PDA

View Full Version : Stoker & Guru


motoeric
06-07-2008, 06:58 PM
Are there any competitors for these two products?

In your opinion, which product is better?

Thanks,

Eric

Brian in So Cal
06-07-2008, 07:02 PM
Motoeric, I am glad you asked this question. I have been wondering it myself. Would love to know which unit is preferred.

NotleyQue
06-07-2008, 07:28 PM
Thy both have their + and -.

I use the Guru because the guy that owns Stoker wouldnt answer my email questions or return my phone calls (everyone that knows the guy says thats what he is like) Im not chasing down someone to buy their product. He can come contact me now if he wants my business. His loss not mine I figure.


I have had no problems at all with the Guru. On the rare occasion the temp will spike up a few degrees, but for the most part it holds it dead bang on all night. I own 3 digiq2 and 1 competitior.

People will say you dont need them, and you really dont, but they are nice.

snoqualmiesmoker
06-07-2008, 08:18 PM
The question of the ages.
I think this:
Either is great, does what it should, both very well. They will manage your cook great right out of the box. They are basically the same price (base).
The Naked Whiz has a great review for both.
The stoker has network access out of the box. At least this allows you to change setting without going outside (if your that way :)). To do this on the Guru, you have to buy the wireless module, which is expensive. There are a few other neat things about both.
In the end, it comes down to personal choice and as Notley Que said, service. Here is the Naked whiz site:
http://www.nakedwhiz.com/productreviews.htm

Vince RnQ
06-08-2008, 12:44 AM
I highly recommend the Stoker. I manage four WSMs at the same time using one control box and have had nothing but great results from the product and great service from the owner of the company.

Smokin Gator
06-08-2008, 06:55 AM
I don't own and have never used a Guru. I am extremely happy with my Stoker and have had good service from Rock's Barbeque. I love the ability to use it with more than one cooker and to have several (I have used up to five) meat probes in at once. I also like being able to monitor and change things from inside the house or to have alarms to go off on my laptop when meat is at the temp I want.

smokinbadger
06-08-2008, 08:28 AM
I've had a Stoker for about a year now, and use it to control my Klose and my BGE. I chose it over the Guru for the network interface, which I have used frequently to monitor cooks from inside the house or when I have to run out during a cook. I use the stoker log software to track temperatures graphically during the cooks, and this has been very helpful to me in improving the repeatability of my cooking. (Disclaimer: I am an engineer, and I love technical stuff, so some of my satisfaction with the Stoker probably comes from the fact that it is so nerdy-cool. Nevertheless, I would highly recommend it.)

By the way, my experience with Rock's BBQ has been great. I had a blower go bad, and John replaced it right away, asking me to return the bad one once the new one arrived.

smokinajs
06-08-2008, 09:36 AM
I have both units and the customer service at Rocks has been great. Nuff said. Get a STOKER

motoeric
06-08-2008, 11:04 AM
Are there any other manufacturers out there that produce similar products?

Smokin Gator
06-08-2008, 12:40 PM
Are there any other manufacturers out there that produce similar products?

Not that I am aware of.

matthew burt
06-08-2008, 04:54 PM
I love my Guru, never used a stoker

Rookie'48
06-08-2008, 05:07 PM
Are there any other manufacturers out there that produce similar products?

I think that Norco built one from scratch (almost), but I don't know where it was posted.

Brian in So Cal
06-08-2008, 05:34 PM
He uses it on his UDS. It is really cool.