I can give you my perspective as a Gen1 owner. I generally get either EBC or OEM Yamaha pads, I believe for the Gen 1 at least the OEM pads are organic (non sintered). I prefer organic pads as I tend to trail the brakes which I find glazes sintered pads which then ruins their performance. Fresh organic pads probably loose out to fresh sintered pads on sheer stopping power but because they don't glaze I find organic more predicatable and they still have sufficient performance for 'spirited' road use. Some folks are harder on their brakes or do trackdays in which case glazing would be less of an issue and sintered HH pads would probably be the better choice. So in summary it depends a lot on what you use your bike for, your riding style and personal preference.
Yamaha recommend replacing your brake lines after 4 years for safety reasons so I would suggest if your bike is of that age or older then you ought to replace them. I think most people who say that there is a very noticeable difference in feel have come from old rubber lines that were past their best and so expanded under braking, the additional movement and increasing amount of force needed at the lever due to the old rubber line expanding under pressure can be described as "feel" which you would loose when you fit new braided lines. I think if you were to compare new rubber lines with new braided ines you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference, and that manufacturers generally fit rubber lines to reduce cost. In any case it doesn't take long to adapt to new braided lines and once you're used to them I doubt you'd want to go back to rubber lines.
If you contact HEL direct -
http://www.helperformance.com/contact/ - and mention the Fazer forums they will give you a 25% discount. However RaceLines UK -
http://race-lines.co.uk/store/ - is Hel's discounted outlet and the price will be about 25% less anyhow, probably worth checking the price on racelines and then contacting Hel for a forum price to see whether there's anything in it. If you're not bothered about brand then Wezmoto is run by a chap who uses the Hel factory to build his lines so you are getting exactly the same line for a cheaper price -
http://stores.ebay.co.uk/wezmoto-eu?_trksid=p2047675.l2563