I have a Janome 6600 and it is quite quiet. I love it. It has needle down and auto thread cutter and many, many stitches. I saved for years and bought it a a LQS and it was a used machine and they had it serviced and it runs great. I paid $1000.00 but was well worth it. I really love the Janome. Good luck on your decision.

Machines are so expensive!!!! I went on ebay and bought an old singer a 15-91 only does straight stitch but you have a main you can pull out for decorative stitches doesn't do up or down needlet though but I got it cheap, it's a workhorse! Has large throat for quilt!!! Bought cheaper one for decorative stitches would love a little more but they are so expensive and all the computerized stuff scares me and has stuff I'd never use!!!!

just make sure you go into the different shops and try all the machines available. you'll find something you like and then some. don't forget most places also have 0 financing for 48 months now. have fun with making a decision.

There's a button that you push on the front that pulls the threads to the back, ties them off and cuts them.

Rob

Amazon has a great price for the PC420PRW, as Rryder mentioned. This machine is on my wish list...

http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B...=ATVPDKIKX0DER

My Bernina 1020 has needle up down, but no bobbin indicator. It was the last of the mechanicals before they came out with the computerized stuff. I got one of them and then went immediately back to the 1020.

I was just in a class last Saturday at my LQS and they the owner lent a new Janome 3160 to the student next to me. I have the 6600 and 8900 but really liked this new machine. It has needle up/down and automatic thread cutter. It is much lighter than my other machines. The shop owner says she will have them on special for December for $500 and it will come with some extra feet, etc. Hmmm...

My Bernina 180 has the feature of turning the beeper on to indcate low bobbin. I turn the beep down low and just continue to sew until my bobbin runs out of thread.

I have a Brother SE-350 sewing/embroidery machine that I bought from Overstock.com some years ago. It has a needle up/down, auto cutting, and low bobbin feature. I love this machine for piecing. I'm pretty sure I paid less than $500 for it. I bought my daughter a Brother at Wal-Mart with all the features of just the regular sewing of my SE-350 and only paid $350 for it.

Hi Kelly - I have had a Pfaff 1475 for over 20 years. It has the features you are looking for plus a built-in dual feed foot. Pfaff is having a sale this month. Have a look at this machine - I've seen it listed for $499 US
http://www.sewingmachinesplus.com/pf...ro-smarter.php
Santa is bringing me another Pfaff (Passport 3.0) to take to retreats and workshops. I'm very spoiled.