Hi Chris and others!
An interesting thread, and one where everyone has an opinion, but not necessarily the same as anyone else...
I have a basic imaging setup, but have rarely used it- and one reason is the constant frustrations expressed by my imaging colleagues whenever I go to an astronomy camp! There seems to be a big learning curve; and I don't always feel I have the energy to tackle it!
Because my day job is teaching basic astronomy to school children (mainly with my planetarium dome) my observing time needs to be simple and enjoyable or I will be in danger of burning out from the hobby altogether: so I tend to be a visual astronomer only.
So, to get back to your initial comments, I get the most enjoyment from using my 4" APO (a Tak TSA 102), and I even return to it happily after viewing through a nearby 24" or 18" SDM scope (with very nice Zambuto mirrors). With planetary viewing the 4" is no slouch. It can't beat physics, and there is no doubt that on a good night the big scopes get better resolution of detail and colour; but the other night on Jupiter I could see detail and colour variation within the GRS, and at least 8 bands around the planet, as well as colour and size differences in the moons. Plus no spikes, just lovely sharp edges.
With DSO's, again you can't beat physics, but I have seen detail within the homunculus nebula and an enormous number of DSO's with the little 4".
My ideal is looking at an object through (preferably!) the 24" or my own 12" dob, and then seeing how much of the same detail I can see in the 4"- and I can usually see a surprising amount!
Because I have astigmatism, I have lived all my life with slightly fuzzy views of the world (without my glasses), so for me there is something magical about the sharp stars I can see in the refractor. For me this magic beats the spikes of a reflector: but there is certainly room for both... (and any time someone wants to give me a 6" APO...
)
Happy viewing (and imaging!) all,
Dean