Analog is only in 3dB steps from 0 to +24 dB. Anything above that (and any smaller step) is digital, and more importantly any attenuation below 0 dB is digital. So if you need negative gain to keep the signal below full scale, you will be recording a clipped signal, albeit one that is flattened off below full scale. (Some people report that -3dB recordings don't sound clipped...I think this has more to do with the DACs used on playback doing better playing a slightly clipped square wave that is at -3dB vs. a slightly clipped square wave at full scale.)