V-Studio 100 as advanced backing track live player

Hi All,
I'm currently performing with my band with a ZOOM R16 recorder as a live backing track player.
We use to play some electronic basslines, sound effects and additional sounds by this multitrack player.
The multitrack player is the "master" on stage and we play our tracks following the timing from the player. It gives the metronome through the headphones channel to our drummer. We can, if necessary, send an amount of backing tracks sound mixed with the metronome, the unit allows to do it.
We are thinking to replace the R16 due to the following issues:
 
1) Poor DAC: It means that the output audio quality is not really good. It's quite clean but really flat and seems to lose some low and high frequencies.
2) No multiple output channels.
3) No eq. on output channels.
4) 44.100 sampling frequency only supported (we would like to load 48KHz/24bit tracks for better output quality)
 
We have noted the V-Studio 100 unit but after reading the user manual there are still some issues with no answers:
 
1) Can the metronome be sent through the headphones only?
2) Can we send both metronome and tracks sound through the headphones by setting the amount of them?
3) What about the DAC converters?? Is the output sound quality good enough for serious electronic sound live backtracking?
4) "6 output channels" means that we can load and play up to 3 stereo tracks simultaneously??
5) We play multitrack backing tracks, it means that every song have 2/3 or more tracks to be played with. We do this in order to separate basslines, leads or fx to a more versatile mixing and equalizing in different live situations. Can the V-Studio 100 manage this requirement?? i.e. can we save different track groups as songs?? How quick is the loading procedure for every "song"??
 
I would like to have your feedback about these issues cause the V-Studio would be our decision only if it can be considered a serious upgrade from the current solution.
 
Thanks in advance to everyone who will give his contribute.
 

M@ B


Hey Robotomy, To do what you have in mind, you would definitely need to have the vs100 connected to a laptop running DAW software. As a standalone, the outputs are stereo only, but I think the metronome can still output on 3/4, but you won't have any output flexibility without the laptop. 1) I'm not positive about your metronome question, but i'm pretty sure that the headphone out is the same signal as the main outs 1 and 2, so you probably would not want the metronome to go out with the main mix. Again, with a DAW connected, you can probably assign the outs the way you want to. Email Roland support or maybe someone else can answer that here. 2) You can do this through the DAW. 3) The D/A converters are quite good. The audio quality in general is very good - quiet and clean. 4) Only when connected to a DAW. 5) Yes, but only with a DAW. Song load times would be as fast as your laptop. Hope that helps.

You've been very clear. Thank you very much.
Unfortunately this means that VS 100 will be not our choice.
I have "dismissed" the laptop on stage since some years, the R16 have been introduced just to avoid all the problems related to the use of laptops in live performances.
In our case the backtracks are a critical matter and we cannot risk any problem when we perform live.
The "dedicated hardware" solution is very good, after introducing the R16 we've no more experienced any problem and we can be quite sure about the reliability and "quickness" of our solution. I will never go back.
We use the computer in studio but for live, we load everything on the dedicated player and we "live safe and quiet"!!!
We just need now to increase the sound quality (the current quality is not so bad, we only need something better ...) and to have a little more control on the sound but please no laptop computers on stage for this purpose (either PC or MAC). May be a computer can be used to play some intro or background effects, nothing more critical!..
I've trusted in the past the sound quality of the Roland products which in most cases are strictly designed for live performance and so I was interested in this VS 100 solution but now I know that this have been especially introduced to work together with a Software solution (in particular with Sonar).
We need a device studied to work specifically in stand alone.
Thanks again for your exhaustive explanation.