Multiple mic pres and patching mics.

Up to now, I never had issues in setting up different mics to different mic pres.  I have a breakout snake that runs into my booth and it has 8 XLR inputs and 4 - 1/4" TRS inputs.  I kept the 8 - XLR inputs plugged into channels 1 - 8 of my mixer.  The XLR inputs on the mixer are on top and are fairly easy to get at, if a bit messy with clutter.  If I needed a mic in the control room, I simply plugged in straight to the board on one of the remaining channels. 
 
I've added a extra mic pre at a time and the XLRs are on the back.  Now if I want to change a mic line I have to crawl behind the desk (not so easy) or dedicate a loose mic cable to each pre (4) and keep them all sorted out.
 
I'm thinking about some sort of patch bay where I can have XLRs on the back side with 1/4" TRS jacks on the front where I can patch them with TRS cables.  I figure that I will have to be very careful to turn off phantom power if I pull a patch cord.  Or I could find or build something that will rout all the XLR connections to the front of my rack which again will be messy.
 
 
Who is dealing with this in a satisfactory method and would like to advise me on a course of action.  I want something neat and quick to patch.
 
EDIT: From my research, the idea about going from XLR to 1/4" TRS is bad JuJu.  Phantom power won't work.  Looks like moving the XLRs to the front via a XLR m to XLR f is the only option. 

BTW, if you ever decide you want to go this route, misterpatchbay.com is the go to guy. He lives in Fort Worth and I was able to have him give me the lowdown on how to set it up after I purchased it from him. Bob is a piece of work!

mike_mccue


I still don't use a patchbay, but I'd love one.

I simply make it real easy to get to the back of my racks. I mix and match rack modules (I have lots of 4U and 6U SKBs that I stack into systems) all the time so it's impractical to go the extra mile and set up a real patch bay.

I use rear plates on my bigger in/out count racks that have the connectors easily available and the wires inside the rack are all minimally short so it's easy to get inside if necessary.


I dream of someday having everything going to a normaled bay, but I'm not ready to face the idea that the gear will not be as easy to yank and roll.

Agreed.  There's not much "yank and roll"-ablity when you have everything plugged into a master patch bay.  I used to be big on patchbays but as I progressed to a ITB DAW, I started relegating the patchbays to rack spacer duties.
 
I may have to drag out the tubs of 1/4" x 8 ch snakes and see if my old patchbays aren't too corroded to work again.

It certainly makes sense to not have everything tied to a patchbay if you're going to always be moving gear in and out of your studio. Prolly be easier to just keep plugging/unplugging in the back. I misunderstood thinking you had outboard gear to slap in the signal chain.

Having said that, the cost of cabling wasn't too painful as I bought a nice piece of snake cable all the connectors I needed and did the solder work myself. HOWEVER...! Trust me the soldering an wiring is not for the faint of heart. Very labor intensive but very satisfying to know I can connect my gear in configureation I choose.

TT cables are not super cheap but I consider it a drop in the bucket of overall cost of doing business. YMMV.

Here's what you'll be looking at if you go full bore.

http://www.studiofifty-five.com/GRAPHICS/wiring.jpg 

http://www.studiofifty-five.com/GRAPHICS/punchdown.jpg 

I think that the best thing is to get one simple, straight through XLR patch bay to use just for pre-amp inputs only, So they are just bringing the pre-amp XLR inputs around to the front and they just go straight through from front to back with no options. Then do everything else through a regular patch bay of your chosen type.

And learn to use a soldering iron and make your own cables and you'll saves thousands of dollars.

And DO NOT buy a soldering gun! Get a nice solder station.I have a Weller digital solder station and it's rock solid.

I have a Weller WD1001. Around $300 street.
  

I just ordered this Hakko Soldering Station, FX-888 on amazon. Just got here on Saturday, but I've been too busy to get it set up. Hopefully tonight I can get it set up and the rest of the tools come soon so I can get to modding some mics I have. http://www.amazon.com/dp/...1431760_C1_cs_sce_dp_3

FYI - good info for patchbays and phantom power http://www.uneeda-audio.com/phantom/