Before you even consider buying any long arm, I'd strongly suggest that you find a long armer and spend some time working with them. My LQS has a mid arm set-up that they rent out for $50 per day. After spending time on the mid-arm and spending a day with my quilt buddy who has a LA Gammil without a stitch regulator, I decided that this long arm business was not for me. It was all harder and a lot more work than I expected and it definitely was not a new career option for me. I have a whole new respect for people who do this for a living and I now know why they charge what they do. Spending the time experimenting with these machines saved me from spending a whole lot of money on something I would have regretted. I am now investigating an HQ sit down machine but may ultimately just stay with my domestic machine.