Anyone here have experience with the Soundtracs Topaz, mid format desks?

I just bought a soundtracs topaz project8 32 channel.... getting it from the seller sunday.... I was wondering if anyone has insights on these little desks apart from the internet comments that they sound great for a mackie sized non-modular desk and are pretty reliable other than the internal part of the PSU? I'm trying to get an idea just how flexible the routing is, I know its inline but just what can I get away with using the dual signal paths? Anyone say looping their tape direct outputs back to the monitor path's tape ins to mult their main channel? the original owner isn't using it the way I would, he seems pretty limited in his mixing, it seems like it was more an easy tracking desk for him in what I assume to be a mainly commercial voiceover business....

I've no experience with Soundtracs, but congrats on scoring one of these!

I've no experience with Soundtracs, but congrats on scoring one of these!

I'm really hoping to talk to someone who has used one for more than tracking, it seems like its a mackie-ized construction budget version of their jade or solitaire desk, the thing even had an automation package available at the time that no one sprung for... the guy's got the manual and service schematics so I guess I'll be sorting it out soon enough.... it was basically the only inline desk I could fit in my home studio that gave me more inputs, more auxes, similar EQ and 8 busses without sacrificing sound quality or entailing me selling a kidney or my first born... the only other direction I could go from here in my pricerange is a soundcraft saphyre (hard to find in full 8 bus).... I like those audient ASP desks, the new version with the output transformers and stuff, but man they're big and they cost almost as much as I typically make in a year when you start adding on the extra features.... at the base price you get a pretty barebones 24 channel desk and could easily get a trident 80b or C for less these days if you want to go back to a split format, anyway....

I'm trying to get a ghetto SSL signal flow going up in this joint while I have some time between paying gigs, see one of the coolest thing about the SSL desks with the short faders is that second path can be used to create a whole other mix that can be merged to the main output buss, not just sued to feed the studio or control room monitor path, this desk sort of does that, kinda, but unlike the SSL I don't think I can just assign the main line in to both paths which is annoying. I might have to loop the post fader tape out back into the tape return or soemthing weird like that with a bunch of little patchbay jumpers