When I moved back to California after living in Italy for thirteen years, I couldn’t bring my ancient, but beloved, Elna sewing machine with me. My first thought was to replace the Elna — that is until I saw the prices! So I started looking around for a machine I could afford.
I wanted to try the new stitches and features offered by modern, computerized sewing machines. And I remembered how much I had enjoyed embroidering as a child, so I wanted a machine that would do embroidery too. I started my extensive research with the Brother SE400 Computerized Sewing and Embroidery Machine because it’s the number-one best-selling embroidery machine on amazon.com.
The Brother SE-400 has 70 built-in embroidery designs, 5 monogramming fonts, 120 frame pattern combinations, 4×4 inch maximum embroidery area, USB port and cable that connects to your computer for importing additional designs, 67 built-in sewing stitches including 10 styles of one-step automatic buttonholes, and much more that I’ll tell you about below.
Combination Sewing and Embroidery Machine
The Brother SE400 Sewing My Long Blue Skirt
The Brother SE400 is both an intermediate level sewing machine and a beginner embroidery machine in one compact machine. As a sewing machine, it does all the normal sewing functions including mending and alterations, garment construction, craft and heirloom sewing, and quilting and has special stitches to support each function. As an embroidery machine, it embroiders designs, monograms, fonts, borders, and appliques.
It’s simple to change from sewing to embroidery and back again. You just slide the embroidery arm off or on, change the presser foot, needle, thread, and you’re ready to go.
A combination machine is perfect for you if, like me, you don’t have room to store or set up two machines. Or if you need a new sewing machine or want to upgrade and also want to get into machine embroidery.
Easy-to-Use Touch Screen Controls
You control all of the sewing and embroidery functions and settings with the LCD touch-screen. You can either touch the icons with your finger or use the included stylus. One reason I chose Brother was because I don’t have to hook the machine up to my computer to embroider. It’s all controlled right here with the front panel and built-in software.
Operation Keys to the Right of the LCD Display
The keys on the right side of the panel are used for main navigation, settings, saving embroidery designs to memory, and online-help.
The keys in the left column, top to bottom are:
- Back Key – Return to the previous screen.
- Previous Page Key – Go to the previous page to view items that won’t fit on the display.
- Next Page Key – Go to the next page to view items that won’t fit on the display.
- Memory Key – Save the selected design to memory.
The keys in the right column, top to bottom are:
- Sewing Stitch Key – Go to the sewing home screen – select and setup the sewing stitches.
- Embroidery Key – Go to the embroidery home screen – Select and edit designs.
- Settings Key – Control and view various settings for the machine.
- Help Key – Online-help with basic operations on using the machine.
Sewing Home Control Screen
The main control panel for sewing appears when you turn on the machine and the embroidery unit is not attached.
You can select from 67 utility stitches and adjust the stitch length, width, etc. For each stitch, the panel shows you the width and length, presser foot, whether a twin needle can be used, and other settings.
Embroidery Home Control Screen
The main control panel for embroidery appears when you turn on the machine and the embroidery unit is attached.
Touch an icon to embroider a built-in design, words and letters using the fonts, or a frame pattern. You can also select a design from an embroidery card, the machine’s memory, or one copied from your computer using the USB port. The last key moves the embroidery unit back to its “home” position.
Beyond this main embroidery menu are a series of screens that allow you to choose various functions and settings to set up your embroidery.
Embroidery Functions
I’m assuming you want to get into embroidery because if you only want a sewing machine, you don’t need the Brother SE400. There are many other sewing machines to choose from, and you’ll get more value for your money if you buy a dedicated sewing machine. So I’ll cover the embroidery features first and get to the sewing side of the machine in a minute.
4×4 inch Embroidery Area
4 Inch x 4 Inch Maximum Embroidery Area
The Brother SE400 has a 4 inch by 4 inch embroidery frame. This means that the maximum design size that you can stitch at one time is about 3.875 x 3.875 inches because there has to be room inside the hoop for the embroidery foot to travel. If you want to stitch a larger design you either have to split it with software and stitch the pieces separately, or you can build up the design from smaller elements by moving the hoop or re-hooping the fabric. The optional large multi-position hoop makes this easier.
