What does "dB(A) re 1 pW" mean on a Miele data sheet?
Miele's "dB(A) re 1 pW" is an A-weighted sound power level, stated against a reference of one picowatt.
That reference is what makes it sound power: the acoustic energy the whole appliance radiates, not a reading taken at a set distance.
A sound power figure stays the same wherever you stand, and for one appliance it comes out higher than a sound pressure reading taken a meter or so away. The sound power and sound pressure explainer goes through why.
Miele prints the row identically on every rated model, "Sound emissions in dB(A) re 1 pW", and on all 31 rated product pages, page and PDF gave the same number. What the row leaves out is the operating mode, the room temperature and the test standard, so we know what quantity Miele measured but not how.
How loud is a Miele refrigerator column?
Miele's refrigerator columns, with no freezer, rate 32 or 40 dB(A) re 1 pW: 32 for the KS 7793 D and 40 for all seven MasterCool columns. Prices are Miele's own on October 24, 2026.
- 32: KS 7793 D, 22 inches wide for a 22 1/8 inch niche, 10.45 cubic feet, $4,199.
- 40: MasterCool K 2602 Vi ($9,199) and K 2602 SF ($9,499), 24 inch. K 2802 Vi ($9,699) and K 2802 SF ($10,499), 30 inch. K 2902 Vi ($9,999), K 2912 Vi ($9,999) and K 2902 SF ($10,999), 36 inch.
Miele's product titles give the SF versions a "Stainless steel/CleanSteel" front, while the Vi versions take your own panel, and the K 2912 Vi is the left hinged twin of the K 2902 Vi. Every MasterCool column fits a niche 84 1/8 inches high; the KS 7793 D needs only 69 7/8 to 70 1/2.
What is the quietest Miele freezer?
The FNS 7794 E, at 35 dB(A) re 1 pW, is the quietest Miele freezer, and it is the one rated Miele freezer outside the MasterCool line. All twelve MasterCool freezers list 42, whatever their width or dispenser.
- 35: FNS 7794 E, 22 inches wide, eight drawers, plumbed IceMaker, $4,699.
- 42, 18 inch: F 2412 Vi ($8,799) and F 2412 SF ($9,449) with an IceMaker; F 2462 Vi ($8,799), F 2472 Vi ($9,249) and F 2472 SF ($9,499) with ice and water dispensers.
- 42, 24 inch: F 2672 Vi ($9,849), with an IceMaker and dispensers.
- 42, 30 inch: F 2802 Vi ($9,999), F 2812 Vi ($10,499) and F 2812 SF ($11,549).
- 42, 36 inch: F 2902 Vi and F 2912 Vi ($10,799 each) and F 2912 SF ($11,549).
How quiet are Miele bottom freezer refrigerators?
Miele's built-in bottom freezer refrigerators rate 34 or 42 dB(A) re 1 pW where a rating exists. Ten of the fifteen models in this group have no rating at all, among them every KFMC unit.
- 34: KFN 7795 D, 22 inches wide, 8.69 cubic feet, plumbed IceMaker, $4,999.
- 42: MasterCool KF 2802 Vi and KF 2812 Vi ($8,999 each), 30 inch, 15.96 cubic feet. KF 2902 Vi and KF 2912 Vi ($9,499 each), 36 inch, 19.56 and 19.6 cubic feet.
- No rating: KFN 9859 iDE, 30 inch, $8,199, right and left hinged. MasterCool KFMC 3632 L and R and KFMC 3836 L and R, 30 inch. KFMC 3642 L and R and KFMC 3846 L and R, 36 inch.
Of the four MasterCool units, only the KF 2812 Vi sheet has no IceMaker row; Miele does not say whether that is a gap in the sheet or in the appliance.
Which Miele French door refrigerator is quietest?
The MasterCool KF 2982 Vi, at 42 dB(A) re 1 pW, is the quietest Miele French door with a rating. Only one other French door Miele carries a figure, the KFNF 9959 iDE at 44, the highest rating Miele prints.
- 42: MasterCool KF 2982 Vi, 36 inch, 19.42 cubic feet, $9,999.
- 44: KFNF 9959 iDE, 36 inch, 18.89 cubic feet, $9,449.
- No rating: MasterCool KFMC 3642 FD ($13,499) and KFMC 3846 FD ($14,999), 36 inch, and KFMC 3858 FD, 42 inch ($15,999).
So in the French door group, the cheaper KFNF 9959 iDE is also the louder of the two rated models, by two points.
Are freestanding Miele refrigerators quiet?
