uh, which cooktop would that be? They make about 30.

Wolf makes very capable cooktops that are better than average quality. Since cooktops (other than induction) aren't that complex, the choice usually boils down to layout, looks, touchy-feely stuff like knobs or buttons ect.. and price.

None of the wolf cooktops, or ovens for that matter, are listed. thanks

The information on this site is significantly more relevant than anything Consumer Reports promotes. Wolf/SubZero is a product that the employees of CR will buy, management will choose to install in their offices and break rooms, but doesn't "survey" well.

...let alone simple facts like that CR's #1 range is a GE and their #30 range is a GE... making a question like this and subsequent answers based on brand alone rather useless.

aprince, foodonastump - Thank you.
antss -why play games, just answer the question --you started to answer it but tried to change the subject keeping your opinion elusive. really, are you trying to say that except for the bells and whistles that all wolfs are not created equal?

NO, I'm trying to find out which cooktop from the many WOLF manufacturers that you are considering.

I was also giving you a general lay of the landscape for cooktops. They are not that complex, except for induction ones.

Why don't you stop playing games or at least stop being so lazy?

And before you start giving out pats on the back, do you honestly think the breakroom at CR has a Wolf anything in it? That was really useful advice. Are you certain English is your first language?

antss, you're getting off on your attitude. you don't get that you missed my question completely and instead you want to insult my intelligence.
don't bother responding to my posts in the future. why the hexo are you insisting on knowing what model I'm looking at? you act like i'm leaving out information needed to answer the question.

Plumberry, although Antss is not very diplomatic, I agree with his gist, in that you haven't provided even the fuel type or the size you want. This forum's aim is to help people who want to know about appliances, but we need some information. Do you want electric, induction, gas or LP? If gas/LP, do you want sealed or Wolf's semi-open burners? You mentioned Viking--they're one of the few brands that offer open burners, so is that why you mentioned them? What size cooktop do you want, 30", 36", larger? Do you want a cooktop or a rangetop? Will you be doing wok cooking or searing, so that you need a lot of power, or not, so you won't need so much power? It truly, honestly is hard to respond to your request for advice without knowing some of these preferences, since, depending on what you are looking for, there may or may not be better choices from other brands and other price points.

Consumer Reports is not a great tool if you are looking at appliances in the Wolf and Viking price ranges. CR gives "demerits" for the cost of high-end appliances because CR's idea of value figures greatly into their ratings. Many on this forum take the CR ratings with a grain of salt and don't give them much weight in their appliance decisions.

I have a wolf 30 inch gas cook top and it is great!!!!

alwaysfixin thanks for stepping in. I am looking at gas 36" 5 burner. I want the cooktop with the best high heat and low heat control and reliabililty. At a recent trip to appliance store, salesman took me through wolf, viking, thermador, kitchen aid. viking is top rated in consumer reports which makes sense since i know it is on top for qourmet cooking but have seen posts that complain about service. now, i just wanted know more about wolf.

i should have posted my question more clearly. thanks again everyone

Plum, count me in the same bin as antss - flummoxed by your q. It is so vague as to be unrespondable.

I have a wolf 30" gas cooktop.
I love it. I'm not going to expostulate on its virtues and foibles unless you give some indication that you are even considering gas or cooktop or coloured knobs or whatever. Why I can't even tell if you want info on Wolf or on CR's reviewing habits.

Hope that gives you some indication of the sort of info that is sought to get more informative responses in the future.

Consumer Reports does not focus on high-end items in the same way this forum does. Most of the regulars around here are interested in esoteric capabilities and out of the ordinary brands. Consumer Reports is trying to answer the mail for as many people as possible and brands like Wolf, Miele, Viking, Gaggenau, Liebherr, Subzero, etc., are all out there on the leading edge of the curve. You may or may not find an example in the currently tested batch at CR. Currently, while there is a Viking and a Dacor and a Miele in the cooktop tests, they do not have a Wolf tested. But there is a Wolf dual-fuel 30" model range tested so you might take some cues from that testing to extrapolate about the cooktop. The Wolf range was rated good for high temp burner performance and very good for simmer. The issues that put the range down in the ratings had to do with the self-clean function of the oven being inferior to less-expensive brands.