I love my Brother SE400, but I do wish it had a bigger hoop size. However, moving up to a larger hoop size is a lot more expensive and out of my budget. So I’m OK with the limitation for now.
Most designs are available for the 4×4 inch hoop, but some are only for 5×7 or larger. Whether the 4×4 hoop is OK for you depends on the type of projects you want to embellish.
USB Port with Cable
Connects To Your Computer
USB Port For Downloading Designs
No matter how many built-in embroidery patterns your machine has, sooner or later you’re going to want something different. Or you’ll have something particular in mind for a special project. So one of the most important features to consider when you’re looking at embroidery machines is how do you get additional designs into the machine.
The Brother SE400 Sewing and Embroidery Machine comes equipped with a USB port so you can transfer your designs quickly and easily from your computer to the machine. Just connect the SE400 to your computer with the included USB cable. You can transfer designs found on CD’s, the Internet and more with a simple copy and paste, or drag and drop. You don’t need any additional software. It works with both Windows and Macintosh using the computer’s software.
The Brother SE400 can save up to 12 embroidery designs or 512 KB of embroidery data in its memory pods. The built-in memory allows you to keep frequently used designs such as your child’s name in the machine for faster and easier stitching. It’s also useful for downloading several designs to stitch out later without being connected to the computer.
The SE400 only reads designs in .pes or .dst (with some limitations) embroidery data file formats. The .pes format is a very common, standard format. You can find free or reasonably priced designs on many websites.
For detailed, step-by-step instructions on downloading embroidery patterns using the USB port and cable, see my article, How To Download Embroidery Designs Into A Brother SE400.
Embroidery Card Slot With Card
Embroidery Card Slot
The Brother SE400 also has a card slot for reading embroidery designs from Brother embroidery cards. This lets you use thousands of additional Brother embroidery designs including the Nickelodeon Collection and special licensed Disney characters.
You can write your own designs on cards if you prefer to manage your collection on embroidery cards rather than on your computer. But you will need an optional card writer and software.
70 Built-In Embroidery Designs
The Brother SE400 has 70 built-in embroidery designs including flowers, scrolls, capital script letters, animals, and holiday motifs. You just select one of these designs using the LCD touch screen and the machine will guide you step-by-step through the stitching. When it’s time to change colors, the it will stop and tell you to load the next color. Practicing with these designs is the best and fastest way to get started because you always have them at your finger tips without trying to learn about downloading at the same time.
These are just basic designs to get you started and may not be to your taste. Bur remember you can easily download other designs.
Ten shapes such as circles, squares, diamond, shields, even a heart can be combined with 12 stitch patterns such as straight, scalloped or other decorative stitch, to create 120 different frame styles you can use to stitch a border around the embroidery design.
Brother SE400 Has 70 Built-in Embroidery Designs
5 Built-in Embroidery Fonts
Five Built-In Embroidery Fonts
The Brother SE400 has five built-in fonts that include the upper and lower case letters, number, symbols, and accented characters for non-English language. Just select the font from the LCD screen, type in the name or word and press go. You can use the fonts to personalize clothes, pillows, towels, etc right out of the box.
You can select one of three sizes for the lettering. The exact size and spacing of the letters is slightly different depending on the font, but the small size is approximately 3/8 x 3/8 inch, the medium size is 5/8 x 5/8 inches and the large size is 1 1/4 x 1 1/4 inches.
Watch a Demo by the Enthusiasts at HSN
This video from HSN demonstrates the Brother HE-240 Sewing and Embroidery machine with USB port. It’s an exclusive model Brother made for HSN. The HE-240 is the same machine as the SE-400 with some extra accessories and a bonus.
In the video, she demonstrates the features and emphasizes how easy the machine is to use because of the LCD touchscreen and online instructions. She also shows some embroidery projects and talks about the advantages of the USB cable.
HSN sells the HE-240 for more than $500 after adding shipping and handling. You can get the SE-400 for more than $150 less at Amazon.com. The advantage of HSN is the extra accessories and bonus and the monthly payment plan. Be sure to check the prices of the ones you want. You may still get a better deal by buying them separately. Check out the HE240 at HSN.com. And check today’s price of the SE-400 on Amazon.com.
