Comparison

PatchBoy vs Patch & I/O

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

PatchBoy

This app streamlines live sound setup by allowing users to visually build stage plots, generate input lists, and automate patching. It supports various band setups, console types, and stage box configurations, simplifying sound checks and exports.

Highlights
  • Drag-and-drop stage plot builder
  • Automated input list generation
  • Stage box and console patching
  • Smart microphone and DI library
  • Sound check progress tracking
  • Exportable PDF and CSV reports
  • Wireless and in-ear monitor management
Features
Read full description

PatchBoy is the stage plot that builds your input list and your patch as you go. Drag a vocal, an amp, a DI or a drum kit onto the stage and PatchBoy turns it into a numbered channel automatically. Drop a stage box where the rack sits and one tap patches every input to the nearest box, then to your FOH, monitor and broadcast desks. The stage, the list and the patch are the same document seen three ways, so they can never drift apart. BUILD THE STAGE • Drag-and-drop stage plot for iPhone and iPad • Start from a band template: full band, rock, worship, singer-songwriter, DJ, corporate AV • Real stage geography: drums upstage, vocals down front, wedges along the edge facing the band • Drum kit builder: explode a kit into 4-piece, 5-piece or full studio channels, named and mic'd GET THE INPUTS RIGHT • The input list builds and renumbers itself as you place and move sources • Drag to reorder, lock a channel so drums stay 1–8 when you add a vocal • Smart mic and DI library: a condenser auto-arms 48V, a dynamic clears it, ribbons get a phantom warning • Per-channel stand choice and notes • On iPad, see the stage and the input list side by side STAGE BOXES ON THE PLOT • Place SD-Racks, Rios, DL32s, Stage 64s, NSBs and more right where they live on stage • Each box shows inputs used against its real capacity • Auto-patch sends every input to the nearest box with a free input, then numbers desk channels 1:1 • Wedges, IEMs, subs and PA are outputs too, patched to box outputs with their own mix numbers KNOW YOUR CONSOLES • Library of about 110 consoles and 85 stage boxes: DiGiCo Quantum, SD and S-Series, Avid S6L, Yamaha RIVAGE, DM7, CL, QL and TF, Allen & Heath dLive, Avantis and SQ, Midas PRO, HD96 and M32, Behringer WING and X32, SSL Live, Lawo mc², Calrec, Soundcraft Vi and Si, PreSonus StudioLive, Waves LV1, QSC • FOH, monitor and broadcast desks on one show, with the split type (gain share, analog split, separate racks) • Live capacity check against real analog I/O and the desk's processing ceiling, plus a warning when a box and a desk don't share a transport SOUND CHECK • Mons, FOH and Truck each confirm every input independently • A progress bar and per-channel indicators show what's good everywhere and what's still hanging WIRELESS AND IN-EARS • Add IEMs and wireless mics and they collect into clean racks • Track brand, model, band and operating frequency per unit SHARE AND EXPORT • Export a clean multi-page PDF: stage plot, input list, input patch for every desk, output patch, stage boxes and RF sheet • Export CSV, including a channel-name file per desk for your console's naming tool • Hand a whole show to the crew with a short share code • Keep every show you've built and switch between them FREE AND PRO The drag-and-drop stage plot, input list, sound-check mode, RF racks and one saved show are free. PatchBoy Pro ($29.99/year) unlocks the console patch with the full desk and stage box library, auto-patch, output patch, unlimited shows, crew share, and PDF and CSV export. Auto-renewing annual subscription, cancel anytime in Settings. Your shows stay on your device. No accounts, no tracking. eighty32 — field tools for AV, RF & broadcast. ——— Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://patchboy.eighty32.com/privacy PatchBoy Pro is an auto-renewable annual subscription ($29.99/year or local equivalent). Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation and renews automatically unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the current period ends.

