Well I don't know about the advantium, but if I had it to do over again I would not get the Miele speedoven. It is so difficult to clean when I have used it as an oven that it is now just a very expensive microwave. My setup was speedoven, wall oven and warming drawer in a stack. Due to my height or rather lack thereof :) I risk burning my arms when using the speedoven as an oven as well. Mind you I do like the features of the oven but am not using them much for the above reasons. I know that you have purchased a range and so the situation is different, but there are only 2 of us as well and I entertain a fair amount. If I had it to do over I would go with 2 ovens and a regular microwave.

We landed at Thermador through a bit of a roundabout route. Our kitchen designer had originally recommended the Gaggenau wall oven because the side swing door provided meaningful utility in our prior layout (the new layout will work OK with either style door). We had decided we wanted an induction cooktop and he recommended the Gaggenau induction cooktop because of its fairly shallow depth. We then went to a BSH showroom and took a look at both the Gaggenau and Thermador induction cooktops. We couldn't find enough functionality difference in the cooktop to support the significant price differential (the magnetic knob was neat but we are confident we can live without it) so decided to drop down to the Thermador cooktop. (We had also looked at Monogram, but shied away from the required 12" deep clearance to combustibles that unit requires). We liked the high power, available boost on all zones and generally low power sharing that the Thermador induction cooktop provides. We had separately decided on the Bosch 800 series dishwasher because of the top Consumer Reports ratings, the now available cutlery rack and reasonable price compared to most of the Miele dishwashers. Having then dropped down to the Thermador cooktop, on one of our final visits to the local appliance store, the sales person with whom we were dealing (who is excellent and knows his stuff cold) mentioned that if we were going to get a Bosch dishwasher and Thermador cooktop, we might consider the Thermador oven and dishwasher since the Thermador dishwasher is basically the same as the Bosch dishwasher. That's about as far as we've gotten. If there's another route we should be considering, nothing is locked in stone except: we would like a very good dishwasher (doesn't have to be the world's best, but very good and quiet is a requirement), we would like a 36" induction cooktop, we would like a good double wall oven and the double wall oven doesn't need any microwave functionality since we're getting the Advantium.

That's a great price on the Gag. I have a Gaggenau combi steam oven (going on 7 years now), and I love it. I mostly use it for steaming vegetables, steaming then browning vegetables such as potatoes and Brussels Sprouts, reheating food, and sterilizing jars for canning/yogurt making. Occasionally, I'll make a beef tenderloin in it, but my temperature probe doesn't work anymore (doesn't really matter to me, as I know when it's done). I don't have a Miele combi steam (though I've got many other Miele appliances), so I can't comment on that. I was really impressed when I was learning about steam ovens that you can cook rice, pasta, and sous vide in them. However, in actually using my steam oven, I have never use it for those applications (there are much more efficient and less energy-intensive ways to do those things). One thing to be very careful about if you do get the Gagg (and it's probably the same with Miele) is how it's installed. The Gagg needs to stick out from the face of the cabinets, because the steam vents a LOT and will destroy your cabinets if you don't set it up right. My installer put mine in flush, and after a destroyed cabinet, we learned our lesson. Good luck!

We had a combo unit, and one did experience an early demise. We were a little annoyed with the extra expense of buying another combo unit however what we discovered is that would have been a deal compared to what actually happened. Nothing on the market at that time would fit the cabinet we had, so we needed to replace that tall cabinet. Matching existing cabinetry is difficult, and we were getting no help there. In the end, the dead appliance morphed into a complete kitchen remodel. This time, we're doing our ovens as separate units, and we're making sure that the oven stack is made with separate components, so that they could be unassembled and remade in another size. What we had before was one tall cabinet, floor to ceiling, that was impossible to alter without destroying it because of the way it was constructed.