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I'm just curious what people's preferences are with their fire warriors. Is one better than the other? Do you have mixed squads? Let me know you're thoughts.

When I look at equipping my units I look at the function or purpose I want them to fill and how I plan to use them (i.e. if they are going in transport or thick terrain, that hopefully slows or stops the enemy in a charge).

Breacher Team - Pulse blaster – close combat weapon I would tend to only use in a squad im planning to put in devilfish and dump near units or in terrain covered objective (I don’t use them often).

Strike Team - Pulse carbine or Pulse rifle – I use the Pulse rifle as it has the longer range and almost the same shots if at 18/15” (if using Bork’an Sept then you get +6” to range but this may change in the new rules released, see below).
The rifle has good line of sight range and can often get the first shot before the enemy, where as the blaster and carbine allows the enemy to get a little too close without things to slow the enemy down from charging you and getting into melee (where tau just rollover and die).

The Pulse carbine is somewhere in between the blaster and the rifle (not doing the job as well as either of those) except the path finder team uses the carbine, so if I want the carbine ill probably take the pathfinder team.

Pathfinder Team - Pulse carbine – I would normally focus the team on the other special weapons that you can take in a small squad or a full squad of 10 but the rest have the carbine and seems to function well with the special drones that the pathfinders have, so nice to have the carbine with the pathfinders (even if pathfinders cost a bit more and use up a fast slot and have 2 less in a squad).
The drones and use of terrain can really slow enemy down when they are close to stop them charging.

I have to add that the rules recently have / will change in the next codex for the Pulse carbine and Pulse rifle to add 6” range and S5 AP-1 D1 so the rifle is the go to with 36” range (was 30”) and 2 shots at 18” for your troops and the pathfinder teams get a nice boost.
I have not seen any updates on the blaster and its different range profiles (but I suspect that they will get a boost to range and perhaps AP as well).

I hoping for good things for the sniper drones with this rule change.
I suspect that this means that the Bork’an Sept will change its tenet in the codex too.

Never carbines. forget the weapon even exists.

If you are ever wondering if you should get carbines instead wonder why you wouldn't get a unit of Breachers instead.

I think the question regarding carbines is because the updated rules for these weapons have been released (but not for the breacher team blasters)
[url] https://spikeybits.com/2021/11/gw-reveals-new-genestealer-cults-tau-custodes-rules.html

personally I never saw much point in the breacher teams unless they are really close and have support form other units / terrain to prevent them from being charged, otherwise I would just take strike team.

When looking at it at the moment then it would make sense to have the strike team carbine over breachers as the only time the breachers are better is within 10” or in other words within charging distance (assuming flat open surface) and that's still no good in tau.
(when the blaster rules are updates then it will be more of a choice, and the update MUST be a good one or no one will take breachers)

Breacher teams @ inches:
15” Blaster, 2 shots S4 AP0 D1
12” Pistol, 1 shot S5 AP0 D1
10” Blaster, 2 shots S5 AP-1 D1
5” Blaster, 2 shots S6 AP-2 D1

Strike teams @ inches
36” Rifle, 1 shot S5 AP-1 D1
24” Carbine, 2 shots S5 AP0 D1
18” Rifle, 2 shots S5 AP-1 D1
12” Pistol, 1 shot S5 AP0 D1

Pulse Rifles were already pretty generally better than Carbines (as carbines compared poorly to Breachers Blasters). The recent changes have only really exacerbated this. With rifles getting AP -1 and them both getting +6" range, it's just more in favor of the Rifles. Yeah you have this very small middle ground where Carbines are better, but that's only if you're advancing, and if you are advancing, you will soon be up close in which case Blasters are still better.

I like that they got some better range in case you need to use them on the Pathfinders instead of marker lights for some strange reason, but I don't see them really finding a home anywhere else.

Yeah i would agree, when comparing them to rifles at the moment i would always take rifles as they are better than blasters unless at 5" and i would argue better than carbines all around.

Just imagine the hate flowing if carbines got pinning again as a special rule. But there is no mechanic for that in 9th.. so pulse rifles always over carbines.

Barring as-yet-unrevealed mechanics to tip the balance it's going to be Mont'Ka rifles all the way.