Yes, by Miele's own scale. Miele's two freestanding US refrigerators rate 35 and 36 dB(A) re 1 pW, lower than any MasterCool and within a few points of the quietest built-ins. Both are stainless bottom freezer models with NoFrost.
- 35: KFN 4799 DDE NA, 24 inch, 13.21 cubic feet, plumbed IceMaker.
- 36: KFN 4776 ED, 30 inch, 15.29 cubic feet, no IceMaker.
Miele priced them at $3,999 and $3,199 on October 24, 2026; the KFN 4776 ED is the least expensive Miele on this page. Both product pages repeat the data sheet rating.
How loud is the Miele undercounter refrigerator?
The KU 7175 D, Miele's one undercounter refrigerator, rates 32 dB(A) re 1 pW, tied with the KS 7793 D for the lowest Miele figure.
It is a drawer unit, two pull-out zones in a 23 1/2 inch wide cabinet, sold at $3,999.
The drawers need an opening between 33 7/8 and 36 1/4 inches high, and Miele lets each one run from 32°F to 57°F. Weighing it against undercounter models from other brands runs into the same sound power caveat as every other Miele rating.
Is a MasterCool quieter than Miele's other built-ins?
No. On Miele's own sheets, MasterCool rates 40 for its columns and 42 for its freezers and fridge-freezers, against 32 to 35 for the KS 7793 D, KFN 7795 D, FNS 7794 E and KU 7175 D.
Miele gives no reason. The obvious difference is size: the MasterCool columns stand 83 5/8 inches tall and hold up to 20.55 cubic feet, while the 22 inch wide models are 69 5/8 inches tall, and the KS 7793 D among them holds 10.45.
Price runs the opposite way to the rating. The least expensive rated MasterCool units, the F 2412 Vi and F 2462 Vi freezers at $8,799 each, cost almost twice the $4,699 FNS 7794 E and rate seven points higher.
So if a low figure is the goal, the 22 inch line is where Miele puts it; MasterCool buys height, capacity, Push2open doors and a color touch display.
Why do Miele's KFMC MasterCool models show no rating?
Miele gives no reason for the missing KFMC rating, on the sheets or on the product pages.
The eleven KFMC models, labelled MasterCool III in their sheets' drawing captions, add MasterFresh Pro and an AirClean filter, and the KFMC 38 models interior cameras too. Their US data sheets run to the same technical data table as the older MasterCool sheets, minus the sound row.
The KFN 9859 iDE, a 30 inch built-in bottom-mount, is missing the row in the same way, while its 36 inch French door sibling, the KFNF 9959 iDE, has it.
Until Miele adds a figure, there is no maker number to place a KFMC model against the 40 and 42 of the older MasterCool units, and a dealer is the place to ask.
Do Miele wine units carry a rating?
Yes, some do. All six MasterCool wine units list 42 dB(A) re 1 pW, while Miele's smaller built-in and built-under wine units carry no figure.
The product pages for the KWT 2602 Vi, KWT 2612 Vi, KWT 2662 ViS, KWT 2672 ViS, KWT 2602 SF and KWT 2612 SF all show "Sound emissions in dB(A) re 1 pW 42". Only the two SF data sheets repeat it; the other four PDFs printed little beyond their headings.
The KWT 6322 UG, KWTUS 7172 F and KWT 6722 iS showed no figure on page or sheet.
Why does my Miele refrigerator make a humming or clicking noise?
A hum, a gurgle and a click are among the sounds Miele lists as normal for its refrigerators.
The KFNF 9959 iDE instructions put the hum down to the compressor, which "can get louder for brief periods when the motor switches on", the gurgle to refrigerant moving through the pipes, and the click to the thermostat switching.
They add a cracking sound as materials expand, and the fan's "Sssrrrrr" on frost-free and multi-zone models. Both manuals we read also say the refrigerant can bring "a slight increase in the noise level" and that you may hear it flowing around the circuit.
The sounds Miele says you can fix are rattling and clinking: an appliance that is not level, one touching a cabinet or another appliance, loose or stuck shelves and drawers, bottles touching each other, or the transport clip left hanging on the back.
What does DynaCool do to a Miele fridge's fan?
DynaCool makes the Miele fan run more often.
In Miele's bottom-mount instructions, with DynaCool on, "The fan will always switch on automatically when the compressor switches on", and Miele suggests using it only in high heat or humidity, then switching it off.
The same instructions say the fan stops while the door is open, to save energy. On the KFNF 9959 iDE, the DynaCool fan instead runs whenever the refrigerator section's cooling does.
Automatic SuperCool and SuperFreeze also run the appliance "at full power", and with either on, the bottom-mount manual says the appliance "may make more noise than usual". SuperCool turns itself off after about 12 hours.