So Many Possibilities And Yet So Easy To Use
The Brother SE400 is interactive and intuitive with the large, backlit, touch-screen control. It’s so easy to operate and understand. You just look at that LCD screen and see the patterns and scroll through all the different ones. You pick one and up it comes. It shows you all the different colors so you can line your colors up in advance. It’s all push button and there they are. How easy is that?
>>>*** Here’s My Current Recommendation For The Best Value *** <<<;
Click here to see today’s price.
Click here to discover all the other great features and benefits of the Brother SE400.
Hi Kamala,
I am interesting in buying the SE 400 machine. I am a little bit confused on how you can import images from the computer or internet. I am huge Disney fan and wanted to make shirts for my daughters. Could I just download a mickey head from the internet that is a JPEG file or would I need a software to convert the file. Also, if i wanted to customize it would I need a software. If i do need a software, which would be the best one to purchase at an economical price for the things that i want to do (download any JPEG file and convert it to a .PES file)
I also just recently purchased a CD from EBAY with Disney embroidery images and the seller said that i needed a software to put the images on the machine to be able to customize my design…. Is this true?
This is an example of something i would like to do:
http://img3.etsystatic.com/014/0/7387197/il_fullxfull.452009867_djqj.jpg
Last but not least, will this machine be able to do all the things i just asked above?
Thank So Much!!!!
Ariana
I have a SE 350 It has started making a grinding noise coming from the back of the machine when trying to embroidery. It cant go from slow to high speed with out it grinding, and the safety device has been activated comes on. The wheel feels tight at some points like something hung.
Oh dear, that’s not good. It sounds like something has gotten into the innards of the machine-maybe a piece of a broken needle. You could try taking it apart and cleaning it as much as you can. Look in the manual for instructions. But you should probably take it to a repair shop, before it gets damaged further.
Hey I’m new at doing appliqués and I just cannot get them to turn out right:( when I use a stabilizer the thread always jams/tangles on the bobbin side. Do you know what could cause this? I’m doing the appliqué on a tshirt and use the peel away stabilizer.
Thanks
Crystal
Hey, Crystal, thanks for stopping by.
It could be the stabilizer. Knits are tricky to stabilize. I use cut-away stabilizer on the bottom (back) and water-soluble on the top. Is peel-away the same as tear away? Tear away isn’t strong enough for knits. It tends to separate during embroidery. Or is it adhesive with a peel off back? I haven’t tried that. I hoop the cut-away stabilizer and use spray adhesive to attach the tee-shirt. (I don’t hoop the tee-shirt itself because it can cause stretching and marks on the shirt.) If it doesn’t seem secure enough, I sometimes pin it. Then I put a loose piece of water-soluble on top to keep the stitching from sinking into the knit. I’m work on a tutorial for this, since I think this answer needs photos.
Hope this helps,
Kamala
Hi Kamala,
I’m new to Embroidery. I just bought brother SE400. How can I install/copy new fonts to the machine?? I want to embroider letters on my daughter’s jacket using Goudy light font, but it’s not preloaded on the machine. The 5 fonts came with machine are too big for me even I choose the small size. What do I need to import different fonts to machine? And once I import it, does it appear as one of function on LCD screen?
Thanks!!!
Hi Julia,
You’ll need software to use fonts from your computer. Embird has an add-on called Font Engine that does it. You’ll also need the basic software: Embird Editor. “TrueType and OpenType fonts are scalable vector files, which allows Font Engine to produce lettering in a large size scale, from about 5 millimeters (1/5″) up to 30 cm (12″).” There are other software packages that do this too. You use Embird to create the design you want using the Goudy light font from your computer. Then import that design (See my tutorial on importing.) Once you import it, you can save it to one of the 12 memory slots and retrieve it later with the LCD screen. But there’s no way to install additional fonts that you can use like the built-in fonts to make words. You have to create the words using software and then import the whole design.
