I have spent around 3 hours today in the E4 On line. I was swapping between Auto and Manual as the situation required. No issues at all.
In general I run the prop pitch as follows.
Take Off Full fine 12 O clock Manual.
After Take off at around 250Kmh drop it in to AUTO
If climbing at Max ATA leave it in AUTO
If climbing at reduced ATA say 1.25 then you do better at MANUAL with 2300RPM
Combat AUTO
Hi speed Bugouts AUTO initially then once basically going MANUAL and fine tune.
Landing ... Once on Final Manual Full fine .... 12 O'Clock.
When running Super Hi speed say at Low level following a descent in AUTO then intelligent ATA use is required to keep RPM up since RPM is determined by ATA with AUTO engaged.
A bad example is to beat the crap out of Hawkinge
say at 700KMH+ at low ATA then pull up. AUTO will demand Low RPM (Around 8:30 on the clock) and when you start the pull up and select max ATA it takes a while for the prop to wind up. A Better way is to arrive with High speed and High ATA therfore High RPM so when you start the pull the prop is already pretty fine. In essence Avoid Hi speed low ATA situations in AUTO if you have any intention of subsequently zooming and wanting max power output in the zoom.
AUTO is a great aid but not a Panacea, use both modes to your advantage.