I have to amend my earlier enthusiasm with a cautionary note… I performed the firmware update as per the instructions and the first units upgraded smoothly. Unfortunately when I got to the last FD, it finished the erase phase and then threw up a communication error. That pretty much renders the unit unserviceable and back to Yamaha it goes… I can live without the extra 4 fader channels obviously, but what a bummer. Silly thing is, I read the ReadMe files beforehand to see what the upgrade was all about. It fixes one performance issue so I decided to go ahead, even though I hadn’t experienced the problem (yet). In hind sight, I wish I hadn’t done the upgrade unless absolutely needed.
Oh that sucks. 
Do these compare to other controllers in this price range?
Yes and No.
To be able to make a fair judgement you need to get equivalent CMC-modules as the comparing unit(s) even so i believe it’s very hard when the competition often uses motorized faders and LED-oriented knobs and buttons i’e more traditional thinking, but ofcourse less dedicated functions… pro’s and con’s.
If i get the SSL’s sturdy looks and feel, it’s very nice motorised faders, the CMC’s dedicated buttons and the Euphonix amazingly tweakable software i’d be more than happy…
I’ve tried Novation ( also using a ReMote Zero with Automap with my current setup… and it’s a real success), Euphonix, Behringer, SSL and a few others but as CMC’s are made solely for Cubase the other units feels more like they’re emulating something…
and even if the CMC’s still needs refining in software functions you get to the finishline faster than having to make Custom setups in other controllers that doesn’t feel 100% at the end of the day, even though the competition has functions not implemented by Steinberg yet ( … and maybe ever will so either, which could be a real bummer.) you get most bang for the buck with the CMC’s.
If you plan on buying just one or two the answer is definitely a no.
Interesting analysis, thanks Lundin!
BTW, could you with the CMC’s or any controller for that matter, use the pads to choose note values on the extended toolbar in the score editor? That would cut my worktime in half. 
That’s really easy to verify: if you are using a midi-keyboard to do this it will work with at least the CMC-PD or
if there’s a keycommand that does this it will probably work with any module with “Function-buttons”
Is there something for you here maybe…?
Coming May 2012…!
At this point, I’m don’t have a control surface for Cubase (and don’t use my MIDI keyboard to do so either). I have not seen a KC for the extended toolbar, but I find it strange that a controller series such as the CMC’s would not be able to manipulate this parameter, as this would greatly enhance the Cubase score editing experience for those of us who hide out in that editor. If you take a look around, this is one area where Cubase is getting whipped. Sibelius and Finale seem to far surpass Cubase’s scoring capabilities. If it weren’t for the frequent recording I need to do I would doubtlessly be switching to Sibelius.