Is there anything bad about the AmayaXT?

Marilyn123 · November 22nd, 2007, 10:28 AM

Of course I am new to embroidery with little experience. Looking to upgrade from a Singer Futura to a commerical machine. I have looked at them all and read all the Q&A on this form. But I have only seen one negitive comment about the AmayaXT and then no details. I have chated with a couple of you that sing praises about the AmayaXT thanks Nathan & Matt. I have also looked in my area at shops that have the Amaya's and the only negitive I hear is about the older Amaya's basicly working out the kinks through R&D.
Any input would be great from leasing to service & training to resale or upgrades etc.

dspdoctor · November 27th, 2007, 01:25 PM

I am currently using the older version of the Amaya. Generally it is a great machine. I took a lease package from Melco, and it was everything that they promised. Here are the flaws as I have seen them.

Training:
The trainer in my area is a witch. She wants to train you when she is ready and for how long she is willing to train. Nothing else will do. I have had some discussions with her and I have not availed myself to her training as of yet. I may have some other problems related to a lack of training, so please take the rest of my comments with a grain of salt.

Maintenance:
Be prepared for a higher level of maintenance to get the best performance out of your machine. Lots of oiling and adjustments. From the factory the machine worked perfectly, and then I ran into some "training issues" and finally had the maintenance guy come out. BTW The Melco Customer Service staff is very helpful and pleasant to deal with.

Broken Threads:
I have a visual impairment that makes it difficult to thread needles. I have yet to sew anything where the thread hasn't broken. Whether this is a problem with my training or a machine fault, I can not say.

Overall:
The XT is a great machine and it is fast! I have cranked out some wonderful designs, but I still will not give up my BabyLock for small items. The only disappointment is the software for digitizing. Don't plan on doing this with the Design Shop Software unless you plan to cough up big bucks. I use my PE Designs software to digitize and then import the design to Design Shop. I also have bought the Fast Frames hoops as they provide me with the flexibility that I need for much of my sewing.

I hope this helps you out.

Marilyn123 · November 27th, 2007, 11:58 PM

Hi there,
Thank you for your response. Any information is helpful & appreciated. I came close to buying a BabyLock, & ended up with a Singer Futura (Bad Move) but I wanted to save money. Ha Ha now look at me getting an Amaya XT. Thats what you call jumping in with both feet in lead boots.
I have been reading this forum from one end to the other and love the information in it.
What part of the world are you in? I hope that I will get a better trainer thats not a witch or warlock.
Do you have the service agreement? Do you think it would be worth the $1,200.00 per year to get after the first year?

Thanks again,
Marilyn

tankless · December 23rd, 2007, 11:36 AM

Amaya machines are a BIG rip Off in both initial purchasing price and the rediulous software prices by Melco. I have been in the embroidery Business for 35 Years and have recently seen an Amaya XT in opertion and it really did not impress me at all. Melco took many short cuts in quality to produce the Amaya machine, Mostly made of Plastic and has had many" upgrades" concerning parts that failed in earlier design and production.Amaya machine must have a operationg software to operate . NO OTHER embroidery machine is designed in this manner.Melco has invented a way to RIP YOU OFF, BIG TIME!!!!!And PLEASE all you new embroidery Nerds out there, Don't be fooled about "Digitizing Software" being EXPENSIVE. You can use ANY digitizing software on Amaya Machines and any other embroidery machine and their are many on the Internet that are absolutely FREE to download. You do not need to spends $11,000------$8,000-------$4500.00 as Melco tells you , THEY ARE NUTS and their prices are CRIMINAL!!!!!!!!!Also to you people out there who are thinking about buying a USED Amaya , Please investigate PRIOR to purchasing because MELCO Charges $600.00 to "Re-license" a used machine into YOUR NAME. Without paying this re-license fee, Melco WILL NOT support you with the software issues. Also to upgrade from one level of software to another is VERY COSTLY. You see , I have fully investigated Amaya and have come to the conclusion that they are ONE RIP OFFS !!!!!!!!Of course this is just My Opinion, BUT I have done much investigating into this machine and Melco. One last thing,in my own opinion, Their Sales Reps leave much to be dirsired !!!!!!

SkyLinePrints · December 23rd, 2007, 12:30 PM

All embroidery machines have an OS to operate. How else do you think they read the design and know where to go? The only difference with the Amaya is the OS is ran on a seperate computer and not an on-board variety.

tankless · December 23rd, 2007, 07:32 PM

You must be an AMAYA NUT or a stock holder in Melco Stock !!!!!!!ALL Embroidery machines DO NOT have an OS software as such----Amaya requires a computer that you must download OS software before you can do anything on their machine , ALL other machines (modern ones) can input a floppy OR USB Plus use a computer , But Their Basic software to run the machine is BUILT IN ,meaning that you can embroider with anyone elses machine right out of the Box----you ARE NOT being rpped off into another separate software that MUST BE PURCHASED in order to get started doing anything.With an Amaya machine they took a major SHORTCUT-----Amaya's have NO FLOPPY or USB drives -----you have to do it al from your own Personal Computer. Very Clever, the amaya has much less components at a much HIGHER Cost!!!!

SkyLinePrints · December 23rd, 2007, 09:55 PM

did u not read my post? I agreed that all others are built in but what do you think is built in? Its an OS or Operating System. What do you think reads the floppy or usb? its a DOS based OS on most machines.

I never disputed that you had to have a seperate computer in fact, I said it DID.

Calm down....

tankless · December 25th, 2007, 02:54 PM

Hey Skyline, what kind of machines do you have?