While the
Express hardware might be old, it doesn't change the fact that it is tried and true. One of the best things to have in a
console is the ability to know its bulletproof, and
DOS based is just that, bulletproof. Windows based consoles crash, its just a fact of life. The
Jands Vista, which I love, crashes quite often when I am using it. Hog 3 use to be real bad with crashing. Hog PC has many things that can crash on it. The dongles being one which can lead to real problems and the reason why you need back up dongles. I have even seen a Ma crash on a few occasions. I have yet to this day seen an
Express OS based
console crash. I have logged far more hours on
Express OS consoles then anything else. I have also never heard about one crashing that didn't have something internally wrong with it, bad solder joint, bad disk drive,
etc.
As stated,
Express OS is not the easiest for moving light control. He said it was for a
theatre, and thats what the
Express/Expression/Insight are made for. They control moving lights, and do it easier then his two scene
preset. There isn't that much in the way of a
cue stack, moving light control, and subs for easy
theatre use out there and cheap cost. Also, the
Express OS has an Offline Editor and Personality Editor. This makes things much easier for making personalities for those oddity moving lights, or you can edit the ones that already exist for your tastes. You can also take an
Express OS show, load it on any
Express, Expression, or Insight
console that is using version 3+, just watch your
channel count and in the case of the Insight to other consoles, your sub count.
I would love to recommend the
Ion, but if the Expression is out his range price range, the
Ion most certainly is. The
Ion is also brand new, so bugs have yet to be worked out. I have no doubt that one day, the
Express line will be replaced, or maybe
ETC will refresh them. That day isn't today, so I can't say not get one because its old. A Hog 500/1000 are also old, doesn't change the fact that people still love, use, and buy them everyday.