I know I'm late to the party, but I'll chime in.
I had an eberlestock, as well as pretty much all the badlands packs. I hated the void in the eberlestock where the rifle sock was. Just couldn't get that thing cinched up to you, and it sounds like you felt the same thing.
I now have the MR crew cab and have used it for a few years now. It's a great pack. It cinches up tight, yet expands well for larger loads. It carries weight very well and makes packouts easy.
It does not have a lot of internal storage, however. The pockets can't take a lot of gear unless you open the pack up and put the stuff in the meat shelf area. Perfect for meat, not so great for lots of 'stuff'.
I'd highly recommend them with that in mind.
I'm also thinking about trying the eberlestock blue widow, as that pack does not have that "no mans land" space between the load and your back. I like the quietness of the eberlestock (MR is cordura and a bit noisier) and I also liked the internal storage better.
So far, MR is #1, but is not perfect.