I have been researching new sewing machines, my current is an old manual Singer. Since I decided to take up quilting I have discovered all the shortcomings of this machine!! The two I am looking at are Brother Innov-is NX2000 Laura Ashley and the Janome Horizon 7700. I realize that neither of these machines do embroidery, but I am mainly interested in sewing and quilting.

Does anyone have either of these machines and what is your opinion regarding using them for quilting?

I have the 7700 and I really like it. The stitch quality is good and there are plenty of stitches other than straight stitches on the machine. I like the throat size and the lighting. It has a built in walking foot that is great, but when the machine is new, it's a little cumbersome to put on and off. It comes with a nice size extension table. A note, when you take your throat plate off to do a thorough cleaning, be careful about how you put it back on. There is a clip on the throat plate that has to fit properly. But the dealer can show you better than I can explain. All in all, I love the machine and am not sorry I bought it. It's a work horse.
About a month after I got my machine, I had to take it into the dealer because the mother board went out. No rhyme or reason, it just failed. But the dealer and Janome took care of everything and it's been perfect ever since.
I am going to suggest that you visit a Brother dealer and a Janome dealer to test drive both machines extensively. And if you do this, take fabrics from your stash to run samples on. That stiff fabric they use to do the demos make every machine's stitches look good. So take your own stuff and then you will have a good comparison of what each machine does.

I want to put in a good word for the Janome 6600P. It is a wonderful machine with a built in walking foot and a large throat. It is the model just prior to the 7700. For the price difference lots of folks like the 6600.

I also own an older Singer which I used for many years and made many quilts on. An excellent basic machine. I then purchased a Brother XR-7700 which is a computerized machine with many stitches. Another nice machine, but not to great for quilting. A couple of months ago I purchased my Janome Horizon 7700. I love it!!! It is an excellent quilting machine with lots of room and all the bells and whistles. Granted it is not an embroidery machine, but I really think if I want to embroider I would purchase an embroidery only machine. Just my own thoughts. I can't praise my Janome Horizon enough.

One of the things I wish I had done was to "test drive" the machine with a project in mind. For example, the last machine I purchased was an emboridery machine. We ran a test using one of the pre loaded designs, but I find that I get most of my designs off the internet. I would have loved to have done a test using one of those downloaded designs (from a quality site of course). I'm lucky that my machine does stitch great regardless of where I get the design, but I've heard some don't do so well. So, again, my suggestion is to bring your own test to the machine rather then using what the dealer provides. Just a thought.

PS. The next machine I'm looking for is one speicficly able to stitch through leather. I plan to have some leather available to test with. (I tried it on one of my machines after being assured it could handle it... it didn't, but that's ok, I didn't purchase it for leather.) :)

The Jamone Horizon is on my wish list!

I am looking at the Brother NX 450Q that is especially made for quilters. I got to see it Saturday at the Sewing Machine store and ask a lot of questions. I am in love and as soon as I save up all the $900 that it costs, it will be mine. I have a very old brother right now and have sewn thousands of hours on it the last 20 years and would not switch brands for anything.

Welcome from Michigan.:)

There is a yahoo group for the Horizon that I follow because I was strongly considering that machine. Right now, I'm thinking of waiting/saving to buy either the Bernina 820 or a longarm. I'd really advise anyone to follow the yahoo group to get advice and support from real users. It's more active than other machine or brand-specific yahoo groups, btw.

Welcome from Ireland