DIGITECH VOCALIST LIVE 2 279

EFFECTS

DigiTech Vocalist Live 2 279
Create instant backing vocals by triggering harmonies from your guitar by Trev Curwen
ow heres something: a stompbox that you plug your guitar into that does absolutely nothing to its sound! The DigiTech Vocalist Live 2 is in fact a voice processor whose main function is to add two-part harmonies to a vocal part the guitars role is purely to dictate what those harmonies, based on the chords youre playing, should be. The guitar and a vocal microphone are plugged in; the unit listens to the guitar and applies pitch shifting to the vocal, adding the right harmony notes for the song. The rationale behind the Vocalist Live 2 is that some other vocal harmonisers, which are programmed to respond to a specic scale or key, can often put out an inappropriate harmony when confronted by a song that doesnt work with a single key/ scale setting. DigiTech quotes the case of a song that has the same note sung over two different chords perhaps a C sung in the melody over a C maj/F maj chord sequence. Something like that would confound a conventional harmoniser. By contrast the Vocalist Live 2 harmoniser will follow the guitar chords. If youre singing an A over the chords that are generally found in the key of G, it will generate a C as harmony. But, if you then play an A major, it will shift to the C#. Vocalist Live uses DigiTechs patentpending musIQ technology to directly analyse the output of any electric or preamplied acoustic guitar that is plugged into it no MIDI guitars or
Vocalist Live takes guitar chords into account as well as vocals
hexaphonic pickups are required. DigiTech says that the musIQ detection section can analyse complex guitar waveforms and determine which notes in each chord are critical to accurate harmony. This information is then fed to an advanced harmony engine that creates harmonies consistent with both the singers melody and the guitar accompaniment, staying true to not only the overall key and song scale but also to localised variations due to chords not part of the global key. The Vocalist Live 2 is powered by a 9V adaptor and is designed as a oor pedal that comes rst in the signal chain after the guitar but before any other pedals as it needs a pure guitar signal to function correctly. The guitar
input and output are hard-wired so that there is no degradation of the guitar signal as it passes through. The vocal is fed into the unit directly from a microphone into an XLR input or through a line input which can take the signal from a mixer or an audio interface, allowing previously recorded vocals to be used. There are both mono (XLR) and stereo (6.4mm jacks) options for outputting the effected vocal signal and both can be used simultaneously in such instances as feeding a powered monitor as well as the main PA. A front panel harmony mix knob sets the blend of the original vocal and the generated harmonies and runs the whole range from vocal only to harmonies only.
DIGITECH VOCALIST LIVE 2 PRICE: 279 TYPE: Guitar-driven vocal harmony processor ORIGIN: China SAMPLING FREQUENCY: 44.1kHz A/D CONVERSION: 24-bit high performance audio SIMULTANEOUS HARMONIES: 2 CONNECTIONS: XLR mic input, XLR mono out, jack line in, guitar in, guitar thru, line out (L&R) DIMENSIONS: 224 (w) x 170 (d) x 88mm (h) WEIGHT (kg/lb):1.0/2.3 PHANTOM POWER: Yes POWER REQUIREMENTS: 9V AC adaptor (supplied) OPTIONS: None RANGE OPTIONS: Vocalist Live Sound Technology UK www.digitech.com

AUGUST 2007

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PHOTOGRAPHY AMANDA THOMAS
VOCALIST LIVE 2 Build quality Features Sound Performance

TEST RESULTS

I WE LIKED Very easy to use no programming needed; tracks guitar chords for sympathetic harmonies every time; footswitchable; small but effective range of harmonies I WE DISLIKED Studio and room reverb too similar
With the correct blend set and a touch of reverb, the harmonies can sound quite sublime and very close to the real thing The rivals
TC Helicon Harmony Control Guitar 151 DigiTech Vocalist Live TC Helicon has a large range of vocal harmony processors with models such as VoiceLive and VoiceWorks, and at the recent music show in Frankfurt released the Harmony Control Guitar, a new product that allows those processors to respond to guitar chords. The Vocalist Live 4 is the big brother unit that provides three or four-part harmonies plus a slew of other features including pitch correction and some guitar effects. It is a programmable unit featuring 50 factory and 50 user presets.
Besides the harmony generation the unit has other processing, controlled by three more front panel knobs, that can be applied to the vocal. Firstly, compression can be applied to smooth out the vocal signal, then a touch of reverb can be added with a choice of studio, room or hall sounds. The enhance knob brings in EQ in three different avours resonance (low and mid boost), clarity (mid-range cut) and shine (high end boost). One or two harmonies can be selected from six buttons giving plenty of possible combinations. There are two unison settings, high harmonies of a third and a fth above and low harmonies of a third and a fth below. Two footswitches turn the whole thing on and off. The harmony footswitch switches the harmony generation in and out while the effects switch is used to bypass the rest of the effects processing but has a dual function in that it can be held down to engage the onboard chromatic guitar
tuner. The unit will be confused as to what harmonies to generate when confronted with an out of tune guitar so this facility is crucial. SOUNDS/IN USE: Setting up the Live 2 is dead simple the front panel knobs and buttons are appropriately named and very intuitive and the red LEDs on each button let you know exactly what effect is active. The compressor works very well in keeping the voice consistent and upfront while the three different enhance settings can subtly tweak the voice to bring out more of the desired character. The smooth sounding reverbs have been picked to suit vocals and can add a denite sense of space around the voice, if needed, or at higher knob settings be switched in with the footswitch as a special effect. The harmoniser itself works just ne, adding in some extra sympathetic voices with careful setting of the mix knob allowing them to blend in

