I too am not one for all the bells and whistles that come with different stitches (oh goodness, red balloon, I'll never get anything done LOL) . I was looking for a machine I could quilt with but a mid-arm seemed like a huge investment just to quilt. I went with a Babylock Jane. She's only a straight stitcher but she has all the feet for whatever you want. She has a great throat space in which I can quilt a queen size. Of course the feet drop for FMQ. She was 1000.00 new.
Hopefully there is a sewing machine store nearby where you can try the machines out.