The real issue here is "the black box effect". Folks can't see the programming, so they can easily think it's all the same.
I made the comparison of a Mercedes and a Yugo to the OP. The point was that they are both cars, but they are not the same. Your C-14 isn't like a Hyosung 250, but they are both motorcycles. When it comes to flashes, since folks can't see the programming and haven't experienced what can be achieved, it's easy to say it's all the same. All flashes are the same... but they're not.
I have written before that just opening the secondaries sooner will yield the largest change / gain in the new tuning. This isn't hard to do, kind of like removing the secondaries, which costs 0.00. To be honest, I gained more %age of change in the first couple of days tuning the c-14 than I have in the ensuing YEARS of constant refinement. So I guess this supports the 80/20 statements earlier in this thread.
Even in my own flashes, I have 2 diverging styles. The difference is primarily in the secondary controls. Although both make the same peak power, how they get there, in throttle %age, throttle feel and control, are different. Some folks prefer one style over the other, to the point that it is very polarizing. But as been stated, if you haven't felt the differences, you simply cannot say "this is better"... and then in reality, it's only better FOR YOU. To that end I will allow folks an opportunity to change to another flash for little or no $$, depending on the situation. Most folks DON'T take me up on that. Most folks, after discussing the options have a sense of their riding style, so they pick one and it's a done deal.
What can be done, and what sets flashes apart from each other? While everyone wants to concentrate on fueling, one huge forgotten parameter is timing. Timing will increase power, smoothness, and fuel economy, often to a much greater effect than fueling changes. 75.00 flashes don't have any timing changes... so there is that, but for a tuner that's a pretty easy way to go. Timing can be friend or foe... leave it alone and you don't have to deal with that. The product is not optimized in any manner, but the tuner saves on the work load. The best tunes have extensive timing work, which isn't done haphazardly. That's just one place that sets tunes apart.
If you've been around the Concours, you know what exhaust options are available. Fueling needs to be optimized based on those options. There's only 1 full system I know of in the US for the the Concours... the AreaP. All other full systems are zx14 systems. We all know the slipon players, maybe what, 5 options? They will all react the same, so fueling is consistent with slipon changes, But one must wonder, when a flash is being offered with a couple hundred dollar fueling upgrade for exhausts that don't even exist for the Concours how much development time went into that. Things that make you go HMMM.
How come some folks feel "night and day" differences and some do not? That's pretty easy... the more of the throttle / powerband you use, the more you'll notice the changes. Take a guy who never really rev's the bike, generally easy on the throttle, etc... he's not going to experience anywhere near what the rider who is using from idle to redline, and zero to !00% throttle. Easy riders may not feel a flash did much for them. it may not have. There's only so much that can be accomplished in any given narrow area of operation.
One of the better things I've read in this thread is there's some knowledge of the history of Concours flashing. Guhl was the big player for a long time. We have to be thankful for that. Don let us know that things could be better, and was willing to put in the effort to do so. Had Don stayed after it with constant innovation and dedication to the Concours community, there likely would be no competition for him. But that's not what happened, and here we are now. There are flashes available right now that are considerably better than 1 year ago. This is an evolving art. Certainly it is for me, and I think any tuner who wants to take pride in their work. I'm not trying to make any of this sound like a commercial, but it is the truth. The fact is that while all the black boxes look the same, what's getting stuffed inside of them is not.
Steve