RE Lift and Winch Equipment

My XJ sat slightly nose down just after I installed my lift. Now I have an AJ's bumper and a 9000lb winch on there and the nose has dropped pretty substantially. I know all I have to do is pop in some spacers to lever it out, but the spring rate feels different. I don't know that I really like that. It had a plush high speed offroad ride before and good rock bump absorbtion. I haven't tried it offroad yet, but it feels like I have lost some of that.

If you have an RE lift and winch with Bumper... how did your ride change? Were you surprised or dissappointed? How is it offroad COMPARED to what it was before the weight in front?