OK, there are some specific helicopter subjects on the interim exam (POF, for one), but the main difference is Aircraft General Knowledge, where the airframe and systems stuff is based on the 737. A lot of our students find AGK (and Instruments) a lot tougher than navigation.
The syllabus is changing, but the average student won't notice, except for new questions being brought in at the same time.
Neither Bristol nor CAPT charge "thousands of dollars" for the notes. You have to have them in any case because they are part of their respective approvals. The only way you won't need them is to be exempt formal training with over 1000 hours multi-crew time.
CAPT don't mind if you slip an exam between modules, but you must study the subjects in the correct order. This is because a lot of cr*p and repetition has been eliminated this way. For example, the structure of the atmosphere is mentioned once in Human Factors (the first subject) and is not mentioned again. The module structure between schools is different, though. The CAPT order is:
Module 1: HPL POF AGK INST
Module 2: RNAV MET LAW OPS V/I COMMS
Module 3: M&B PERF FPM GNAV
FPM and GNAV are last because they rely on other subjects - for example, the LOs state that knowledge of MET and LAW are prerequisites for studying FPM. The subject grouping also helps cope with the maximum crossover of questions - GNAV contains a lot of the Instruments syllabus, and COMMS a lot of the RNAV syllabus.
Postage is included worldwide with CAPT fees, the notes take 3-5 working days to arrive (they are printed on demand to make sure they are as up to date as possible), and there is no waiting list for consolidation classes. The only things you need to get on top are the flight computer and the Jeppesen Student Manual.
Phil