I have an Ilve (blue/chrome) in a REALLY small town. The Pro+ had just come out, and I wasn't able to see one before I had to pull the trigger. And there was a very good deal on the Ilve, which mattered because other repair expenses were higher than we had anticipated. Finally, there was a lot of crabbing around the house about making up my mind already.

I doubt the Ilve bakes better than the Berta. Bertas have a very good reputation there. But I eliminated it because the low temp is 275, and I do a good amount of low heat baking/roasting. That said, the Ilve's oven is solid on temps, the 36 inch has plenty of room even for large parties I've cooked for, and the exterior stays cool.

Do note that the fan goes on even without convection. I don't find it especially loud, but it's there. My model at least has the thermocouple design on the cooktop, so you need to hold the knob in while it's sparking for the burner to light.

One other thing: my plumber/electrician found the Ilve to be a confusing install. But calling a guy who does a lot of stove installations for a propane company did the trick.

Thanks for the tip, chesters house. It's nice to hear that you are happy with your range. I haven't seen a lot of Ilve owners on here (or AGA for that matter) and it's hard for me to make a decision on such an expensive range without hearing some honest reviews.

I have only been able to see one Ilve and it was a scratch & dent model. There's a store about an hour away that promised to call me when they got their new one in, but I've never heard back. I'd love to see a pic of it in blue if you don't mind. Blue is one of those colors that I think look just beautiful, but I am leaning towards the cream because I'm a little scared to pick a real color!

I know what you mean about the "make up your mind already" vibe. My poor husband...he has heard far too much about every detail of every range I have looked at and he is ready to write a check for anything if it means he doesn't have to give his opinion one more time...

Just installed an Aga Pro +. So far it is wonderful. The oven -- large enough to hold 6 pizzas-- heats to 350 in about 7 minutes. Plenty of room for Thanksgiving feast. It also has an "Energy Savings panel" which cuts the oven in half when cooking for a smaller group. As my youngest will go to college next year this was important to me. Mostly I cannot believe how quiet the 2 fans are!!!I have to put my ear to the door to hear if they are on. My prior Thermador was much louder oven. I am updating kitchen for eventual downsize move.... will now be sad to leave this kitchen...just never had the time to concentrate on doing it up earlier.

Remember, the AGA Pro and some Ilve models cost almost double the Bertazzoni. You're comparing apples and oranges. Or at least, you're comparing expensive apples and crazy insane expensive apples.

Sorry AGA was $3900 (with a $500 rebate)...the comparable bertas (with self clean)were more expensive in the $5000 range.

RoseByAnyOther - Thanks for the info. That is great to know. I really need to find one in the area to take a look at it. That's the oven my hubby is leaning towards and I do think it's beautiful and have just been wondering how the price point for it is lower considering it's brand and what it seems to offer.

Segesta - I've considered the price of the ranges. As RoseByAnyOther mentioned, the AGA Pro+ and Bertas are similar in price - actually the Pro is a little less which makes me wonder "Why?".

But, I do love that Aga Legacy. I think I would use the heck out of the broiler. And, if I had the Legacy with more than one oven (Albeit, small ovens), I wouldn't necessarily have to spend the money on the Advantium I was going to purchase in lieu of a microwave for the extra oven option.

My Ilve (36 inch) was $3000 delivered curbside, plus buying lunch for the three hefty guys working on a house reno project who hoisted it into the house.

Friends--thanks for the correction, I missed the dual fuel requirement. Indeed that increases the price of the Bertazzoni.

Chesters House - I want the number for your appliance guy! What a great deal...I'll have to keep my eyes out.

Segesta - I didn't specify dual fuel, but I think I'd rather go in that direction... The Bertas are beautiful though - I had my heart set on a cream one with a Heritage hood when I began this appliance journey ;)

Chesters you seem to have gotten deal of the century as these retail for $5500== beautiful range. I couldn't find any dealers which sell these and don't like to buy sight unseen. Enjoy your great deal.

ayerg73 Aga Pro + is a new model I assume AGA is discounting to gain market share. After all had I been paying anywhere close to the cost of a Wolf I would have bought the Wolf. Since I lived in England another lifetime ago I had faith in the AGA name and decided to try this model.

It was a deal! $3000 was the limit given the other bills, and I wanted a 36 inch or bigger stove (a 40 inch space was waiting). So the Pro+ went by the boards. An NXR was still possible. And so was my heart's desire, maybe -- a O'Keefe and Merritt. Wouldn't you know that one turned up (why oh why didn't I stop those searches) about a week later that looked great. For $1000.

Anyway, about at this time last year, Eurochef was clearing some inventory. The announcement was on their blog, and they were knocking off about $800-$1000 on some in stock stoves. They also apparently cleared some inventory with markdown madness on ebay. I made an offer and they accepted. It was living dangerously since there's no warranty, although that would have expired by now anyway.
With markdown madness, I'd not trust scratch and dent, but that wasn't the case with the Ilve -- still in its crate with a Eurochef sticker.

We ended up going with the Legacy -- oddly enough, our story is the opposite of yours -- we went specifically to look at the Pro+ and ended up falling in love with the Legacy instead. Not to make your search more confusing, but when I went to the dealer from whom we ultimately bought the Legacy, they had a 36", 5 (or 6, I can't remember) burner range that had a similar look to the Pro+, but both ovens were functioning ovens, whereas the Pro+ really just has one functioning oven. It was done by a company-formerly-known-as DeLonghi, but I cannot for the life of me remember what the new company brand was. (I know DeLonghi still exists, but apparently there was some fight over the name or something with respect to ranges.) I was so focused on the Legacy that I can't really remember the whole story. In any event, if you are looking for multiple ovens in one range, that is another option.

Well, I've checked 32 sites and still been unable to find a bisque 30 inch range with the exception of Ilves. I know good deals on Iles come around; I just haven't found any. So tired of stainless; can't figure out, with its growing popularity, why bisque isn't more available. My search is holding up my country kitchen renovation and driving me crazy! Anything new ... anybody?!?

GE and Whirlpool seem to make them.... I am not sure they are growing in popularity, though. At least not in my areas.

Bluestar, Aga-Heartland, Bertazzoni (more white than bisque) etc will provide you a bisque colored appliance. LaCanche and LaCornue also will but I believe their units are 32" or something like that rather than 30".