SE2000 Computerized Sewing and Embroidery Machine

This Brother SE2000 Sewing/Embroidery Machine sports a mid range price with high end features. I have long been a fan of Brother sewing machines because they combine excellent quality with affordable pricing and this machine is no exception. It is a full size sewing machine and when you attach the embroidery arm, it's an embroidery machine that will embroider designs up to 5" x 7". Because this is a large enough machine to machine quilt as well, be aware that it's quite heavy. The machine alone weighs over 20 pounds and that doesn't include the fairly heavy embroidery arm. If you want a machine to take with you to classes, etc., I would suggest one of Brother's 4" x 4" sewing/embroidery machines. Also, be aware that this machine does not come with a carrying case or rolling trolley. If you will want/need to take this machine places, you'll want to invest in one and fair warning, they are pricey in sizes large enough to fit a sewing/embroidery machine this size. The sewing features are excellent and include things like auto threading, drop in bobbin, needle up/down, stitching speed regulator, 241 built-in stitches, a color touch screen, 10 automatic buttonhole styles, a knee lift, assorted snap on presser feet, and a bright light to illuminate the sewing area. The legend showing all available stitches is located underneath the flip up cover on the top of the machine. It also comes with a detailed user manual and I strongly suggest at least skimming through it and then keeping it near your machine for the first few months so you can refer to it because you can easily miss out on many of the excellent features if you don't know they exist! I find the machine very easy to wind a bobbin on and easy to thread. The stitches are very nice and it's easy to tweak the stitch settings for various fabrics. I have been sewing for over 40 years and have done machine embroidery for 30 years. I own a very high end sewing/embroidery machine that costs thousands more than this machine and it is definitely quieter however, this machine is not excessively noisy and definitely not as noisy as low end sewing machines. I suggest buying a foam, sewing machine, mat for use under this machine. It will dampen noise and vibration quite a bit - especially when using the embroidery arm. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CQX48GD3 One thing I am disappointed in is that it doesn't come with an attachable sewing extension table. You can purchase one to fit this machine from Brother or a Brother dealer and the part number is BRO SAWT4 however, I think one should have been included because you need one for sewing large items or items made with heavy fabrics like drapery or slipcovers. The embroidery side of the machine is equally impressive. The machine features Wireless LAN connection for importing embroidery designs and it also has a USB port for importing designs using a flash drive. One of my favorite features is that it cuts the jump stitches automatically for you! Besides that, there are 193 built in embroidery designs as well as 13 embroidery fonts (alphabets). It comes with one, standard, 5" x 7" hoop but you can purchase smaller hoops that will fit this machine for embroidering baby items, cuffs, collars, etc. There is one version of this machine that comes with a magnetic hoop but you can also buy a magnetic hoop separately and save a little money. If you plan to do much machine embroidery at all, do yourself a favor and buy a magnetic hoop immediately! It has changed my embroidery life! It take soooo much of the hassle out of machine embroidery and it also allows you to embroider specialty fabrics with ease and no hoop marks left behind. This hoop is the one I purchased and it works brilliantly. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07F2WHC4F I also purchased some extra magnets because I wasn't sure the ones included would hold the fabric taut enough. I don't know if I actually needed the extra magnets but I am using them and my results are superb. This machine doesn't come with embroidery threads (although there are some bundles that do, I think.) It also doesn't come with any other supplies like stabilizers so be sure and order some threads and some various stabilizers so you can start as soon as your machine arrives. Tips: I like polyester embroidery thread because it doesn't shrink or bleed and can be machine washed time after time with no issues. You do want to use good quality threads for sewing and embroidery so be sure and read the reviews if you are buying non-name brand threads. I also like tear-away stabilizers - especially for beginners. You can get adhesive varieties as well and I use them most of the time. Also understand that machine embroidery comes with a learning curve if you have never done it before. You need to choose the right threads, needles, stabilizers, hoops, etc., to get beautiful results. Beyond that, there are hooping techniques and other tips that help produce professional results. Luckily, there are loads of videos on YouTube to teach you how to do all of this but you'll need to invest some time in learning and practicing. Once you get the hang of it, you can produce spectacular clothing, baby items, home dec, and gifts. My daughter personalizes gifts every year with monograms for her co-workers and she is legendary for this. I always give personalized baby blankets and onesies to new mothers and they are treasured. Just understand you'll need some time to learn and practice. This machine also works with a new Brother app called Artspira. You have to use this free app in order to access the 50 free designs that come with the purchase of this machine. But this app is kind of a mixed bag. I like it well enough but understand that many of the features are not available with the free to use version. There is a paid subscription that costs ~$13 a month that allows you to use all of the features and save more designs in the cloud. It also lets you automatically digitize line art and drawings and even photographs and turn them into embroidery designs. This works surprisingly well and it's wonderful for parents of small children because you can digitize their artwork! But I think the subscription fee is high for what you get so I am not using it. I hope Brother decides to lower the monthly fee by half so more people can take advantage of it. You can also use software to digitize your own embroidery designs, as well. There are a number of them - even an excellent free one called Ink/Stitch. Most, like PE Design 11, are quite expensive so it's good to know that there are free digitizing programs, too. You will certainly need to devote quite a bit of time learning to digitize designs but again, there are many, many video tutorials on YouTube available to teach you. I purchased this machine for a foster daughter who just got a college degree and she loves it. She is already making gifts for friends, although I am here to help her learn to use it. I think it's a wonderful machine for an experienced sewist and a dream for a new sewist as long as he/she understands it will take some time to learn to use any fine machine like this to its fullest advantage.

