I had a Bernina, got rid of it because of myriad problems, and bought a Janome 7700. The 7700 is a great machine.

I have the Janome Horizon 7700 and I love it. It has everything I need for sewing and quilting my own quilts.

Well I am a Babylock lover. I have the Serenade and love her. There is nothing more I could wish for in a machine. She has needle up/down, start/stop, scissors, and oh bobbin alert is the best, and mine works perfectly. I have heard some folks stating it tells you its low before it really is low. Unfortunatley the Serenade has been discontinued and the new model to take its place is I believe the Aria. Happy Shopping!!

I have had the Janome 7700 for a couple of years and love everything about it. Absolutely no complaints. Hope it lasts forever!

I've had the 6600 for almost 2 years and really love it. My dealer offers a one year trade up, where within a year, you can trade up to another machine and receive full paid price on your trade in. This is what my machine was. The previous owner traded up to the 12000.
The 6600 does everything I've ever asked it to do. I've FMQ'd several twin and full sized quilts on it. It's 9" harp is plenty big for queen and kings, I've heard. But I haven't had the occasion to try it. My friend owns a Gammill with the computerized stitching, so when i have a queen to do, I do it on her machine. It's a nice treat, and I'm not sure I want to wrestle that much fabric. Just binding a quilt that big is a workout.

I have the Janome 7700 and I love it. Now if you only do quilting I suggest the Janome 6600 because you can play with the tention dial for free motion. I was a babylock fan but now I love Janome.

I too, have the Serenade,and think its a fantastic machine. Never had the first problem with it. I replaced my Pfaff 7570 (still have it) with the serenade and I think they are very comparable machines with the serenade having more bells and whistles.

Kiangel16 - can you not play with the tension on the 7700? Personally, If I can leave the tension alone, I'm happy. Tension issues have been my bugaboo since day one of quilting - that's the one thing that makes be take a break from sewing, so I don't throw the machine out the window!

Concerning BabyLock. I've never even considered them because 1) I thought BabyLock was a stupid name, and 2) I thought they only made sergers (I have GOT to start getting out more!). Well, after reading more of your thoughts last night and looking at the Crescendo...I ran downstairs and told my husband that I decided on a machine. He was happy because he's ready for me to move on, then I mentioned the machine and we said, "Sure, that'll be like $6,000. Hello? Let's rein it in a little, okay?" Well, the laser line to keep stitches straight and to set stitch width, sigh. And the pen that tells your machine where to stop?!? I was all over that. Invariably when I am appliqueing I go too far. Well, BabyLock is now on my list and the dealer nearby supposedly has them. So, here's my plan. I'm going to make a bunch of quilt sandwiches - cotton/cotton, cotton/flannel, flannel/flannel, cotton/fleece, flannel/fleece. Then Thursday, on my day off, I'm going to take my car in for an oil change (don't be jealous of my exciting life!) and wait for them to do the work (gives me a chance to do some reading), and then head over to the sewing store. My plan is to camp there and play with all the potential machines, hopefully making a decision so I can get back on track with finishing UFOs. Seriously, thank you so much, everyone, for your input. Please add more as you think of it. I've go til Thursday, after all! If this helps at all, I only do quilting, no clothes or anything else (except I'm currently making curtains, but that's a one-time thing. So here are the things that I can think of right offhand that I'm looking for.
1) quilting machine, 2) stop/go button (I'd REALLY like to be able to stop it with my foot, like my Pfaff does), adjustable speed, 3) don't have to fuss with tension, 4) holds a large cone of thread, 5) needle up/down that actually stays down when I want it to (my Pfaff, changes its mind periodically), 6) BIG harp for FMQ 7) automatic thread cutter (does it lock the stitches before it cuts? 8) separate motor for binding winding 8) good lighting, 9) built in needle threader (My Juki and my Pfaff have never worked right) 10) I really like my Pfaff low-bobbin warning. Nothing worse than sewing along and realize you ran out of bobbin thread 20 minutes ago! 11) is it easy to change the feet? 12) is it easy to clean? (that's what started this whole issue with my Pfaff!) thank you again!

I ditto what Jackiequilts said. I have the same machine and love it. Although, I don't use all the fancy stitches, but that's ok. I'm still learning my machine. Love, love, love it. When I bought mine a year ago, they threw in the table that it fits in. I don't have a dealer close by so I bought from SewingMachinesPlus. They have been able to answer all of my questions.

Hi, I am a Janome gal. I also worked with a group (30 to 50) making quilts and I was the one helping with all the machine issues. The ones that had no problems (with the exception of user error) were the Janomes. I have had my 6600 for 7 years and have never had one problem with it. I call it my work horse and will never part with it. My hubby bought me the 8900 last spring for Mother's day gift because of more lighting and the 11 inch harp compared to the 9 on my 6600. I love it for free motion quilting with more space. Both machines are top shelf in my book, and that is my opinion......good luck.