I'm not familiar with either model, but I have a Brother PC8500 sewing/embroidery machine that is about 6-1/2 years old. I used to mainly sew clothes, now mostly sew quilts. I only occasionally embroider with it, but like you say, it's nice to have if you want it.

The machine sews great...I've had very few problems with it. It recently had a pretty expensive repair - 2 circuit boards needed to be replaced. Other than that I have just taken it in annually for cleaning & servicing.

That was kind of the long way to say - I don't think you'll lose any sewing quality by also having the embroidery feature.

Donna

I would sew on both of them to see which you like best. I have two Brother machines, the Innovis 4500 and Innovis 1200. They are great machines! I sold my Bernina 200 for the 4500, Believe it or not I liked the stitch quality better. My dealer also sells Janome, I liked Brother's stitch quality and ease of use much better. HTH, Todd