Aphex 207

VERY easy to use, as any preamp should be... plug in the mic, push in the necessary/desirable buttons (pad, limiter, etc.) adjust the gain to taste, and go. The limter is quiet, but when pushed will distort in an unpleasing way.

For the money: WOW!!!
My setup -- Mics: SM7, Rode K2, SM7, Senn. e609, D112, Rode NT5's, AT4040, a few other odds and ends. AD Conversion: RME Fireface 800. Other Mic Preamps: RME Pres, Focusrite ISA 428, Vintage Quad Eight AM-3, Presonus MP20 (no longer have). Record into: PC w/Duo Core, Cubase Studio 4.
This preamp sounds warm and clean. Has just a touch of the tube sound, but not much. As I said before, the limiter breaks up unpleasantly if pushed too hard, but is still excellent when used lightly, especially for silibant singers and screamers. On vocals it deserves an 11, especially when considering the price. It beats out my expensive pres quite regularly (the ears of both the client and myself.) I originally started out with this pre and the Presonus MP20 (with upgraded Burr Brown Op-amps), and the MP20, although sounding ALOT better than a Mackie VLZ board, couldn't hold a candle to this pre.
I've used this for Vocals, Drums, Guitar, Bass, Keyboards, Acoustic Guitar.
For Vocals: This is where this preamp truly shines. I always A/B mics and pres for singers, and this preamp has yet to not be the choice... w/SM7 for Screamers and deepre male voices, w/K2 for females voices and tenor males (makes 'em sound like silk.)
For Elec Guitar: Overdriven, Distorted and Clean Rhythms sound VERY fat through this pre. For leads, I prefer the Quad Eight and Focusrite... the high end cuts through better on those.
For Bass: it's a bit of a bassy and warm pre, so as a Bass Direct input it seems to lose the higher harmonics, and sounds a bit flat. Micing a bass amp sounds better, but I still prefer the ISA 428 and Quad 8.
For Keyboards: Sounds GREAT. Helps fatten up the sound an droll off the digital bite. Strings can sound very realistic.
Acoustic Guitar: Sounds good... can be a tossup depending on the guitar and the player.
Drums: Not as good. Again sounds a bit flat, and doesn't help them jump out like the other pres on the Toms, Snare and Bass drum. Sounds alot better as an overheads pre, but my Quad 8 beats it out for that particular job.

No issues so far. The gain knob feels very solid, like an expensive knob with a bit of smooth resistance (you know what I mean.)

havn't had to deal with them

This pre is awesome for rock and metal. I've been recording for years, and opened my own project studio to the public a few years ago. Not only would I buy this pre again if it were stolen but I'm going to buy another ASAP.

Like any mic preamp, this is a pretty simple device to use. You plug in you mic, turn on the power, and adjust your gain. Everything on the front of the 207 (Instrument inputs, phantom power, polarity, -20 dB pad, low cut filter, and mic limiter) is well labelled, laid out, and easy to use. The back has XLR and 1/4 inch balanced outs, as well as an effects loop, and 1/4 inch and XLR inputs. These are also well laid out and labelled. The manual is actually pretty good, well written and explains not just the basics of using the preamp, but also some mic technique. (I bought this pre used, so it didn't come with a manual, but after some digging on the internet, I found one available for download at http://www.aphex.com/207.htm ). I can't really think of any way that this preamp could have been easier to use really, but nothing deserves a 10.

This is a very quiet preamp. (I record multiple tracks one at a time and layer them, so I am VERY sensitive to noise on the tracks as it adds up.) The sound of this pre is very detailed and present. I am using this pre for a number of purposes, so I'll rate it for each of them . . .

Acoustic Guitars: (Shure SM81 about a foot from the guitar, and a Rode NT-1a about five feet back to catch room sound) Highs are detailed, mids are clear. I usually record acoustic guitar with the low cut filter on, and I was initially worried about not getting enough low end. It turns out that the filter on the low cut boosts a few bass frequencies before it rolls off the bass. This ends up in a well defined low end while managing to roll off the street noises from outside.
Rating: 8

Electric Guitars: (Shure Beta 57 about a foot from the amp, slightly off axis) Sounds excellent. Mids are exactly where they need to be, the guitar sounds fat and round on rhythm and bright and punchy on lead.
Rating: 8.5

Djembe/Bongo/Congas: (I have been told that it's best to close mic each drum, but I have had good luck using my Rode NT-1 a couple of feet overhead, and my Beta 57 a few feet back from the drums at waist height angled towards the floor.) The NT-1 captures tons of room sound, and most of the bright, higher pitched slaps and taps. The beta 57 picks up the bass from the congas and djembe. No need to use the low cut on the drums . . . but the mic limiter and the pad are both on all the time. This mic pre sounds fantastic on these drums.
Rating 9.0

Direct In Guitar: (Epiphone Elitist 335 Copy) I don't really like most DI boxes for electric, and this one is no exception. It just doesn't sound right . . . you lose somthing without the speakers and cabinet resonating in the room. This feature is just mediocre.
Rating 6.5

Direct In Bass: (Used a fender J-Bass with passive pickups) Bass sounds best to me when it's recorded DI. The low mids are present, but not overwhelming. Can get good bottom end with nice high end for slaps. Overall sounds very good, but not mind blowing.
Rating 8

Vocals: (Rode NT-1a) I'm not much of a singer, so I may not be the best to judge this section . . . but my vocals are normally low/boomy. With this preamp they sound slightly less boomy than normal. I like it.
Rating 8.0

I own a bunch of things made in asia and don't really think that everything made over there is crap (I have a nice Epiphone Elitist ES-335 replica, some well made japanese boss pedals, and a nice Yamaki acoustic guitar). That being said, there is a lot of cheap stuff (especially electronics) that has been made in asia in the last few years, so brings a smile to my face when I see MADE IN THE USA stamped on the back of the 207. Being an electrical engineer, I've taken this preamp apart, and checked the circuits. Everything is solidly built, the jacks are all sturdy, soldering is good, and everything is properly laid out. I don't anticipate having any problems with this unit.

I've never dealt with Aphex before so I can't comment.

I have been playing guitar/hand drums/bass for about 15 years. I've been in and out of studios on a few occasions, but have just started recording on my own. I play jazz, reggae, blues, rock, and folk music predominantly.
I wanted a good 2 channel preamp to do some home recordings, and I don't have thousands of dollars to blow. However, I do know the difference that a good preamp can make to a recording. I looked at the Presonus Bluetube DP, the m-audio DMP3, an LA Audio Lites preamp, and ART MPA Gold, and a joemeek 3Q. The Presonus Bluetube was very good as a DI, but seemed sort of lacking as a mic preamp. The m-audio DMP3 was very clean, probably the second best of the bunch. The LA Audio Lites was bass heavy. The ART MPA Gold sounded pretty good, but I honestly didn't like the variable mic input impedence, I didn't find it that useful when recording. The joemeek was too coloured for what I wanted. For the price, there wasn't anything that I could find that approached the sound quality and versatility of the Aphex 207.
I also don't believe that everything with a tube in it is better (except for guitar amps . . . then tubes are nearly always better), if there is any sonic difference from the vacuume tube in the 207 I can't really hear it. I would buy this preamp again if stolen/lost/damaged. For home recording I really can't see myself getting much better results with anything else.