Best patchbay configuration?

Hi there again, I am revolutionizing my home studio... As I just got a patchbay and a mackie 32.8... all is going to be moved around and I'd like some advice on how to best connect all together.

I have with me some outboard gear:

2 stereo compressors (dbx266xl and alesis3630)
1 mono compressor (joe meek VC1)
1 preamp/EQ (hughes kettner fortress)
1 stereo analogue filterbank (electrix filterfactory)

And a multieffect bank:

mini kaosspad



What I am trying to do, is to patch all the insert points from the mixer desk into the patchbay...actually not all of them but the submasters and master for a total of 10ins, and all the 6aux SND/RTN.

All the outboard gear too, on the other side of the patchbay, in a way that I can insert or send to aux, any comp, or filter or effect, chained in any order with each other into one or more channells of the desk, without having to rewire every time.

I understand that the patchbay can be set in many different ways (normal, half-norm, thru..) but I can't figure out which way is actually best for what I want to do... I guess a compressor has to be patched in a different way from a multieffect board, also the desk's insert points needs a different configuration..?

Does any of you have a patchbay in their studio and wishes to share their secrets?


To make it clear again... I'd like to connect about 10ins from the desk and all the outboards into the patchbay (48points fully customizable...), in order to later patch them from the front panel without get round the back and rewire all of it...
Hope my question is clear enough to be undertood, but i guess it shows what kind of messy idea I have in regards of it all...

Thanks in advance, any advice is really appreciated

you seem to be on the right track dont sweat it.
I use a patch bay and I suggest all you need to do is remember what it is that is patched. Come up with a convention that works and is easy to remember. So in other words if you know where it goes you can repatch quickly and easily from the front only and necver have to go to the back. So use a convention or just mark it with tape and pen. So above pair have I-DBX then next pair O-DBX and I/O SC DBX for side chain.
Some setups i have seen is that the top row in in and bottom row is out, i go across in pairs instead and it matches my rack so if i do not know what it patched at the back i just count the I/Os across that match the gear i want.

Thanks for the answer bliprock, I have been trying to get info online about it but anywhere there are sooo many different ways to look at it, that if I take all in consideration I end up messing up with my mind alltogether...!

I have seen so many posts on gearsluts forum, where all posts starts looking good but ends up with a total cat-fight!!! not very helpfull...

What I understand, is that a half normal settings aloud the signal to be split and sent in two different direction...good for parallel compression, but not so good if I need a full effected signal... also, I'd like to patch the submaster Ins 1to8, in order to fully compress subgroups of input signals from desk... Aux1to6, they send in mono and return in L+R to desk... Very confusing indeed, never had a patchbay... it is a total different cup of tea!

A normal setting would stop the signal from passing through TOPtoBOTTOM rear panel, and send through FRONT-Top where I need...

I just would like to be able to send the signal through a comp or the EQ and back "from the fron panel" into either another IN channel of the desk, or patch the filter or the effect through the AUX SND-RTN for the desk's track I need at the moment...

Very frustrating, but I'll get to sort it out sooner or later. I was just hoping to get a ready-steady answer from a somewhat "patchbay wizard"...

I was working with a much smaller mixer, just lately I got hold of this monster, I probably don't even really need a patchbay to start with...just need to find a way around. I am sure it is easyer than I am making it.

Thanks for your input, it is very much appreciated

http://www.tweakheadz.com/patchbay_setup.html


Tweak will set you straight. Get to reading, home chicken!



Nice setup, btw

WICKED!!!

Thanks a lot jonestown massacre, you just might have been the angel finally helping sorting out the "spaghetti western" I have been living in my studio... I guess I missed that page in my research online... Tomorrow is my last day holiday, hopefully I'll be sorted by today. The sooner the better, I won't have much time by next week to get near the studio, nevermind working on it!!!

My setup is nice, but it is now leading me to a grinding alt, too much food for thoughts I guess... I miss the times of my zoom sampletrack and a old casio keyboard, I used to make more music then!

Thanks a lot for the help, you guys make this forum so usefull, please keep sharing the knowledge!!!

Will let you know how I get on with it, if I don't turn raving mad in the process..

Peace

If the 32.8 has D/O's, I might consider using them to feed your outboard gear and return them into some open channels so you can get your parallel compression/side chaining on and have a quick A/B reference. The insert option would probably better for the kaoss pad and filter factory... All depends on how many channels are occupied with other gear, though.


Again, wiring up your gear all comes down to workflow and preference.

it'll help to draw diagrams of all your gear and wire it up on paper, and do this for a couple of differnt scenarios, just to check that your plan covers the major cases..