Hello! (And a question)
 

Hello everyone!

I am new here, but I've been coming to the board for advice and tips for almost a year now. The community here seems so nice and helpful that I decided I should ask for some advice.

I've been quilting for about 10 years, but just in the past year or so have I really gotten into it and began knocking out quilts. I'm completely addicted to making things now! I have had a Janome 6260QC for the past ten years, which I absolutely LOVE. I've been wanting to get a new machine though. One with embroidery capabilities. I have done a ton of research online and I thought I had settled on a Janome 9850. I went to my local quilt shop yesterday and the lady showed me the Janome 550e. Now I'm torn. The only thing I don't like about the 550e is that it's just for embroidery and I thought I wanted an all in one. But the hoop size is incredible!

So my questions are: Has anyone used either of these? And if so how did you like them? Is the 550e easy to use for a beginner? Is it worth the extra money for the bigger hoop when it's only for embroidery?

I know a lot of it will come down to personal preference and such, but I'm hoping someone has some input on how they work, or what someone who's beginning should want/look for? I know I don't want a tiny hoop, but the 9850 seems to have a decent size? I'm not 100% set on a Janome, they are just what I know and trust. So if someone has a third option that will blow the others away please let me know that also. I'm mainly just looking for a machine that will last me for a good while, and allow me to learn and grow without being too small or lacking features. (I know, I don't want much, do I? :))

Thanks for reading! :)

First of all Welcome to the QB from SE Michigan! I am unfamiliar with your machine but I do have an all in one Brothers and I know I would want an all in one machine I have never thought about a machine that only does on function I don't want to have to change machines out mid project. That is just my thought. I know there are others here that have the machines you are looking at. They will be much more help than I can be when it comes to Janome. I love my older Janome and use it the majority of the time with my quilting. Again welcome to the QB and continue to join in the fun and learning.

Hello & welcome!

I have been on both sides of this machine dilemma.

I couldn't afford a combo machine when I first got back into sewing. My first purchase was an embroidery only machine at the top of my budget. Honesty, I was also intimidated about changing a combo machine from one to the other. Later, I purchased a sewing only machine which is still used but not always set up.

A few years ago, I upgraded to a combo machine. It is easy to change between sewing/embroidery so no worries now.

Pay attention to stitch count limits and hoop size. I suggest going for the largest hoop and the features you want. How do the designs transfer to the machine? I can transfer wirelessly but generally use a usb.

Be sure the machine cuts the jump stitches. A couple more thoughts. It is easy to grow (learn) into a machine. It is also easy to out-grow a machine pretty fast. I like to buy up and then learn the features.

Welcome to the forums, I can only make comments as an observer on embroidery machines.

The embroidery machine my friend has can also be used as a sewing machine. Both of her machine are Brothers and the bobbins are very slightly different and that caused a number of problems until she got rid of all bobbins and bought and marked new ones for both machines. I think it was her previous machine that had issues because it wouldn't read modern USB drives, we had to find some low end giveaway types.

The thing I hear most from people who use embroidery machines is make sure the images/artist you want is available on your machine. And then they want as big a hoop space as possible. And then they complain about the amount of interfacing it takes but so it goes!

Thank you for the replies! I appreciate the input, it is helping a lot. I have called a local place and setup a time to come in and have her demo the machines for me next week. Hopefully that will help me to further sort it out. I had no idea it would be so tough! :)

Hi, and welcome!

Welcome from MI! :)

I have a combo machine and I love it, it is a Babylock. I also have a sewing only machine. I decided that while the embroidery machine was humming along sewing out my design that I could be sewing. So I purchased the sewing machine, also a Babylock. I'm glad I did because when the embroidery combo is in the shop or vise versa I still have a machine to play with. Also I can have one machine set up to sew my current project and a spare for when I need to make something quick like a repair or alteration and I don't have to change bobbin and threads.

Welcome from Southern Indiana! Can't help with your choices...mine is an all in one, but regardless of which you choose, you are going to enjoy embroidering!

Hello again!

I went with neither of my original options. I got a Skyline S9 (embroidery and sewing) and so far I love it! Thank you all for the help and welcomes! :) I am excited to be a part of this community as more than an observer!

Hi I'm curious, why did you go with the s9 over the 9850? I have been comparing the exact 2 models and am trying to make a decision.

Hello :)

so, I went with the S9 because it had WiFi capabilities and if I remember correctly one more hoop than the 9850. That being said I wasn’t thrilled with the S9. It’s a fantastic machine, don’t get me wrong, but it seemed a little bit awkward for me to use. This could be because I have never used a computerized machine before, I’m not sure. I used it to do several blocks on a quilt, did some embroidering (SO much fun!) and tried some appliqué stitching. The appliqué was hard to do, because of the foot pressure. I adjusted it to the least amount it would allow and I still had a hard time following the curve I needed to stitch. After playing with it I became more familiar with the computerized side of it but still didn’t feel like the right fit for me. I ended up exchanging it for the 15000. I know this seems like a huge jump, it wasn’t what I thought I’d do either. I went with this instead of the 9850 because it has the acufil included, which I wanted (I’m awful at free motion quilting! along with several other accessories and bigger hoops. Also, the quilt shop I purchased it from had a phenomenal sale and I know I won’t be upgrading again for at least 20 years if ever. Had the sale not been going on, I’d have exchanged it for the 9850 without a doubt.

I hope this helps! Try out both if you can and see which one feels right to you. When calling around to locate ones to demo I found 9900 is almost the same machine as the 9850 and more dealers seem to have this one in stock to demo in the store. Not sure why.

Hello and welcome from Southern California. Even though most responses are in favor of an all-in-one machine, two make sense to me in case something goes wrong with one of the functions. Good luck!

Welcome! I don't use the embroidery machine much but held onto my memory craft 9000 by Janome because it has been so reliable. I typically sew on vintage machines now, including for machine quilting. I don't get error messages ;-) Good luck on your decision, and I agree, go with the larger hoop if you plan on using a hoop regularly.

I just recently purchased the 550E and so far I love it. Not that complicated to learn - buy from a reputable dealer and they will most likely offer a free class on the machine. But there are a number of good videos on You Tube that go through what you need to do to create your designs and what all those function keys do. Personally, I like the fact that it is an embroidery only machine so that it has only 1 thing to do well....and it does. I already own a wonderful machine that I do all my quilting on. And while I'm in my sewing room working on a quilt, my embroidery machine can be doing its thing while I work. Love it!!