a simple fx pedal for live vox-does it exist?

[dontouch]

Is there a vox pedal that does simple things like delay/verb/chorus and only has like 0-3 presets and also pleases FOH?

I really can't stand all these fancy big bricks that come with "autotune". Looked into TC-Helicon but wasn't too impressed with the design.

Is it better to do the splitter+mixer/preamp+gt. stompbox thing? But then it's annoying to carry all that sh*t around vs. just having one pedal for vocal.

[GlowSounds]

...and also pleases FOH?

Unfortunately, I don't think FOH is ever really pleased with onstage effects for vocals, regardless of device.

[curtiswyant]

the guy in Tame Impala uses a Boss VE-20
http://www.bossus.com/gear/productdetai ... uctId=1043

[chris harris]

...and also pleases FOH?

Unfortunately, I don't think FOH is ever really pleased with onstage effects for vocals, regardless of device.

If you've got your stuff dialed in, and gain staged correctly, any near-competent engineer should be able to deal with it. But, that's a big "if". It's definitely best to dial it in and test it on a live PA rig.

[Snarl 12/8]

When I was a kid there was a sound company in my town who's hallmark was that they always gave the lead singer a foot pedal s/he could stomp that would trigger an effect (usually echo/delay). The effect was controlled back at the board. I wonder if a rig could be created where you'd give the FOH guy a small unit to patch into their effects send/return and you'd commandeer a mic send or return trs channel on the snake to send the foot pedal signal through. Then FOH could control feedback, keep the effect out of the monitors, etc. and the singer could control the when and where. You'd give the FOH guy a track sheet that told them which preset to use on which songs. I can't imagine any FOH guy I ever met (including me, when I did FOH) that would wanna switch around the patching on their system before and after your set like that, but maybe it could be done. Maybe part of the rig is a little dispenser with a choice of bribes (beer, weed, etc.) for the FOH person. The best would be if you rigged it so that if they walked through the presets in the right order, at the end of the gig a little cash drawer would pop open on the effects unit with a $20 in it for the guy. Kuh-ching?!

[GooberNumber9]

It's not so much gear that will make a sound guy happy or unhappy, it's how you interact with the engineer(s) with respect to the gear. If you show up early for sound check, discuss the item with the engineer(s), try it out during sound check, take any advice given about tweaking the levels, and most especially comply with any recommendation to not use the equipment that night and let the engineer(s) give you some reverb and delay, etc., then I doubt you'll upset anyone.

As a backup, bring an extra easily-readable copy of the set list and put some notes like "250 ms delay vox" next to the songs where you want a special effect or two, then you can fall back to having the engineer goose your mix a little if the vox effect you have is not playing nice with the rest of the signal chain.

Actually, as a former sound guy, having a set list with big type and notes on who is singing lead or if there is a bass solo would be a great way to make the sound guy happy. If you understand the challenges and try to help everyone make it a great show, the engineer(s) in question should jump on board and be happy to gain stage your effects as well as possible.

[chris harris]

To me, the gear is important in that it helps make a good first impression with the engineer. If you appear to have put some thought into doing things properly, you'll get off on the right foot with the engineer. Things have changed a lot in the last few years. Just a few years ago, there were maybe two or three devices that were made expressly for live vocal effects. You'd get a lot more resistance in those days because most people were just using improperly connected and gain-staged guitar pedals for vocal effects. I did FOH then and it was a nightmare.

But, now, there are tons of effects boxes made specifically for vocals, and also some great products that facilitate using using guitar pedals more effectively. And, these days, LOTS of bands use effects like this. I'd guess that FOH engineers that work frequently probably see these things several times a week. I'd be shocked to encounter any resistance to the use of a properly dialed in vocal effect processor.

But, it's imperative to test your rig in a real world situation, on a PA that's similar to the kind you'll likely be performing with. Some effects (even those included in vocal processors) are more likely to give the FOH engineer trouble. Vocal distortions, compression, delays with excessive "feedback" settings, huge verbs, etc... Those things are best left to the FOH engineer. But, for a little verb, chorus, slap back, etc., you should be just fine if you've got it dialed in.

[dontouch]

When I was a kid there was a sound company in my town who's hallmark was that they always gave the lead singer a foot pedal s/he could stomp that would trigger an effect (usually echo/delay). The effect was controlled back at the board. I wonder if a rig could be created where you'd give the FOH guy a small unit to patch into their effects send/return and you'd commandeer a mic send or return trs channel on the snake to send the foot pedal signal through. Then FOH could control feedback, keep the effect out of the monitors, etc. and the singer could control the when and where. You'd give the FOH guy a track sheet that told them which preset to use on which songs. I can't imagine any FOH guy I ever met (including me, when I did FOH) that would wanna switch around the patching on their system before and after your set like that, but maybe it could be done. Maybe part of the rig is a little dispenser with a choice of bribes (beer, weed, etc.) for the FOH person. The best would be if you rigged it so that if they walked through the presets in the right order, at the end of the gig a little cash drawer would pop open on the effects unit with a $20 in it for the guy. Kuh-ching?!

lol this made my day! But I think the bribing should be done b4 the set...

