Which Intake should I get?

Hey guys.
So I got a bit of money for my birthday and am looking at putting a new Air Intake System in. I have the 5.0 V8 so that limits my options for CAIs for whatever reason.
I know that there is the Airmax that MoutaineerGreen did a write up on. My questions is does anyone else have this intake? If so, how has it worked for you? Does anyone have side-by-side comparisons of that intake with others?
Obviously, the MAC is popular, and I imagine, for good reason. I know the Airmax has a heat shield that bolts down to where the OE box did, does the MAC have that as well? Does anyone buy into the idea that Airmax's internal rifling of a tube can help the air move better? It seems to me that all that would do is slow the air down, because now not only does it have to travel to the throttle, it has to spin while doing it.
The main reason that I am currently leaning towards the Airmax a bit is because it's made of steel, has a heat shield and has support at the filter end as well. Does the MAC have all these things? I know a lot of people here run MACs, are you all pleased with them?
Thanks in advance!
-Matt

 

[techieman33]

The MAC does not have a heat shield, but I honestly don't think they really make much of a difference. At anything about ~30mph the air is traveling so fast through the intake that it's only a couple of degrees above the ambient temp anyway. The mac's intake tube is aluminum if I remember right which I would rather have over the steel of the airmax. As far as the support at the filter the mac intake has a piece that goes between the filter and maf sensor that gets bolted to the bottom grommet holes that used to hold down the factory air box. I think performance wise they're both going to give you the same, or be close enough that you would never notice anyway. So my suggestion is save the $50 and get the MAC.

 

[celly]

Just remember one important thing about air intake setups......they all perform the same. It comes down to appearance and price. The shield on the Airmax doesn't nothing from what I've seen. Just don't skimp on the filter (if you decided to rig up your own which is simple). Airmax and MAC have good filters. MAC is a better buy if you can find one (I understand that MAC doesn't actively produce them anymore). The MAC is a great kit.