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I have the Orion branded version of the AZEQ6 and a friend images with an EQ6.
Firstly, the altitude jackscrew arrangement is light years ahead of the older EQ6 design. Some have commented that the jackscrew sticks out further and is a risk of being a cable snag point when imaging. To date I do not image so I can't comment on that.
The clutch arrangement is better.
The dual encoders do mean you can loose the clutches and point manually, one of my specific justifications for spending the extra when I bought it and a feature that I use multiple times every night I have it out. If I am headed for a target and I know where it is, I HATE waiting for a slew and was prepared to pay the extra to be able to point manually and then keep on tracking.
The dual mode is handy, for visual use as far as I am concerned, Alt Az is undeniably better than EQ in the kind of places where the EP ends up, it is also easier to point near the pole though aiming directly overhead is tricky, IMO it trades off much easier aiming near the pole all the time for a little harder pointing at the zenith, where all you need to do there is wait for a bit and a target at the zenith will become more convenient.
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