Trent,
You've already identified the question: having personal control over all ends of production (and total ownership of the product) vs. the distribution of a major label (and gaining royalties).
Before I urge you to go it alone, and I will, let me say that I'm still getting a pretty decent royalty check every six months from SONY for work that I did twenty years ago, due to their endless re-packaging and including bits of my old recordings in various compilations. I bow every February and August in their virtual direction.
Ask yourself if the labels that you're talking about are going to be around in twenty years. That might answer your question straight away. After that, take a good look at the success that Maria Schneider (2005 Grammy in spite of not having a label), Bob Brookmeyer, and others are having with ArtistShare. The web will probably be the distribution center of the future, if it's not already. Needless to say, nobody can represent your artistic ideas the way you can yourself.
A state-of-the-art website, and your attentiveness to it, is key if you plan to proceed with Plan B.
Interesting subject and let's keep it alive here.
Best,
EC