Just got my 'Consumer Reports' magazine today and noticed this little blurb; "You can get a pro-style gas range and save this much by buying a Kenmore Pro instead of a $7500 GE Monogram.....savings of $4100"!

Thanks... unfortunately I take CR with a huge grain of salt lately - they have some pretty off-base recommendations sometimes, so that devalues their opinion... I'm hoping that someone that owns a monogram can chime in!

Cooked a large dinner for a party on the Monogram Rangetop and liked it. Had pan searing and low temp sauces and both went well. I have an AG Wolf and found the burners as hot, maybe hotter. It was propane so can't speak to how NG might differ. Only issue for me would be sealed versus open burners and the flame spread for wokking. Also was using 14" saute pan so the Monogram's burner was not an issue as it might be with smaller pans.

OK Great -- Did you use the oven? Curious to see how it did with retaining the heat and not warming up the room

I have the 48" duel fuel range (6 burners and grill/2 ovens) at our lake house and have been very happy with it. Our lake house is at a remote location, so the range was converted for use on LP rather than natural gas.

It seems that pllog and others have been less than happy with the GE Monogram built in double ovens, but I have been totally happy with the two ovens in our range. To answer your question, no, I have not noticed that they spill heat into the room...at least not any more so than any other oven I have ever used, and a lot less than some (e.g. the ancient Thermador wall oven at our main home).

If you do a search on this forum (at bottom of page) using "GE Monogram" as the search term, you'll come up with lots of threads to give you more information on their products. To be honest, I think their dual fuel range is one of Monogram's best products. People seem to be less than thrilled with the Monogram wall ovens, refrigerators and dishwashers.

Please note that although DCS used to make the GE Monogram ranges, a couple of years ago GE totally redesigned the ranges and brought the manufacturing in house. So check the date on the posts, to make sure you are reading comments about the current range that is actually made by GE.

Here are links to some earlier posts that I found, just doing a quick search:
http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/appl/msg0209034318732.html
http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/appl/msg091554496428.html
http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/appl/msg0718380513920.html
http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/appl/msg0909483128519.html

Let me know if I can answer any other specific questions concerning the range. I haven't looked at the 36" but I assume it must be pretty similar to the 48" range.

Thought of two other things to add after going back and reading the other responses....

Re: the comment made by Teachmkt above...The grates on the Monogram range do handle small pans quite well --- much better than the Bosch range we have in the garage apt. at the lake house, or the ancient Thermador cooktop in Atlanta. None of that wobbly stuff that can be so exasperating.

The grates can be fipped over for use with woks, but to be honest, I've never done this. I long ago switched to a flat bottom wok (heresy, I know), so this is a feature I don't use.

Re: the other comment about the sealed vs. unsealed burners...you will find divided camps on that if you search GardenWeb enough. I have only had sealed burners, so I cannot comment except to say they have worked fine for me and I like the ease of clean up.

I WILL say, that I wish that Monogram had adopted the daisy style of burner, rather than the ring. Yes, as expected with a ring type, the heat is principally at the outside of the pan directly above the burner. A daisy configuration spreads the heat more evenly across the cooking surface. Is it a big deal to me? No. I use heavy cookware that spreads the heat fairly well. That, plus stirring, generally takes care of things. The only other range that I considered that had a daisy style configuration, lacked other key features that were improtant to me -- that's why I ended up with the Monogram.

The low simmers on this range are incredible. I love, love, love them.

nclakehouse --

Thanks so much!

Your input is extremely helpful -- I also did a search, but did not see any of what you provided. Looks like a 36" Monogram is the way to go!

I cooked for a few years on the 30" dual fuel range that we put into the house we sold last year.

Like nclakehouse, we had LP, not natural gas, and one of the features selling me on the Monogram was that the factory sets the jets for LP or natural gas. At least, I believe that you get better performance on LP if it's factory converted. Since we're at altitude too (5200'), we already lose enough performance that I didn't want to lose more. Also that there was the separate simmer flame on *all* burners. I wanted to simmer on any burner I wanted :) . And on regular flame, it was plenty hot enough for my wok (more flat-bottomed wok heresy).

The convection oven worked great for me though I have to add that I did alot more roasting /meat cooking than baking so can't really attest to its baking capability. The only thing I didn't like about the oven was the non-full-extension racks, but not enough to spring for the Wolf :).

Hope it works well for you, whatever you get.

The new Monogram now has full extension racks that are designed to remain in the oven during self-cleaning... One of the really nice features that sold us!

We just got a 30" Monogram.

I'm generally very happy with it, but made pizza last night and was disappointed with the oven racks. It comes with 3 extension racks, but the oven isn't tall enough to actually cook pizza on all three racks at once. There are only 5 rack positions, of which the top one is only about 1.5 inches below the broiler. Putting the racks in two adjacent positions doesn't work, since there's only about 1" of space between the two adjacent racks. I think you might be able to cook three pans of cookies (on sheets with no sides), but pizza on a stone is too tall. Why provide three racks if they aren't really usable? I foresee the third rack moving to storage in the garage.

