I've had an A1 for 4 years, and added a Compuquilter (computerized system) in January. I LOVE LOVE LOVE my A1! Keep in mind that unless you have gorilla arms or the computer, you aren't going to be really accurate much more than about 18". in all this time, I've had maybe two quilts where I really wanted more room, and that was for quilts with big blocks on point. I ended up breaking the design in half and did just fine.
Keep trying different machines. Quilting if very physical. One thing that I would never do without is a hydraulic lift. Just a little bit of movement up or down will save your body a ton of hurt.