That is why this is the first beta
Yes there is a huge pressure drop with that model. I just used the pics to show nifty colors mainly. This was the first design, we our on our third which is getting very close. The plenum is completely redesigned on the latest models.
Here is a visual pic of the pressure drop of that design:
There is always going to be a pressure drop in the runners if you are trying to increase the intake velocity but you obviously dont want a huge drop going into the main plenum.
The flow is not smooth enough to hit the first and last runner on that model either so we redesigned some of it to help grab the air sooner... it was difficult because increasing the pressure up top would help force the air down to the first runners but would make it harder to flow for the last runners.
As for the tuning of the manifold, yes, it could be considered a "tuned intake". However, with forced induction this reall wont give you much if tuning with the wave concept considering that is designed to technically build "boost". We already have boost
The best way we found to decrease the pressure differential was to decrease the overall volume of the main plenum and increase the volume of the cone. Playing with the taper of the cone helped make it equalize the flow to each port as best possible. Also, while playing with the main plenum we learned a much better connection point between the cone and plenum which helped keep the airflow as straight and smooth as possible. The runners have also been modified to help increase the velocity slightly at the valves.