I have the 7700 and love it! It also has a wide throat space. I have 2 friends in my quilt group who use the 7700 and both only have good things to say. Since I have never used the 8900 I can't say anything about it. I agree with Heather you should try them both out. If you go to the Janome website and click on the tab for machines, they have a feature where you can pick 2 machines and compare them by features, accessories, speed etc. If you see they are pretty similar in most areas then it just comes down to which felt more comfortable and the price. Good luck.