Bernette Chicago 7 looking for smaller combo sewing machine
 

I am looking for a smaller combo sewing/embroidery sewing machine. I would be doing smaller embroidery 5 x7 hoop
Looked at Bernette Chicago 7 anyone have opinion? What other combo machines available? My price fits with the sale going now on the Bernette about $700.Thanks for your opinions

The 5x 7 hoop is called the large hoop by a lot of companies. 4x4 is the medium and the 2" (used for collar and cuffs) is the small hoop. I have no idea where you would get an embroidery/sewing machine for $700.00. I have never seen one that cheap.

Bernette is not a brand I would buy. Love my Bernina 1230 but Bernette is nowhere near the same quality. From what I read, Brothers are a good choice currently and would fit your price range. Check Amazon for reviews.

Oops. Started looking on Amazon and the $700 Brother combo machine has only a 4x4 hooping area:
http://www.amazon.com/Brother-LB-680...dp/B003J4G8V4/
See "answers" to find out that a larger hoop will not make the embroidery larger; just saves re-hooping.

The Brother embroidery-only machine is in your price range and gets great reviews, but it's not a combo:
http://www.amazon.com/Brother-PE770-...dp/B002MQI2NM/

I have seen mixed reviews of the Singer Futura; you might want to check into that one. Normally I wouldn't even suggest a modern Singer, but I know that the Futura has gotten good reviews from some buyers.

Do you *really* need a combo machine? If I wanted to go the embroidery route, I would definitely get an embroidery-only machine and have a separate machine for piecing. That way I would still be able to piece while the embroidery machine was sewing out a design.

I've been looking at the Brother 770. It's gotten very good reviews, and is available at Walmart.com for the same price as Amazon, free shipping, or store pickup. I'm just waiting to make room for it in my tiny sewing room.