You could buy or find free alphabet letter designs which look like letters, but are not fonts. They are regular embroidery design files. You would still need to build the words from the individual letter files using software on your computer. Theoretically, you could stitch it one letter at a time. But I don’t recommend this as I’ve found it impossible to get the lined up and spaced nicely. The SE400 cannot combine designs. It can only stitch one at a time. To combine designs, you need software that runs on your computer such as Embird or SewWhatPro. Both have 30-day free trials, so you can see if you like it before buying. There’s a lot of personal taste involved in choosing software.
Thanks Kamala! I will check out software as you suggested. This is more complicated than I expected. Thanks for the information.
Julia
Hi Kamala,
Thank you so much for your response.
I have received my new machine. The first thing I noticed was the bobbin case was very different from the first machine. I believe the first machine was missing pieces.
This second machine was obviously not new. The manual is torn, the cd is scratched but the machine is sewing much better however the top stitch is still coming through to the bobbin stitch but not very much and yet is is not the clean stitch I was expecting. I have cleaned the bobbin case and played with the tension between 4-5. My machines are coming from amazon and they are great with making the exchange. I am thinking of exchamging once again for #3. What would you do?
Thank you so much for your advice.
Jody
Hi again.
I have returned the machine for a replacement and hopefully the tension in the new one will be set correctly. I read all the great reviews and want the same experience!!!
Has the tension been an issue with this machine?
I was sewing on light cotton (double layer). The top thread was both sides and the bobbin was barely visable – I had the top tension all the way to a 7 and was not successful in getting any improvment. A straight stitch was not so bad but anyother stitch was way off. Do you know of a solution for this. The brother rep said the tension should stay between the 4 & 5 for most projects.
I used prewound bobbin as well as one I wound on the machine and that didn’t matter, I cleaned the bobbin case as I explained before and I rethreaded the machine several times. And tried different thread.
I have sewn alot and yet Ive never really been comfortable setting tension. Is it something I might be doing wrong? I just don’t want to start out with a new machine that’s faulty but I don’t want to return a good machine because I have set something wrong.
Hi Jody,
Sorry for not answering your previous question soon, I’ve been gone all day. It sounds like you’ve already done what I would suggest: Check the top threading and the bobbin, paying careful attention to the places in the manual ( p. 27-36) where it mentions points that can affect the tension.
It sounds like you are sewing rather than embroidering, but the pre-wound bobbin has embroidery thread which is a lighter thread than regular sewing thread.
I’ve never had a problem with tension with my machine. The top tension is set to 4 and a half. I rarely change it. I checked the manual again (Adjusting the Tension: p. 59-60), but it doesn’t seem to be what you describe. Your problem doesn’t seem to be caused by the tension setting or else there is something wrong with the machine.
The problems other people have are usually caused by threading: not getting the bobbin set right (push down on the middle of it with your finger), not catching the bobbin thread in the tension-adjusting spring, not raising the presser foot, not getting the top thread on the thread guide spring. You should be able to feel some tension in the top thread when you pull on it.
You’ve already sent the machine back, so we’ll have to wait for the new one. Hopefully, it’ll work well for you. Let me know how it goes.
Kamala
Kamala,
Help. I received my se400 for my birthday. I cannot get a nice stitch. The tension is way off and I called for advice from brother and he explained how to clean the bobbin case but that did not cure the problem he then told me to take it to a service center but there is not a service center closer than 70 miles from me and I am concerned that I am starting with a faulty machine. What would you suggest.
Hi can you create your own designs with this? Can you get a circular attachment for it? Thank you sharon
Hi Sharon,
You create your own designs with software that runs on your computer. Then you copy the designs to the SE400 via the USB port. One thing I like about the Brother SE400 is that you’re not tied to the manufacturer’s software that runs on the machine. You can use any embroidery editing software that runs on your computer to create designs. I’m not sure what you mean by a circular attachment. You can get a small hoop that’s sometimes circular for doing socks and things.
