Just back from the store again. Berta definitely has just a regular broiler rather than the better infra-red one we want. So, those are definitely out. With the Wolf I'd have to pay $200 extra for the back riser, but I'd also have to do the same for the BS. So, that is a wash. Yes, I really thought I'd prefer a color and that has been complicating my search and my decision making. But, the Wolf to me is actually one of the more attractive looking ss ranges. Since I am replacing a white range, I have a couple sheets of the dull side of some foil hanging from my current range just to get an idea of how the stainless would work in my kitchen (it looks better than I had thought it would). I'd actually started to investigate the possibility of getting a custom paint job on the Wolf (assuming the painting was inexpensive enough), but having just looked at the range again I can see it wouldn't work out because the door does not cover the full frame of the range, and there would be a stainless frame around the color. Wolf actually seems to have a much better warranty than the Bluestar. And, if anyone else reading this in the future is wondering about warranties on floor models, I was very surprised to find out when reading warranty info for both models that Wolf honors the full two year warranty on floor models while BS only gives a 90 day warranty on floor models. Yes, I've read all of the posts and know the pros and cons of both. I just can't quite make up my mind. Thanks to all of you. ctycdm--I had to laugh when I read about your search for your final range purchase ever. That is exactly the position we are in--thinking this is the last range we will ever buy. I think that is adding to my vacillation about what is most important to me. Do you like your black color a lot more than you would have liked stainless?

I'm not at all sure that you can actually stack those two items. Mostly, you can put a wall oven under a cooktop if they're the same size and the same maker AND labelled such that they can be used together. The bits and pieces have to line up and kind of interlock to work right. You might be able to lower the oven (though it would be very low compared to a range anyway) and raise the counter, to make other configurations work. Check with the manufacturers to be sure.

I went with the Profile double-oven gas: here are my reasons. I like the smaller-size top oven for daily use, and the lower oven will only be used on occasion, so I'm ok with its location. (There's no room for a wall oven in my tiny kitchen -- and I have no plans to tear out cabinets and rearrange.) I'm a good cook, and I honed my skills on low-end domestic ranges because that's what was available: I don't need a commercial range to cook what I like, and I'm too busy with other aspects of my life to change my cooking style now. I also prefer not to deal with "pro" level BTUS and the ventilation complications they might add. I also am not willing to give up self-cleaning ovens -- which puts many pro-style ranges out of contention. I liked the slide-in setup and the angled control-knob location on the Profile, so that, and the price advantage, led me to choose it over the Cafe. Re: price, I bought mine from a local dealer, and I got the price down a bit by asking them to meet the ajmadison.com price. They didn't quite get there, but I was willing to pay a little extra for local sales/delivery/service reliability. Everyone's situation is a little different, but I found that the Profile slide-in fits best with my kitchen and the way I use it.

Years ago I cooked on a Wolf open burner (converted to LP) and it was fine. Good even heat distribution. Very much like the old restaurant ranges I was use to. This was back in the mid/late 90s so Wolf has likely changed their design since then. Back then they were still the up and coming brand and their ranges had a bit of a utilitarian restaurant look. I love the Bluestar. Best cooking machine you can get for the home. The open star burner is wonderful. Comparing the Wolf from the mid '90s and the BS, BS wins hands down. Nothing really wrong with the Wolf (as long as it's an open burner) and if I never tried the BS, I'd probably be happy with it. Now that I have, there's no going back. With regard to reliability... You'll here horror stories about every brand. Bluestar is no exception. I think BS went through some growning pains about a year or so ago but I think things are getting better. The thing I like about their design is that it's completely accessible. I pop the top and the plumbing, electronics, and burners are all easily reachable. There's no secret panel that you have to use the magic screw driver to open. The reason I say this is that I'm confident if the ignitors or the spark module ever fails (which is the most likely thing to fail since everything else is just plumbing), I'm sure I can buy the parts and replace them myself.