SoundAsleep said:
one minor thing I like is the fact that the inputs are on the rear of the device
Yeah, I like that as well. My main reasons for considering the Firepod over the 8pre are:
1. I like that the Firepod has more outputs. I'm going to be running
a Behringer HA4700 headphone amp with my interface. If I used the Firepod, I would run the individual outputs of it into my Mackie mixer, and use 2 aux sends to send them to the headphone amp, giving me 2 possible headphone mixes. If I used the 8pre, I guess I would have to run a Y cable out of the headphone out on the front of the unit, and into the headphone amp, and then mix the headphones in the CueMix software, giving me 1 headphone mix. (unless I could also split the main out into another headphone channel...then one headphone mix would be the main mix).
2. I can have a Firepod for much cheaper either through Ebay or demo units. Sweetwater just had a deal on demo Firepods for $350. Or, if I pay the full $500, there are package deals all over the place to get free stuff with it.
Other than these two things, the 8pre seems to be a better choice, at least from what I can tell. I just don't know if the pros outweigh the cons.