Tracker MT16 multitrack recorder

Okay, so with several tests and a year of rehearsal/recording sessions under my belt, I've updated the star rating and this review to reflect what I've learned. It does what it says it does all the way up to 16 tracks, and it's a pretty slick device.So the good:Multitrack recording - 16 simultaneous 24bit/96kHz tracks, and the cheapest way to do itCompact - if fits in the bag with the micsMedia - records WAV right to a SD card; easy, convenient, cheap, universal; can use a portable USB drive for more space.Firmware - auto updating feature means just plugging it into a port on my router and *bam* it's updated.Support - I have several JamHub items, and the support is second to none.The bad:The user interfaceIn a word, the interface is minimal. For all the buttons and knobs that adorn the JamHub series of mixers, this component takes the opposite approach. I wonder if somebody bet the designers they couldn't make a 16 track recorder with only 4 buttons. The designers won the bet, but usability suffers a bit. Everything is done via menu selection 2-3 layers down, with only a 2 line readout for feedback. Even the playback and recording buttons are multi purpose. I would have preferred 16 leds (even just a bar group) showing which channels are active, if not a hard switch to activate each channel. A bonus would have been a per-channel clipping light (same as active light, to save components)or a third row of display used for indicating level on each channel. The interface makes it critical to do testing ahead of time with levels and checking your recordings. Once you get it figured out, though, it's pretty hands-off.Recording quality - we've used it primarily for rehearsals with 4 Sennheiser 100 series wireless (835 capsules) and a Shure SM58 for vocal percussion. Once we got the levels set right, things sound pretty good - I'm going to say they sound as good as they're going to with the front end gear we're using (JamHub and wireless mics). There is very low level noise on the tracks, but based on live listening, the fault lies in the audio chain prior to hitting the recorder not the device iteself. The 16:1 connector which allows recording off of our main board (A+H ZED16 or our road unit the A+H 16:2) works like a charm.