They're about as loud/quiet as any other top load washer.

Give a listen at Youtube...

Here is a link that might be useful: Speed Queen Top Loader on Youtube

How about the dryer? I have found big differences in how loud they can be, especially with the clanging from clasps in small children clothing. Thanks for any comments!

Feinmaster,

In regards to dryer noise from buckles clanking, no manufacturer uses a plastic drum on a dryer, so all will make the same metallic clanging that you speak of with buckles in the load. Maybe a slight advantage to those with a plastic inner door panel vs a stamped steel door panel for less buckle noise.

Most dryers are 52-60 dB on the market, move the same amount of air, and are roughly the same size, and employ the same speed motors. Only the highest end models add insulation panels for noise reduction. The speed Queen has no extra insulation, but is probably the heaviest machine on the market, and therefore likely shudders the least under load.

Washers are generally louder than dryers due to high speed operation. If you want the least noise, run on delicate with a low speed spin, but you will have a longer, more costly drying cycle.

Laundryvet

Thanks for the info, Laundryvet! The ultimate solution will probably be to move the units to the garage.... Not happy about them on the second floor anyhow. feinmaster

FWIW...

I've had the pair for about four months, now. Washer is pretty much a clone of the Maytag TL's from decades ago, noise-wise as well as otherwise. (except the tub is larger)

Which is to say, noise-wise, a bit "growly". Certainly louder than modern FL's of my acquaintance. Lower-speed agitation is louder still. I wouldn't put them next to anybody's bedroom.

The upside of that, as with previous-generation Maytag TL's, is that you can tell what the machine's doing by listening to it.

Dryer is no more or less noisy than any other dryer. Works fine and has the most convenient lint filter I've ever used.

Both machine's solidly built, easy to understand, and work wonderfully well. If old-tech is OK with you, these are ones to buy. If you want pretty colors and cool design, forget it. They're white and they look like the conventional workhorses they are.

Thanks, Gwarstong.

Checked out SQ models today at the local appliance store. I am only 40 years old, and yes, I have an I-phone too, but when did everything get so crazy with making doing your laundry feel like playing a video game? The electronics are ridiculous. I am definitely leaning towards the SQ set, mainly because my husband and I live very busy lives and don't have time to deal with broken control boards, etc. I am looking at moving the set to the garage which should help the situation. Thanks for the feedback!

One caveat...which is really a non-issue because EVERYONE who buys a Speed Queen does it.

Government regs require that Speed Queen deliver their conventionally-designed machines with a fill-limiter that only "fills" the tub about 70% of actual full.

Problem solved in about five minutes by removing three screws on the panel, tilting it forward, and adjusting a 1/4" limiter screw so that it fills all the way. Several youtube videos show how it's done. With zero previous experience, I accomplished this in minutes. Small deal, IMHO. After you do this, the tub will fill ALL the way when set to "full" but still allow smaller-fills by adjusting the panel-dial normally.

I regard this gov't limit as quite ridiculous but that's what the manufacturer is saddled with. EVERYBODY who buys one of these machines does it.

Otherwise, I would say the machine operates pretty much exactly like those Maytags of old except that 1) the tub is bigger 2) the agitation is better 3) the thing digests unbalanced spin-loads much better and 4) all rinses are tap-cold....no option for "warm" rinses.

If you adjust the fill, you will void the warranty as per Speed Queen. You can just use the reset on the load size knob. You Tube has a video that shows how to bypass the lid switch.AFAIK that will not void the warranty.

I've heard statements/opinions about warranty both ways. Haven't called the mfgr so don't really know. Guess I'm taking my chances. Warranty is three years and I've never in my life had a service call on a washer (quite a few...I'm 60+) within that time-frame. Anecdotal, I admit, but that's where my attitude comes from.

Agree that water level can, indeed, be adjusted upward by simply holding the knob over until it fills to the level you want. I think that's a nuisance so I changed it. If my machine breaks in three years, I be back to say so.

I am not sure if SQ sets the 'fill limit" only based on the "NEW" government regulations as some people claimed, instead of based on their engineering design and capacity. Yes, per SQ, making the changes would void the warranty.

We own SQ W/D for over one year. Noise level wise, the dryer is the quietest dryer that we have ever owned. Washer noise level is normal. Very stable, no vibration.

The regular water level setting and cycles are what we use. Do not feel the needs to adjust either since laundry is clean and fresh and requires no effort from us.

We have been very happy with the trouble free performance. We appreciate the time and effort the set has saved us. We like the high quality build and great warranty.

Thanks for the feedback!!! I was wondering about whether changing the water fill level voided the warranty. I try to not have huge loads anyhow, so I don't think that it would be a big issue to keep it at its pre-set fill limit.

Regardless of your water-level control, I think you'll like the short cycle-times and the ability to change a cycle on-the-fly instead of having to drain and re-program the machine and start over. If you have guests or hired-help, you'll quickly come to appreciate the simplicity of operation, too.

I just came off of 8 years superb performance from a Duet FL pair. I liked them just fine...zero problems. However, they are more complicated, take longer to do a load, can't be re-programmed in the middle of a cycle, and don't fit where they need to in my pre-HE laundry closet.