I enjoy coffee many ways. I often drink it black, but I also have been known to have it with unsweetened soy milk and usually agave/maple syrup in addition to that. However, I noticed that using both soy and a sweetener makes it taste kinda "overwhelming." This morning, I put some agave in my coffee but I put no soy, and it tastes much better. Bottom line is that I can enjoy coffee either black or with sweetener OR milk/creamer, but I can't do both sweetener and milk/creamer. Now, that I can't get with.
Yeah, the paper filters are a must for the soaking-up of oils. There's nice reusable metal filters like the Able Kone but they just filter out the grounds like any other metal filter brewing method, they do nothing to change the taste. Chemex with a Kone is just french press with extra steps.
It's different because the grounds don't steep in coffee for several minutes, the coffee escapes seconds after being extracted. The grounds aren't pressed together either.