Does anyone know if one can buy non-extension replacement racks for the Monogram (or if racks designed for another oven would fit)? One or two of those would probably allow three racks to be used at once.

to bht1, how do you like the buttons, knobs & other features on your monogram? We are deciding between the 30 inch monogram or the wolf duel fuel range. The temperature selection buttons & the oven light button on the monogram looked a bit cheaply made when compared to the wolf. But the range itself looks nice. After using this range, would you buy it again?

If I can make another comment please, we were all set to purchase the 30 inch monogram yesterday, but when we went back to the store the salesman tried to talk us out of it and into buying a 30 inch wolf saying how much better quality the wolf is, and will last for 20 years versus the monogram at 10. Also, I had said to the salesman that consumer reports rated monogram higher than wolf and gave monogram a best buy mention. The salesman at the store said consumer reports gives more points to cost so that's why monogram was rated higher. So now we are confused again.

These days you can't count on any appliance lasting 10 years, let alone 20 :-) The salesman clearly makes more money on the Wolf than the Monogram which is why he is pushing it. Wolf probably does have better quality and certainly better name recognition but the question is: is it worth the premium price to you?

I'm just so confused right now. Regarding price, the Wolf is about $1200 more than the monogram. That $1200 over the course of 10 years is not really that much if it is truely better. We have been looking for a couple of weeks, and need the range by Christmas, so I need to decide soon.
The salesman we had yesterday told us that, yes, he does make a different amount for each different brand. He gets paid, not by checks, but in the form of depositing his commission onto company credit cards. He showed us all his visa credit cards, one each from Wolf, GE, Bosch, ect. But he told us he makes more money on GE products than he does on the Wolf, and was steering us to Wolf because he is really impressed with that company. The monogram is nice too, but the only concern I have is with the small buttons & knobs on the front for the oven light and the temperature gage, and had a question about the quality of the steel used in construction. I want to get my money's worth. Is monogram just has durable & strong as the wolf when it comes to bumps and scratches? The buttons on the front did look a bit cheaply made and I was wondering how they hold up over time, or if it's not much of a concern. And, regarding convection baking, are results with the monogram just as good as the results from the Wolf? I guess the problem is that I'd really like to see both 30 inch ranges side by side (especially to compare the size of the range top cooking area, but the showrooms don't show either in the 30 inch. They only show the 36". Range top cooking space is pretty important to me, I don't want my pots & pans being cramped & hitting each other when cooking. Second most important is baking quality. Any advise? Thank you!

I can answer a couple of questions. We didn't look at the wolf, nor is there a wolf dealer near us, so I can't compare the two.

I like the Monogram knobs, particularly the oven controls. I would like the knobs better if they had more markings -- depending on how they are turned, you can't really see how high they are set by looking at the knobs.

You (mswaim) mentioned the oven light button. You are thinking of the button that turns on the decorative lights above the knobs. The oven light isn't controllable -- it's always on when the oven is on. That strikes me as unnecessary, but not something I considered important. The button for those little lights does have a cheaper feel than the rest of the stove.

I feel like there is lots of space on the stovetop. Our prior stove was a dual fuel kitchenaid, which was about two inches shallower for the same 30" width. It's surprising how much less crowded pans feel on the slightly larger stovetop -- I think I could put a 12" frying pan on each burner with no problem.

Smaller pans are more of a problem -- I'm going to have to get rid of my favorite 1 qt pan with a small footprint -- it's too small to use with any setting over simmer.

Thank you for your help bht1! You have clarified some answers for me.
How is roasting/baking in the oven? Does the convection work well? I have only ever used gas, and this will be my first dual fuel range.
And lastly, are you happy with your purchase and would you buy it (the monogram) again?

@mswaim - I don't know where the dealer is located that was showing you his spiff rewards but I can tell you where we sell (NY area) the Wolf line is more profitable for both the dealer and the salesperson.

Monogram is a very solid line. I think their fridges stand out more than the cooking products but if you are looking for a duel fuel range (Monogram all-gas won't be out till 2011) than you can do much worse than Monogram. I love the way you can fit a full catering tray into the cavity of the 36" range's oven. Very spacious. Dual stacked burners, heavy grates...what's not to love? I noticed someone mentioned Electrolux Icon in the thread...Icon's ovens are flat out AWESOME, especially at the price. The E30EW85GPS
is a monster. However, I am not crazy about the Icon ranges, certainly when compared to a Monogram. I can't recall the last time a Monogram customer complained about the product. Rock solid.

