List Price: $499.99
Sale Price: $386.00
Today's Bonus: 23% Off
UPDATE: 1/15/12: Please note that my original review was written in 2007, so serial numbers mentioned are different now, so unsure what has changed at KA. Hope all is good by now!
NEWLY EDITED 11/30/07:
IF YOU ARE ABOUT TO BUY a PRO 600 & you have done your research, you already know there is a plastic/metal parts issue, so PLEASE read my info: KA customer service KNOWS which Pro 600s have the metal transmission cover "fix" (via serial numbers), but some reps are refusing to give you the serial numbers to look for; but they might "allow" you to call them from the store with the serial number off a Pro 600 box before you buy to ensure it has the metal transmission cover. So, be insistent! Here's my story:
The first rep I called was a supervisor "Kelly", who refused to tell me which serial numbers to look for! Nice! I spent too much time researching ,so I called back & the next rep (Rachel) gave me her extension & told me to call her from the store & she would tell me if the one I found was made after the "fix". By the time I found one I wanted at the second store visited KA cust serv was closed. I bought it anyway, crossed my fingers, & called the next day. "Rachel" wasn't available, but another rep told me the serial number was one of the newer mixers I wanted. (pls read all the "negative" reviews here for good info)
IMPORTANT: This rep also gave me crucial I want to pass on as it's the info I tried to get before I bought my mixer the serial numbers of the Pro 600 6 qt, 575 watt mixers with the metal cover "fix" (made from mid-April 2007)begin with numbers higher than "14" (my serial number is WU1503109, so it's above "14") Depending on the rep you get, only a couple are willing to confirm this info, so be prepared for frustration but just hang up and keep trying until you get a good rep.
ALSO IMPT: There are a few 6 quart KA mixers made I am only speaking of the store bought PRO 600 6 QT, 575 watt mixer found in stores like Bed N Bath/Linens N Things. So, read all these reviews carefully & note the dates they were written I think there is a possibility of people writing both pro & con reviews about 6 qt mixers that might be different. However, the plastic issue is the same, just the power would be different. For example, QVC sells a 6 qt KA mixer with a smaller motor, and there's a Williams Sonoma 6 qt mixer as well.
I wanted this powerful mixer as I have a 30 yr old KA mixer with a 250 watt motor, but it has a small bowl. My old mixer has never had a problem with a thick batter cookie I make every year at this time. I was anxious for the large bowl & to see how my new "workhorse" with its 575 watts would handle this batter because many have complained that it burns out on thick doughs/batters. UPDATE: I just made my thick cookie batter with my new 575 mixer & it did a super job!( My recipe uses 1 1/2 lbs of brown sugar, 8+ cups of flour, one pound of butter and 2 cups of Karo syrup no other liquids or eggs so it's a tough batter for any machine) Once I began to add the flour (using the nice pouring shield) I never went above speed 2 (as suggested by KA for heavy batters/doughs) & speed 2 was all that was needed. A nice rep also suggested to rest the mixer if I needed to mix beyond 7 mins, but I never came close to that.
SIDE NOTE: when I opened the box last nite, the electric cord was folded in half & tied into a knot; there was a very sharp/jagged piece of metal on the lifting guide; a blob of dried paint on the top of the bowl holder; & bits of white crystals in the bowl that tasted like salt. Of course I called KA & Robert, with permission from his supervisor, offered a replacement immediately which I didn't ask for & certainly wasn't expecting! He said the "presentation upon opening the box" wasn't professional & they wanted to correct that. He also told me to go ahead & use this unit until the replacement arrives! WOW! Once it arrives, KA will send UPS to pick up the one I bought. Another WOW! I then told Robert about my Serial Number fiasco & he said that he would have provided the S/N info before I shopped! He also said that he stood by his fellow reps, but he agreed that someone like me, who had done hours of research, should have been given the requested info from the first call & certainly not have been forced to call from a store! In my case, I wanted a mixer made after the mid-April date which is the date KA began putting metal transmission covers on instead of plastic.
