Dude,
Try to clarify as I have pretty much the same setup, and may be of help. You can't record thru your Mac if it's not on.
You can play thru your 896 without the comp. on. Just use the monitor level and volume on the 896 front panel . I think the problem is that you are running your outs of the 896 into the G4 and if the G4 is off, so is your signal.....Lou
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Lou