The information within your question is not really complete. The Mackie with the FireWire output already has the analog to digital converters built in! It allows you to go directly into the computer and directly to the hard disk. The mixer is still analog by nature with the additional converter and FireWire interface built in. Your other specification really isn't any different. It's an analog mixer with the analog to digital converters and computer interface separate from the board. Neither one is actually better than the other, just more compact and self-contained. It's your choice how much stuff you want to schlep or whether you think a larger format console may look physically more impressive to somebody else. All good engineers like to baffle their clients with bull shit. That's what really keeps us employed!

I have a 500 input console!
Ms. Remy Ann David

(Not really just more bull shit)

Well, your main problem in using the AI-3 is getting the audio into the computer. With the mackie, you've got a firewire interface. The AI-3 converts the analog signal into an ADAT digital format. You still need a way to get the ADAT audio into the computer.

If you have a way of doint that, the ultimate test would be to test the mackie with firewire....and then instead of using the firwire, use the mackie passing the audio out to the AI-3 then into the computer.

At any rate I guess this question is about which AD/DA converters are better and I don't know the answer to that.