I think it reports approximately the same information. In the PCM, the knock sensors get filtered (analog on the 97, digital on the 98+) and then the PCM determines the level of severity, then uses a table to compute how much timing to pull and how fast to pull it and let it recover.
Anyway, sweet looking gauge, but the pricing situation looks like this:
Aeroforce $230
PLX $400
quite a different.... and I don't see the free wideband (?)