I had a little trouble learning how to operate the 4 pt system on our 5er, but after using it for a while I would not buy another without it. I really like having the option to manually tweak it to direct the a/c drain water where I want it to go.
Saves a lot of setup time, does it's own thing while I'm doing mine. If I need to fine tune it I can. Maybe you should rethink the max length...could open up a larger selection for only a couple feet.
If I were shopping for another 5er I would not go shorter than what we have (38') Perfect for our family of 4.