Lesson 5 Patch Bay and Signal Flow - Posted on 2012-11-01 by Joey Greco

Date: 9/28/2012
Time in: 10:00 am
Time out 5:00 pm

Today's lesson examined the usage and function of patch bays. What I learned about patch bays was that they operate very similarly to a signal relay station. A source (e.g. microphone) is sent to the patch bay which is then sent to a preamp, then patched into any other signal processors if needed, then patched into pro tools in a specific channel. I found that because this is a sequential task, having a list is the best way to overcome frustration and confusion. I also learned that the patch bay Rax Trax uses is normalled, meaning that it's I/O is electrically connected and depending on which signal (top or bottom) is broken, either the output signal passes or the input signal passes.
In other sources that need to be routed, I discovered that you can run a guitar signal through multiple processors. For example you can patch it into a compressor then into a limiter or then into an EQ. I found this to be very interesting, as I previously thought that all the effects of signal processors occur during mixdown. One last thing that is worth noting is how to send premix and prefader signals to multiple headphones during an ensemble or orchestra recording. My mentor told me this is the smartest way to have your client hear what they are recording without interrupting the signal. Engineers will tend to work on a premix during recording, but you don't want your client to hear changes in levels during this process.