I have an Allen Heath Heath ICE16 that can do field recording (without a DAW) of 16 tracks, but that is a rather complicated setup because I have to bring a big mixer for the preamps.  And I have a Zoom H4N, which is outstanding for doing stereo or 4-track recordings.  But in 4-track mode, 2 of the tracks are from the on-board stereo pair, so that isn't very flexible.  I'm probably going to spring for a Zoom R24, which will record 8 separate mics simultaneously without any extra equipment.  That will take care of just about anything I plan to do by way of live recording.
 
I see lots of posts here about the R24 as an audio interface.  I'm not really interested in that because I already have an OK setup for audio interface directly into SONAR.
 
I might want to use it as a control surface though.  I realize the R24 does not have motorized faders and has minimal other controls.  I'm just wondering if anybody ever uses the R24 for this purpose, or is it not worth the trouble?
 
This isn't a deal-breaker for me because I would buy it for its field recording capabilities in either case.  I'm just wondering if it has any real value as a control surface.

As a control surface it is tiny. The faders are not long throw and are very short. I wouldn't get it just to be a controller. You could get motorized faders for the same money.
The price is very good for what you get. But what is the latency like?
I haven't used one so don't know how good the preamps and converters are.
Can it do 8 tracks at 96k over usb. I doubt it.
Generally the all in one versatile boxes don't do any of them well.
Zoom has a proven track record. And the price is good so if it does it all even not to well
it still might be HANDY
 

BJN
Can it do 8 tracks at 96k over usb. I doubt it.

I have no idea.  I don't plan to use it as an audio interface.  However, I have pretty good success with the preamps on the Zoom Handy H4n.  I assume the R24 has the same preamps (or superior) as the Handy recorder.  There is a bit of noise, but as a matter of routine, I always run live recordings through Izotope RX3 to clean up any steady state low level noise that comes from the mics, the preamps, or the room.