Zack Wylde style vocals

[Jamie Carr]

Can anyone tell me how people like Zack Wylde get that strange sound.
I'd like to put those "dark" sounding vox in my stuff,...but I don't know how its acheived. Is it just double tracked? Or is it a certain type of effect process.
I've been looking at some vox processors,...but I'm still undecided. My budget is about $700,.....anyone reccommend a good vox rack? I'd kinda like one with harmonizer,...and some other good effects for modern sounding Metal/Alternative vox.

 

[Vullkunnraven]

I've listened to an album of his, and even heard him live at Ozzfest, but I still do not feel incredibly qualified to answer this, in terms of being a die-hard listener to his music or anything. HOWEVER, one thing I did notice, is less is more in regards to his vocal effects. I don't think he over-doses on it, but I do hear him use a vocal flange a lot. Some of the lower, darker stuff, it's just him doing some vocal over dubs in the studio... he already sings em low, but i wouldn't be suprised if they ran it through a harmonizer or pitch-shifter and lower down even more. Also, I think he uses a talk-box here and there. I cud be wrong, but to my ears at the live show, that distorted, wah-wahing voice, sounds like a talk-box to me. It's very popular in heavy music vocals; listen to Godsmack's "I Stand Alone" and compare that to the Peter Frampton stuff of the 70's (70's right? Sorry, before my days). Frampton used it more melodically, whereas these metal vocalists use it to sound darker, more machine-esque.

In conclusion, I do not think one effects box or one plug-in alone will achieve everything. Wylde's vocal style is a culmination of many factors; his voice, the music behind it, and a vast arsenal of gear at his disposal. But check out TC Helicon or Antares which both have plug-in and rackmount stuff for vocal effects. My personal beef with multi-effects units are that some 'patches' sound good, others sound bad, but none sound GREAT. So I would recommend stretching that $700 budget across the board, instead of into one single multi-unit, if possible.