I'm looking to improve my mixing environment by purchasing a control surface (or maybe a mixer) that will interface with my sequencing software (Cubase & Ableton Live) in such a way that I’d be able control track levels, panning, muting/soling, and so forth from the hardware instead of using only the keyboard and mouse. I know some mixers are able to do this, but I’ve also heard that control surfaces are specifically designed for this sort of thing, so that’s what I’m leaning toward. Honestly, I don’t know the pro/cons of either option, since I’m self taught with only about a year of experience. I’d really appreciate any insight you folks can give.

I don’t really think that I need all the extra inputs/outputs and things that a mixer would offer since I can do what I need through my audio interface (M-Audio FireWire Solo). That's simple enough and works great for my needs.

I’d like to have at least 8 faders to work with and to keep the price range under $350. Extra programmable buttons and things would be nice, but isn’t absolutely needed.

So far I'm considering these two...

Behringer BCF2000 MIDI Controller
http://www.zzounds.com/item--BEHBCF2000

Evolution UC33e MIDI Control Surface
http://www.zzounds.com/item--EVOUC33E

Any suggestions or advice you folks could give on what kind of things I should be looking for, or particular products would be most helpful. Thanks people!