Is the D800 better value than the D600?

Since I love to have gear that's not restricting me (even if I don't hit the restricitions any day) my recommendation is clearly the D800.

Any disadvantage that it brings is just what a man has to accept for good gear: money, weight, comfort.

If speed was a real concern (both AF and FPS) then the D4 or D3s is your only choice. 3 to 5 frames don't matter.

There'll be very scarce situations where you can see a difference in the good images anyway. A pro helps you to more good images, but D800 and D600 are equally good.

Having the D800 myself I love it as I did my D700. And the shadow lifting capability of the D800 is beyond anything I've seen or expected. See my other thread http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/post/50292962 for an example from recent days.