I actually don't mind the 2 Ultralite, depending on what you're doing with it - it's certainly worlds better than the 1 Series Lite and Ultralite in terms of physical
layout from a programming standpoint. What is the intended use? If you're doing a lot of fast-paced
busking, the lack of
button space does get old really quick, so that would be a good reason to shy away from it. However, if the gig is slightly smaller or more laid back, you can make use of your view buttons to jump around to pools and presets reasonably quickly. If it's for
theatre, you should be able to make the ultralite work for you as well. Remember that you still get two external monitors to display your sheets and sequences, and if you really wanted to, you could even make those into touchscreens as well. Yes, you only get 15 executors on the ultralite, but the full size 1 series only had 20 faders (instead of 30 on the 2 fullsize), so that's really not much of an improvement. As others have said, history is also a factor - if only the MA1 is used, you should take its past usage into account.
As for usability, I don't think you'd have a problem upgrading your programming knowledge from the 1 to the 2. The basic concepts are very similar, and there are some features that were not included on the 1 series that, in this day and age, will have you tearing your hair out. Depending on your past experience, one afternoon in front of the
console with some YouTube videos will probably be enough to get you going on the MA2.
Short version: if you really think you need the extra touchscreen space and executors, go for the 1. If you can live without, go for the 2.
