I have one of the old Curado 200s, just bought it last year and love it for lighter spinnerbaits, cranks, and topwaters.

Shimano has changed it's baitcasting lineup this year of course, with many saying the Chronarch is basically the Curado E, and that the new Curado is a step down in quality. I have also heard that the new Curado is just as good as the old one.

Views on this?

The old Curado, the best Curado is the EJ.

They cast the same. However the difference now it just the quality, and the refinement of the reels, on which the Curado E takes both.

Stick with the older one (200 series). It's a better reel. The new Curado's are priced to capture more marketshare but Shimano skimped on some of the specs.

Old curado (200E5/7) basically = 2012 model Chronarch.

Both are good quality reels, they just have different features. Same a Revo SX or STX : same quality, different features. In the Shimano case, the features vary very slightly.

Yeah, its hard to beat that E series. They were what the old Bantam greenies were. Gonna be one of those collectible reels. If you get your hands on some, take good care of them.