The Wolf did not boil water as fast as a Kenmore Pro and a couple of discontinued GE ranges, though. And the GE's cost less than half the price of the Wolf, but the Wolf does have better knobs and will always possess that Wolfy cachet that just isn't available at a Sears near you.

Also, Consumer Reports does testing. That means they design test protocols for a given type of consumer item and then repeat those tests in an unbiased fashion on all the tested products. Then they report the numbers. They do not fawn all over consumer products or give deference to high-ticket manufacturers. Unbiased reviewing does not sit well with many manufacturers and sellers but at no time in the history of Consumer Reports has anybody been able to demonstrate anything but honest reporting of results. Yes, CR has made errors, but that would be expected. Every time an error has been uncovered, Consumer Reports has corrected it.

mindstrom, thank you for being straightforward. antss was just plain nasty from the start; i've been planning my remodel on the board for a long time and i have never seen anybody so unrefined and arrogant.

Whoops sorry. Was posting while flying and that previous msg posted about 1.5 hrs after i thought i sent it in. Was not needed.

Plumberry, the exc high and excellent low is the v reason I bought the Wolf. The highest high is more than i almost ever need - the simmer is a godsend. We are two people at home and i can make rice for even one at a perfect simmer on it. Also perfect for custard and white sauce.

I also like the lighted dial. Has even proven useful when you've been using the simmer setting. The simmer is so low that if you are scatter brained like my DH or me and you forget to turn tje burner off, the lighted dial becomes a reminder. Plus it looks v cool. Love the sturdy grates.
No complaints about it and i really like the perfomance. I am grateful for the high AND the low on a egular basis

plum - I resent your statements.

YOUR TEXT: "I'm considering THE wolf cooktop "

doesn't exactly narrow it down since they make so many, does it?

HiNt: the qualifier in your statement is "THE WOLF COOKTOP" , not " A wolf cooktop" , hence my question about English as your first language as I can see someone with a romance language background missing the nuance.

the first response (mine) to your vague query answered your questions in a straight forward way.

You were told:

1. WOLF makes better than average quality stuff

2. That cooktops in general weren't that complicated and decisions are better made on touchy-feely stuff.

3.You were asked for more info re: model # to better advise you, things like a chargrill or french plate, or a flat top all have different advantages and drawbacks. AND way too many to just ramble on about here.

4.Perhaps I should have been bent outa shape at your snide remark about no Wolf tops being review in CR. SInce I'm a subscriber and in the biz, I know what they review.

Sure, I'm guilty of being direct and gruff sometimes, but the same can be said of you. You might take a page from your script and play along as YOU are the one seeking advice, opinions and wisdom here.

Plumberry - you have posted 5 times on this thread, and been asked several times to be more specific, but I STILL can't see anywhere where you've mentioned which fuel type you are interested in. I don't know what you meant by "5 burner".

So, I figured maybe some of your older posts might have mentioned what you are looking for, and they indeed all said you want induction. If that's the case, the Thermador induction cooktop is nice; conversely I would never recommend a Thermador gas cooktop-- so do you see how it's important to mention the fuel type? The recommendations you are seeking will vary a lot depending upon what kind of cooktop you are looking for.

Your criticism of Antss was unwarranted and unfair. Antss is a valued contributor to this forum. He has excellent insight. Each of his posts on this thread has been direct, to-the-point, and clear. Yours have not. If you want people to help you, you shouldn't make it so difficult for them to do so, and it is inappropriate to call people arrogant and unrefined (??) when they try to help you.

From your posts on this thread, it sounds like you strongly believe Consumer Reports has the most expertise and valuable advice. Then, just go with what they say. As Mojavean pointed out, CR has reviewed the Wolf range, and you can just use that review for your cooktop choice, since you have indicated you don't need to be specific among the Wolf appliances.

thank you akchicago, i appreciate the time you took to help. I have been overwhelmed with the choices and pressured because i have to give all of the appliance measurements to the architect to get the drawings started. I began with induction since we already had an electric cooktop but changed my mind after talking to alot of appliance people, friends, and family. It was my shortcoming not to look at the CR "range" reviews before I posted. I've googled so many appliances my heads spinning.
My final consideration is wolf and thermador, I had read about thermador already so I wanted feedback on wolf. My question was about the WOLF brand not a WOLF model.

