VOCALS THROUGH GUITAR PEDALS?LIVE? WHY NOT? A SMALL RANT ABOUT LIVE VOCAL EFFECTS….
Ever wondered why vocalists never usually have any pedals but guitarists have MILLIONS!??
It’s because guitarists (and especially bass players) are fantastic and deserve them and vocalists are not and do not. That’s not true. Vocalists don’t have pedals because they are allergic to music technology , the same reason why they never help load in gear or are usually only able to touch microphones (arguably the most simple and drop proof bit of music tech available).Ok, that’s only partly true.
“Vocalists don’t have pedals because they are allergic to music technology , the same reason why they never help load in gear or are usually only able to touch microphones…”
If it ain’t broke….
There are a number of legitimate reasons why vocalists don’t often use effect pedals live, most of it is probably because …
They are already happy enough with the sound of their own voice that they are willing to have it amplified and broadcast to tens, hundreds or thousands of people, so why change it?
Unlike a guitarist or bass player, the vocalist doesn’t have the same control over the final product as they do, most PA systems are unique (endless different models of amps/speakers/effect racks etc. contribute to this) as are sound engineers, and a vocalist controls neither.
Another good reason is that the ones they might want (compression, reverb and delay) are the most readily available on even a fairly mid-range sound desk/system these days.
However, having spent far too long trying to make what should have been a simple effects unit for a brass player (who wanted dub sounds, at certain parts of songs), I have found there are also probably more technical reasons why effects for anything that uses an XLR cable seem to be a bit thin on the ground…
And those reasons are…..
NOISE, the answer is NOISE, and FEEDBACK, and did I mention NOISE. If it uses a microphone it’s going to be putting out a weak signal. Microphones put out weak signals compared to guitars and other INSTRUMENT level gear, no matter how loud you scream into them. They have to be cranked up a lot to get to the same level as an instrument that uses a pickup or creates it’s sound digitally. So not only will it amplify any inherent noise found in the sound system and it’s various components but there’s also way more chance of feedback.
Anyone who has tried just plugging a mic direct into a guitar pedal (with just XLR to jack cables) has probably found both the noise and feedback problem occur when live onstage and surrounded by monitors. What is often fine in rehearsal spaces can be a real headache live on stage. If however you tried it and it went fine, please don’t let me know…..
The fact is a sound desk, which is designed to handle microphones that is controlled by an even vaguely competent sound engineer really is the most pragmatic, well tested solution. Assuming the tech knows (and has) the effects you want and knows when you want them on and by what extent. In reality, for most bands this is a bigger ‘IF’ than it sounds.
…in practice it seems most volume knobs on guitar gear are apparently painted on…
It’s just easier for guitarist…
Guitars are nice and loud, so guitar effects and preamps don’t have to worry as much about low level noise that occurs in all electrical systems compared to microphone preamps and a guitarist can control feedback by changing their position onstage, turning down their volume (theoretically they can, however in practice it seems most volume knobs on guitar gear are apparently painted on, judging by how much guitarists DON’T use them) or tweaking various settings. Also guitar feedback can add to certain performances. I’ve never heard vocal feedback be anything but disliked, strongly.
An early version of the ‘Wokecho’ Brass reverb and delay unit.
But there is a solution..
This is where adapters come in, like the one I’ve been working on for a while (though there are others out there, albeit not too many of them). …..
They utilise the phase cancellation technique of a sound desk to double the input volume while cancelling picked up noise and provide the correct impedance (don’t ask) for the microphone .
They boost the signal until it’s the same level as a guitar at least and fire it out through a jack cable (an unbalanced cable ) they then take the return signal from out of the effects pedals and convert that to one that can be used on the XLR inputs of a sound desk, and it can be switched on and off with a stomp, like any other good pedal.
Add a blend control in there and you can overcome some of the frequency limiting issues of a guitar pedal (don’t ask about that either, this post is long enough). Viola, a fighting chance of using the countless guitar effects pedals on anything with a microphone without lots of noise issues ruining your (and your friendly neighbourhood sound tech’s) day.
There are of course pedals for vocalists out there, a fair amount and some pretty good ones but no where near the number or range available to guitarists, which I personally, think is a bit of a shame.
The final prototype is due to be tested at various live events this summer and then hopefully a commercial version will be available later in the year. Thank you for reading and I hope you were amused and possibly even learnt something (though I’m not counting on it).