Routing and mixing with an old American made Mackie CR-1604 and Sonar?

So I'm getting very close to having my studio set back up again and this time I have enough room for ALL my goodies to get used. As the thread title suggests I have an old Mackie CR-1604 console that is in amazing condition. For those not familiar with this board here is a PDF link to the manual:

http://www.mackie.com/pdf/archive/cr1604_om.pdf

I also have the module that adds an extra 10 XLR ins with phantom power to give me a total of 16 mic ins. It has 8 direct line outs on top of all the usual Master, AUX routing and what not. The line outs are why I originally bought it years ago so I could record a full drum kit or do band demos using my old Layla 3G which has 8 ins and outs. I've got two 8 channel snakes to do this type of thing with (probably not the best quality but they work). I am currently using my new Focusrite Scarlett 18i6 as my main interface which I bought because the Layla was causing some problems within Sonar on my new home built DAW. The Layla is old school PCI and I guess the ASUS motherboard I bought has bridged support for the PCI instead of Native and I was getting dropouts. However a system optimization got it working a little better. Now I have both hooked up to the system (or will once I set back up) and I can choose either simply by switching drivers. I could also in theory use the optical out on the Layla and hook it up to the Scarlett and use it as an extra input module. This will provide me an extra 4 ins at 96k or 8 ins at 44.1k... like I said this is theoretical as I have not attempted it yet. I could also reverse which interfaces and use the Layla as the master and possibly have access to the full 8 line outs on it (the Scarlett only has 2 monitor outs). I am hesitant to do it that way though due to the problems I had with dropouts on the Layla.

Anyway... that block of text was just to detail what I'm working with. Now to what I would like to do with all this:

1) I want to be able to take the monitor outputs from the Scarlett (or perhaps the Layla) and send them to the board so I can then send them to multiple sources for a/b'ing mixes. One stereo pair would go to my main reference monitors. I'd probably use the Master out on the board for this (recommended?). Then using my stockpile of audio cable adapters I'd send two more stereo pairs out to my two separate home stereo systems. And finally I would use the headphone jack on the board (or perhaps the interface) to plug in my two separate sets of powered computer speakers, my fancy reference headphones and finally my rather large collection of consumer grade headphones (basically anything I have that uses a stereo jack so I'm not using adapters to bring down two separate channels down to one cable). Perhaps a little overkill but I figure since my room isn't treated and I can't afford ARC or a proper mastering house to polish my stuff this will be my best shot a getting my mixes to sound good across a variety of systems.

2) I'd like to have some mics perpetually set up and ready to go without having to plug/unplug cables all the time. I like the mic pres on the Scarlett (the Layla not so much) but I also like the mic pres on the board. I unfortunately don't have any XLR outs on the board so this will have to be an either/or situation. I'm also not quite sure how to route this properly. I've had weird noises in the past sometimes using the line outs like a tinny/pingy type sound which now that I know more might have been some kind of feedback looping. Gonna have really dig into how this stuff is properly set up so any advice here would be good.

3) I want to maybe have my Line 6 Duoverb hooked up to the board VIA the XLR cable on the back of the Line 6 (very handy) but again that would have to go out from the line outs or one of the other output routing options. Not quite sure the effect the Scarlett pres are going to have on that signal so I'll need to experiment.

So there you have it. Am I being crazy? Is trying this stuff gonna color my mix too much (I'd particularly like to hear what others who have used this board have to say on that)? Will this work at all? The input stuff isn't quite as important as the output routing because I can only record one instrument at a time but there will be times when I'd like to have more inputs. Particularly when I am recording myself playing my acoustic guitar and singing (2 on the guitar 1-2 on the vocal and perhaps a room mic) or if some of my acoustic buddies come by to track (can't do full bands in here lest I get the po po called on me). I just don't want to have to constantly be moving around cables to get at the various reference systems. I just want to turn faders up/down or hit the mute/unmute buttons so the previous source is still fresh in my ears.

Any and all insight and advice is welcome. Cheers and sorry if this is really long winded. It's been running around in my puny brain for quite some time now. ;-)

Right on, Beags. Glad to hear someone else has it working. I tend to get a little confused by hardware consoles but I have the time now to think these things through (in the old days it was all rushed scenarios and really didn't know what heck I was doing). My main concern though was coloring the sound which I was warned about by an old engineer friend of mine but if you are getting it to give good representation of your mixes then I'm assuming that will be a non issue.

It is a pretty sweet little board and I lucked out I think. I snagged it for around $300 a few years back and they seem to be EXTREMELY hard to find in the kind of condition this one is. I guess it had been used in a conference room or something and lived in a special box by the podium so it didn't get abused like it would have in a bar or rehearsal room. Just stiffs in suits blathering through a mic likely limited to one channel. Somebody went overboard on the gear purchase it seems. lol...

Thanks, dude.

I mean I'm concerned if I use the outputs on my interface to go into the Mackie then out to the monitors it might add some coloring. If it adds a touch of color to the consumer grade stuff like my stereos and low grade computer speakers that's no biggie because all that adds color anyway but for the reference monitors I'd like it to be as close to the original signal as possible. Not sure how much a mixer like this would add in a scenario like that.

You mentioned the line outs bypassing the gain staging. Perhaps using those would be preferable for this? I can control the monitor levels right on the Scarlett (I am SOOOO glad the Scarlett has a monitor level knob... very useful).

Cheers.

Hi, Mike. I forgot you had one of these. One option I was thinking of that's not really too much hassle is keeping the monitors hooked directly up to the Scarlett and then just have everything else hooked up to the mixer. Then when I'm ready to listen to stuff on the other systems it's just unplugging two cables.

I just had another thought and that's maybe using the Layla as the main interface with the Scarlett daisy chained to it then I'd have access to the full 8 outputs and could route to the monitors directly and to the mixer as well... but as I said I don't really trust the Layla to keep up to task. 

Alternatively I could have both interfaces set up the way I do now, have the Scarlett going directly out to the monitors and the Layla going out to the board. Then I'd just have to switch drivers when I wanted to use the board to output to.

I just wish the Scarlett had more outputs. That's my only real complaint about this device. 

Cheers, dude and thanks for popping in.

So was out shopping 

MAudio Interface

Hi Beep. You may know this but those insert points on the first 8 channels are rather interesting in how they work. If you insert a mono jack only part the way in, it clicks in nicely and you have 8 direct outs on those channels. Also if you use a stereo jack and insert all the way in but only wire to the return you can get a signal into that mixer and completely bypass the Mic Pre and the EQ stages. This allows a very direct flow from there to the main outputs without any colour being added anywhere.

Those mixers are very good and clean and transparent. The Mic Pres are also very usable and sound excellent. I have done many recordings using them when I had the unit. They are also very clean, quiet and transparent. Do not be afraid to use them. Do not listen to anyone who says they are no good, they are incorrect.

yes, those direct outs that Jeff is talking about is how I run my signals thru to the MOTU.  the 1/2 insert on the 1st 8 inputs. 

which is also why I have my MOTU input on 13 &14 - it's higher than those first 8 because I don't need direct outs on the MOTU output.