I have read many threads and I have heard a lot of talk about Kitchen Aid mixers. I know how good they are (my husband also works for whoorl pool). His parents bought me a sunbeam mixmaster for my birthday and I have to say its a great mixer. It has all the features that kitchen aid has and it has two motors. one that mixes (of course) and the other in the bottom that turns the bowl. Im just wondering if anyone else has this mixer and their experience with it.
if the new ones are anywhere near as good as the old ones --- as in my mom's she got in the 1940's and I inherited and had until it got lost in a move about 5 years back.... it should last and last.
the only things wrong w/ mom's at the end:
- missing one glass bowl -- gee I wonder who broke that
missing the knob that you screwed in to hold the beaters
needed to have new power cord
needed a repaint job to get rid of the hideous turquoise mom painted it in the 1960s.
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for several tasks in particular I much preferred it over a KA
- >making any icing that requires pouring a steady stream of hot sugar syrup into whipped egg whites --- easy to do w/out getting it on the beaters and that rotating bowl -- what a bonus!
>making the filling for pecan pie -- let the beaters chop the nuts!
>on mom's, the mixing head came off the support stand so could also use it as a very powerful (tho' heavy) hand mixer when doing really big jobs that wouldn't fit in the normal bowls
have been seriously considering getting a new one to be "lil' bro" to my "big bro" KA600.
I have a Sunbeam Mixmaster Series II and I love it. It has the two dials, one that controls the beater speed and the other the bowl speed. The beater speed goes from slow the supersonic (found that out the hard way when my daughter accidentally turned the dial while I was putting in the icing sugar!! 
The mixing bowl is also offset so that I can pour in the ingredients without stopping the mixer or getting it on the beaters.
Bought it 2 years ago and never had a problem. That being said, I have been conveting a KA. Hope to get myself one eventually.
I just bought a sunbeam 3 weeks ago. I, too, covet a KA, but can't afford it. So, we got the sunbeam and got a GREAT price at Kohls - $54. Can you believe it? Anyway, I like it - it has a lot of power. The only thing I don't like about it is that it doesn't get the stuff on the sides and has a hard time mixing the stuff directly below the beaters. But, for $54, I can't complain.
My sunbeam is the heritage series and so far its great. But I've only had it two months!!!! But I have used the heck out of it. I do agree about missing some stuff on the bottom of the bowl. I would like to get a KA one day too but unless Im gonna REALLY get into the business of making a lot of cakes I don't want to spend the money on one. Its nice to know that there is a suitable alternative.
My mom has had two sunbeams that I've used. The first one was probably a 1960/70's mixer. It worked great and I loved it.....until I tried to make bread with it and smoke started coming out the back (probably mid 1990's). 
The replacement one I hated. I don't know if it was just a cheap Sunbeam or if they changed. Mixing up chocolate chip cookies took two people. One to spin the bowl (my mom's didn't have the second motor to spin the bowl) and scrape the sides. Plus, a second person to hold the mixer still so that it didn't fall off the counter. It was so light that it would just "dance" right off the edge of the counter if you weren't careful. Maybe their other models are better, but my advice is to make sure you get a heavy one! 
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