Product review (5 stars): Best Machine-Water Level Fixable
1 Year update

We have now used both the Washer and Dryer heavily over the past year. All my opinions and observations below have not changed. They have worked flawlessly since the day we bought them and they still look brand new.
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Years ago you bought a washer and dryer and they would last at least 20 years. They were built tough and made to last. There was no HE which uses less water but in the process shreds clothes and no plastic parts or electronic controls that failed a few years after you bought them. Speed Queen is the last washer and dryer made to the old standards. They are identical to the commercial machines made for Laundromats but instead of a Coin box they have a control panel.

If you like fancy electronic controls, machines made of more plastic than steel, and don't mind being on a first name basis with your appliance repairman the Speed Queen is not for you.
But if you want a tough no-nonsense washer and dryer that cleans well and is similar to the workhorses sold in the 70's and 80's you are in the right place.

The Appliance Repairmen I talked to tell me these machines will easily last a family 25 years and probably longer. In fact, one told me he has never removed a Speed Queen Washer or Dryer regardless of age that wasn't still working.

As far as the Water Level problem- the posters are correct, it is too low. This can not be blamed on Speed Queen but is a result of the government meddling in the appliance business.
The good news is it can be fixed in less than 5 minutes. It can be adjusted where it will fill once again to that of the older machines without it being necessary to hold the reset switch.
I am not going to say how- just search the internet and you will find the answer.

For the sake of a balanced review it should be noted the Speed Queen lacks features common to many other modern washers. The cycle options are limited and it does not have the choice of a warm rinse. It also has a smaller capacity than many newer machines. My wife doubts it will wash her Queen Bedspread but her old King Size Kenmore could not wash it either. That is one item that will still be taken to the Laundromat every few months.

Unfortunately, if you are in the market for a Washer and Dryer it seems you can no longer "Have Your Cake and Eat it Too". While other washers have larger capacities they are plagued with so many other problems as to make them more trouble than they are worth.
Our friends who own newer machines all complain of problems in one form or another. The only common denominator is they are all related to something electronic. Speed Queens have no electronics so they tend to be reliable but they are not particularly fancy either.

It seems there are now only two choices. An unreliable full featured machine that looks like something out of Star Trek or a rugged well built one that looks like the washer your Grandmother had. While the Speed Queens do lack "pizzazz" it should be noted they clean better than HE machines and do not tear up what they wash.

I would recommend one other thing.
Find a dealer and go look at the machines in person. That is what we did and it only took a few minutes to realize we had found what we were looking for.

Also, these may be something best bought locally. The prices for the AWN542 Washer and the ADE4BR Dryer were lower at our neighborhood appliance store than the prices online even with local sales tax added in.

Oh by the way- one other reason to buy Speed Queens. The machines and all their components are MADE IN AMERICA.

Product Update:

We have now had the AWN542 Washer and the ADE4BR Dryer for a little over two weeks. In that time my wife has washed everything from her normal weekly wash to every blanket, sheet, and throw rug in the house.

Since the initial review was written from my point of view I decided to include my wife's since she is the one who actually uses them.  She has now seen them operate in every conceivable circumstance so I felt her opinion would be more helpful than my impression when they were first delivered.

For the record the Speed Queens replaced a Kenmore Catalyst Elite Washer and Dryer.

1) My opinion the cycle options are limited is not shared by my wife. She feels the washer can handle anything she would conceivably want to put in it.

2) The Speed Queen can handle bigger loads than her old King Size washer. As others have mentioned, the agitator is smaller which may be the reason it holds more.

3) She loves that nothing throws the washer "out of round". She has not had one situation where it "clunked" or the load had to be redistributed. This even included washing throw rugs.

4) She initially missed the dispensers the Kenmore had and the Speed Queen lacks. Her Kenmore had separate Bleach, Fabric Softener, and Detergent dispensers. The Speed Queen lacks a detergent dispenser.

