The shop where I bought my machine does service (an hour drive) but we are fortunate enough to have an independent sewing machine tech in the closest bigger town to me (a twenty minute drive). I had a long conversation with him when dropping my small machine off for a basic service. When I told him I wanted to upgrade, he said something like, of the electronic or computerized machines, the Janome Memory Craft models came in the shop the least. He does not sell machines so I felt like I could take his word without there being any bias. I bought a Janome (though not a Memory Craft) based on the machines I tried and keeping that conversation in mind. The recommendation to talk to a tech directly and ask which machines they see least is excellent.