The non-manual gearbox is a very similar automated manual, transaxle mounted affair, in this case made by Italian company Graziano. As I understand it, previous versions of the Sportshift 'box were a bit dim-witted. My car has the latest Sportshift III version, which is every bit as good as the MC box in my old GTS. In that car I had the TCU flashed with Ferrari 599 GTO software, so it was a big improvement over the standard shift-speeds.
Whilst the Aston box isn't quite as fast as GTO-territory, it certainly holds its own perfectly well. It's smooth, engaging, and downshifts are incredibly fast. You can downshift multiple cogs at a time, or it will do that for you if you're hard 0n* the brakes and hold the paddle. I read that auto mode was bloody awful. It's fine, but I don't use it anyway. I actually think auto mode in the Vantage is better than auto mode in the GTS, but neither is anything to write home about.
Keep in mind that the much-vaunted Vantage GT12 had exactly the same gearbox (well, some ratios were changed, but that's it). Also, remember that the last old-model manual Vantage used the same box just with a manual lever added. Whilst purists love having a stick to play with, it's apparently a bit of a pain in the ar5e. I consciously decided to avoid the manual because I wanted to enjoy driving and not get the hump with a gear selection mechanism with too much personality.
My suggestion would be to try one and decide for yourself.
edit - ******* is a bad word.