Coming from the 737, i did that journey a few years ago, manual thrust on the bus seems somewhat iffy. It is quite sensitive as the available thrust lever range is so small, and the thrust levers, at least for me, are a bit farther away from my seat than i like, but then, i am kinda small. I was told during the type rating (in a company where manual flight meant manual thrust on the bus as well) to "walk the thrust levers", to achieve the small changes necessary. After getting used to it, it is actually quite easy to fly manually.