When I was finishing high school in 1971, my part time job was in the fabric department at Simpsons in Toronto. I saved my money and purchased a top of the line Bernina 830 Record for the huge price of $329. That was a lot of money back then. I still have that machine and she sews beautifully. Mind you, I also have my wonderful Bernina Aurora 440QE, and have just purchased a new Bernina 750QEE. They cost a lot of money, but I think they are terrific machines. Guess I am a Bernina girl!