About

Patch & I/O

Features
Read full description

Input list, patchbay and stage plot in one app. Type the sheet and the signal flow diagram draws itself, and the app tells you when a mic that needs phantom is sitting on an input that cannot supply it. One show is one project. Fill in the channel sheet, lay out the patchbay, draw the stage plot, and print the paper you hand the crew — all in one app. ■ I/O LIST CH · SOURCE · PICK UP · STAND · REMARKS, the way the sheet looks on site. Live and recording need different columns, so they are separate kinds — recording shows PREAMP, INSERT and DAW TRACK as well. Mics and stands are counted by model into their own list. No counting when you pull gear from the store room. ■ WHAT IT CATCHES - A source that needs 48V phantom on an input that cannot supply it - Phantom reaching a ribbon mic or other gear it can damage - A speaker-level output going into a line input - The same channel number used on two rows - Connector families that do not mate, so an adapter is needed ■ SIGNAL FLOW The sources and mics you typed become the diagram. Identical models are merged and counted (x4), and tapping one channel follows just that path. Chains that do not fit a channel sheet — outputs and monitors, clock, power — are drawn by hand. Drag block to block to connect them, or draw the line with Apple Pencil. ■ PATCHBAY 24, 48 or 96 columns. Draw a segment and the jacks in that range get names and numbers; normalling is set per segment too — full normal, half normal, thru. Label strips print at actual size. That is the paper you cut and slide into the bay window. Jack pitch differs by model, so you measure and enter it, and the sheet carries a ruler mark to prove your printer did not scale the page. If it is not 100 mm, print again. Note: the default pitch (9.5 mm for a 48-point 1U bantam bay) is a reference value. Measure your own bay before printing. ■ STAGE PLOT Place, rotate and resize drums, amps, wedges and stands. Put things on risers, and attach channel numbers from the I/O list to any symbol. Draw the venue's standard layout once, then copy it for each show. You can mark it up with Apple Pencil (view-only on Mac). ■ ON PAPER I/O list, patchbay sheet, label strip, signal flow, stage plot — all export as PDF. Long channel counts split across pages, and when the inputs overflow they flow into two columns so you use less paper. ■ LEARN (ALL FREE) Photographs and pin tables for nine connectors: XLR, TRS, TS, bantam, RCA, Speakon and DB25. Cable wiring diagrams, and a practice mode where you connect the pins at each end yourself. The things that catch people out on site are written down — such as how to handle pin 3 (cold) in an insert Y-cable. ■ WHAT THE FREE VERSION DOES - Build and view every screen. No limit on channel count - Two each of: live projects, recording projects, patchbays, diagrams, stage plots - PDF export works (with a watermark) - All of Learn - iCloud sync is free too. Change devices and everything is still there The lifetime unlock removes the document limits and the watermark, and adds CSV import/export and actual-size label strip printing. It is not a subscription. Buy once, and it opens on your iPhone, iPad and Mac under the same Apple Account. ■ FROM THE MAKER Built to use on the job. If something is missing or wrong, tell me.

Screenshots

PatchBoy4 screens
Patch & I/O4 screens

Verdict

The call

PatchBoy and Patch & I/O are too close to call on the numbers: across 5 compared parameters — price, ads, in-app purchases and device support among them — neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. PatchBoy sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $29.99 per year and Patch & I/O sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ScorecardNo meaningful differences
PatchBoy versus Patch & I/O: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPatchBoyPatch & I/O
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.0 (2 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings2 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 months—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemium—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, Mac — better
Requires iOS17.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size1 MB6 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperChris DeBrizzioHYO SEOP LEE

In-app purchases

1 purchases

PatchBoy

Subscriptions1
  • PatchBoy Pro$29.991 Year
1 purchases

Patch & I/O

One-time1
  • Lifetime Unlock$11.99

Questions

Is PatchBoy free?
PatchBoy is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Patch & I/O free?
Patch & I/O is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do PatchBoy or Patch & I/O have ads?
Neither PatchBoy nor Patch & I/O shows ads.

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