Date: 11/16/09 12:50 PM

I am in the market for a second machine. I own the 6600P which I like very much. I find I need a free arm from time to time and I also want some of the decorative stitches I gave up when I traded up my MC 9000 for the 6600.

I did own the MC4000 about 6 years ago and really liked it. It was a workhorse, that is why I am looking at the 4400 or the 4800QC. I found both online for $699 brand new. They have the decorative stitches I had with the 9000. I realize the 4800 is an upgrade of the 4400, but not all upgrades are an improvement.My dealer did tell me they will have the same motor as the 4000. Another reason I am looking at them.

I did read reviews here for both machines, but none are very recent. This price range is the highest I can go for a machine. My local dealer does not have either machine and I can't afford the MC5200, so I will be buying online.

I am interested in feedback from those who own or have owned either machine. What do you like about them or dislike. Would you recommend them to others?

I am hoping to make my purchase in the next 2 weeks.

Diana

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~Diana~

♥ Bernina 830E ♥ Bernina 1150MDA serger

✝The Lord is my Light and my Salvation: whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1✝

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Date: 11/16/09 12:56 PM

Actually the 4900 is an upgrade of the 4800. I thought that Janome had discontinued the 4800. I just looked on the Janome site. Janome has discontinued the 4800 and the 4000. They aren't listed on their site So if they are indeed new they've been sitting a while.
-- Edited on 11/16/09 12:57 PM --

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Reply to Sewwolf
Date: 11/16/09 1:03 PM

Yes, I know they are discontinued. My dealer doesn't even have the 4900 any longer and I can't seem to find it online. He did tell me make sure it is brand new never opened. It would also come with the Janome warranty.

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~Diana~

♥ Bernina 830E ♥ Bernina 1150MDA serger

✝The Lord is my Light and my Salvation: whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1✝

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Date: 11/16/09 1:23 PM

I couldn't find any difference in these two machines. They are on SewVacDirect's site and I looked at both of them and their pictures. I think the 4400 has an older body style, but the 4400 and the 4800 are great machines. :)) I almost bought one, but they were more then and I decided to buy a machine at that price point locally.
-- Edited on 11/16/09 1:24 PM --

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"Let's play librarian. I'll read and in 6 hours you come and tell me the library is closing."
--Brick Heck

"Begin each day as if it were on purpose."
--Mary Anne Radmacher

Blogging at http://eyeletsintheseams.blogspot.com/

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Date: 11/16/09 1:51 PM

Hi ~ I can tell you that I do have a MC4800 and have since 2001. I love my machine a ton. I would have done the 4900 but I don't think the dealer let me know about it at the time but it does have some bells/whistles that the 4800 does not. I can recommend this machine for sure -- but I'd go with the 4900 if given the choice! Jenni in FL
-- Edited on 11/16/09 1:58 PM --

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Reply to Mufffet
Date: 11/16/09 2:35 PM

The only difference I can see is the 4800 has more lettering and the body style is different. Not much at all. Sometimes, though, with upgrades they use different parts and the machine is not as good as the previous one. This was told to me by my dealer years ago.

SewVacDirect is where I found them. I am one who usually buys from my dealer, but the machines in my price range don't have the decorative stitches I am looking for. I can't afford to spend more on the 5200 ($1299).

I have never bought a machine online and am a bit nervous about it.

Thanks!
Diana

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~Diana~

♥ Bernina 830E ♥ Bernina 1150MDA serger

✝The Lord is my Light and my Salvation: whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1✝

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Reply to Jennilyn
Date: 11/16/09 2:42 PM

Great! How does it do going over serged seams when top-stitching? Does it have drop feed dog lever? I can't see that in the photo although the description says it does.

Does it have the Superior Feed System with 7 feed dogs?

Diana
-- Edited on 11/16/09 2:58 PM --

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~Diana~

♥ Bernina 830E ♥ Bernina 1150MDA serger

✝The Lord is my Light and my Salvation: whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1✝

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Reply to SewBusy63
Date: 11/16/09 4:01 PM

Diana, actually the 4400 has as many alphabets as the 4800, it is the display that is different - it shows in another color how to get the script. Very confusing to try to compare machines sometimes. They both have block and script.

The 4900 is of course newer, has dual lights which is exciting to me.

------
"Let's play librarian. I'll read and in 6 hours you come and tell me the library is closing."
--Brick Heck

"Begin each day as if it were on purpose."
--Mary Anne Radmacher

Blogging at http://eyeletsintheseams.blogspot.com/

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Reply to Mufffet
Date: 11/16/09 4:12 PM

I had read somewhere the 4800 had more stitches which I thought was in the lettering. I must have read wrong. I know the 4900 has more but I can't find it anywhere and my dealer doesn't have them any longer.

I like how the 4800 looks and I am sure it is an excellent machine. I'm just a bit nervous about buying it online rather than from my trusty dealer.

SewVacDirect has a thirty day money back guarantee which seems good to me and you can get a refund. I'd have to pay about $18 UPS Ground shipping (they do have this on ebay with free shipping, thought)> Allbrands has free shipping on it but if you return it there is a restocking fee plus you only get store credit.

Diana

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~Diana~

♥ Bernina 830E ♥ Bernina 1150MDA serger

✝The Lord is my Light and my Salvation: whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1✝

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Reply to SewBusy63
Date: 11/16/09 8:58 PM

My Kenmore QC Elite is very much like these machines. I think the 4800 has foot storage space under the lid but I don't think that the 4400 does.
You might wish to check if one offers more styles of buttonholes over the other. I think both have stitch elongation up to 5 times but do check if both offer stitch editing for programmed stitches. Besides elongating up to 5 times in length you can also edit the width of each elongated stitch which really makes for nice deco stitches.
I would also check to see if besides the alphabets both Block and script if both models have the lower case letters and also include numerals and punctuations. One model might have these and the other might not.

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