“I’m confused, what’s the difference between the patch bays that have 1/4″ inputs that I see everywhere, and the kind that I’ve seen that have really small connectors?”
For today’s answer we go to Paul Rowan, one of Sweetwater’s newest Sales Engineers.
I suspect that you’re not the only person who has wondered this. The significant difference is the size. The smaller size is known as TT (Tiny Telephone) or Bantam. The names are interchangeable today (consult the respective entries in the WFTD archives for more detail). You tend to find TT patch bays in larger professional settings because the typical big studio has a greater need (and budget) for a higher quantity of patch points than project studios. Today, a 1/4″ patch bay (larger than the TT style) typically has 48 patch points, while a TT patch bay typically has 96. Space can be at a premium in studios, so the more patch points in a smaller space the better. TT patch bays are usually balanced and are hard wired or have 25 or 37 pin D-Sub or Elco type connectors in groups of 8 or 12 points than input and output with balanced snakes. 1/4″ patch bays can be unbalanced (TS) or balanced (TRS) and usually have matching 1/4″ connectors on the back. Oh yeah, another difference is price. More patch points in less space means a higher price, but many users are willing to pay for the convenience and efficiency of a TT patching system. The same balanced signal can pass through a 1/4″ TRS patch bay that can be passed through a balanced TT patch bay with the same result, assuming that all of the components are of equal quality (i.e. patch bays, patch cables, input/output cabling). As I originally stated, the significant difference is in the smaller, more convenient and efficient size of a TT patch bay.