I have an older model Kenmore (Electrolux rebadge) and while it sometimes pulses, I notice no variance in heat output or power output. It's more like a faint buzzing sound you hear (VERY faint). I think the inductions overall keep steady heat and the safety factor is unsurpassed compared to gas. You might want to look at other brands if showrooms are near you, the Wolf or Miele.

Thanks! Good to hear it doesn't bother you and doesn't seem to effect heat.

Unfortunately, despite being in a major metropolitan area, I can't find stores around here that stock any moderate priced induction ranges. Unless there are some lower end ones I haven't seen, Wolf and Miele are out of my price range. This area is 90% gas and they just don't sell induction so they don't stock them. I haven't even been able to see one in my price range in person! I saw a few higher end induction and duel fuel cooktops at one store but even that was just a display, you couldn't try them. I am going to look at some more stores this weekend but so far none of the major appliance stores have any induction ranges in the store.

I suspect that all induction hobs will pulse. Digital control is how things are done.

I think the OP is talking about induction hobs that act like microwave ovens on lower power. Set at 10%, it's on for 2 seconds, off for 18 seconds. 50% would be on for 5 seconds, off for 5 seconds. Or some such.

Older units used to act like this. Better ones do not. My CookTek has a cycle time around one second. So 10% is on for 0.1 second, off for 0.9 second. (though I actually think it is faster than that.)

Yes weedmeister- that is what I am talking about. I have people telling me that their current ranges that are between $2k and $3k do this. It seems that some new ones still do, I am trying to narrow down which don't as I think I might find it annoying. I have been told the KA I was leaning toward does it.

Unfortunately the area I am in is predominately gas and I can't even find a store that stocks low to mid level induction ranges, let alone find somewhere I can test some out.

I believe all induction hobs "pulse" (e.g. cycle on and off at low heat levels). Even my 2016 model Miele does in intervals of up to 7-10 seconds at low heat. It is computer controlled to maintain proper heat distribution. Works fine but if your concern is that you don't want to hear the pulsing sound I'd recommend gas. Edited to add: I saw the video you posted in the other thread and that model's pulsing is pretty annoying. Not all sound that obvious or make a continuous clicking noise.

All induction cooktops/ranges pulse. My kitchen has to be totally silent, which it rarely is, for me to even hear it.

Sometimes I think people have unrealistic expectations regarding noise. All appliances that run on electricity (which is virtually all of them) are gonna make some noise. It's the nature of the beast, as it were.

That one is the model I was looking at buying and I am afraid that clicking and pulsing would drive me batty! It is good to know they aren't all that bad. I don't think I'd mind it if it were less obtrusive and doesn't impact the cooking.

Markb - what kind do you have? The video I saw of the KA the pulsing was very obvious and it had a loud click every time it did it. I don't mind a little noise but my two concerns with induction from things I read are super loud fans (in a couple models) and the very obvious pulsing. I don't expect silence.

It's a good thing you don't expect silence because you'll never achieve it. Kitchens, by their very nature, are noisy places ... pots and pans clanging, knives chopping, garbage disposal running, etc. Fans are operated by motors which create noise. The rush of air thru fan blades creates noise. The only kitchen that's quiet is the one that's never used.

I wouldn't place roo much stock in the sound you hear in a video, which often amplifies sound far beyond what you would hear in the real world. It would behoove you to locate a dealer who has a working induction range so you can hear for yourself. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised how much of a non-issue this really is.

Unfortunately we are having trouble finding a store with one of the models we are looking at even in stock, let alone working. I am going to try some more stores this weekend though. I would love to see them in action.

I suspect it is more practical to use duty cycle as a heat control at the lower heat settings. If the resonant circuit that includes the induction coil were operated CW all the way to the 10% setting by more complex circuitry, the pan detection function would probably be too insensitive at that level, so an added pinging circuit would be needed. The pinging might also be noticed if the pan reacted with some sound.

Frankly, I'm impressed that induction cooktops are sold for the price they are given their complexity and high power semiconductor circuitry. This is the result of significant refinement over the years. Adding additional circuits not only adds cost, but the appliance manufacturer who deviates far from the beaten path without relentless testing may end up having to deal with possibly thousands of units needing recall.