[dontouch]

It's not so much gear that will make a sound guy happy or unhappy, it's how you interact with the engineer(s) with respect to the gear. If you show up early for sound check, discuss the item with the engineer(s), try it out during sound check, take any advice given about tweaking the levels, and most especially comply with any recommendation to not use the equipment that night and let the engineer(s) give you some reverb and delay, etc., then I doubt you'll upset anyone.

As a backup, bring an extra easily-readable copy of the set list and put some notes like "250 ms delay vox" next to the songs where you want a special effect or two, then you can fall back to having the engineer goose your mix a little if the vox effect you have is not playing nice with the rest of the signal chain.

Actually, as a former sound guy, having a set list with big type and notes on who is singing lead or if there is a bass solo would be a great way to make the sound guy happy. If you understand the challenges and try to help everyone make it a great show, the engineer(s) in question should jump on board and be happy to gain stage your effects as well as possible.

Totally.

[dontouch]

To me, the gear is important in that it helps make a good first impression with the engineer. If you appear to have put some thought into doing things properly, you'll get off on the right foot with the engineer. Things have changed a lot in the last few years. Just a few years ago, there were maybe two or three devices that were made expressly for live vocal effects. You'd get a lot more resistance in those days because most people were just using improperly connected and gain-staged guitar pedals for vocal effects. I did FOH then and it was a nightmare.

But, now, there are tons of effects boxes made specifically for vocals, and also some great products that facilitate using using guitar pedals more effectively. And, these days, LOTS of bands use effects like this. I'd guess that FOH engineers that work frequently probably see these things several times a week. I'd be shocked to encounter any resistance to the use of a properly dialed in vocal effect processor.

But, it's imperative to test your rig in a real world situation, on a PA that's similar to the kind you'll likely be performing with. Some effects (even those included in vocal processors) are more likely to give the FOH engineer trouble. Vocal distortions, compression, delays with excessive "feedback" settings, huge verbs, etc... Those things are best left to the FOH engineer. But, for a little verb, chorus, slap back, etc., you should be just fine if you've got it dialed in.

Yeah. Thank god we're not in the 2k era anymore!

Venues like house shows, bookshops, dive bars and lounges usually don't have a FOH or a PA w/ built-in fx. A vocal pedal will be totally necessary..especially if it's part of the band's sound. I guess for big venues I just have to either let the FOH do his thing or, use the mic splitter box. Hopefully I won't be hated for taking up 2 channel for vocal.

[chris harris]

I use a cheap digitech vocal processor at bigger venues on nice PA rigs all the time.

[inasilentway]

You guys, finally Radial has solved this problem with their Voco Loco.

One-stop shop. Go XLR in straight from the mic, plug pedals into the send/return loop, go DI level out into the board.

I have been waiting YEARS for someone to make this commercially. The Boss and TC units all have serious compromises in the quality of FX and quality of bypass. Now when people ask I can recommend this. One friend already placed an order so she can use her Way Huge Aquapuss for vocals.

[kayagum]

A cautionary tale from a hyped locally based band:

With plenty to look forward to, the band members laughed at some of the more humbling experiences back when they first hit the road.

?We would hear stuff like, ?You use a Helicon?! I hate those things,? ?

?Yeah, and, ?Two drummers?! What the ? ?!? ?

?I hope you guys brought an extra bass-drum mic, because I only got one.?

[MisterMark]

Don't know about an all in one solution but if you are going to use a stomp box or two this is the way to go:

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The Revival Electric Synapse pedal won't totally eliminate feedback... but it can help as it properly matches impedance between the mic and the pedals which will improve gain structure and will therefore reduce feedback potential. It also lets you blend in some of the dry signal too which with certain effects might help reduce the possibility of feedback.

The Synapse is a great little device and from what I've seen it's the best solution hands down for using a mic with stomp box effects, especially for live situations. With an on/off bypass switch for the effects loop, variable mix control, ground lift and proper impedance matching, how can you go wrong? You can also get an upgraded version with a +6 db boost knob for the effects loop.

http://revivalelectric.com/
_________________

[Scodiddly]

What makes a live sound engineer twitch is when an artist brings in something that might screw up the performance, and by its nature (effects, for instance) cause said engineer to get blamed for the problem.

What I'd suggest is having an option for the live engineer to have some safety/fallback control over the effects stompbox. Even just a Y-cable at the mic input, so that the mixer gets a nice effected signal but also the raw output of the vocal mic on a different channel.