Quiltmania--The needle up/down is a must. I also like a variable needle position that my Bernina has. I have a Janome 1600 for my quilt frame. It does not have a needle threader and I wish it did have! It has the automatic thread cutter which is handy, but it pulls the thread tail to the bottom, which is a problem for quilting if you have a different color backing. A 9" throat is not adequate for a quilt frame--can't finish a whole block without advancing. But that is probably not important to you without a frame. I have heard good things about the Janome 1600. Try them all!