[JoelG]

I don't believe the 8r works in standalone mode, no. Also, the SPDIF is 2 channel only, what you're looking for is an ADAT in/out which the 8r does not have.

"MIDI and S/PDIF Connector (MIDI S/PDIF) – The accompanying breakout cable connecting to this multi-pin jack provides MIDI input and output on 5-pin DIN connectors, and S/PDIF input and output on coaxial RCA connectors.

• When the Sync Source drop-down menu is set to “External” in the Control Panel, input channels 7 and 8 will receive their signal from the S/PDIF input instead of analog inputs 7/8.

• The S/PDIF output signal is identical to the output of Line Outputs 7/8.

• The S/PDIF output will also support pass-through of AC-3 or DTS encoded surround formats."

If you wan't to get 16 channels, you'll have to find another device that either has 16 pre's or an 8 pre with ADAT in.

Joel