My WARNING: There is old stock, with the plastic cover, out there, yet KA still insists there is nothing wrong with this, so I'm giving you a big head's up..
Until I made my batter, I rated this mixer a 2 for the lousy customer service/runaround I got from 2 of 5 reps. Now that I've made my batter, I am vamping it up to 5 stars BUT KA needs to get more reps like Robert and the other guy who helped me. (If not for them, KA would NOT have this sale) So, while I wasn't treated right at the beginning, I am happy now & have edited my review accordingly. KA has quality issues re cust serv, especially supervisor "Kelly". (Try to avoid her as she thinks she works for the CIA.) I hope I have saved at least ONE person from all the frustration I suffered through to get what I wanted. In the long run, I think you'll be happy & customer service is great IF you get a good rep!
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I already own a 5 Qt mixer from the "Artisan Series" but decided to upgrade to this model so that I could make larger batches of bread dough. For my recipe, a single batch is 2 cups of bread flour. I tried making a double batch (4 cups) in my new Pro 600, but after about 15 min. of kneading, the motor just turned off. I thought I had burned it out, but after consulting the instruction manual, it seems this is normal. Normal?! Yes, that's what it said--all I needed to do was wait for the motor to cool off (it's also "normal" for it to get so hot it is uncomfortable to touch) for 30 min. and then try again. I find it hard to believe that this mixer could make bread with 14 cups of AP flour, as the box says. Having said that, here are my thoughts on this mixer vs. the "Artisan Series" mixer I already own:1. The motor consumes over 50% more electricity (and is certainly more noisy) in the pro 600, but how much of that is being converted to extra torque, I'm not really sure. What I do know is that I can only do a single batch of bread at a time in either mixer.
2. As has been mentioned in other reviews, the Artisan mixer came with a "coated" paddle and dough hook, whereas the pro 600 has "Brandished steel". This means the Artisan's implements are dishwasher safe but the pro 600's are not. I had assumed those bright, shiny implements that I saw in the store display were stainless steel, but I guess not. If it weren't for this problem and the huge price tag, I would have given this mixer 5 stars.
On the plus side...
3. I love the new spiral dough hook--it is much better than the C shaped one in my Artisan
4. The soft start feature is a nice touch. Then again, it would be even nicer if there was a speed lower than the lowest one provided.
5. The larger bowl is nice
6. There is more of a difference between speeds 7-10 than the Artisan
Things I'd like to see changed in the next iteration:
--A gear box. I have a cordless drill that has a high and low gear. As could be expected, low is for more power, high is for more speed. Why don't these mixers use a simple gear selector like that? This would be a HUGE improvement--it would not only provide more power, but the lower speed I would like, as mentioned in point 4.
--Stainless steel implements as mentioned in point #2
CONCLUSION:
A very nice mixer, but so is my "Artisan". If you are going to buy a new mixer (and don't have an unlimited supply of money to throw at it), I wouldn't recommend the Pro 600--get one from the Artisan series instead--it is much cheaper and does just about as good a job. There are small advantages to the Pro 600, but even all together, I don't think they are worth the added price.
Best Deals for KitchenAid Professional 600 Series 6-Quart Stand Mixer
Due to the very high number of complaints about the problems people were having with heavy duty tasks (which is what the mixer should have been made for!) due to cheap plastic housing holding the heavy duty metal gears, I contact KitchenAid to find out if this design flaw has been fixed. It has been and here is their response (note that they are saying that if you receive one of the models with the plastic housing they will replace it under warranty with the new metal housing. It is also important to note that the people who've had the problem have almost all stated that KitchenAid had great customer service and replaced their mixers with no ones with no problems.RESPONSE FROM KITCHENAID: Thank you for visiting the KitchenAid website!
