noise is a huge problem with the lower end stuff, on one track you can hear it if you try, and maybe on 2 it's ok, but adding up more tracks and different kinds of noises, can get pretty bad, but for my use and a lot of home users, using only a track or 2 or 4, it's not as much of an issue, but add compression on an already noisy track and it's pretty bad, which is why i use it only when i have to or in a unit that is a compressor and a mic pre.
if you're doing something commercial, you need really high quality gear and a noise free space and the best cables, mics, pres, converters, compressors, recorders, or it'll be there, and then there's the problem of external noise, like
my art tube pac, i have to put it in a closet. whereas if you have a control room, the external noises are insulated from the studio.
i also have the presonous tubepre and it sucks for high gain, but it's ok if the dials are near the center marks, bring it up and the noise is too much. but
my m-audio dmp3 has more useable gain - it's clean way up to near the top, i also now use the balanced lines and that's also a big big improvement becuase i don't need as much gain and the noise is suppressed, and there seems to be a better correspondance betweeen the metering onthe unit and on my mixer for some technical reason i don't know how to explain.
