Actually, aren't APB's even more of an uber weapon now - sure, they don't penetrate shields well, but if you throw in some shield depleters, you have one weapon that does 120 damage to shields in 20 kT, and another that does 120 damage to hull/armor in 30 kT
Of course, you do have to work the ratios right so you're not wasting any APB shots on shields or shield depleters on shieldless ships...