Have you done back to back grows, same cuttings and same conditions, with 12/12 vs 8/16?
I'm curious enough to try it.
Not back to back, exactly, but I have 2 or 3 strains that I've been growing for longer than I've run this light schedule, and they all work.
One of those is the Tahoe OG cut I have and it does react very differently with the 12/1 veg schedule. The internode length shrinks to like 1/4inch, and it develops trichomes at the intersections. They never develop into buds, and no seeds are ever produced while under 12/1. Once I shift to 8/16 it goes right back to making delicious buds that I've known for 10+ years.
I first started messing with my light schedules after running 24 on for veg for a year or so. I was trying to figure out why my plants were turning yellow so quickly after transplanting. I switched to 18/6 and that helped tremendously.
After a few years of growing like that, I read Joe Pietri's book and website and came across this 12/1 8/16 method. Unfortunately, the guy kinda invites controversy with his opinions, so I don't really follow him otherwise. The light schedule DOES work and I bought an older copy of the Greenhouse Management textbook that he sourced his method/research from. It has to do with short-day plant cultivation or something, I can't remember all the details.
I just know it works and saves me a ton of $$ which is important in the mountains here. I have to run the expensive heat producing lights (CMH) to keep things warm.