Opinions on 4 speed with OD

I have a 340 with a iron 833od gearbox 3.55 LS 8 3/4 and 14 inch tires. And I hate it. first gear is too low second gear is too far from first and 4th gear is noisy. I am planning to swap back in a non OD 833, and maybe add a gear vender unit. The 833od were designed to be for fuel efficiency behind slant six's and not for "fun".
Thanks for this response, these are exactly the concerns I, and likely others, had feared.