Don't know what you mean by cheap - it's in the eye of the beholder ;) Ours is not a Thermador special at thousands, but it wasn't exactly cheap... We got a Kenmore for about $250, holds about 36 bottles and has been great. It's not particularly noisy at all - less noisy than my normal Maytag fridge.

Boy, I've been waiting for someone to ask about this. We found the best deal - a 50 bottle wine cooler by Magic Chef for $299 at Home Depot. Before you laugh, understand that we spent a lot of money renovating our kitchen, and have a SubZero fridge and a Viking stove. Quality matters to me. But after researching all these wine coolers, and being shocked by sticker prices of upwards of $1,000 for a nice brand, I decided that I really did not want to spend that just to cool a beverage that means more to me than anyone else in our family of five (including our three teenagers). I love white wine, drink it often, but I really don't want to spend that much on a cooler. The Magic Chef does the trick.

I do have to say, however, that we had a problem with it right after it went off warranty -- a beeping sound every two minutes that wasn't mentioned as a possible problem in the manual's troubleshooting, guide, and no one else seemed to have (I searched GW and the Internet). We called the company, and they said it was probably the thermostat. They offered to send a new one, at no charge to us, that they assured us we could replace ourselves. They were right; my husband put it in, no problem, and the cooler works like a charm again.

It is cheap cooler overall, but it keeps the wine at the temperature I want it to, and we even keep sodas and juices in there for the kids. I love it and have no regrets.

Oh, and the most important thing: The Magic Chef is not noisy at all. I can hear a real low grade hum now as I sit in my kitchen, but only because now that you ask, I'm listening for it. Noise has never been an issue with it.

I bought ours months before the kitchen was ready, and as soon as I got it home, I put it in the basement, got it out of the box, put a few wine bottles in it, plugged it in, listened for excessive noise and let is stay on overnight. Next day, my wine was at a temperature I wanted, it wasn't real noisy, so I deemed it worth keeping at that price.

The beauty of Home Depot is that you can return things if you're not happy.

Our "cheap" cooler was purchased about 7 years ago. It holds 24-maybe 30 bottles. It is a Haier (sp) brand that we got at Home Depot or target. It has worked perfectly for us. We donÂt keep it in the kitchen however, we keep it in our basement. I donÂt think it is loud at all.

I agree with hmsweethm...we have a Magic Chef from Home Depot. It was is a combo wine/beverage fridge..we love it. Yes, it was cheaper than others...we debated this like you are..but thought we'd go cheaper and replace if need be..so far we love it..works great and quiet..we don't hear a thing!

If you plan to store fine wine for aging at controlled temp and humidity, you should buy a unit that is constructed in such a way as to eliminate vibration, which would defeat the purpose of aging wine properly. Such units are expensive. However, if you do not intend to store such premium vintage wines for aging, which is appropriate only for premium estate bottled wines (which these days cost about $50/bottle and up), then you can get satisfaction from a less expensive cooler that will keep wine at the optimal controlled temp for drinking.

If you're storing cheap (or even moderately-priced) wine for short periods of time, then a cheap fridge is probably just fine. If, on the other hand, you're storing fine wines for extended periods of time, then you'll probably want a wine fridge with exact humidity control, no vibration, and electronically controlled temperatures that don't vary.

Alas, those qualities require expensive components and careful construction; something you're not likely to find in cheap-o wine fridges.

When it comes to wine storage, you get what you pay for.

I just installed an Avanti 30-bottle unit. I needed a 15" wide cabinet to replace the old compactor, so the HD units wouldn't work (too wide). This one cost $425 online (plus shipping) and has a 5 year warranty on the compressor. It's a very nice-looking unit for the money.

So far it is working okay except it occasionally gets too warm. I'm not sure what is happening; don't think the door is being left ajar. I need to call the manufacturer to ask, but haven't had time.

Here is a link that might be useful: Avanti wine cooler