I test drove everything I could find 3 years ago and ended up with a Pfaff expression 2.0. I have had no regrets...but I know it is because I tested everything. I had a notebook with me and took notes to compare, and I went to two different stores....all that are available here.
I didn't just sew a little. I changed feet, practiced the automatic threader (which was new to me), listened to how it sounded (didn't want a noisy one), loaded the bobbin, etc. The only thing I didn't consider was the throat size, but I was very new to quilting and didn't really know much. I was just lucky that all the ones I looked at had large throats, I guess.
So, enjoy the hunt, and buy what you want.
Dina