I have had a direct drive closed bow Mastercraft Sportstar. I found that my family and my dog had a difficult time with the direct drive with a closed bow. With an open bow like an E22 or X22 I think it would be a lot better. With the kids, the gear, the dog and me we had trouble finding room for a day at the lake. I don't live on a lake so we have to load up food, shelter and clothing to go to the lake on a normal day. I consider these types of ski boats "bachelor boats" they are perfect for sets with your friends or maybe 2 or 4 adults who love the small wake and don't haul around a lot of junk. For a family I would at least want the open bow concept in a direct drive. If I lived on a lake I would get the E22 or X22 since they have the open bow and lots more space while still delivering the small wake for skiing and even wakesurf capabilities when loaded. If you can afford the V-drive configuration I must admit it is more spacious and feels like a larger boat. The price difference it seems is at least $5k at this point. The V-drives generally have a little rampier wake for skiing with a larger bump, ut they still throw a fairly smooth transition and you can easily ski behind them at 34-36mph and have a blast as long as you are not trying to break any course records.
After having a closed bow...I sold it...it just didn't fit my space needs for people ad gear....
My friend has an open bow Moomba Outback and we cram all kinds of people and gear into that thing without it feeling cramped so the open bow makes a huge difference. We ski mostly 75%, and wakeboard a little 5%, and do everything else the other 20%...I think if I had the moeny I would still get a V-drive, but if money matters the direct drive open bow would be a great choice.
Hope that helps...
