I have had mine for about 5 months now and have not had any problems. They will never be the solid $1000 machine but, I can't afford those. But, no complaints from me about the SQ 9050. I have used several of the decorative stitches and the font stitch and it did a really good job. Easy to use, instruction book easy to read and follow. I have used it for FMQ and it does do a pretty good job. Wish it had a bigger throat. But, most of my quilts are baby or lap quilts, so they are adequte for me. I say it would be a good place to start.