Most people who've had problems with Thermadors have had problems with the wall ovens or the oven portion of the Thermador ranges, not the burners or rangetops. The star-shape of the Thermador burners gives better flame coverage than the outer-ring style seen on most burners (which mainly heats the outer circumference of a pan rather than across the pan). And the Thermador rangetop sure is good-looking. I don't know why TonySak said above that the simmer setting may not be as reliable or as safe (??) - can you provide backup for that comment? I haven't heard that at all. I think if the Thermador burners weren't "safe" it would be a big deal and we would have heard about it, there'd be recalls, etc. What I have heard is that many people don't like the low simmer setting on the Thermador burners cause they click on and off which is an annoying sound. Other people say they don't mind the clicking, or rarely simmer on such a low setting, or they can't hear the simmer clicking over the other noises in the kitchen like the exhaust fan, the kids, or the general hubbub in a kitchen. The clicking isn't cause it's broken or anything, that's just how the Thermador low simmer has always worked. Can you go see one in operation to see if it would annoy you?

My question is why the huge difference in price? What are the differences? Where are they made? Is it that the new design is easier to produce for less money? Did they just come out with a slightly different one so they could create a different price point for the same function and quality? Did they cheap out on the parts or finish? (This is a longwinded bump, of you haven't figured it out, but I'm really curious about the difference.)

I am not sure I agree with M (a first! I always agree with M). LOL. Thank you for the compliment ❤ Shannon, let me make an effort to put you at ease again. You said that you have gone years with having a tile backsplash behind a high-powered range, even though it came with island trim. I believe you. There is a difference between what you can probably get away with, and what building codes tell you to do. When I was younger, I for years lived in an apartment that pushed a gas stove directly against a wall. Since it was just a rental apartment, I couldn't make many changes. I simply decided to mount a glass cutting board to that wall. It helped quite a bit, as I left an air gap behind. And that's pretty critical. That's why the manufacturers backsplash works, too. Nonetheless, when I moved out, the paint behind the cutting board had bubbled up in places and gotten scorched. But it never caught fire. So, there's that. So, the same is true in your situation. You most likely will get away with tile on a combustible surface. There might be hidden damage to the wall. Or there might not be. Impossible to tell. And if you sparingly use both oven and rear burners, then there might never be an issue. But nobody can tell in advance. And building codes have to deal with people doing stupid things. Such as setting your oven on fire (which my dumb ass has managed to do twice in my life) You don't want your house to catch on fire, simply because you forgot what material the backsplash happened to be built from. And if the stove manufacturer explicitly tells you that operation without a backguard isn't safe, then they probably have a reason for that statement.

Amanda, my double sealed burner boils water fast. I also love the fact that I can turn off the powerful outer ring and leave rice on the tiny burner only. I have 2 of these type of burners, other one cannot be turned down/divided, it's all power all the time... I have 7 burners so a lot to choose from. I had the 36" RCS on my list for a long time, and a speed oven also...then I came across the 48" Hallman and it made more sense for how I use the range. And yes, I can stir fry beautifully with that double ring burner and my carbon steel wok. I'm not comparing the burner to a BS burner, just saying that it's awesome. Good luck!