As it is now, I'm figuring on wolf gas cooktop and thermador electric oven. I've included a like to the cooktop I have under consideration.
Why don't you recommend thermador gas cooktop?

Here is a link that might be useful: Link to wolf cooktop

antss -let's drop the resentments and move on. we both miscommunicated. i'm sorry.

In answer to your question, I don't like the Thermador gas cooktop because I think its simmer function is gimmicky and annoying. Just MHO. If you are not going to use simmer a lot, then you might like the Thermador gas cooktop more than I do. The Thermador gas burner simmer clicks on and off to maintain the low level of heat. That results in uneven heating and an annoying clicking noise. There are people on this forum who have reported they don't notice the clicking noise much or it doesn't bother them. But it would drive me crazy, and since there are so many other gas cooktop choices out there, I would choose something that does not click when it simmers.

I think the Wolf cooktop will give you very good performance, has excellent fit and finish, and great customer service. Also, see Mindstorm's comments above.

As already mentioned on this thread, I wouldn't rely too much on Consumer Reports. They are not really trying to test for appliances in the Wolf price tier, so whatever they say about appliances at that level isn't really as good an analysis as they might do for Kenmore/Whirlpool/GE/etc.

plum - I don't hold grudges.

the CT36 is a very capable cooktop

Wolf is one of the top brands in the market today as far as products and service. That said they still can make a stinker or have a bad day on the production line.

You might want to re-think the Thermador oven, they look great but the quality has been spotty recently. Service since Bosch took over has slipped. Since they aren't really much cheaper if at all than rivals from Wolf and Miele, those would be better bets.

Now if you really like to adjust settings with knobs instead of touchpads then this is one of the few games in town.

thanks everyone. I'm strongly leaning towards the wolf for the cooktop. it's too bad about thermador, i have a 40 year old thermador now and it has never needed service and has held up well. now to consider knobs vs touchpads!

I like the looks and feel of knobs. GE Monogram has two wall ovens that have knobs, the ZET2PMSS and the ZET2SMSS. Rhome has them, and I believe she has a couple of issues with them. IMHO, every appliance has some issues, and it depends on your own needs and budget which ones will matter to you. I'll link a thread, but you could also search this forum for posts about any of the appliances that interest you.

Here is a link that might be useful: Thread about Thermador or Monogram Wall Ovens

Hello,

I just found this site by asking Dr. Google for info about cooktops, since I couldn't find anything in CR. interesting that they do not list the high-end brands. I was not aware of that - good to know.

I have had a 36" Wolf cooktop with BBQ Grill for about 20 years now. i am looking at a kitchen redo and was wondering if Wolf still had the high quality it had 20 years ago. Looks like it does. So Wolf it is. Just as an FYI. At the same time 20 years ago I bought a Thermador double oven with convection which I don't plan to replace just now. It is just fine.

I also at the same time bought a Sub-Zero side by side which is also still doing well. I may consider another fridge only because this one is too small.

When I bought the fridge and oven, I didn't realize they were both smaller than my previous fridge and oven until I started to use them. That is when I realized they were designed to be flush with kitchen cabinets. My cabinets have been designed to accommodate full size appliances. That is why I am considering another fridge because my current Sub-Zero is just not large enough. I have contacted Sub-Zero and they are not planning on manufacturing the full size ones. Too bad, because, other than size, I am very happy with it. The oven is not as big a problem.

Thank you so much for all the info on this site.

We purchased the Wolf CG365P/S professional 36" gas cooktop about 4 years ago. It isn't as good as the basic Frigidaire cooktop we used to have. The issue is the valve design. Essentially the flame goes from Lo to High within about 10 degrees of knob rotation. Combine this with some backlash in the valve and it's almost impossible to get a medium level output on any of the burners. We've had factory service out, and they changed the valves, but no help on this problem. We've finally had enogh and are in the process of selecting a replacement cooktop.