I just ran a post on that same topic: what about the Janome 8900PQC? The response was overwhelmingly in favor of the 8900, with a very enthusiastic response. I only had one woman who said she's bought the machine and now was sorely tempted to "Craig's List" it. I've PM'ed her to find out why. Janome sure inspires confidence and loyalty in their machines! I've had an MC9700 that is a real workhorse, but when it had to be sent in for repair, I was without a machine for almost 3 months. I almost went nuts! So now I want 2 machines so I never have to do without. Oh, yes, and I found a Janome dealer in town, so I no longer have to send it back to the company for repairs - Yeah!!