Hi Kamala! I just got my SE400 and have been really excited to try it! Tonight was my first go and I keep getting a “Safety Device Has Been Activated” message. In the manual, it said that the upper thread is tangled and the needle is bent. I replaced the needle 3 times and I don’t think it is that- do you have any other suggestions? I did notice that when winding the bobbin originally it did snag a little in the middle causing some tangles- not sure if the machine can sense that and just halts? Thanks so much!!
Hi Blake, I had that message once. I was embroidering a cap and it got loose from the stabilizer, broke the upper thread, bent the needle and tangled up the bobbin thread. It was quite a mess! The needle should be OK, since you replaced it. I think it’s the bobbin. I guess you’re sewing since you wound the bobbin. Try winding it again. Make sure the thread is in the pretension disk when it comes around to the bobbin. Pull it a little to make sure there’s tension. I missed this once and the bobbin wound too loose and didn’t work. Make sure it’s wound smooth and tight. I would worry about snags and tangles, even a little. I’m not sure what the machine can sense – it’s very clever.
In my case, I also had to clean the bobbin case to get it to go. You could try this too just to make sure. See the manual, page 152 – Cleaning the race. Then make sure the upper thread is treaded correctly and not caught on anything. Hope this helps. Let me know how you make out. Kamala
Hi Kamala, thanks for those tips! I finally figured out what happened- seems I took a wrong turn when upper threading (sort of ashamed to admit that one since there is a number system in place- haha), then we had a hard time figuring out how to raise the needle for threading. In the instructional video it didn’t show the wheel on the side- go figure
Anyway- we are rocking and rolling now on basic stiching. We tried our hand at embroidery too- but ended up with a big hole in the fabric and quite a huge ball of thread that jammed the machine. I think we may just have to tackle that one tomorrow night before my husband throws this thing in the neighbor’s bushes 
By the way- I can’t say enough how thankful I am you have this site and your responses….so very helpful 
Have a great evening!
I just purchased the SE400 and am very happy so far, however I am having a problem that is not listed in the manual troubleshooting. I am embroidering numbers which have suddenly started showing up mostly with the white bobbin color and only a small percentage of the yellow top color?
Can you tell me what is wrong?
Thank you
I’m trying to help a friend with her SE400. Our problem comes when we put a design on the card using PED Basic. It says it erases everything on the card when the new design is put on. Isn’t it possible to store many designs on the card? Thanks so much.
Hi Louise, yes PED Basic rewrites the whole card every time. So you have to also copy the old designs you want to keep.
Scroll up to the top of the browse box and see the card at the top. Click on the card and you should see your designs on the card in the list on the left side. Move the ones you want to save to the right side of the screen. Then go to your embroidery folder and load the *new* designs. When you’ve loaded all the new designs, press the Write button on the bottom and all the designs (old and new) will be written to the card.
Hope this is clear and helps. I don’t use PED Basic. I find it easier to download the designs from my computer using the USB cable. You can see my tutorial for how to do this.
Some people do prefer to use cards instead. There are always advantages and disadvantages.
Enjoy,
Kamala
Forgot to ask a question. When I put the bobbin in, it says to cut it and you don’t have to pull up the thread to put under the presser foot like older machine. However, when I end my reverse stitching (regular straight stitch) and use the thread cutter button, it cuts the top thread, but when I pull my project away from under the presser foot, the bobbin thread is NOT cut and stays pulled up from the bobbin area underneath. What am I doing wrong that it won’t cut both threads at once? Thank you for your time!
Hi Peppi,
Sorry to take so long to answer — I’ve been out of town for a couple months taking care of my Mother and no time for embroidery.
It works for me. I did just what you said: thread the bobbin, cut it, don’t pull it up. Sew and reverse, press the needle up button, press the thread cutter button. Both threads are cut. I’ve never had the bobbin thread not cut, but I’ve mostly been doing embroidery, so I tried it again just to make sure. So I don’t know what happened with your project. I hope you’ve figured it out by now and are happily sewing.
I just recently got my SE400 machine and been using it for a few weeks now. Just for sewing small projects. I am needing more bobbins. Do you know if the Brother SABOBBIN that you can purchase from Walmart stores fit the SE400 (which shows the SA156 bobbins). Another blog I read said they had used the bobbins from Walmart and had no problems. Great review, by the way!
