Riccar or Simplicity canister
Forget the online MSRP prices for Riccar and Simplicity. I've never seen them listed for near that high in vacuum dealer stores. They are pricier than Hoovers and Panasonics, Dirt Devils but are a FAR greater machine!!! Mieles are more expensive upfront and overtime in bag costs, filters and parts. I've tried Miele and while they're OK, I leave it at OK in performance, attachments, cord length and many other areas.
There are numerous machines available from Riccar and Simplicity. The Riccar 1700 is a very powerful canister with full size power head with 2 rows of replacleable brush strips.
Sebo and I don't get along due to performance issues!!! I agree with Kirbyloverdan on Sebo whole heartedly!!! I've tried many of their uprights and found the cleaning performance far below my liking. I've also tried the Sebo D4 black with ET-1 power nozzle. While the cord length, filtration and bag capacity were good, that's where it ends for me. I was EXTREMELY DISAPPOINTED with machines suction, airflow, agitator, handle comfort at hose, handle comfort on machine, and many other features I found much more difficult and not user friendly. I love power nozzle canister vacuums and the D4 that a cleaning customer of mine purchased for over $900 on QVC was extremely unimpressive to me. My Riccar 1700 canister has FAR FAR FAR FAR better cleaning power and user comfort while being just as quiet. Just as an example: Both the Sebo and Riccar canisters have a variable speed motor for suction. With the Riccar I can accomplish about 85% of my cleaning on Medium Power. Full Power will just about remove paint off a wall. With the Sebo you have to run the machine at Full Power and it's not enough--- I constantly found myself hitting the increase button to get more power as additionally with the Sebo- the indicator for the variable speed is poorly designed and it's hard to know when you're at full power.