Janome Memory Craft 12000
 

Has anyone heard of any reviews on this machine (Janome Memory Craft 12000) ? About 2 weeks ago had a house fire and am currently living in a rental house while our house gets rebuilt. The worst part was I lost 4 of my very dear to me furbabies. My sewing area was destoyed. Had a Janome 7700 and a Designer SE that need to be replaced so was thinking of the Memory craft 12000 to replace these 2 machines. Any info on this would be apprieciated. I could not find any reviews online.... (maybe no one has one cuz of the hefty Price!)

So sorry to hear about the fire and your loss. A friend of a friend bought one a couple of weeks ago. She upgraded from the MC11000 and loves it. When I saw it, I thought *WOW*, and wouldn't that be an awesome machine to own some day, but, I would never be able to justify that expense as I would probably only use it for quilt labels. She says it has more bells and whistles than the MC11000, and is user friendly. Unfortunately, the extras you buy for this machine are quite expensive. She loves the added throat space and the size of the hoops. So, in my limited opinion...Go For It.

So sorry to hear of your loss.

Call Threads of Time in Danville Illinois and see if they have one you could try out. Joliet is only a few hours away. They are a certified Janome dealership and very knowledgable. Great store, great people. If you ask them if any of their customers have had any complaints about this machine they'll give you an honest answer. A group of quilters (including a handful of board members) are going to be retreating there this week so if you can make it down be sure you ask for a tour of the retreat center and say hi to all of us. Most of us will get there today. I'm not sure I can post their phone number on here but if you want it you can pm me or google it.

If you had the 7700 you will love the new 12000--it is the7700 plus the 11000all in one and upgraded. It comes with all the hoops, tons of feet, the clear extension table. I have mine but was only able to use it for a week before I left for my winter home and to leave it behind. Several of the gals I sew with traded in their 11000 and the 7700 to get just one machine to do it all. You do need to try one out to be sure but I would recommend it.

I'm at Threads now and spoke with Missy and Bill, the owners, they said they'd be more than happy to answer any questions you might have. If you want to, Missy said to pack a bag and spend the night here for free with the purchase of a machine. 217-431-9202 or 866-431-9202. They have both the 11000 and the 12000. You're welcome to come and sew with us this week. Beds and linens are provided just bring your clothes, food and projects. We're having a Judy Martin dinner tomorrow night. We're making the recipies in her new book there will be plenty if you want to eat with us.

Just a note regarding the feet
 

The feet you used with the 7700 and the 11000 will not fit on the 12000. The 12000 has new wider feet because of the wider ankle connection due to the 9mm stitch width available on the 12000. So any of the Acufeed feet that you had for the 7700 will also not work plus any specialty feet you have that don't come with the 12000 will need to be replaced, when they decide to make them available for the 12000.

I also found out that the Acufil hoop that was included in the 11000SE upgrade that everybody seems to want doesn't come with the 12000. There is no stipple files for the 12000 and no Acufil hoop for the stipples. They said they would introduce it in the first upgrade to the 12000.

Please weren't too happy about that.

Thank you so much for the invite, so wish I could attend. Lots to take care of here. Would definatly rather be sewing!! I do have a Janome dealer in Morris which is closer to me that I deal with, but would apprieciate the feedback after your retreat. I will bookmark their site, always looking for classes or retreats! Enjoy.