Absolutely love this machine. It has more features included than some three times the price. Runs great with most any threads you run through it. I've only had mine a month now and my stitch count is over a million stitches without any issues. Both the embroidery and the sewing sides work perfectly. To convert over to sewing or embroidery it's a quick as removing the embroidery part or sewing arm and changing to the other. We're talking about seconds. This is truly a very versatile machine. I'm so glad I went with the combo unit vs a dedicated version. Super easy to learn on and great for the pros as well. This machine has a 5x7 hoop and you can buy the multi-position hoop here on Amazon that works just fine. I have also purchased a magnetic hoop and no issues there either. The bobbin will beep whenever you are close to running out. I have found you can squeeze a few more stitches in thus less waste. The prewound bobbins work excellent. Winding your own works just as well. I couldn't tell a difference between the two. I really like the feature to where you can lower the presser foot to prevent flagging. I swore I read everything in the manual but I didn't. Found it while an item (very thick item at that) started to flag. Lowered the foot and no more flagging. This was not a machine issue but an operator issue. The designs that come with the machine are very limited. This is the one thing that saddened me about the purchase plus I feel as though Brother needs to lower their software costs for those who buy their machines. I'm not taking any stars off since the machine is a workhorse and you'll buy more designs plus software is something an individual needs to determine on what they like. Maybe at some point they will add in a few more utility stitches for towels and one for basting over in the embroidery side. That would help many of us vs having to find one, purchase it and save to the machine. Another item (still not taking away from the 5 star rating), Brother, PLEASE include a dust cover. Some of us want one in the box vs trying to endlessly look online for one that won't fit with the embroidery unit attached. Do better for you customers. I did purchase a flash drive jumper cable as to not wear out the connection after the machine. Please do this. The ease of sending over designs to your machine using the free Brother software or Artspira is absolutely the greatest. Wifi is very easy to setup. The hardest part of that is getting your password out. Takes just a minute to setup. Software updates you'll need a flash drive. I have tackled embroidering a simple name, patches, FSL, summer hat, canvas items to sweatshirts with ease. My only issue was a user issue that I spoke about above with a patch. As far as tension settings are concerned. This will a very easy machine to learn and grow with. The tension is automatic but the thicker or thinner materials you will want to tweak the settings just a tad. My machine came in with perfect tension settings and there was no need to adjust. The only times I've adjusted was for thickness of materials and I usually can run on automatic presettings. Jump stitch and thread cutter is a blessing with this unit. You can go in and adjust to more or less cuts. I did adjust mine for less cuts and I've enjoyed just one step above default so far. I find it's a perfect balance being one step above vs default. Try it. The thread cutter is a great tool to have both on the embroidery and sewing sides. Being able to edit within the machine has come in handy. You can resize to maybe 10% up or down without losing the quality of the stitch out. You can also add in lettering, another design or duplicate the same design. Changing colors is a breeze in the menu and there tracing elements are superior. For those who quilt or everyday sew: This machine is a workhorse on the sewing side as well. I've mended jeans, applied patches to items and I've sewn up pillows plus pillowcases adding in a chiffon trimming. No issues at all. The machine doesn't have as many stitches as my other machine but I really don't miss them. The machine has plenty of enough stitches for most anyone. I haven't even turned on my other machines (my computerized and manual heavy duty machines are over to the side not being used). I'm one that needs a few machines ready to run with projects. However, I haven't desired to turn any of them on. The only machines I've used outside of this one has been my sergers. I did purchase a 20 spool holder here on Amazon vs using the machine holder. It sped up my color change timing. If you're in doubt, just buy one like I did. I keep my commonly used colors (black, white, red, blue, green) loaded in the back. Your machine will also like the fact that your threads are untwisted going into the tension area thus making a prettier stitch out. ITEMS TO BUY: or consider buying with this machine for starters.... Plenty of threads, Brothread, Madeira, Sulky, Brother, Simthread all work just fine. You'll want to stock up on white thread. I am now buying the larger spools in this. Prewound bobbins (Size 15j or A), Simthread work excellent. I bought only white and I'm doing fine with just that color. I do color match using my top thread with no issue. Maggie magnetic frames!!!!! Give me a thumbs up once you realize I helped you out on this one. They are absolutely AMAZING to have! Easier to hoop projects on vs traditional hoops. Multi position hoop set pack (small, medium, large and multi) EXTRA Needles!!! 75/11 are awesome (you'll change your needle around every 6-10 hours depending on the thickness or project itself). I have used the top brands, I can't tell the difference. Heads up though, some badly digitized designs will snap a needle in Ann instant. You'll need a stash of needles if you are using your machine alot. One design can easily be over an hour long. Stabilizers. Get cut away, tearaway, water soluble topper and water soluble bottom. You can get by with a medium thickness but I suggesr both medium and lightweights. Baby clothes or those with thin skin will need the lighter one as well as t-shirts. Fabric markers. I use heat erasable. Embroidery scissors with a bend and sharp tip. I did buy a rechargeable stitch eraser and love it. Fabric tack spray. You'll need this to start out with just as much as the stabilizer. 20 spool thread holder Muslin material!! I suggest different fabrics like muslin, terrycloth, t-shirt material, satin, fleece. The reason for this is to practice on. You want to be familiar with the way each one acts in the hoop and during stitching plus getting to know your stabilizers. Please don't jump into stitching a sweatshirt or t-shirt without testing the materials out. Satin can be finicky on designs as well. Muslin is a good general all purpose to get you started though. A self mending mat with a rotary cutter can be your friend here for cutting stabilizers. I have a smaller one right next to my machine. A mini iron. They are very handy for pressing your finished work plus pressing the area to be embroidered. Helpful to remove your fabric marks after stitching. A few flash drives plus external drive. I will use the one for my machine to download as needed. I use the others to store my designs that I've purchased. T pins. Very handy to keep stabilizer from pulling in your hoop. You don't need them in magnetic hoops but the other hoops you do. Masking tape or painters tape. Great for holding down water soluble topper or floating. Storage box for thread. I say a box since you don't want daily dust on your threads. Remember, you cook in your home. Thread absorbs these smells. A three ring binder to print out your designs. Even though there is software to help, thumbing through a binder with printouts is much better for glancing through. Spool nets and thread managers. The above list you can get by without a few of those items but extra needles, threads, bobbins, stabilizers, practice fabric (muslin at the very least) fabric tack, fabric markers, embroidery scissors, tape, flash drive, and T pins are the needed essentials. You'll want these items to get started the day you receive your machine to start learning on. Dive into free software and trials. I've only used one trial and about to start on another. Some swear by Embrilliance and some love Hatch. I'm trying them all since I'm used to industrial software. Please download the free version of the Brother software for transferring designs. Embird seems to be easy as well to learn. Download a free design thumbnail viewer as well. If my machine starts to act up or fails in any way, I'll update this review. If I find more tips inside the machine, I'll update as well. Again, this is a great beginning machine to a knowledgeable user. I'm well versed in multi head machines. We used to own an industrial embroidery and screen printing business.

