My friends and I are starting a band and it’s the first time for all of us. Right now we’re just playing in a basement and figuring things out. We just got a mic and quickly realized vocals sound BAD without reverb and possibly other effects that are unknown to me. What should I get to make the vocals sound decent? Also probably need help on how to set up the signal chain. Right now the mic is plugged directly into a Roland KC-550.
Also, recommend some bass pedals that won’t make me homeless if I buy them. I currently just have a P-Bass going into an Ampeg RB-108.
I usually route vocals into a vocal fx channel and make that channel 100% “wet”. This is so the unchanged vocal and the fx volumes can be changed independently. Typically I would use EQ and compression on the dry channel, then delay and reverb on the FX channel. Delay can be subtle or it can be very, very loud depending on what you want stylistically.
Dry means no FX, wet means effects only. Sometimes people will set the wet/dry slider to a number in the middle and have it all on one channel, but I don’t like that because in that case, you lower the dry volume every time you increase the wet volume. A separate fx channel doesn’t have that problem.
Delay is like if you clap in a big empty hallway with flat walls and you hear the clap again some fraction of a second later. It’s a direct echo bouncing off the wall. Rockabilly is a genre that is known for having a very loud, apparent delay effect on the vocals. Other genres also use delay, but quieter so you wouldn’t notice unless you’re listening for it. See below for an example of delay
Reverb is the decay of a more complex echo as it becomes less distinct and blends together with itself. Like a sound reverberating in a cathedral or a concert hall. Although the reverb can be in a room of any size.
Here is an example of what delay sounds like when it’s loud at two different delay times: https://youtu.be/FuStmPbG528
I found a YouTube link in your comment. Here are links to the same video on alternative frontends that protect your privacy:
Help me with setting this up in my mind. I’m looking at a picture of a Yamaha MG10XU. Mic goes into channel 1 and then crank FX knob? How do you split the wet and dry channels?
Also found an Allen & Heath ZED-10FX on craigslist for cheaper
That stuff is for a DAW program (or a larger, more complex mixer), if you don’t have internal sends you can’t do it live. In-channel fx are fine for live and there is typically a separate FX knob anyway, which won’t change the volume of the dry signal. On that mixer, you won’t experience the problem I was describing because there isn’t a wet/dry knob, there is a gain knob and a fx knob that don’t affect one another. Sorry, I wrote that before understanding this was a DIY live situation.
If you felt the need for off-board FX, you could use the FX send with a patch cable, then after the pedal put it back into another channel. You won’t need to do that in most situations.
The zed10fx seems to have aux levels in addition to the gain and fx knobs. This can be useful because the aux send can be used as a monitor mix which can differ from the main speaker mix (if you have a monitor). Seems a bit more versatile in that sense.
If it’s all DIY, a mixer will be good to have. If you are performing at a venue with a sound person, they will handle it and you can just plug your mic cable into their system and tell them what you want (typically just a bit of reverb).