Ben, you seem to have settled on 8 inch jointers. A good choice in my experience.
I recommend:
1) Helical Segmented cutter head. I like the Byrd Shelix because it is good quality and replacement blades are lower cost than others
2) Parallelogram table mechanism. Found this keeps tables co-planer without adjustment over 30 years of use on my Makita 2020 jointer
3) Long bed, for reasons you mention.
The Powermatic 60HH satisfies all of the above.
Here is the USA price of a pack of 10 replacement carbide cutters for various manufacturers heads:
These may not be the best price for each , but it does show quite a range.
$35 - Byrd Shelix (I think this is standard on Powermatic with helical head)
$50 - Grizzly
$60 - Laguna
$100 - Rikon