Well, according to Alan........... Tani, the reel rebuild web site, the 2013 stella aren't worth the coin get the saltiga 

Had the Saltiga 4000 for twelve months and love it.  Used primarily for jigging and knocked over some pretty big fish with it.  For most of my jigging though I use a Stella 4000 (previous model) because it suits my favored rod a bit better.  More recently bought a 2013 Stella 6000 HG as a casting reel and as a comparison to the Saltiga the drag on the Stella feels smoother but the Saltiga feels more "fluid" if that makes sense.  I do prefer the automatic bail arm over and always get caught out on the Saltiga if I haven't used it for a while, but that really is minor. 

To be honest both are premium reels and I probably fit in the 98% of people that will not notice the slight differences between the two, particularly those Alan Hawk points out.  Cosmetics are a factor which is very subjective, I do think the Saltiga is a better looking reel.

I have three Stella's and one Saltiga.

Cannot reference Alan Hawk hey...

Um the saltiga looks better...

 I have a saltiga 4000 and had a stella 5000sw...Saltiga all the way for me, great reels.Stellas have better drag but thats it imo/If you wanna save some coin get a catalina pretty much a saltiga 

Cool, cheers, yeah, have always been biased towards daiwa for some reason, but recently took a liking to the new stella after a play at some stores and the overall popularity of shimanos amongst fishos leaves me no reason to be biased anymore. I just wonder if a new tiga is guna be released soon...
Iv always serviced my own reels but feel the stella would be more servicable than the mag seal daiwas, not that waterproof reels need alot of servicing.
Not a fan of making judgement from some individual's breakdown review of a reel that is just a single example of one size of a series. Good to see the engineering and design in the breakdown, but Id rather see a review done based on the pull down of several used reels in each size to get some sort of idea of what to expect.
Dont hear many complaints from owners of either really. Pick one on the day, and then there's the ratio choice....

I have both, a saltiga 4000 and the new swb 6000.
before the saltiga came out I was using the stella sw series, and in all honesty I did not rate them one bit. After my personal experience with a 5000 & 10,0000 they were a nuisance. after just a few trips out they felt 'grindy' and not as smooth, not to mention the busted line rollers nearly every trip up north where I was spinning constantly.
as soon as the saltiga was released I switched over, couldn't be happier. The saltiga is a work horse of a reel, does every thing you need it to. I've put it through its paces and it still feels the same as the day I have bought it. In saying that, the drag system does get sticky and the occasional re grease is needed. Definitely not as smooth as a stella drag system.
couple months ago I bit the bullet and decided to try out the new stella and see how it compares to the old and to the saltiga. paired the 6000 with pe3 as a casting reel, used it for one trip up north and a few locally and so far Im loving it. feel robust, extremely refined in terms of smoothness and the drag system is incredible.

all in all, I have complete confidence a saltiga will never fail you and be the same since day one. The stella feels great, but is still a new reel and I can't comment on how they hold up after an extended period of time copping abuse.

Thanks mate, good to hear. A few shops have really pushed the new stella (more profit maybe) so its good to get some confidence in the salty.

 Doubt a new saltiga is going to be released soon, they have only just released the 8000 size.