I bought mine not quite two years ago and I love it. When piecing it is quiet, but sewing with the walking foot is noisier. It sews a nice line. I use the standard foot with an adjustable seam guide. This gives me a longer edge to sew against and for me it works great. I do have a little trouble with the automatic threader, but then I really haven't sat down to figure out how to use it. I've only done one FMQ project, but for a beginner I thought it did a nice job. So much of FMQing is how much experience the user has that I don't feel qualified to speak to that point. I have machine quilted a queen sized quilt and that worked out just fine. I like the fact that it is just a straight stitch machine and has the larger throat area. Just keep it oiled and it works great!