Got my babylock espire floor model at a show for 1800, love it to death, came with free classes. Whatever you do just make sure you buy from a reputable dealer, that they give you classes, and are close for servicing your machine. You don't want to buy one come to find out that the closest repairman is 100+ miles away. I also love brothers, and have also heard good things about the laura ashley NX-2000/Babylock Symphony(updated QC-1000/ Babylock Espire). I hear good things about Janomes too. I have alot of accessories to brother which is why i stick with the brothers and babylock brand. Something you might want to consider if you already have a prefered brand of machine getting 2 compatible machine so that you can interchange accessories