Behringer XENYX 1222FX Mixer with Effects

Feature:
For features this board is great, it has two stereo returns, two sends, 12 line level inputs, 6 of which are mic inputs and out of those four have phantom power. The onboard effects are nice, the AD/DA converters the board uses sound good, and are handy when you don't want/need a lot of outboard effects

Quality:
First of all, I recieved this board as a gift about 2-1/2 to 3 years ago. I don't know where it was purchased from, but I have no reason to suspect the problems I've had with it were a result of warehouse storage, shipment, or anything else to do with the distributer. I take very good care of my sound equipment, this board has never had anything spilled on it, dropped on it, it itself has never been dropped, it rarely gets moved from my work desk. I have used this board maybe a half dozen times, after which channels 1-8 failed. they have no volume on any output including monitor/fx sends unless the gain and channel volume are maxed out, at which point (at less than a 1/32" throw on the pot) the clip light and level set light come on constant and any volume you do get sends a signal so distorted it is unusable. also, all of the faders and pots feel very crunchy and don't operate smoothly. I have seen a lot of people say they love their Behringer products when they first get them, but amongst the people I work with (as a sound engineer at a regional theatre that does both straight plays, musicals, musical reviews and concerts) behringer is known as a throw-away brand. Their products simply aren't reliable. for how much they cost they're great IF you need something cheap to finish a show setup and you can afford to have it go out on you later, but if you are a struggling musician looking for a board to mix your band with I would suggest you save up and get a better quality board.

Value:
Like I stated before, Behringer is great if you need some thing quick and cheap and can afford to replace it later when it fails. I personally will never buy Behringer again simply because as an individual trying to build a studio I can't afford to have my gear fail on me

Desirability:
Like I stated in the quality section, the faders and pots do not operate smoothly. Behringer are great at developing products that incorporate a large number of features that people want but don't want to have to pay for, which is great, except that they are notorious for early-ownership failure. Now if they could only develop a product as feature-packed as this board that would last through more than a few uses I would willingly spend the money on their products.

Sound:
The sound quality is acceptable for a budget line board. I have experienced problems with hum and different sound quality on different channels, being somebody who makes an obscure form of music, the sound quality of this particular board, the Behringer Xenyx 1222fx does what I need it to do, but I would suggest anybody for whom sound quality is a must stay away from Behringer boards, the quality to get out of it will change over time dramatically

Ease of Use:
The board itself is pretty straight forward, would be good for a beginner sound enginner with the exception of it's obvious problems with quality. See below

Support:
I haven't contacted the company. If I can't repair the problem I am having with channels 1-8 myself, the cost of shipping/insuring the board plus the actual repair cost through the company would be greater than the actual cost to buy a new one, and I would rather spend the money on a product that I won't have to worry about failing

Overall:
I am already looking to replace it as it failed on me and I am unwilling to pay shipping/repair costs on something that will probably fail again.

Sound:
Easy to use. Useful effects. All around a welcome addition to the studio.

Support:
Haven't needed it yet.