EHX Voice Box or V256?

[Fluttershy]

I'm not sure which I want. Ideally both would make sense, but i don't know if I want to spend that much on something I may not use often(setting up Mic and Guitar/Synth can be awkward).

 

The Harmonys on the Voice Box could be useful but sound kind of fake to me. The V256 can do some neat stuff, though misses the Whistle sound which can get some good flutey sounds on guitar, which is neat.

 

How useful is the "Bands" knob? Are there some sound you can only get with 8/16 bands like some classic Vocoders? What would be best for getting Daft Punk kind of sounds? Everyone seems to try it with these boxes(first thing in most demos), but nobody nails it.

 

Which is better for doing cool sounds with JUST Vocals or JUST Guitar?

[Fender&EHX4ever]

I have both, but I havent explored the Vocoder at all yet.

 

The harmonies on the Voice Box required a lot of practice for me to get the hang of it. It is not going to sound natural, so I dont even bother going for something natural. Instead, I intend to use it for a more synthetic effect. It does that very well.

[sommy]

I have a V256, and yes, the bands knob is extremely helpful for dialing in the right tone. You might think that you'd only want to leave it on the maximum resolution of 256 bands at all times, but the effect becomes super resonant and midrange peaky at that resolution, at least for some sounds. I find myself using only about half of the bands most of the time. I typically use a Dave Smith Tetra as the carrier signal rather than the internal synth, as well, but that's another whole ball of wax.

 

You may also want to consider the Iron Lung if features aren't important to you. No bands control, but full 256 band resolution and waaaaaay cheaper. It's basically a cheaper, less feature-laden version of the 256.

 

I do happen to find the reflex tuning for using with ribbon synths like the Korg monotron. Super fun.

[Fluttershy]

The V256 sounds best so far. As long as you feed it chords it can do nice "harmony" too.