I've heard that Singer has gone downhill quality-wise. :( My older (late 80's or early 90's) "plain jane" Singer is a real workhorse, though.
I also wouldn't recommend a Brother SQ9000 from Walmart. I'll post a link below. I bought it back in May, and had it for about 10 days. It was okay at first, but it started making strange noises totally out of the blue. Something apparently got out of alignment because it started mangling needles. Not just breaking them, but destroying them. Eek! It went right back to the store. From the reviews that have come in since then, it looks like I'm not the only one who had problems with it. It's too bad, too, because it's a really good value as far as the price and the accessories that are included. :(
Link:
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Brother-80...chine/14237606
I'm interested in what other folks recommend for you. At some point I need to get a back-up for my old "everyday" Singer ... ideally another workhorse that's got all-metal parts. :) (Edit: I have two Pfaffs that I inherited from my Granny, but haven't learned to use them well enough yet. I'm sure they need a check-up/cleaning before I do any "serious" sewing on them. They seem to be VERY well-made.)