I have been using a SQ9185 Brother machine that has been able to do a lot of what I needed but it was time for more power and to add the embroidery. I was hesitant to buy this because of the cost but I'm so glad I did! This machine is super easy to set up and get started on. Connecting to the internet was fast. Learning how to use the different features wasn't difficult but did take some trial and effort because I didn't read the multiple booklets that the machine was shipped with. I make handbags with denim and this machine sews through multiple layers with such ease! It's fast and pretty quiet too. I also love the embroidery feature in this all in one dynamo. The screen makes it easy to set a design and shows each thread color for the design on the touch screen. The machine stops so you know that it's time to switch thread colors. Overall, I'm very happy with this machine. I've been very satisfied with Brother having owned my older machine since 2010. j I definitely recommend this beautiful wonder to anyone who loves to sew and wants to level up!

OMG! I love this thing. My Brother SE400 went kaput. I did a lot of research and the third party was awesome to deal with. I have made quilt and Christmas gifts and done some embroidery. It does so many different things I still have to get manual out at times to make sure I have things set. This machine is so worth the money if you want a quality sewing/embroidery machine without going completely bankrupt.

This machine was delivered today and I was disappointed that I couldn’t use it due to the fact that 1. It has an American plug and 2. It needs a voltage adapter to take the power down from 240v to 120v. There’s NO WARNING information about this in the description or the books that arrive with it. I’ve already waited 3 weeks for shipment and now I have to wait for the converter plug. Thanks to one person who highlighted this I wouldn’t have known otherwise and it could have damaged the machine.

I dislike the fact that I could not find the voltage mentioned anywhere except on the back of the machine do I could only see it after I got it. I had to order a converter to use it in UK.