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Configure a machine profile (hoop sizes, needle count, thread chart)

Set up a machine profile so validation runs match the device that will actually stitch the file. Once configured, hoop pickers narrow to compatible hoops, thread sequences map to the right chart, and the setup sheet generates in the right format.

MH
Written by Maren Halsey · Practice Lead, Production Embroidery
12+ yrs production embroidery · Last reviewed 2026-05-26
Type · how-toPersona · embroidery shop

A machine profile is the bundle of facts ValidStitch needs to validate a file against the device that will actually stitch it: which hoops the machine supports, how many needles it has, which thread chart the operator carries, what file format the LCD reads. Set the profile once when you set up the workspace; every new project inherits it.

Steps · 5
Create a machine profile
  1. 01
    Open machine settings
    From the workspace menu, click Settings → Machines → New machine. ValidStitch ships with profiles for the most-common production machines (Tajima TFMX, Brother PR-680W, Janome Memory Craft 500E, Bernina 590, and others). Pick from the list or start a custom profile.
  2. 02
    Confirm the hoop set
    Each pre-built profile lists every hoop the machine supports. Untick the ones your shop doesn't own — the hoop dropdown on new projects will narrow accordingly, preventing operator selection of a hoop you can't actually mount.
  3. 03
    Set needle count and thread chart
    Needle count drives the color-change warning (a 6-color design on a 4-needle machine needs an interruption mid-run). Thread chart determines how numeric color indices in DST and EXP files map to named threads on the setup sheet — pick the brand your shop carries (Madeira, Isacord, Robison-Anton, Sulky).
  4. 04
    Set the default export format
    Pick the format this machine reads natively (DST for Tajima, PES for Brother, JEF for Janome, EXP for Melco / Bernina). The export button on every project that uses this machine will default to this format.
  5. 05
    Save and assign as default (optional)
    Click Save. If this is the only machine your shop runs, set it as the workspace default — new projects inherit it without per-project picking. Multi-machine shops leave it unset and pick per project.
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