I had my first machine for over 30 years.
In 2001 I bought my first Janome. I now have four and will take delivery of the new MC15000 next week. As you can see I'm a Janome fan through and through. I can honestly say I have never had trouble with any of them. Test driving different machines and brands will give you some feel for the machines. One thing not to do is rush into it.
I looked up your town on the internet and can see you are quite some way from a city.
Could you do a weekend trip and try several dealers as well as brands. Not sure if you have Sunday trading in Kentucky. Have fun looking and trying them out. Make a list of what you'd like so the dealer will have somewhere to start.