Mixing Hardware: Yamaha MW8 CX

Another piece of hardware just arrived today:




I've researched what kind of mixing hardware fits the best and found that this one feels really good at small recording studio.

Pros:

• Ridiculously small price for such brilliant quality. Surprised indeed.
• Comes with Cubase AI4 for Mac (Windoze too, if so) and connects easily. Cubase AI4 seems to be way better sequencer in terms of "ease of use" than even Logic Express. You just connect cables, you just run it and it just works (unlike Logic Express).
  
• Very lightweight, can be mounted on stand (very useful).
• Clean, nice effects built-in with possibility to connect external module for master effect and two insertion effects for two monaural channels.
  

Cons:

• Lightweight case might be easily broken on gigs. Be careful.
  
• No FireWire. USB bit slow and eats CPU on your machine.
• 8th channel does not have middle frequency equalizer.

But for me it is the very optimal piece of hardware: light, cheap and nice quality with good effects. Nothing more is needed for small studio recordings.