Aside from looking at this from a performance angle...another way of looking at this is:

What is there that can go wrong with a front mount? basically only a boost leak if you crash/someone throws a brick at it or whatever.
What is there that can go wrong with a AC? water leak, pump failure etc

 

One of the main reasons I love the FMIC is because of how simple it is. Less things to go wrong IMO. The aftercoolers seem really stout...but I just get paranoid.

 

I agree. I didn't realize the aftercooler required a pump that has to be wired in, and could fail... Was kind of surprised to see it when it arrived with my kit.

 

Aftercooler all the way. Much better throttle response, no boost loss, etc. Unless you only want 10 psi max then an aftercooler would be best. Would have to run like 14 psi with a fmic to get the same 10 psi. Might make a little more at the same 10 psi however but would be running a much smaller pulley which could lead to belt slippage. Also making the blower work much harder for the same boost level at the engine.
The only thing that could go wrong with the aftercooler is the pump. Should last a looong time with zero issues though.

 

I used to have an aftercooler before I switched to a FMIC. I did not read Vortech's R&D in detail but it seems to be a bit odd.
From my personal experience and from at least 3 other fellow SC'ed S2000 owners that I personally know and discussed in detail the results they also had, the only downside to a FMIC vs Aftercooler is the boost loss. Other than that everything else is faaaar better.!
With the Afterccoler, when the ambient temp was 20-25 degrees Celsius I used to see anything from 45 to 65 degrees which seemed to stay up there in the 60's only after you hit on it once because everything in the engine bay was heatsoaked.
Now with similar temperatures (20-25C) and with the FMIC I get 35 to 45 degrees celsius ALL THE TIME, I dont have to worry about checking where IAT's are all the time, especially when hitting on it.

To all those AC guys I suggest you datalog IAT's and record ambient temperature and then try a FMIC setup with a smaller pulley to compensate the boost loss, datalog again and then draw your own conclusions.

 

Sportster, how much pressure loss did you encounter switching to the FMIC?

 

The pressure loss I have is 3 psi but even less can be had with a suitable and quality intercooler and IP's piping which have the least bends.
2 psi pressure drop is easily achievable, a good friend of mine over here is using a custom well made intercooler and piping and with a 3" pulley (AP1 engine - Comptech Novi 1000) he is seing 0.82bar @ 8600rpm, that is the equivalent of 11.5psi which is 2 psi less that can be achieved with an aftercooler.

 

With the upgrade of the Novi 1200 I was curious of this myself, then again I need to chill out with the boost addiction.

 

I use the large SOS heat exchanger with water wetter and distilled water have no issues with high IATs. I can drive 60 miles of twisties when it's 90 degrees F ambient and my IAT won't exceed 115 degrees F unless I am cruising downhill with no throttle.

 

water/methanol injection is a different thing though. You can actually run neither, AC or FMIC, with water/methanol injection. That is what drag cars do all the time...
Bear in mind that it also complicates things, appart from a water pump for the AC, you have nozzles, tank for the wetter which you have to keep always full, pump for the nozzle of the wetter, and an additional electronic system. And ofcourse you have to be separately tuned for it.
In terms of power, that delivers the most, but there are also alot more things to have in mind and check regularly.