Thanks for your input appliancemonkey! Were in the NJ area, so I guess what you say about wolf being more profitable in NY would be the same in NJ. Now that I think about it, it's amazing that we had been in that store 2 previous times looking at ranges, (the first time we looked at an electrolux & a viking, and he never once said anything about the Wolf) (in fact, on that first visit, he tried to steer us away from the electrolux in favor of a GE Cafe) and then this past weekend we were all set to buy the monogram when he steered us to the wolf. Hmmmm, kind of makes me wonder about that now.
By the way, does anyone have any opinions on purchasing extended warranties? The extended warranty the store wants to sell us is $399 for 5 years. And that extended warranty would start with the purchase date, overlapping the manufacturers 1 year warranty. It doesn't matter which range we pick out, the price is still $399 for 5 years. Another store quoted us the same price. Are extended warranties worth buying? Thanks again!

@mswaim - NJ is the same deal as NY. Like I said in another thread, there are a bunch of dealers in the NJ-NY area that are on credit hold with Wolf b.c they can't pay the bills. That may be why they aren't mentioning it. But as of the last visit he pushed you to it? Strange.

As for the warranties, I think they are a good idea. My dealership never made a point of pushing them bc we thought that the consumer mindset (thanks in part to Consumer Reports' negative slant on warranties) was that they were a gimmick for the dealership to make $$. We've changed out mind about that due to 1 reason - the current cost of servicing appliances. I have had customers call me after being rocked for $250-$300 on 1 visit on a dishwasher. They would be begging me to sell one to them but we can't do it after the point of sale. If dishwashers can cost that much can you imagine what servicing a pro range or a SubZero can be? I have had customer's send me service bills on Subs and some have been over $1000.
So, the long answer is, I would buy them. $399 sounds high especially since you are overlapping the manufacturer warranty. In effect, you are buying a 4 year warranty and we sell 4-year warranties for $325. I would negotiate with them on the price of those. Also, question them as to who the insurer is...if it's the store's personal warranty that's basically garbage. What if they go under in 2 years? The most reputable warranties currently available are from Warrantech (good) and Assurant (better.
Good luck!

The oven works well -- it was one of the deciding factors when were were selecting between the DCS and the Monogram. I really like the convection roast feature, that the DCS doesn't have -- it puts a little heat out of the broiler, so a large roast of meat will brown on top even when cooked at a low temperature (our turkey last week was cooked at 300, and was nicely browned).

The probe is a bit convoluted to use (if you tell the oven to beep when the probe senses a temperature a little below your target, then you can't reset the probe setting to a higher temperature without turning off the oven and turning it back on. Who dreamed up that set of steps??), but is still nice to have (something else the DCS didn't have).

Thanks for sharing your opinions with me. I have read some helpful information here. I have about another week to make up my mind, since I need the range by Christmas, and I'll let you know which one I'll go with. I keep going back and forth between the two!

We ended up choosing the GE for day to day practical reasons over the wolf or capital or other pro stuff...
The new 2010 versions are complete re-designs (GE "borrowed" many features from competitors for the new stuff), so you get racks that can actually be cleaned in the oven, a sealed porcelain top that is easy to wipe down as opposed to a stainless steel top that scratches easily or has to be scrubbed, a flush kick plate to stop stuff from rolling under the oven itself, a clean attractive modern design, bright interior lights, etc... I also found that the oven size on the GE is significantly larger than the same sized competitors, too. Plus, GE is well known for very good warranty service. To top it off I also got really lucky and ended up with a new 36" 6 burner at $4500 delivered, a really good price.

The issue you have though is that the 30" GE is a different beast, as the burner configuration is much different than the 36", so that is something to look at carefully if btu's matter to you. While the wolf might have more panache, the GE is a great unit that can certainly hold its own

@schlitzie - I realize it has only been a few days but what are you initial impressions of your range? Do you love it? We are looking at the duel fuel 36" 6 burner (I believe the same as yours.) Also, from where did you get such a great price? We were quoted $6700!! Uggh!

imlebby -- We have not installed it yet as the new kitchen goes in in mid January, so I can't tell you much.

As for getting one, a 6 burner just listed on ebay (180597091656) that looks very legitimate with free shipping... Ebay is very good at protecting its buyers, so a high ticket item like this has very little risk.

Good luck!

The new GE Monogram pro ranges made by GE's Mexico sub. Mabe and not by DCS anymore, were the best part of the 2008 Kitchen and Bath Show. If I had any idea how to stick a photo in here I would.
They answered a ton of the problems of the pro appliances.....and looked slick. Really seemed well thought out.

Whirlpool and GE bring a certain military precision to building appliances which are tested, and tested, and tested, and which other luxury brands cannot afford to match, so one expects better reliability.
They also bring a better service network.

How is it to cook?
Like imlebby, I would be really interested to hear.

Here is a link that might be useful: ApplianceAdvisor.com