The 690's gearing is an odd duck; too tall in 1st and too short in 6th.  I currently do plenty of freeway jaunts, so I'll stick with stock.  Once I stop using the bike as a commuter, I'll probably get a higher toothed sprocket out back.

The one saving grace (on the 2014 at least) is the smooth throttle.  I can run at very low idle without the snatchiness I'd expect from a big thumper.  Still, the slowest I can idle along without clutch is about 8-9 miles an hour.  I'd prefer 5-6.