My old Singer Golden Touch and Sew would sew with just about any thread. It's all about the needles having a big enough eye to let the thread flow through it. For my Brother Innovis 4000d, I have used a 30 in the top and bottom for top stitching...wanted it to show up... and I had no problems. I did NOT try free motion stitching with it. If this were me, I would buy a small spool of whatever type thread you wanted to try and test it. If you like the results, then buy enough for the project.
My Nolting longarm machine really likes the bigger threads and I love the way the thread show up on the quilts. The larger threads do tend to pull going around sharp corners and into pivot points and back. I have to make sure I don't go too fast and everything ends to work better.