Could you use a guitar pedalboard for vocals?

Z

zenpeace69

New member
If so, how would you do it? Would you run it after a mic preamp and into a USB interface? I will be using a firebox, so I would use the line level inputs after the mic preamp. My goal would be for some lo-fi vocals with fuzzes, delays, reverbs and such.

Has anyone done this with any success? I have so many cool pedals on my board. I just wonder if I could use them on vocals, too.
 
Absolutely my friend. One thing to remember when you are recording and trying to be creative at the same time is, There are no rules. I've done a lot of vocals that way. I've used a POD, many pedal boards and COSM amp modeling that Roland makes. So basically, if you can get it all hooked up right, do it and try it out. just mess around with the controls a little bit till you get the sound you want. Just run your mic like you normally would to your interface, except just patch in the pedal.

Good luck,

Zeke Sayer
http://www.myspace.com/factnotfiction2
 
yes sir i too do it all the time. There are some stomb boxes with mojo that needs to be pread throughout the spectrum. I tend use the insert on a certain pre i have and use a insert cable to loop my stomp effects. If you don't have inserts you could run the stomp boxes inbetween you preamp and your converter. I have a ce-2 with the keeley hi fi mod. It does cool things with vocals.
 
I guess my question would be, why would you want to?

If you are looking for effects, you obviously have software. The effects there would be better than using a line level stomp box to run your mic through. Since you already stated that you have a pre amp, I'd just use that.
 
Thanks for the responses.

I guess I just want to be creative with the stuff I have. I'm sure I could find plugins and stuff, but I have some weird stuff on my board that you would never find in a plugin. To be specific, I have an SD-1 overdrive that I circuitbent. It does all kinds of weird things toa signal that is put through it. I am dying to hear what it would do to vocals. Plus, I am thinking I could get some really cool lo-fi sounds through my pedalboard without having to layer a bunch of plugins onto the track itself.
 
Rokket said:
I guess my question would be, why would you want to?

If you are looking for effects, you obviously have software. The effects there would be better than using a line level stomp box to run your mic through. Since you already stated that you have a pre amp, I'd just use that.
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:confused: How would the plugin effects be better than using a stompbox through a pre? Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against software and I routinely screw with vocals in Reaktor... but sometimes you want to get that Daddy-O sound ;) One is not better than the other... just different ;)

Yah man! Go for it. I too use some stompboxes as inserts like gcapel. Good stuff!
 
I've got great results with a mic into BOSS DD3 into Ibanez Stereo Chorus, output to 2 inputs on the mixer, panned at 9 o'clock and 3 o'clock.
Set the DD3 settings at all 9 o'clock
The Chorus set at 10 o'clock and 2 o'clock.

The Ibanez Stereo Chorus is THE BEST chorus I ever used.
Ibanez discontinued it, but have re-released it this year.
It's THAT GOOD. Very warm sounding. I find the Boss versions thin out the sound.
 
You absolutely can. One thing to consider though...I don't know if you're planning on using this in a live situation or not, but remember if you are, you're taking control out of whomever is mixing the show. May effect your gain before feedback as well if you're making changes during songs.
 
Sure, why not. If you want a specific effect, especially an analog effect, you're not gonna get that with plugins.

Hell, you can even go beyond a pedalboard. I worked on a recording a couple years ago where we wanted a distorted vocal sound on certain parts. we wound up using a bullet harp mic through a miked-up marshall amp. It came out sounding killer :D
 
i'd say yeah definitely. if you check out some of the mars volta stuff, especially live stuff you'll see cedric's mic going through all sorts of delays and mod boxes which he controls himself from a small little pedalboard that's on a table for him to twiddle with while he sings. and it works :) i'd suggest just try it out, go for new sounds, experiment. best way to learn is always to try everything out.
 
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