Our Diva induction makes no noise at all (well, the humming that is usually associated with induction, but even that's barely discernable).

Eliz

I just removed (yesterday!) my 1983 induction cooktop (Kenmore). Lightweight pans could do a little high-pitched squeal until there was some weight in them. Heavier pans didn't. Cast iron, of course, is nice and heavy and didn't make noise.

I think it's pot related. I have a hunch Eliz doesn't have cheap pots. :)

Our DIVA does make a bit of noise depending on the level, 12 definitely makes a hum and 1 makes a click. I have high quality pans, but sometimes I hear a hum; it is inconsistent. My 13yo begs me to turn the "burner" down from 12 to 10 when she is in the kitchen because it bothers her ears; yet, I can hardly hear anything. Also, you can hear the cooling fan. All that said, I'm happy with the unit because of size, ease of cleaning, quick response to temperature adjustments (heating and cooling), looks, and stable temperatures in the kitchen as the unit itself doesn't give off heat.

I think it has to do with the type of cladding more than the quality or weight of the pan. Makes sense that it would bother a teen more than an adult because of the pitch.

Fori I'm flattered! but you would laugh at my pots. Came with my DH into our marriage 19 years ago and still going strong. A set of dept store Lagostina that I can't seem to destroy no matter how hard I try :-) After what we spent on the kitchen we decided that we would replace stuff as we needed to, like our dishes and flatware (both of which weren't dishwasher friendly and now reside happily in my girlfriend's cottage so I get to visit with them every now and again...)

Although I have bought a cast iron griddle for both the induction and the new gas cooktop, I was really pleasantly surprised to see how many of my existing pans worked with the induction. That's the first piece of advice I would give anyone considering induction - get out you magnet before throwing away the pots! :-)

Eliz

I'm a long way away from "teen" and it bothers me a lot. I strongly suspect it has something to do with my tinnitus.

Eliz, if that cookware is that old and still flat, it must be good!

My best piece of induction-friendly cookware was made in the 1920s.

Hm-m-m, DH has tinnitus, but has never commented about noise from our GE induction cooktop, but maybe his decibel problem area is different from yours. Whatever noise we have is so minimal, that I don't even notice it. I'd have to go cook and pay attention to even comment about it more than this.

Anne

I suspect pbrisjar has more accute hearing in high frequencies. It's like those ringtones that "only kids can hear". Not all adults lose their high frequency perception, just a lot of them. There are also different kinds of tinnitus--some are totally in the brain, some are false inputs from auditory nerves, and some are actual vibrations caused by things like sinus pressure. Same as there are all kinds of pans, and the pans will hum, or not, loudly or not, depending on the unit, the setting, what's in the pan, and how much in the pan.

This is one of those IRL YMMV things (in real life your mileage may vary).

Yeah, I'm real sensitive to noise in general and probably more so in the high range. ENT Doc says I have excellent hearing (Hubby's complaints notwithstanding). No true idea of the cause but I suspect it was multiple instances of head trauma when I was a kid (ah, for the "good old days" of corporal punishment...). The noises I hear are high to very high to excurciatingly high. And yeah, that noise that only teenagers are supposed to hear? I hear it very well and it hurts like heck.

The induction noise does vary depending upon which pan I use, what's in it and what the stove setting is. I got an enameled cast iron pot at Costco a few months ago (KitchenAid) and that makes almost no noise at all - even empty. I'm hoping to eventually acquire more like it.

How does the cast iron griddle work on the Induction? Do you span 2 induction units (hobs?) when using it?

IÂm sorry to hear about the high pitch  I know it wonÂt bother me, but both my girls hear in that range. For example, if I put the gas fire pit on  it really bothers them. And my younger one was in a store recently and was complaining about a "sound" that was hurting her ears. It turned out they had just installed a device that emits a very high pitched sound that is suppose to keep rodents away. Nobody else could hear it.

Thanks so much for everyone's comments! I tend to notice the high pitch sounds, but am not bothered by the lower, though louder sound of a downdraft. Maybe I need to reconsider a gas cooktop.

Cast iron should in general (from what I understand) have none of the high pitch vibration problem. The whine comes from the layering of the steel with the copper on clad pans, with the steel getting excited and the copper not. Since cast iron is pure iron, this shouldn't happen.

Kippee, I suggest you do some more experimenting with cast iron!! That might be a much better solution than a downdraft with gas (which is notoriously bad because it doesn't work well).

My GE profile induction cooktop doesn't seem to make any noise, just a slight hummm-sound when I use the boost feature. My pans are le creuset, very heavy, so perhaps that has something to do with it?