I use an FW-1884. I like it and haven't had one problem (knock on wood). The sound quality is pretty nice....you can be the judge I have some samples on my site. http://www.therecordingart.com

I'm going to be getting new pres soon, but the ones in the board aren't awful...they do their job. Considering the cost, the amount of I/O, and the control surface....its got a nice bang for the buck.

how many pres have the FW-1884? are they really decent? i heard about a problem in the fourth channel in the auto... :roll:

The pres are ok. Not noisy, and pretty transparent. That can be a good or bad thing depending on your intended use. As far as the fourth fader dying....I've never had a problem (knock on wood). I've had this board for a year and a half now with only one incident, but that was because my firewire card died in my computer. As long as it stays on your desk and it isn't toted anywhere I don't think you'll have any problems. It does have things I would change, but even after a year and a half I'm still a happy customer with no plans to start looking at other options.