Have not played the new hotfix much. Some quick comments:
Phase Lance is better, and it is fun zapping weak ships with it. However, in serious fights, it is still inferior to Pulse Laser overall. Less range, less DPS, and no hard flux. Anything Phase Lance can kill easily, Pulse Laser does more efficiently (thanks to more damage and hard flux) and from further away. The only time Phase Lance was worth considering over Pulse Laser is when I had Advanced Optics installed. I will not install Advanced Optics solely to make Phase Lance compete with Pulse Laser; I will simply use Pulse Laser instead. Bottom line, Phase Lance either needs more range, at least its old 700 or as much as Pulse Laser's absolute maximum, which is greater than the listed 600, or something else that sets it apart from Pulse Laser. EMP without chain-lightning is not enough.
Pilums are very slow again, and only useful if you can saturate the field with them. Cruisers with FMR can do it alone. Ships that need to rely on missiles to do damage are better off with something else.
Salamanders are only good for harassment now, and not a must-have anymore.
After trying clips during the past few days, I am glad that clips are gone. Either the weapon had enough ammo that clips did not matter, or it had so little ammo that DPS was effectively half for most of the fight. Expanded Magazines did not help low capacity weapons enough to matter.
Expanded Magazines is only good for the few ships that rely on the few energy weapons that have charges. It is a must for autopulse laser.
EDIT: Plasma cannon is useful enough that it can be worth installing. +100 DPS over Heavy Blaster is still not that much, but better than before, AND passthrough ensures that the plasma salvo makes it to the target. I have seen my plasma salvos, among other things, neutralized by Annihilator sprays, and passthrough says "NO" to that.