I've done it several different ways over the years. For the best gain structure, you should set your DAW faders to unity, set your console faders to unity, then use the console's line input trims to set the basic balances. Nobody does this, but it's the proper way to set-up the gain stucture on a console, just using the faders for moves.
I tend to start with the DAW faders at unity, as well as the drum and vocal console faders at unity (setting their levels with the input trims.) For guitar and bass I tend to do it "improperly", hammering the line inputs with too much gain and pulling the faders back. That's just for a starting static mix, after that I use the DAW faders for automated moves and the console faders for live trims.
So I guess my answer is to use them all for what their best for, and gain stage properly unless doing it "improperly" works better...