I have the Brother PQ 1500s and it is by far, my favorite machine and I have four..... :-D My friend has the above Juki and we say they are "twins". I think that for a straight sewing machine, you can't go wrong with either. I generally use another for my FM sewing, but my friend uses her Juki on her Handiquilter and is trying to talk me into using my Brother for FM. She thinks it is unbeatable. Like most machines, I would go for the one that you can get easily seviced close to home. However, I have had my Brother for 10 years and only had it in once....for cleaning. I can take the bottom off myself and clean out the lint........Love, Love, Love it!!!