I've noticed the same trend over the last couple of decades, and it has become pretty much industry standard absent a couple of holdouts, e.g., MF.
Recently I shopped for a basic 55 - 65 PTO HP tractor for mowing duty. I shopped NH, Kubota and MF (JD is a non entity in my area due to the lack of a nearby dealership). I really wanted a Kubota due mostly to modern ergonomics and tight turning radius. NH was my second choice.
The PTO gearing of the models that I considered from both Kubota and NH required near rated engine RPM to attain 540 PTO RPM. Rated engine RPM of the NH models was generally around 2200-2300 RPM while that of the Kubotas around 2600-2700.
I do lots of mowing where I basically cruise along, only rarely requiring anything near rated PTO HP. The need to operate the engine at rated speed to maintain adequate blade tip speed is a MAJOR disadvantage to me due mostly to rapid accumulation of hours. Fuel consumption and noise are of lesser importance.
The MF model that I bought is rated at 2200 engine RPM but 540 PTO speed is at about 1750 engine RPM. This allows me to cruise along at relatively low engine RPM with lots of governor and foot throttle available for the rare tough spots. The fact that the MF priced out nearly $6000 less due mostly to very aggressive incentives when compared to comparably equipped models from both NH and Kubota was icing on the cake.
It appears that others are beginning to take notice of this issue as the new Powerstar line from NH offers optional, shiftable PTO gearing producing rated PTO RPM at either 2160 or 1592 RPM.
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