I would suggest posting on the appliances forum. There are a lot of very knowledgeable people there. I think the Miele model you posted is called Miele futura classic.

On a personal note, I installed a Miele older show floor model with no warranty. The price was right and I do not regret it. It is by far the best dishwasher I have ever used and I am thankful every night as it saves us 15-20 mins as the loading is so fast.. Just scrape and load. No rinsing or prewashing like my old GE. Can't speak for Bosch.

Thanks, I'll do that. Yes, the Miele is a Futura Classic. I also should've said the Bosch is part of the 800 Series.

I have a Miele entry level, 10 years old. I love it and it's very quiet. I am contemplating whether to keep my current DW in my upcoming reno, or replace it with another Miele, so I've been looking at their website lately. On the mieleusa.com site, that particular model is listed at 46dB. I think anything under 50 is really quiet?
HTH

sherri58, I'd love to know where on the mieleusa website you found a dB measurement. It was my understanding (and I looked a lot) they only say "Quiet Level" 1, 2 , 3, 4 or 5 without ever saying what that means in dBs.

Some dishwashers (newer ones I think) on the Miele site are described in terms of "dBA"--but that's not the same as dB. Every other dishwasher on earth is described in terms of decibels (dB) but Miele has its Q1/Q2 etc. system and sometimes also uses "dBA," which are weighted decibels--I looked it up and the dBA system counts sound differently depending on whether it's low or high frequency. Very low-frequency sounds "count" less, making the overall number smaller, allegedly because people don't hear low-frequency sounds as well or aren't bothered by them or something.

So knowing it's 46dBA is kind of helpful--itcertainly indicates it's not loud--but it's not apples to apples when you compare it to something that's just listed in dB.

I have a floor model Miele. I don't know (from here on the couch!) what model it is. But it is at least 12 years old. Have never had an issue with it and it cleans great. Occasionally have to put the random peanut butter knife back in, but we don't rinse at all. It is really quiet--we sometimes don't know it is running.
I would skip the extended warranty. But, I always do!

Hmm, maybe it does make sense to ditch the warranty in the case of a Miele. If it's a lemon it's covered under the manufacturer's warranty, so the extended warranty would be just for when it breaks due to wear and tear... which shouldn't be for a good long time, in case of a Miele. My concern there, I guess, would be with how expensive parts might be, since they're not made in the US.

I would consider ditching the warranty with a Miele, but not with a Bosch. Is that reasonable?

I have the middle of the road Miele and have had it now for about 4 years. It is so quiet I never know it is running. Love it! My 2 sisters also have Miele and wouldn't have anything else. They have had theirs for a number of years now and never had any problems. My girlfriend has a Bosch and has had a few service calls, but she seems happy with it and it is also quiet. I don't know if this helps at all but I think either one of them would be fine.

I wouldn't worry about the decibel rating of the Miele. At most you'll hear an occasional noise. They are also designed to last 20 or more years, and they sell enough of them not to worry about parts availability.

In 18 months with mine, I've had to rewash things 2 or 3 times, and that was due to poor loading technique. They don't have heated dry, so expect your plastics and tops of your glasses to be wet.

We were looking at a Bosch 800 Series Plus vs. the lowest price Miele (forgot the model). What decided it for us was the manufacturer's warranty. The Bosch was 3 yrs vs. 1 yr for the Miele. The Miele warranty also requires you to have a certified technician install it. Bosch does not have that requirement. I like to DIY as much a possible, so that would have been an added cost for the Miele, which was already more expensive than the Bosch. So, the choice was a more expensive dishwasher with a poorer warranty (Miele) or one that was less expensive with a better warranty (Bosch). That was a no brainer of a decision for us, as both were rated very well by consumers. Install of the Bosch was a breeze and we have been very happy with how it cleans.

This post was edited by gpraceman on Fri, Oct 18, 13 at 19:19

I recently faced the same choice. I hated the idea of spending so much money on a dishwasher. I went and looked at both often and ultimately, the racks on the Bosch didn't seem nearly as well made (I kind of broke one little piece on one :/ .....) and I actually found and exposed rusted part on one near the cutlery basket (looked like a manufacturing defect on that one). I then found a Miele Dimension Plus floor model and grabbed it. It was more than the Bosch, but I couldn't be happier. I guess the question I would ask you is: For your needs are the additional washes and slightly lower decimals more important that better quality racking and ultimately build IMO. Take your plates and load them in each model and take your time and see what feels right. It's a touch choice, but in the end they are both good top of the line machines. HTH.

I hope you bought a Miele. I have had a Miele classic model for 18 years without any problems or repairs whatsoever! They build them to last at least 20 years. Quality to last is what their company is about. It is a no brainer. I am needing to buy one for another house and it will be a Miele.

Regarding dB vs dBA, dB and dBA are synonymous for this application.

dBA is sound energy weighted for humans, so it only includes energy in frequencies that humans can hear. The only other common acoustic dB measurement is dBC, which is unweighted. That is, dBC it includes all frequencies with equal weight, even those that humans can't hear.

Since the vast majority of published dB specs are wrt affects on humans, the "A" in dBA is implied. dBC is only used for sensitive instruments and machines, and dBC is always greater than dBA.