I didn't know if mine does or doesn't do this. I don't hear anything at the low settings. So I put my ear down next to the cooktop and I do hear a very faint cycling on/off sound. Whatever it is, It has no impact whatsoever as far as I'm concerned. I don't hear it and I don't notice any effect on cooking. I have a 2016 freestanding Electrolux. I always had gas prior to this induction range. At this point I'd never go back. I'm no expert on induction but it seems like you may be overly concerned about this pulsing thing.

Other than Monark and a Miele distributor, I have been to no appliance retailer that has an induction range on the floor. I have seen many cooktops and sometimes they are actually powered. Since most ranges are based on a cooktop, I have mostly been able to find what I want to know looking at the cooktop and wall oven that are combined in the range (Elux excepted but being left handed, I scratched the Elux).

I have pretty good hearing but I have not heard clicking, switching or cycling sounds on any induction unit but I was focused on function and actually trying to cook anything. I have heard buzzing with some cookware. We went to the Zephyr showroom in SF and spent an hour with the Fulgor Milano induction range. I did hear a quiet buzz but not clicking.

On the cheap 120v hob we use at home, the fan noise probably covers all other noises. I have listened for buzzing, clicking... but I have never heard anything but the fan noise.

Thanks steph cran!

C Robert --

A little off topic, but can you expand a bit on using a pressure cooker with the Samsung and whether you had to fiddle between the limited heat settings to properly maintain pressure. What kind of PC were you using: a weighted valve model (aka venting or "jiggle top") or spring-valve kind?

Yesterday was the first use of pressure cooker on this stove. It's a fagor duo 8qt. I'm assuming spring valve without knowing much about it as it's modern, only a few years old. went well for use of chicken thighs in minimal liquid . That usually takes a little more attention to not lose pressure with too low temps. I lost pressure once at simmer( level 2) but that happens all the time to me on a regular electric coil. I think I stayed on 3 to finish and I think there was less fiddling since induction is instant versus electric. With a big pot of liquid for a whole chicken simmer would probably be fine on 2. I don't really feel like the 9 levels are limited compared to electric. Gas maybe a little, but not much. Also the large weighted knobs on the Samsung mimic a gas stove and I'm liking them even more after my single hob touch surface.

As for getting back to pressure, power boost (level 10) got it back in a hot minute.

Currently, simmering barley in a small staub cast iron cocotte. I believe I have very good hearing and had to stand with my ear next to the stove to hear a faint click at level 1 and 2. Couldn't hear it at 3. I'd say it's as unnoticeable as can be. I imagine making sure the fan is acceptable is more important. I think it's similar to a quiet fridge but I know that is widely subjective.

The only complaints so far are that there's no stovetop timed cooking which I wouldn't use much but was nice backup when I'm distracted by my toddler. My little $60 hob had that function.

The second is that the oven racks are the typical squeaky clangy pull out only 2/3 of the way. I can't recall if KA or bosch had the slide rails and full extension, I've forgotten all my comparisons. It would have been nice to have.

Fagor Duo is indeed a spring valve PC. Thanks for the report on using your Samsung.

strob06, what range did you purchase?

I have an LG induction, and I haven't noticed any pulsing, even at low levels. And I neither hear nor see any shaking of my pots (I know some complain of rattling lids).

Thank you!

I have a portable induction cooktop and it works great, but it does pulse significantly. I'm not at all concerned about the sound, but rather the fluctuating heating of food. I was making brown butter on this cooktop tonight and I had to move it over to my gas low BTU burner to get the constant boil I need for this to be successful. On the induction, it boils and then stops - boil, stop, boil, stop. Do the built-in induction units behave this way with small pans and small amounts of liquid? Thanks.

Yes, the coil power is operated at some duty cycle to get low power heating. If this interferes with cooking small quantities of sensitive foodstuffs, then try a pan/pot with a thicker bottom layer to increase thermal inertia and smooth out the temperature variation from the power variation. There will be a trade-off with responsiveness. I should note that I have never looked into thick bottomed small pans for butter, but someone must have recognized the need.

