I was looking for some opinions as to what is the standard (or preferred) for effects on live vocals.In general are reverbs or delays better? Also, any particular settings that work well? I have an Alesis Midiverb 4 rackmount unit. Thanks for your opinions
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Effects on Vocals for live mixing
- Thread starter rockinront
- Start date
Great question! I was told and have found to be true that plate reverbs work best for live vocals. Adds ambience / depth without creating huge amounts of reverb "wash". I've been experimenting with the Lexicon FX on our Soundcraft mixer.
BTW, a reverb / chorus works well provided you don't overdo it.
Riis
BTW, a reverb / chorus works well provided you don't overdo it.
Riis
Mattew Bellamy from Muse uses a Line6 Pod on stage and in studio for his vocal effects. Must say, it works great for him.
As for effects, I know he uses quite a bit of reverb on the Absolution album and some use of flanger on the Black Holes & Revelations album particularly when he hits those epic falsetto notes. Lately, during live shows, he's known to use very light distortion too which adds great atmosphere.
Hope that helps in some way.
As for effects, I know he uses quite a bit of reverb on the Absolution album and some use of flanger on the Black Holes & Revelations album particularly when he hits those epic falsetto notes. Lately, during live shows, he's known to use very light distortion too which adds great atmosphere.
Hope that helps in some way.
I've making the assumption you're looking for a decent all-purpose, set-it-and-forget-it patch?
Riis
Yes, one or a couple of really good sounding patches for vocals that I could just dial in the number of the patch and not worry about adjusting the parameters on the fly. thanks
Thanks for the clarification. I'll stick with my original suggestion of plate reverb and/or chorus-reverb. I'm in the same boat....novice with sound reinforcement and running sound from stage. Headphones are handy for initially setting reverb regen., chorus speed and the like but this doesn't always translate well when pumping the finished product into a room.
I would like to hear from others re: using delays so as not conflict with room characteristics (reflection, etc.).
Riis
ime it depends on the needs of the music.
certain styles call for certain sounds...
rockabilly acts generally tend to like slap delay on their vocals, for example.
how useful effects like reverb can be vary greatly, depending on the acoustics of the environment....
you might be better off getting a dry, precise mix in a really cavernous room (like an old church).
worst thing i've dealt with lately are the tc vocal fx pedals...
dealt with 3 at a gig last night.
putting a cheap pre in front of a cheap pre in a regular bar beater mixer
is just a bad idea, and combined with poor bedroom settings on the users part can create some seriously bad sound quality and gain/ eq issues.
less is more, unless you are doing a dub mix -which is what i'm generally employed to do...
so i get to incorporate analog delays with feedback, looping, different verbs, kaoss pad etc. on vocals as well as the band...
trick is, just like has been stated before, it should be a part of the music and add to it, not distract from it.
certain styles call for certain sounds...
rockabilly acts generally tend to like slap delay on their vocals, for example.
how useful effects like reverb can be vary greatly, depending on the acoustics of the environment....
you might be better off getting a dry, precise mix in a really cavernous room (like an old church).
worst thing i've dealt with lately are the tc vocal fx pedals...
dealt with 3 at a gig last night.
putting a cheap pre in front of a cheap pre in a regular bar beater mixer
is just a bad idea, and combined with poor bedroom settings on the users part can create some seriously bad sound quality and gain/ eq issues.
less is more, unless you are doing a dub mix -which is what i'm generally employed to do...
so i get to incorporate analog delays with feedback, looping, different verbs, kaoss pad etc. on vocals as well as the band...
trick is, just like has been stated before, it should be a part of the music and add to it, not distract from it.
i hate those goddamn things!
it's always the lead singer who uses them, so i end up with crystal-clear backing vocals and lost, mushy, feedback-y lead vocals
those boxes have a dry out, and i've taken to plugging in an extra-secret vocal line into that dry out when the band isn't looking, so i can have a "good" vocal channel to use if needed.
i find for a general set-and-forget vocal effect, a little delay works better than reverb. just enough that you notice when it's gone while singing, and you should be set up to cut it off between songs for stage banter.
Hi.
+100 for the "it depends of the situation".
It's been a while since I used Midiverb as our current mixers have inbuilt (so-so) FX units, but small hall (8 or 16 on MV II ?) was the patch that was the "standard".
Unless the channel (patch-point) you return the wet to the mix has EQ capabilities, the choice is pointless IMHO/IME, it'll sound bad in any case.
Regards
Sam
+100 for the "it depends of the situation".
It's been a while since I used Midiverb as our current mixers have inbuilt (so-so) FX units, but small hall (8 or 16 on MV II ?) was the patch that was the "standard".
Unless the channel (patch-point) you return the wet to the mix has EQ capabilities, the choice is pointless IMHO/IME, it'll sound bad in any case.
Regards
Sam
Thanks very much to everyone who responded. I appreciate all the input and words of advice. Keep Rockin'