I would like to reassure you that our engineering and product teams have addressed the gear box issue. In fact, we have already implemented a change in the manufacturing of the Pro 600 Stand Mixers to a metal gear box. Although these will be changed out on additional 5 qt bowl-lift models that include all metal gearing, the time line on that is not known at this time. Although a transparent change, this will insure the long-term durability we expect.
I would like to emphasize to you that should you purchase a Stand Mixer (with all metal gearing) which has not been assembled with the upgraded metal gear box, and you should have a problem with your mixer (as a result of the plastic gear box (failure), we will most certainly extend your warranty to resolve the issue properly and effectively.
If you have additional questions, feel free to reply back to me. Or, you may contact either our KitchenAid Customer Satisfaction Center at 1-800-541-6390, or you may visit our secure KitchenAid Live Chat.
Honest reviews on KitchenAid Professional 600 Series 6-Quart Stand Mixer
I was a bit nervous about this Kitchen Aid model based on the research I'd done on Amazon and the internet of previous models in the 6 quart range. I own and cherish a K5SS I bought 25 years ago. I will never part with this machine (with all its chips and cosmetic wear it's been a faithful workhorse and one of my most prized possessions).I was ready for greater capacity, more power and a more cosmetically appealing mixer, so I took the plunge with the KP26M1XC (licorice). I'm glad I did.
The machine is a bit louder with more of a high whine at higher speeds, but I would expect that with the added power and size.
This morning I took it for a "test drive" with a 600 gram (flour) batch of pizza dough using very high gluten flour which I kneaded at speed 2 for 5 minutes. The sound under load wasn't at all unpleasant and the spiral dough hook really works the dough like the professional mixers I used in culinary school and on the job.
I've mostly used my 5 quart Kitchen Aid for cakes, muffins, pate choux for eclairs, mashed potatoes and whipped cream and meringue. I've made my bread dough exclusively in my large capacity Cuisinart food processor. Now that I have a more powerful Kitchen Aid mixer, I feel confident it can take the challenge of the high gluten dough (Take heed: DO NOT USE MORE THAN 8 CUPS PER BATCH OF HIGH GLUTEN BREAD FLOUR, WHOLE WHEAT FLOUR OR ANY OTHER HEAVY GRAIN FLOUR. THE 12 CUP CAPACITY REFERS EXCLUSIVELY TO ALL PURPOSE FLOUR. ALSO, ONLY USE SPEED 2 when kneading dough. (Repeat this to yourself 20 times and post a notice above your machine, especially if you have a spouse, kids or roomate(s) in your household that might use the machine.)
Caught up in the excitement of this new, beautiful machine I was inspired to purchase the pasta roller accessory based on the terrific reviews on Amazon, I also added the sausage stuffer to my order (could this be used to fill eclairs? I wonder....) as an addition to my collection of accessories.
Currently the attachment I use most frequently is the shredder which I use exclusively for shredding cheese for pizza and casseroles like lasagna.
And, the Licorice is a matt, slightly pearlized finish, which nicely complements the black trim on my larger appliances. An unexpected bonus of this dark color is that it really shows the "dirt/flour/batter enabling me to get it "spanking" clean after use. With my middle-aged eyesight I find it hard to see the accumulating mess on my white machine.
Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for KitchenAid Professional 600 Series 6-Quart Stand Mixer
I have just paid $129 to have Kitchenaid repair my two-year old 600 series mixer. It died while making cookie dough. This is my second 600-series mixer; Kitchenaid (to their credit) swapped out the first under warranty after it started behaving erratically.The primary use of this mixer is to make 4 loaves of bread/week. I never expected miracles: bread flour is hard to knead and I'm careful about kneading times and quantities. This is not a professional machine, it's a home appliance. Nevertheless, it died after only a moderate amount of careful use.
So, I have reluctantly come to agree with the Kitchenaid bashers here. Based on my experience, the current crop of mixers is not high quality and my next mixer will not be Kitchenaid, sorry to say.
It's sad to watch an iconic brand destroy its reputation.
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