To clarify a bit, the technical term for the "duty cycle" is "Pulse Width Modulation." It is also the way most microwave ovens work. At any setting below full power, the heating power is switched on and off with the amount of "on" time and off "time" being averaged to approximate a selected level of heat. The boil-stop-boil-stop results from the use of low-frequency switching electronics in many portable induction cooktops (PICs) and some induction ranges and built-in cooktops. That is, the power is switched on for a second or two, then off for a few seconds, then back on for a second or two, then off for several more seconds. More sophisticated PICs and many built in cooktops and induction ranges avoid noticable pulsing with electronics that switch the burner power on and off many times each second.

My personal experience with browning butter in a thick bottomed pan (cast iron) on an inexpensive PIC was rather mixed. This was some years ago and was tried with a ten-inch cast iron pan on some less expensive PICs (a Duxtop/Secura model and a Max Burton one). Basically, it was problemmatic when working with smaller quantities (say, half a stick of butter) and sort-of okay with two or three sticks provided I took a long time to preheat the CI pan. Might have been different if I'd had a smaller cast iron sauce pan, but I doubt it. Like metlmann, I just found it easier to use a burner on a gas stove for that task and moved on after several less than satisfying experiments with the inexpensive PICs.

FWIW, I recently easily browned a small quantity of butter in an ordinary small saucepan on a Vollrath commercial PIC unit. The Vollrath does not seem to have the pulsing problem on anything I've used it for.

Thanks for the comments. We bought the PIC (Duxtop) this summer when it was broiling hot here in Austin and were trying to save energy by not adding heat from the gas range to the house, thus increasing HVAC usage. Plus, our grid operator was begging people to use less power for fear the whole thing would go down again like it did in winter of 2021. We plan to remodel and want to go with induction as long as it can meet our cooking needs, so the PIC is a test.

As far as the pulsing PIC goes I could use a cast iron "diffuser" disk to act as an intermediate heating element which would smooth out the transfer of heat to the All Clad pan I was using to brown the butter. This would probably be a bit awkward as there is a fair amount of pan swirling that takes place.

We will have to perform careful due diligence when we finally get around to selecting an induction range/cooktop to make sure it uses high speed power switching on the burner element to avoid pulsing. Thanks for that info jwvideo.

" a fair amount of pan swirling "

For pain swirling on an induction stove, I put a piece of paper towel under the pan.....Even on a high level (to make popcorn), I can easily shake the pan on a paper towel while cooking - and without burning the paper.

For anybody who might take my last post as some kind of recommendation to buy the Vollrath Mirage Pro PIC as a way to test out induction --- I'm not recommending it for that. Too expensive for just trying out induction cooking to see whether you might like it or not..

And, If you do want to check out the Vollrath, be ready for sticker shock. I see that the price of this PIC has now nearly doubled to over $750. That's twice what it was a few years ago. Also, three times what I paid some years ago to buy an open-box return.

Well, to be even more pedantic, I would like to clarify that the hob coils are powered by a circa 40 kHz ac waveform. This waveform is interrupted at the lower power settings to yield a lower average power output. It is the envelope of the waveform that is width modulated. Unlike a microwave oven modulating its output in fractions of a minute, this is done in sub second intervals (at least on my Frigidaire Gallery).

The first (to my knowledge) true pulse width modulated power source applied to consumer uses was the audio amplifier scheme Amar G. Bose was developing in the early '60s, where a pulse width modulated high frequency (~300 kHz) feedback amplifier (operating class D I think) had its output rectified to form the actual audio waveform used to drive speakers. The advantage of this was low transistor power dissipation relative the commonly used class AB1 amplifier design of the same output power. The initial poor distortion performance was improved over time to result in the typically small amplifiers now often present in bookshelf speakers.

kaseki Pulse width modulated like some of Bob Carver's power amps. Wait have we hijacked this thread?

I try not to hijack. 'Twas only a comparison. I don't have sufficient knowledge of Carver's products, but I am unaware of him having a fully switched PWM audio amplifier.