The Quilter's review is a good place to get info as to the type of machine to get. She has actually written a book specifically about that issue.
I have 3 different machines that I use for different things. One is a Brother - straight stitch and is on a frame for quilting only. Great machine. I have an old Kenmore (was quite fancy 10 + years ago) and is still going strong. I also have a Singer Featherweight that I use most for piecing and travelling.
As for embroidery - a few stitches might be ok but most have suggested that if one is to really get into the embroidery that it is best to have a dedicated machine for that because it takes so much time and when set up for a project you can't do much else. But this is just an opinion.
Website is:
http://www.quiltersreview.com/review.asp
Good luck. Pat