Sinking Flag Ship SOS

anniedog

1) No inserts external hardware  
    No argument here... sadly overlooked by Roland.
2)Any expansion of IO involves creating an added  sub mix of the  expansion unit to a main master out.
    Hmm.... haven't had the need thankfully (nearly, but the 700C Aux saved the day each time) but this sounds a bit silly...
3) Still issues using fantom on 64 bit (crashes)
    Fair call... I can get it to work but cannot be bothered... seems clumsy and is a poor implementation of what was touted as a great feature IMO.
4) having to turn a knob and reboot if there is a crash to reset unit so sonar will start
    Not enough detail on this one... sounds like a sample rate related issue?
5) Having to turn an knob and reset unit to change sample rates 
    Ok, I concede this point too.... not a massive drama but still ridiculous in this day and age of design... my MOTU 8Pre isn't this awkward.
6) cannot bypass A/D  D/A converters to use better ones.
    Yeah but the convertors are actually very good. If I wanted better ones than these I wouldn't have bought the 700R.
7 )latency, and  clock issues at higher sampling rates
    Haven't had either but the PC is going to play a big role... and if you have any plugs inserted... expect possible issues when tracking. Clock issues I suspect are from extra IO devices... can't comment but others I believe are having no issues so hopefully this should be resolvable.
8) Not fully supported by X1c 
    There are certainly some features from X1C we would all like to see implemented into the 700 and most of us are hopeful of seeing better integration or at least better flexibility/customization options.... but it does seem to take a long time.
9) preamps not transparent and could have more head  room. 
    Probably a debatable topic really.. I haven't had any head room issues with respect to digital tracking. Regarding the transparency without a true bypass option the only 'transparent' option is zero preamp gain which is probably the real critisicm IMO. Another feature that should be staple in any quality unit.
10) limited digital IO choices.
    Not sure what you think would be desirable but your homework before purchase should have identified this problem for you?

This situation is  mostly my fault as I should have done my homework before I purchased the units. I really wanted and needed more from an IO and control solution then this option was capable of. Biggest complaint  though is I assumed the software would always be supported totally by the hardware and the hardware would always be totally supported by the software. The software is somewhat  dynamic ,however the hardware is really static in design. The inability  to adapt the unit  with firmware,or circuit board upgrades  in order to allow it to evolve and play well with others as well as with  changing technologies  limits it's ongoing utility. I agree what it does  it does Ok but I expected more from it then just another V studio version, given the possibilities available with software and firmware. 
 
All fair points, the hardware is highly static, primarily the IO box which feels like it came close but not quite hit the mark spot on. It does have some redeeming features but it does also feel as though it missed a great opportunity. The 700 series does offer some great results however and I still believe that if X1 is your s/w of choice, then the 700 gear is still the best option for hardware.... sadly it does feel a little like you are kissing you sister at times... but we live in hope that the folk who manange the 700 hardware will get some options available to us users asap.

I may have started looking at other options (again... dammit) but still return to X1 due to functions and bang for buck... just hoping to get more from the hardware (the 700C mainly) BUT it still does do a great job... albeit seemingly fundamental at times.
 
PS: you didn't mention the fan.
 
Cheers.