to this machine? I also checked out a Pfaff quilt expression 4.0 based on a recommendation from a friend who teaches quilting and has one. What are your thoughts on this?
Thanks. Any help is appreciated. I own an Elna Su which is 33 years old and has been good to me. These new ones are amazing.

np3

I bought the Pfaff Expression 2.0 instead of the 4.0 because I didn't need the extra features it offered. The 2.0 is also on sale right now for $600 off. I love it with the built in walking foot and the 1/4 inch foot with guide.

gaigai

I have the Symphony and love it. I had a choice of the Pfaff 4.0 at Quilt Festival, but after some online research found it supposedly had a LOT of bugs/problems.

np3

I understand that the 4.0 takes some time to learn all the features. I have several machines, so the 2.0 was all I needed. I didn't look at the Symphony, so I don't know how they compare.

Grammie Sharon

I've also looked at a Janome 6600 and Janome Horizon and the Viking. It makes you crazy the more you look. Thanks for your replys.

Ann L

I might be looking for a new machine myself. I have/had a Pfaff 7550 and love it but something seems to be going out on it. I saw both 2.0 and 4.0 at the store. I am figuring the 2.0 is all I really need. The 4.0 has all the whistles and bells on it though.

Maia B

The Pfaff Expression 2.0 is on promo per the Pfaff website for $999 thru the end of March. If it meets your needs, that seems like a good deal to me. I DIDN'T get the Pfaff QE 4 b/c of the bad reviews, now I hear they are resolved, more or less. But I'm loving the start/stop seeing w/o the foot control on my Babylock Quest Plus, so that's fine. It has the built-in walking foot that's just like Pfaffs. How did I ever live without it!? I think IDT is a major asset. Does the Symphony come with all the attachments like the Brother Laura Ashley NX 2000? B/c it comes with tons of extras, which is a real bargain if you would otherwise buy them.

Grammie Sharon

The babylock had 17 different feet, one touch thread cutter. auto preser foot lift, needle up/down, start stop, free arm 440 built in stitches. the quilting extension table. The dealer also offered 2 year upgrade.

MadQuilter

I have the Babylock Espire (which is now marketed as the Symphonie) and LOVELOVELOVE my machine. Just to set the stage for you, I jumped from Pfaff to Babylock because Pfaff Quality (both in machines and customer service has gone downhill) Now if a sewer has never owned a Pfaff, they may not notice, but as a Pfaff-girl, I NOTICED!
The only thing I miss from the Pfaff is the IDT BUT it is no big deal to exchange the walking foot for the Babylock.

What I like about the Baby: Good light, motor speed select, good throat size, good sewing space (with or without the extension table), needle up/down and sideways adjustment, good quality on fancy stitches, not touchy which threads she uses, even bobbin wind, large bobbin, ease of using decorative bobbin threads, automatic foot lift (can be set), freemotion 2 thumbs up, and she does NOT pull the beginning fabric down the feed dogs.

I won't get another Pfaff - not that they are bad, I just like the Baby better.

OH- and you can set the stitch to sew at a 45 degree angle. Not sure when I will need that but it is THE coolest feature. lol

Becky Brawley

Does your friend who has the Expression 4.0 free motion quilt on it. I have one and bought it for free motion quilting and it is awful. The thread breaks constantly. I can't even free motion quilt one block without the thread breaking at least 8 times. It shreds the thread. I have tried every kind of thread you can imagine. I have had the dealer look at it several times and he did put about 6 factory fixes on the machine. Still no good. I am so disappointed with this machine but am stuck. I wanted the longer throat and scissor cutter that's why I bought it. It works well for piecing but not free motion quilting.