There is the psychological effect yes, but ultimately its about functionality the rig balances perfectly on my shoulder, the viewfinder is less straining on the eye and also extremely fog resistant, the wooden handles are more comfortable and never slip even if your hands are wet and I always use a Pol filter when shooting outdoors on sunny days.
Ofcourse.. yes you have to be able to work with it.. if you have to climb up a mountain .. yes ditch alot of the shiny stuff.. but for the average shoot.. esp corp,s.. I think that it does really work to have a "fancy" looking setup..