I really love my Janome 7700. I just went for it. I have a computerized Brother ES6000. It was free and you can't beat free, but I wanted a bigger throat. I'm 70 years old and just started Quilting in December of 2012 so I think I deserved a really good machine. It has way more stitches than I will ever use, but I don't care. I have yet to install the knee lifter, but after reading the post from above, I think I will try it. Just do it!