Hi Peppi,
I finally made it over to Walmart with an SE400 original bobbin, but they didn’t have these bobbins. They had others that said worked for “most Brother machines,” but I couldn’t tell if they really fit the SE400 or not. The differences in hold size and bobbin height can be very small. So if other people say they work and if the aren’t too expensive, I’d try it. Glad you found the review helpful.
Hi Kamala,
I’m hoping you can help me out here. I’ve just purchased this machine, as I really want to get into embroidery, but I’m having a bit of trouble getting started. I think I may be missing some hardware where the bobbin goes, or inserting a bobbin in this machine is very different from any other sewing machine I’ve worked on. The space where the bobbin goes is largely open and it appears to “free float,” which, obviously, is not functional and bends my needles. Is there a trick to getting the bobbin in there, or do I have a bad machine and need to call brother? I can happily send you a pic of what I’m talking about if it would help.
Thank you,
Stephanie
Hi Stephanie,
That’s really weird. Inserting the bobbin is basically like my other sewing machines only easier. It does sound like you’re missing the bobbin case. I don’t know how much you can see in these pics, but in the first one, there is the bobbin case which holds the bobbin. The second one has the bobbin in it. I can jiggle the bobbin with my finger, but no way can it “free float” or go anywhere near the needle. The bobbin case holds it firmly in place.
Blessings,
Kamala
I am in the same boat. My bobbin seems to free float as well. I have broken a needle and punctured a hole in a shirt. I am so extremely frustrated!
Hi Julie,
The bobbin shouldn’t free float. I think that’s why the needle is breaking and you’re getting the hole. You need to get the bobbin straightened out first. Do you have the metal bobbin case like in my photo above? Then I drop the bobbin on top of the round medal plate. It’s held firmly by the sides of the case. I can’t get it to free float or move more than a jiggle.
Let me know what it looks like. I know these things are frustrating, but it sounds like something is wrong with your machine. Maybe it needs to go to a repair shop.
With sympathy,
Kamala
I also have the Brother SE400 machine but have not had very good luck with it. Has anyone had problems with the top thread coming undone while embroidering? It happens to me so much that I end up just turning the machine off and walking away because I am so mad!! I have gone back through all the instructions on how to thread the top thread, the bobbin, the settings, etc. and nothing helps!! Can anyone out there help me or direct me? Thank you!!
Pam
Hi Pam, I’m sorry to hear about your problems with the SE400. I’ve never had anything like this with mine. I’m not quite sure what you mean by the “top thread coming undone”. Do you mean it comes undone off the spool? Or when it embroiders, the top thread is just a mess of tangles on top? Does the bobbin catch the top thread at all or is the top thread just very loose on top? It does sound like a threading problem. After you thread it, pull on the thread. There should be a fair amount of resistance. If the thread pulls easily, it’s not threaded between the tension discs. Sometimes a bit of thread or dirt, can mess up the tension. Take the bobbin out and clean all around in there. Cut the top thread near the spool and pull it down through. This might clear out any pieces of frayed thread in there. What is your upper tension setting? Mine is a little less then 4 and a half which is how it came. I’v never had to adjust the tension, but yours could be off. Does it sew? If it sews OK, the threading and tension should be OK. Has it ever worked? You may need to take it to a dealer to be serviced.
Good luck. Hope this helps and you get it working. Kamala
Do you have a recommendation for a brand of pre-wound bobbins, I tried threadsRus, which are terrible and have cost me twice as much in time and ruined product as they cost new. I saw from your review of the Project Runway model that it comes with Pre-Wounds and I would guess they are Polystar like the embroidery threads, can you possibly confirm that?
No, so far I’ve been winding my own bobbins. The Grand Slam package doesn’t say what brand the bobbins are, but I think that they are the same ThreadsRUs bobbins that Amazon sells separately here. I wonder if you got a bad batch to have had such a terrible experience. The reviews on amazon.com are pretty good.
So how can you do larger than 4×4 designs on this machine? is it possible at all?
