DCS - It's a love/hate Affair.

I bought my DCS RGT-305N Professional 30" Five Burner Self-Cleaning Gas Range in September 07, so I've been cooking on it for about a year.
I did quite a bit of research, pouring over range manuals, talking to friends, reading all the forums and blogs on Garden web, Chow hound, and Consumer Reports. I knew I wanted a 30" Range, sealed burners, self-cleaning function, Island trim, and five burners with varying High & low BTU's so that I could boil water quickly, cook soft eggs, simmer rice, and melt chocolate. I initially lusted after a Viking in the cobalt blue, but I kept reading about the ignitor problems, and decided to be less concerned with looks. Next I fell in love with the Thermador - the blue knobs captivated me. I even ordered one from the Great Indoors. It took so long for them to deliver it, I had more time to go online, and found many people going crazy because of the continuous clicking of the ignitors. Since The Great Indoors just couldn't seem to deliver it, I was given an easy out, and cancelled my order.
What convinced me to buy the DCS was the Rosengarten review in Travel & Leisure. He reviewed a Viking, DCS & Jade range, actually cooking on each. He liked the DCS, and so did the salesman at EXPO who had owned one until his divorce. Apparently the wife got the DCS. After more agonizing, I made the plunge and purchased the DCS at EXPO.
It was delivered. After replacing my Venti-hood blower from 300CFMs to the 600CFMs required for a professional stove, I was ready to cook.
I love that there are 5 burners on this 30" range. I'm still thrilled by this feature. I love the cooktop. It gets really hot, so I had to learn to cook on high heat. It also simmers like a dream. The sealed burners make clean-up easy. The oven, which is self-cleaning has both conventional and convection baking and broiling. The oven turns out light, moist, evenly cooked cakes, and does a fine job roasting meats that turn out juicy. If I had to stop there the range would get a five-star rating. However, BROILING is the Achilles heel of this model. The infrared broiler has a glass cover, to make the self-cleaning feature possible. It is perhaps a design flaw that results in barely charred and seared meats. It has been a great disappointment in a range that cost so much.
I thought I did my homework. I read reviews, talked to prior owners, and went to a DCS cooking demonstration. What I never did was have the demonstrator broil anything. The demonstrator baked cookies and cooked coconut rice to perfection. I assumed the range broiled well too. In truth, I bought a stove I really couldn't afford, hoping it would be the appliance of my dreams. I know that many people in high income brackets buy high-end stoves, and never cook on them. I saved and scrimped to buy my luxury range, and feel particularly humbled that such a gamble on this high end beauty did not end with my expectations being exceeded. I recommend strongly that if you are spending hard earned money on this range, that you attend a cooking demonstration, armed with eggs, rice, pasta, and chocolate for the cook top, a chicken to test the oven, and a steak to test the broiler. If this sounds excessive and you don't feel like doing it, than be prepared to have some expectation or other disappointed by some aspect of your new high-end range. There are those who say buying a high-end range is an act of vanity and futility. I am not one of them. Although all of my expectations were not met, I still believe there is a perfect High-end range out there. The tech I had out to service my DCS says it's a Wolf. Oh well, I'll check out a Wolf...in my next Life.