vocal effects unit advice

Looking for recommendations for a simple vocal effects unit in a stomp box type setup that can be used for live sound. i just need the basics: delay, chorus, phasor, simple eq, reverb. i need to be able to program some presets, dial through them quickly and be able to bypass the whole thing with as well, just like a guitar stomp box.

I'd like to spend between 200 and 300 bucks.

Thanks in advance,

Thee Abomination

TC Helicon Voice Live 2

I've just been looking over the info and it sounds like a good match for your needs. Might be looking into one for Christmas....

yes the TC Helion looks very cool and TC is a quality company.

there are a bunch of clips on youtube demoing it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smlnco1e27Y

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eStBx-DLRUk&feature=related

man that's cool.

however, be sure you don't use it to screw the entire song up like this guy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UCUEl9atmE

But the OP said $200-300. The VoiceLive 2 is more in the $800 range. The TC Helicon Voicetone Create pedal would be more in the range. If you want the compression and tone effects (don't under-estimate how valuable this stuff is, even if it's not sexy like reverb, delay, etc.) add the Voicetone Correct--$500 for both.

You can get lite versions of both pedals together in the Harmony-G, but you'll also get the harmonizer. Even if you don't need the harmonizer the best parts of the Create and the Correct are available in this $250 pedal.

TC Helicon makes good stuff.

http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-TC-HELICON-VOICELIVE-2-VOICE-LIVE-II-VOCAL-PEDAL-/310257215160?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item483cc566b8

$500

maybe you could just go for the VoiceLive version 1

http://shop.ebay.com/?_from=R40&_trksid=p3907.m570.l1313&_nkw=voicelive+-2&_sacat=See-All-Categories

The reason there's a Voice Live 2 is because the Voice Live 1 was VERY difficult to use. Its also the reason its selling for so little on Ebay and it has a warranty. Nobody wants it. That could be a clue. :poke:

Mike T.

i agree but sometimes you gotta settle on a clunker before you can afford the cadillac tho

I agree. I owned the Voicelive I and I quickly unloaded it--way too difficult to use, huge learning curve. The sounds are good, but consider buying this thing only if you live to tweak.

I have no experience with the Voicelive II, but the fact that it is now $200-300 cheaper on eBay (new) would give me pause. Such a steep discount doesn't bode well. And, for the record, the eBay price referenced above isn't $500 but $599.

A lot of units are difficult to program. My wife just got a new car stereo and it took me a few minutes to find the FM tuner.... Ever try a POD X3 Live?

The units I have bought have all had user-defined presets. I build maybe 10 different favorites and use those. I use those pretty much all the time. I find live you can't spend time playing with footswitches and knobs. Even at home I want to get to it right away.

having tried many of them, i would bypass anything marketed as a "vocal effect stompbox or processor". even the tc helicon voicetone stuff. usually these things incorporate their own gain structure which, in my experience, always made them unusable in live sound situations (as they end up overloading or conflicting with the FOH soundguy, who probalby has his/her own set-up of compression and eq).

i have found that, honestly, the easiest and most problem free route is to use guitar effect pedals. Connect your microphone to the first stomp box in the chain (using an impedance matcher) and then connect the others as you normally would were you a guitarist. send the output of the last stompbox to the input of a passive DI... let the FOH take the XLR out from the DI...

... issue free. no feedback, no grumbling soundguy, etc.

in this capacity, you could use a line 6 m9 if you wanted (as its programmable and has tons of effects)... just use the impedance matcher at the input, and send the output to a separate DI.

i recently set-up a vocal board for my girlfriend and it consists of a Dr. Scientist Cleanness (though a Boss PQ-4 Parametric worked nice too), Earthquaker Ghost Echo Reverb, and Boss DD-7 to a Radial Pro-DI... works like a charm and there was never any problem at the last couple of shows i saw her play. the soundguy even remarked how good it sounded!

This is so wrong in so many ways... Like any guitar pedal doesn't introduce gain

You always have to learn your device and set it up so it doesn't interfere with FOH sound.

This is so wrong in so many ways... Like any guitar pedal doesn't introduce gain You always have to learn your device and set it up so it doesn't interfere with FOH sound.

+1. Many devices add gain; doesn't mean they cant be used effectively. One thing you need to be aware of (like with guitar patches is that different tones can very wildly in volume and eq so this needs to be "normalized" across patches. Set your level and then do everything else at the board. Dead simple if you know what you're doing.

I have gigged with or at least noodled with all the ones mentioned above (and more) and here are my thoughts based on your identified requirements:

Voice Live 2 is out - too pricey

Voice Live 1 is out - too complex (and still potentially expensive)

Voice Tone Create is out - not very nice to scroll through patches

If you are a set it and forget performer who just uses a couple patches in a night the Create might fit the bill but I needed a lot more flexibility. All you can do with the Create once a patch is dialed in is bypass it. You *can* hit the A/B to get a second tone BUT there is a very noticeable audio drop-out when switching patches which makes this all but unusable in the middle of a song.

I sold my VT Create and got a Boss VE-20 and now am MUCH happier. It has a nicer display, and more features.

Don't get me wrong... I *wanted* to like VoiceTone Create and the build and sound quality were second to none (and it was a wee little box) but it just did not do what I needed it to.

Just my two cents.

Interesting. I never noticed this problem in any of the TC Helicon pedals I've used. I use the A/B switch in the Harmony-G pedal all of the time, with no trouble at all. Perhaps your unit was defective? Did you contact support?

Looks like a nice unit. I've used the SE50 and it was good!