I think calling range a disadvantage that needs to be overcome is a misunderstanding of what Sentinels are. By all means, if you love staying far away and blasting, have a gas. But Sentinels do not need this at all to be effective, and building for it will usually create inefficiencies. It's not hard to have soft-capped defenses with some resistance, as well as full mez protection. With the right build, stuff will be arrested way before you are at risk, especially in today's game.
I'm curious, if you are maximizing range it seems as though you are negating a Sentinel's advantages over Blaster and might as well go for Blaster and the better damage. What do you like about a max range Sent that I'm missing? Thanks!