Patch bay

[EdJames]

Very newbie question:-

What is a patch bay? What does it do?

 

[Creamyapples1]

You can plug all of the ins and outs of all of your rack gear to the patchbay so you can route and re-route your signals from one centralized location without having to get behind the rack and unplug it all, and redo it everytime you want to change the way it's all setup.

 

[EdJames]

So would you agree that it's a bonus to have as opposed to being a piece of equipment you'd need?

 

[ssscientist]

If that short list is all the gear you have right now then it's not something you need right away.

 

[Dr Biscuits]

Yes, it's more of a 'luxury' item in terms of requirements, especially if you only have a couple pieces of gear....
Now, on the other hand, if you're running a studio with several rooms that all need to have access to the same racks and racks of equipment, it becomes a little more necessary...