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Marymoore, Brother has a good and consumer friendly software to go with their machines. I only have PED-basic for my Brother 190, so I have not used the Brother Digitizer myself (I have Husqvarna's 3D Pro which I bought with my Designer). Go see your dealer and ask for a demonstration.
If you wish you could choose an independent make such as Embird (free trials on the internet). All brands allow you to convert to the format you wish (.pes or .pec for Brother) so it's a matter of choice (quality, price, ease of use, etc.). If you can afford it, it's worthwhile to buy a cmplete package, buying separate units as-you-go turns out far more expensive (at least with some I know of), but if you're sure you will not be using all the features, than buying only what you need is of course the better choice. I hope the information we are all giving you does not make the choice more difficult!
145196Marymoore, I was hoping that someone with a Brother machine had stopped by to answer this question to what they might have. I have a Babylock and it is the sister to your brother, I hear. I have the Palette 6V - I have found no need to upgrade at this time to the newest version - but if I were buying it - I would do whatever is the newest version of any software package. I like the ease of the complete system. I can bring my designs into Layout & Editing, resize, change all sorts of things there (color, stitch, density, hoop size, mirro imaging, split stitch, add text, monogram, use the edit points to remove or add stitches, add another design, change the stitch order, use the stitch stimulator, write to a card, file or thumbdrive, and/or PC or disk)- I can do photo stitch and remove stithes, plus so many other things that I just can't remember. It doesn't have a look-see trial that I know of - but you can always go to your dealer and ask about softward available for your machine and they should show you what it is capable of doing, if that are worth anything or want your business. Please let us know what you decide on and how it is working our for you. *4U
211078Mary, I do not digitize but I have Embird buil it is really easy to use and it will resize and you can alter and combine your designs as well as save them in what ever sewing format you need.
4554Mary, that is like asking *how long is a piece of string*, haha!!! Most software manufacturers offer a free 30 days trial, some 14 days, but before you buy, work out what you want to do with the program, and definitely try before you buy. I don't have a digitising program as yet so can't advise, but I'm leaning towards Embird, because it seems to do what I want to do. Hugs and a flower sweetie.
13558Mary I don't know by myself but I have been reading about it because I want to buy one for me and Embird is, apparently, the easiest embroidery program to digitize and is not expensive. Flower and XoXo
44254I have the expensive and comprehensive Xpressive 2 software by Pulse and it's a pain in the Butt, but that could be because i'm still just learning the whole embroidery process. I joined the Elna EXer's Group and that has helped me so much. I would suggest you join a group specific to your machine and also ask other members there what they use.
Cheers & a rose, Meganne
122864I have BuzzXplore (have to put it back in my comp now tho). O love it to open up designs and find info on them...color charts etc. But, I am looking for a good deal on a software that will resize a design and when doing sew, will adjust amt of stitches accordingly. Also looking for a software that will split larger designs as I am only using the 4x4 hoop. Hope you get many good answers marymoore. Buzz Tools has 21 day free trial if you'd like to try out what they have: http://www.buzztools.com/freestuf... *4U
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