I use Floriani and Isacord mostly. Floriani has more shine to it. Isacord is very pretty and strong. Use some Madeira hich seems to fray more in my Brother machines but looks really pretty.

finding your favorite thread nis nhalf of the fun. Black or any really dark thread does break the most often. Also the note on rayon does bleach even fade faster and poly is best for much laundred items.

I use Arc and my machine loves it

I think Sulky is OK as long as you don't buy the little tiny spools. Those are twisted tight on the spool, and when you thread them through your machine they still have all those little twists in them. The thread is very prone to getting wrapped around itself or parts of your machine.
My favorite threads are Isacord and RA. If you go to Shoppers Rule they have some great deals on the RA thread.

I have a Brother PE700II and it likes the Mettler Poly. It does NOT like the Sulky rayon. Thread breaks and lint builds up. I also use Metro and my machine likes it too.

I have a Singer, and Sulky and Maderia seems to work best. Maybe if you try a couple different ones and see which one works best for you.

So far I've used Sulky; Jenny Haskins, RA, Prensia and they all work great in my machine. I've heard that some machines are finicky but my Ruby has no problems with them. I even use serger thread when doing free standing lace because it's sturdier.