One thing you want to be careful of with a front loader is washing a quilt that might bleed. When there is very little water, the bleed is concentrated in what little water there is. In a washer with a lot of water, a small bleed is diluted so much it doesn't stain anything.
Someone did this awhile back on the QB -- washed her new quilt in a front loader and many of the reds bled. Fortunately she was able to re-wash it in Synthrapol in a large bathtub with lots of water. Synthrapol in combination with lots of hot water lifted out all the bleeds. The problem could have been avoided by initially washing with Synthrapol in a machine that uses a lot of water.
Once bleeding is no longer an issue, a front loader is fine for quilts. Also, large laundromat front loaders probably use enough water to be okay for a first-time wash. When using a top-loader, it's important to not allow the machine to agitate; stop the machine, hand agitate by pushing up and down, then advance the knob to spin.