Help! We are in the process of picking out new appliances and have narrowed down the field to:
Gas Cooktops- DCS or Viking 6 burner
Wall ovens - Viking, bosch, thermador (single electric convection ovens)
Hood fans - Faber, Viking, Dacor
Any help deciding would be very useful.

I have a Swanson exhaust fan that is wonderful. The motor is on the roof (three story house) and it really ***** (good sense) the devil out of cooking odors, etc. I think the company is in Mississippi. You buy the motor and insides of the exhaust and finish it with your choice of exterior decor. I have what appear to be two cabinet doors that pull out at the bottom (like a lean-to). Much higher exhaust capacity than any of the others available for home use -- at least when I installed it several years ago.
Love my Jenn-Aire convection oven but the cavity is small -- a half-sheet pans fills it almost wall to wall.
I love my trash compactor. We live in the city and don't have a lot of room to store/hide the trash until trash day so this is really great!
I'm getting really to update/upgrade kitchen and have been looking for advice as well.
I hear that Sub-Zero fridges need professional servicing on a regular basis and have heard that they break down more often than they should considering the cost. There are now other 24" deep models on the market. Anybody have experience with any of these?
How about really quiet dishwasher? I think the one I like best is the Bosch which has two racks that adjust to accommodate really large plates (charger size or larger). Anyone?
I am concerned about ease of cleaning with Viking and other ranges/range tops. I am the queen of messy cooking. Even a tidy cook needs and occaisional deep cleaning for the stovetop or oven. What have others found?

[MikeLM]

I'm going to be rebuilding a small kitchen when I move into a condo later this year.

I'd like to use an undercounter refrigerator and another undercounter freezer, to retrieve as much counter space as I can. I will need to have drawers in both, since I don't want to get down on my stomach every time I use them.

I'm not encouraged by the comments above about Sub-Zero. I see on the Big Tray restaurant-supplies site a couple of units made by True which look like they would do the job for me.

I'd appreciate any comments about the Sub-Zero's reliability and any experience with the True units.

Thanks

Mike

[Mezzaluna]

I have a Viking stove and hood. I like the hood and love the cooktop of the range. It comes apart alost completely so I can wash it in the sink, for the most part. The oven is gas convection and is a bear to clean. I hear they now have electric convection ovens. If they are self-cleaning, fine. If not: forget it! If I were doing it again, I'd still get a Viking cooktop based on my experience. Good luck!

On your cooktops, go with DCS, Dynasty,Wolf, or Thermador. On your wall ovens, Thermador or KitchenAid (Architect series) are good and are less expensive than Viking. On the range hood, go with Thermador. They have a great roof-top fan (1000 or 1400CFM). Very quiet. Good luck!

On dishwashers, the quietest I've seen are either the top of the line KitchenAid models (all stainless steel), or Fisher & Paykel DishDrawers. On refrigerators, try ColdTech Refrigerator/Freezers. Very good quality, all stainless steel, and quite reasonable. You can find them at www.dvorsons.com. Good luck!