Commercial machine reviews - HELP!!

Hey, did you ever get any responses or find any objective reviews? Looking at the same. I've had an SWF 1201 in the past so know that brand but looking at the Avance 1501 as well. Tajima and Barudan are tried and proven but pricey. Which, if any did you settle on? I've heard folks says steer clear of China made machines but the Avance has german motors and Japanese parts, etc. ~Phil

Funny, that's exactly what the rep told me. I ultimately determined that it's essentially a Chinese made reinvention of a Ricoma and thus other mass-produced brands with a wealth of ColDesi produced reviews but light on actual customer input. It may be a great machine as it matures but I didn't bite. I needed more objectivity.

Sooo, just bought the SWF 1501C. As I mentioned, I've had SWF before, they struck a good balance for me as I re-fire up my embroidery business and the cost was only slightly higher than the Avance. Here's what I did:
- did what OP is trying - research research research!
- conducted as thorough of a cost/benefit/value analysis as I could on each machine brand. There are some great machines out there.
- negotiated.

I chose the SWF E-T1501C ultimately because it's a brand I'm familiar with, the machines are easy to work on at home (I got pretty proficient on my old one), they offer a 7yr warranty (highest) on the machine (3yr electronics), have a local tech, and despite the fact that they have moved distributors around the country (Stitch It Intl has it now), the parent company stands behind their brand/reputation and has always been responsive to me. We got burned by a distributor in 2002 (old SWFWest). They flew a tech out from Korea and spent two days completely overhauling and bringing the machine to new condition. Amazed and they earned my loyalty even though they've had their difficulty clearing the recession.

There will be Santa Clauses and Grinches on the quality of the SWF brand. I tend to be more objective and when I get it, use, and maintain it, happy to post what I can.

pricey yes. but you are able to sell them... can you sell the others? Things happen.. do you want to just have a piece of "yard art"?

to me the decision really hangs on one question: "how easy is it to get help when I have a problem?" hey if you can get help TODAY on an ALSCAPIEA machine (made up) then no worries! but if you have clients waiting on you and your machine is down and your lead time for "HELP" is 5 weeks out... well, you made the wrong investment! because the machine you only bought to help you MAKE MONEY is out... and gone.

sorry, you are just being taken advantage of if you buy a machine YOU do not know how to take care of AND the machine reps are TOO FAR AWAY to help you in real time... fool and his money... soon departed.

haters hate... but when your machine is down the ONLY thing you will think of is; WHERE THE F IS THE SUPPORT I NEED... yep.. too late then.

Avance is a private label RiComa. It does not have German motors or Japanese Parts.