Setting aside which brand, I am wondering if you could consider either a 36" cooktop, or a 30" rangetop instead. A "rangetop" is like the top part of the range without the oven. In other words, the knobs are on the front, not on the countertop. The reason I am asking this is that with a 30" cooktop, a significant amount of the cooktop is taken away by the knobs, and your pots will be crowded. This will not be an issue if either you go to the larger 36" cooktop, or stay at the 30" width but buy a rangetop instead. The other disadvantage to a cooktop is that if you need to replace it in the future, it will be difficult to find another cooktop with the exact same cutout - which is what Greyknit mentioned in his/her post above. A 30" rangetop will cost more than a cooktop, but I think it's worth it because every day that you are cooking on a cooktop, and your pots are cramped, you will be wishing you had more room of either a 30" rangetop or a 36" cooktop. Here is a link that might be useful: 30-inch Rangetops at ajmadison

We had a Viking 36" drop-in cooktop until earlier this year. This was a model from around 2000 so I don't know if they changed their design but the burners were horrible. Being sealed it's understandable to have bit of uneven heating but the high btu burner was basically useless. The burner cap was so large that the flames tips were about 13" in diameter. That means any pot less than 14" would basically have all of the heat missing the pan. IMHO, a burner that sends 16k BTU/s concentrated in a ring 13-14" in diameter with a completely dead center area is simply poor design. Even with my 16" wok, it was bad because the center didn't get any heat. I'd actually have to push the food up to the sides to have it sear. That is *not* what wok cooking is about. So, make sure you do your research. Most people who've read my previous posts on the subject knows I very much favor open burners but if you must have sealed burners, then I'd suggest you do some research. Sealed burners with a center flame ring or star shaped does a better job of heat distribution. If possible find a dealer that has a live range. Bring a large pan with you and try out the range with the bottom covered with like a 1/4 inch of water. The bubbles will tell you where the heat is concentrated. This is basically Trevor's test at Eurostoves. The link below is the video series from Trevor that is often discussed around here. Click next to get to the second page of videos and look for "Sealed vs Open Burners". Good luck. Here is a link that might be useful: Infamous video link from Trevor...

For more input, at least preliminarily, as I have not had more than 2 months with our new appliances: The major appliances in my old home have not needed any service calls. Seriously! The Wolf oven heats to the programed temp (checked with an interior thermometer regularly) and retains the temp well with little or no heat leakage. I do not experience hots spots. The cooktop burners go from the highest high to the lowest low (and simmers without the annoying clicking sound on other units). My only question for Wolf initially was the long preheat time but we figured out it was because I was leaving a pizza stone in there permanently to even out the temp but found out that it was not necessary and that was actually increasing the necessary time to come to temp so "my bad." I love the Wolf. Vent a hood exhaust is awesome! I love, love, love the Miele dishwasher. It has the best capacity of any washer I have ever used. Service for 16, easy! I thought I would hate the silverware rack but I came to love it. I have NEVER needed a service on this unit. Cleans great. Very quiet. I wish there was a "short cycle" for quick jobs though. I am a strong proponent of the GE Advantium and it's flexibility but understand that newer technology have come to market since that might be superior? I cannot speak to that. Works well as a microwave and a "toaster oven" and does not need preheating or heat up the kitchen. It has a larger capacity than a traditional microwave so it doubles as a second oven. It has never needed a service either. I do like my Miele coffee but understand that the nature of the beast is that the units do not last as long as other appliances. It was necessary to replace our original after 10 years but this new one is even better than the last. The plumbed feature makes everything much easier. I joke with friends that it does almost everything but milk the cow. We had a glitch with the subzero undercounter wine fridge but I was told it was a manufacturing defect for that particular year. All repairs to the compressor in it's early years were covered even after the warranty expired. No trouble since and the 2 zone cooling works great. New kitchen: Viking 5 burner cooktop - flame capacity (High and low) is limited and fluctuates depending on the burner I choose. Location of burners are not as conveniently located (there are larger and smaller plates) and are not organized so that you can actually have 5 pots on at the same time. Viking hood not nearly as powerful Thermador oven: currently operating approx 25 degrees under what it says on the temp indicator. hot spots and some features not working correctly. There is no light and I cannot find where the bulb would be located to replace it. I have not had time to look online or contact Thermador directly. Thermador micro - hot spots and less intuitive programing than the GE. We wind up just using "add 30 sec" feature. I miss the halogen light feature if the Advantium Layout of the Bosch is just dumb! consequently we need to run it more often because it fills up often. Dishes require a lot of pre-cleaning. It is equally as quiet as the Miele however. I'm replacing the Jura Impressa espresso entirely asap. I find it necessary microwave the Latte/cappuccino to make it hot enough. Small water, milk and bean capacity makes it so you can only make 2 coffee's before needing to refill. Features are antiquated but I have been told newer units are better. I haven't decided to do a built in or countertop as of yet. I hope that helps. I will be researching here again when it is time to start from scratch in our new home.

Our Viking cooktop only 6 years old failed. Some burners wouldn't ignite. Some didn't register that they were lit and kept clicking ad nauseum. I found Viking completely uninterested in standing behind their product. They crow on their website that they acknowledge their previous models had issues and have now improved due to Viking being acquired by a new corporation. But when I called to ask what specifically they had done to make it worth my while to invest in a new Viking cooktop no one could tell me anything other than they were now owned by a new corporation, and by gum that meant something! When I asked if they would be willing to offer me a replacement unit, or pay to upgrade the defective electronics, or at least give me a discount on a new model, they declined on all counts. I told them I would be happy to relate my experience with their company online — good or bad — and so that's what I'm doing. I ended up going with a DCS CDV-2365H and I love it — SO much better than the Viking. Build quality is great. High output burners. Incredibly low simmer on all burners. And it was $700 less expensive.