Hercules Fw 16/14: Should I? Options

[Coolhat]

Hello everyone, a newb from Finland here!

I´m a recent Mac convert looking for a multi-input firewire audio interface for mobile recording. What I need is at least 8 inputs at 24/44.1. So far I have narrowed it down to Edirol FA-101, M-Audio 1814 and Hercules FW 16/14.

The Edirol and M-Audio seem to be relatively safe choices: pretty straightforward boxes from reputable audio companies, should work fine, right?

Then there´s the Hercules...I searched the forums and came up with pretty negative posts. The company is not known for pro audio gear and their overall reputation is questionable. Most of the discussion around this card was in French, which I unfortunately do not understand. But I did check some topics out and the abundance of the words "crash" and "kernel panic" were quite alarming. Also, the FW 16/14 can´t take power from the FW port so that means carrying around another wall-wart...

...but OTOH, the FW 16/14 does have 12 analog inputs, which is something I´d really, really like to have. I do live mixing for several bands, and I´m going to make multi-track recordings of their shows using direct outs from FOH desk. 12 inputs would enable me to take in everything, whereas 8-in card would leave me a bit short. I´d have to leave out tom-toms, background vocals or something else, depending on the band.

So should I take the risk? Unfortunately the Hercules isn´t available in stores over here, so I´d have to order it online (probably from Germany) and that means I won´t be able to try it out before I buy. Most of the posts I read were somewhat older, have there been any driver updates since then that have solved the (supposed) problems?

I would love to hear some first-hand experiences from Hercules, Edirol and M-Audio users. I´m mainly interested in compatibility and stability, bells and whistles aren´t important. I´m using a G4/1.5 GHz Powerbook with 1.25G RAM.

And BTW, I haven´t got any DAW software yet, so that may come into play too: M-Audio and Hercules both have Cubase LE bundled with them, anyone using it?