We had a very interesting discussion yesterday about which embroidery machine I should upgrade to. Thanks to all for sharing your thoughts. (See link if you missed the thread.)

One reason I have not considered a multi needle machine is that you will need all new accessories such as needles and hoops. And then there is the learning curve... But if you have a business I can see the advantages would outweigh the negatives. Hugs. Nan W

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by mrskiki 20 Jan 2015

Forgot to mention, Sue, that the Jan/Feb issue of Creative Machine Embroidery has a comparison chart called Machine Matchmaker listing all the functions of different levels of machines including multi needles. Perhaps you could get a free trial digital issue. Hugs. Nan

again, much information for us all to think about. A multi-needle would make me feel guilty if I wasn't making money from it.

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by spendlove 20 Jan 2015

Another good point.

I found this absolutely fascinating Sue. Not that I would ever need a multi needle. Very handy to have all your threads ready to go but I often find that the thread that I have chosen to use during the stitch out is the wrong shade or even colour. Changing threads does not worry me at all - it is the jump stitches that I hate. Good luck in finding the machine that will suit all your needs.

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by crazystitcher 20 Jan 2015

I agree - fascinating topic, Sue, and very educational from all the dear Cuties who have taken time to share their knowledge and experiences - thanks to all.

by spendlove 20 Jan 2015

Thanks - I agree with you - I often just choose my colours as I go along!

by mranderson 20 Jan 2015

I'm with you Sarah, jump stitches are a pain in the................

The main advantage for me is to be able to do all the maintenance myself and not have to run it to the shop every 6 months for cleaning and updating the software......it is so wonderful to load whatever threads one needs for a design and not have to change threads during the stitching...
the multineedle are more commercial and can stitch faster and cleaner...
I wish I had gotten this Melco before the Bernina Series 830, I would never have spent the money on that one.......the Melco has run flawlessly.....that said, I know you run alot of ITH and I have not figured out an easy way (yet) to do those on the Melco due to not having any support underneath.......I have pinned the underneath fabric and that seems to work......

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by spendlove 20 Jan 2015

Thanks - I thought that ITH could be an issue.

by rescuer 20 Jan 2015

That helps me decide between a Melco and a Brother or Babylock multi-needle. The later two come with (or you can purchase) a "table" that attaches to provide a flat surface. It looks very nice and smooth.
I could not buy without being able to do ITH. I am hooked on it!

For me it's the ease of hooping, you don't have to fiddle with hooping or opening up seams. Also the life of the machine is longer ! Hope the link helps!

One of the advantages is the repeat. I recently embroidered a chef on a Flour Sack towel. Children all wanted one. 10 colors but 15 changes. Once set up all I had to hoop again and hit the start button. With 6 requests that was quite a time saver. I was sewing in the meantime. That is my little input, because all the others were already stated.

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by spendlove 20 Jan 2015

That is a really good point, but I can't see it ever happening to me!

by Patricia109 22 Jan 2015

Sue call me crazy, but I did this on my little ol' home machine - it was a pain to change the colours again and again and again. I was making a bouquet out of one spray of flowers. It looked very nice when done, but boy was it a pain to do.

I have read both of Sue's posts and all the answers. I have been drooling over the multi needle machines thinking "I wish". Now after reading all the posts with the pros and cons I am resigned to the fact that my Bother 1500D is all I need to do the embroidering I do. I must admit I have never used the machine for plain sewing only embroidering. Good luck Sue in your search for your ideal machine. hugs Marg

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by spendlove 19 Jan 2015

I'm not sure it even exists!

Sue you have received some excellent replies. As you know I have a multi needle machine. If I am after a quick stitch then I use my trusty Galaxie. It takes an age to rethread the big machine and to check that the threads will sew in the order that one expects them too and not leave you surprised with green faces or the like. I remember discussing this with Dennis as he has a 10 needle machine as to why this happened and how to avoid. Large machines take space are heavy to shift and are more expensive to service but I do enjoy mine and now that its come downstairs it fits better in the space it has. It gives me a great deal of pleasure but I don't use it to its full potential, maybe one day... (Twm does love standing watching it in action though and wearing the results but its an expensive thing to keep a child happy)
I enjoyed your original post and the answers you are having to this

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by spendlove 19 Jan 2015

It has been very interesting, hasn't it?

by asterixsew edited 19 Jan 2015

Just thought if one is clever there are useful additions sometimes like free PE design and frames for sleeves and caps. These are expensive otherwise. I don't have them and think it would be nice to have the cylinder frame for sleeves but at over £1,000 I will keep on cutting up the side seams, embroidering and then re sewing

I love my multi-needle because once it is set up, I don't have to baby sit it to change threads, as I do with a single needle machine. I can also do bags, hats and sleeves and legs thanks to the hoops that come with the machine. I can also work on another embroidery project or a sewing project while the multineedle is stitching thanks to the longer period in between threads needing to be changed. The drawbacks are that it does take up more room, is much heavier to move for maintenance and is more expensive to maintain and repair. You also need to stock a different bobbin than what the single needle machine uses. But I think the multineedle is worth it, in spite of it.. BTW, the only project I cannot do on my multineedle is FSL if I need to match the bobbin color. I hope you find the machine f your dreams.

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by spendlove 19 Jan 2015

Another balanced answer, thank you.

by justsew 19 Jan 2015

hmm very interesting, not that I am looking for one. you know .lol

Stitched a 62 stop geisha yesterday on my single needle. Would have been a nightmare on my 6 needle. Multi-needles are good for designs with that many stops, only. (So. 6 needles, 6 threads. 17 needles, 17 thread stops.) Advantage of my multi-needle is its speed and hoop size. Disadvantage the weight. When it needs to go to shop it's a struggle for two and must go on a non-rain day in my open truck back! Have my single needle upstairs in the sewing room, but multi-needle is NOT making the trip up and own those stairs. Repairs on my little one are $60. Repairs and maintenance on my multi-needle start at $125 per hour and may take a long while. This hasn't happened yet.

Just my opinion. Next?

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by spendlove 19 Jan 2015

Thanks for that balanced response! Which machine do you use for ITH projects?

by rescuer 19 Jan 2015

It was my understanding that thread colors not "stops" were the factor in multi-needle machines. For example if you have a design with 9 different colors but 25 color stops, you could use a 10 needle machine and let it stitch until finished without changing threads.
Is this not true?

by mops 19 Jan 2015

Yes, you are right. When you are doing appliqués e.g. you need your machine to stop in after the placement line and after the tack down to cut the fabric. Same needle, two stops and three "colours" for your household machine. With some designs that adds up rapidly, but that does not matter as long as your colours are less than or equal to the needles your machine has.

by rescuer 20 Jan 2015

Thank you for your answer. I was worried for a moment that my dream machine would not be so wonderful.

Love my 10 needle. embroidery goes much quicker as you do not have to stop and change the threads when you need a different color. It does it automatically. Saves a lot of time. Suzanne

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by spendlove 19 Jan 2015

I can't see how it is quicker overall - surely the time taken to set the machine up in the first place is about the same as changing the threads one at a time.

by mops 19 Jan 2015

You don't always have to change all colours. Black, white and your favourite colours can usually stay on and have a needle dedicated to them. Next design the machine the software recognizes those and you just replace the rest.
But the real time saver is doing multiples with one design or embroidering several with the same colour scheme.
I once had to do 30 t-shirts for a friend, two colours, 1-needle machine, 60 thread changes. Had I had my EP 4 at the time I would have had to thread two needles.
And quite a few of the industrial machine come with a double set of hoops, that speeds up things too.

by spendlove 19 Jan 2015

Interesting - thanks, Mops.