Which one do you prefer and why...thanks and best wishes on the water!

...both...

For what applications?

6.3 for any bait moved by the reel.  7.9 for baits moved by the rod. Simple huh ?

My boss ordered this reel so I got to touch it a few days ago. Awesome reel. I'd go 6.3 for most general applications 7.9 for pitching/flipping/frogging. To me the 6.3 has more uses but depends what you need it for.

I just got the 7.9:1. All of my casting reels are 7:1 or higher, I just reel slower for cranks 

If I had only one it would be 6:3. I like a slower reel for crankbaits, for cold water (half my year), and for heavy lifting.

I like (need) speed though for lipless cranks and spinnerbaits in particular. Here the 7.9 would be nice. Line recovery is always nice for soft plastics too, but the 6:3 is fine there.

 

You can get used to anything though, if you use it enough.

I got the 7.9 to pitch and punch because i already have a ton of 6.3 reels.  One speed is like having one tool in your box.  This is a heavy duty reels so for those techniques a faster reel is better.

I have some 5's, a bunch of 6's and a couple 7's.  I could get by just fine with 5's and 6's and don't need anything near 8 or beyond.  I don't feel the need of anything faster I guess.