Joe, mine flew fine without the smaller inlets. problem was locating the fuel tanks, as the DF inlets didn't leave room for much. My original tanks were home made but they leaked like crazy. But performance-wise, there was little difference that I noticed.
It just felt a little bit cleaner, that's all. And, well, I did a couple of low passes with the bypassed one and the engine at idle and you could only hear the Mav cutting through the air, which is kinda cool.

One thing, BVM's leading edge droops HELPED OUT A LOT while on the learning curve. The thing would not tip stall at all. However, without the droops you have to be very careful on appraoch as it will want to drop a wing if you slow down too much.

Theres some pics with and without the bypass in my gallery. Go check it out.

David