5) She wanted a warm rinse option.
I fixed the problem by getting two Y-hose couplers and feeding a small amount of hot water into the washer's cold water inlet. This made the warm wash a little warmer while giving her a warm rinse at the same time.

Years ago all washers including Speed Queens had the option of a Hot, Warm, or Cold rinse. Unfortunately, Energy Standards forced manufacturers to eliminate those functions or make them useless.
Today Electronic Washers have sensors which allow a Hot Wash to be only 100 degrees and Warm Rinse not to exceed 70 degrees. Since Speed Queens are mechanical the customer can "override" what the government says we are allowed to have.

6) In her opinion the Speed Queen cleans better and has not damaged anything put in it. It may clean better simply because she has hotter water during the "Warm Wash" on this machine than she had with the "Hot Wash" on the previous one.

7) The thing she likes most about both the washer and dryer is they are very rugged in their construction. She doesn't think anything can damage them which is not how she felt about her old Kenmore's.

 These are her words," I think if I wanted I could wash and dry a load of rocks and it wouldn't faze them".

I hope this is helpful to other potential buyers.

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6 month update:

I decided to do an update 6 months out for one reason.

Most reviews are written a few days after the purchase. But the real question is not how the product performs the first week but how is it doing months or even years later.

To me that would be more helpful since all new appliances work initially- the problem is many start falling apart a few months after you buy them. Many of our friends with newer machines have had that problem.
For the sake of time I am covering both the washer and dryer in one update. My initial reviews on both the AWN542 washer and the ADE4BRG dryer are posted on Amazon.

So how is the Speed Queen washer and dryer doing after 6 months?

They have been used heavily and we have not had a hint of a problem.

In addition, Speed Queen makes a big deal out of the fact their coatings and finishes ( think paint) are made to Laundromat standards and are far superior to other laundry appliances.
That claim appears accurate.

Both the washer and dryer look exactly as they did when they were first delivered in spite of their heavy use. They still look brand new without a trace of wear or corrosion in spite of the fact we live on the ocean.
You could put them back on the showroom floor and sell them as new and no one could tell.

I also downloaded the Speed Queen Service Manuals in order to be familiar with their construction in case I ever had to do a repair.
I discovered they were built even better than I thought.
Electronics are the primary cause of new appliance failure today. The second is Drive-Train issues.
Speed Queen has no electronic components so they are reliable in that area. All their controls and switches are commercial grade so I doubt they would ever break in a residential environment.

Second, the Drive Train has no plastic components at all. The washer transmission has only eight gears made of steel so it is unlikely it would ever break. The motor is commercial grade as well. The inner tub on the washer is Stainless Steel and the outer tub is Porcelain coated steel as opposed to plastic used in all other washers. I never could determine the type of bearings they use but from what I have seen I would guess they are over rated as well.

The washer is belt driven instead of direct drive so the belt is the mostly likely part to fail. But I have seen the belt and it looks like an alternator belt used in cars in the 70's. It is so oversized it would probably take decades to wear out.

The water pump is direct drive off the motor and made of plastic. It appears to be of much higher quality than what was in our old Kenmore so it unlikely this would be a source of failure any time soon.

Dryers are far simpler than washers so there isn't as much to tell.
The motor is also commercial grade and the drum belt it uses is oversized as well. The weak link in the dryer would be the heating element since they do burn out. The element doesn't appear to be any different than what I have seen in other dryers so it will probably need to be replaced every fifteen years or so.

The bottom line is Speed Queens are not a gift from Heaven, they are simply built the way all washers and dryers were 30-40 years ago.
In fact, if you look at Service manuals from any major brand from the 60's they all looked and were built the same way the Speed Queens are today.

They don't do any more or less than any top end washer and dryer you could have bought in 1970. But like the old machines they clean well and last almost forever.

So to repeat myself- if you want fancy paint jobs and a lot of computer functions that fail after a few years look elsewhere. But if you want clean clothes and reliability buy the Speed Queens.