No, it is not possible to stitch larger than 4×4 at one time. You can fake it by stitching them separately. For example, you could stitch a 4×4 inch design first and then stitch a name under it. The multi-position hoop makes this easier. Or you can split the design with software. Then you end up with several embroidery design files, each one containing a 4×4 block. I’ve never tried this because I doubt my ability to get the pieces lined up correctly. But it is physically impossible for the embroidery mechanism of the SE400 to stitch in a larger frame. If you need to embroider larger designs, the SE400 is probably not the machine for you. Have a look at the Brother PE770. I would love to have a larger frame size myself, but those machines are more expensive and out of my budget.
I just got this machine for Christmas from my dear husband! I tried to embroider a design on a shirt for my daughter this evening, but I forgot to move the back out of the way, but how do you do that…(I ended up sewing from front all the way thru to the back OPPS) So, like for shirts that aren’t that big and onesies and such, how do you do that? Sorry I’m still very new at this! TIA.
Hi Deanna,
Lots of people have done that, too. It’s part of the learning curve. Onesies and small shirts are particularly hard to embroider. You have to sort of turn it half wrong-side out and embroider from inside, bunching the back and rest of the shirt up all around the needle part of the machine. Sometimes it’s too small to do that. Then you can rip open a seam or whatever you need to give you enough access and sew it back up after you finish the embroidery.
I’m seriously considering this machine, it’s one of the few in my budget range with some saving. I’ve looked at this one and the LB6800PRW, and from what I can tell with your reviews and others comes down to price, and gadgets. The PRW having a few more goodies with it than the SE400.
My question is this, and they are probably a little silly but this would be my first embroidery machine.
I currently sew with a White Rotary that is about 90 years old. It goes forward, it goes backward. That’s it. I’ve used newer machines (of course! And I love gadgets!) but I have NO clue about embroidery machines.
First, can I sew with it? I mean, just plain old regular sewing? At most using a zig zag stitch? Or can this only be used for embroidery and I’ll still need to get a newer machine for regular sewing? I can’t invest in two machines, and while I want to be able to embroider, I’m more about the sewing.
Secondly, I understand that this takes “PES files”, I’ve done some research on these, so I know what they are, but do both of these machines have the ability to hook it to my computer (I really am a gadget hussy) and download any old design I want (say from Urban Threads or other free sites) and use my machine to create with the designs? I’ve never seen the software to this machine so I have little clue how that entire thing works. I’d far rather have the machine that hooks into the computer that I can do what I want with.
Thanks so much for this review, it has made me far more inclined towards this machine, and hopefully your answers will make me even more inclined to owning this machine.
Hi Jaie,
Some embroidery machines only embroider and can’t do regular sewing. One of the advantages of the SE400 and the LB6800PRW is that they are combination sewing and embroidery machines. They can do regular sewing with different stitches, automatic buttonholes, etc. I’m making a dress for New Years on mine right now. I should make this clearer in my review. I haven’t finished all the features yet. And put up a photo of it sewing. You can’t see it in the photos, but the embroidery unit comes off and then it looks just like a regular sewing machine.
Both machines will hook up to your computer via the USB port for transferring over embroidery designs. You don’t need additional software for this. It’s just like copying a file to a hard drive. You can learn more in my post, How To Download Embroidery Designs Into A Brother SE400. You can download any design in PES format that fits the 4×4 inch hoop and stitch the design. (There are other limitations on the number of colors and stitches and file size, but that’s rarely a problem.) You only need additional software if you want to combine designs, or do advanced editing or create your own designs.
I’m glad you found the review helpful. I love my SE400. I needed to replace my 40-year old Elna sewing machine and I can’t afford both a sewing machine and a larger embroidery-only machine.
Blessings,
Kamala
I’m looking at purchasing this brother machine. Is it strong enough to sew through layered material such as a quilt?
Hi Melanie,
Yes, The SE400 will sew quilts. You might want to buy a couple of the optional feet specially for quilting.
I am wondering if it is possible to monogram a wallet on this machine. It is a quilted wallet that zips. Also, I am new to the sewing and embroidery world and would like to receive some helpful information on the correct needles, thread, and stablelizer to use when doing appliqueing and monogramming. Thanks in advance!