naturally without dominating the main vocal. As is the case with other harmonisers in a similar price range, the pitch-shifted harmonies are not pristine copies of the main vocal they can sound a little swimmy and a touch metallic but you really dont hear that unless you crank them up way beyond the level of the lead vocal, which really defeats the point of what this unit is all about anyway. With the correct blend set and a touch of reverb they can sound quite sublime and very close to the real thing. The thirds and fths above and below plus the two unison settings provide a range of combinations that give plenty of scope for nding something that will both suit your voice and the particular song. And if you dont want shifted harmonies in a particular song the Unison settings add doubling effects and can thicken the vocal up nicely regardless of what the guitar is playing. We tried to catch it out with different strumming styles and obscure chord voicings but, as long as your voice is singing the right notes to t the songs chords, it seems to have an innate ability to always come up with notes that t in musically. That works both live and when we fed a recorded vocal and recorded rhythm guitar into it.

Verdict

This type of thing could get very complicated but DigiTech has made it as simple as possible the real selling point here. There are plenty of harmonisers on the market but it can take plenty of effort to set them up picking a key for a song or even a section of a song and having to hit a footswitch to change key when the song modulates. With this you just sing and play and are rewarded with complementary harmonies that t the tune. Of course this isnt the sort of thing that would t every situation, but if you play rhythm guitar and sing (or play rhythm guitar behind a singer) and want to expand your onstage sound without too much hassle, make a beeline for Vocalist Live 2.

Digitech Vocalist Live 2

RATING

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DigiTech Vocalist Live 4

Automatic vocal harmony pedal
DigiTechs new Vocalist Live 4 offer guitarists all the benefits of automatic vocal harmonies without programming, as it can work out the key and scale from the guitar chords being played into it.

Roger Cooper

ocal harmonies are effective and can undoubtedly lift a song, but theyre considered unattainable luxuries by solo performers or bands not blessed with decent backing singers. Ever since the Seventies, various companies have come up with ways of offering artificial aural assistance, some more effective than others, but all proving quite complex to understand and operate successfully, usually
requiring more than a modicum of musical knowledge to employ them properly. Many have been mainly intended for service in studios, rather than live applications and most have lent themselves to use by keyboard players, who tend to be reasonably adept at programming and arent baffled by boffin-orientated equipment. In contrast, guitarists can often be deterred by anything too complicated or music theory-orientated, instead preferring effects that are instant and easily obtained. This attitude has contradicted the approach required to get the best out of any harmony-generating device.until now. DigiTech has long been a prominent name in the harmoniser market, providing a succession of increasingly effective products over the past two decades. Rack mount units such as the IPS33B have ably demonstrated the practical potential of on-tap synthetic harmonies, while spin-offs such as the Whammy pedal have given guitarists the opportunity to play with some unique toys. However, commercial appeal has been limited, either by the aforementioned intricate operating procedures involved or over-simplified
end results. But now DigiTech has introduced an all-new generation of harmony generators, this time aimed fairly and squarely at the average six-string strummer and designed to deliver effective additional vocals via a minimal amount of fuss and effort. This previously impossible ideal has been achieved with the help of ultra-innovative technology called musIQ, which relies on a straight electric guitar signal to supply the necessary musical information: no MIDI connections or hexaphonic pickups are required. Nor is there any need to program in

PerformingMusician

DigiTech Vocalist Live 349
Operational ease and simply superb results make this player-friendly pedal the only choice for any act wanting to beef up onstage performance via vocal harmonies. The fact that it can achieve this without significant user-programming is a major plus point.
Sound Technology +44 (0) www.soundtech.co.uk www.digitech.com
October 2007 | performing-musician.com
an appropriate scale or key, as with previous harmonisers, although even then these could be confused by any song that didnt conform to a single scale/key pattern. With DigiTechs all-new devices, its simply a case of strumming and singing and letting musIQs note detection section do the rest. The latter follows the chords played and analyses which notes are the most relevant to create correct harmonies. The data obtained is then fed to an advanced harmony engine that generates appropriate additional voices to best match both the vocal melody and the instrumental accompaniment, while also accurately tracking any pitch shifts caused by chord changes not necessarily in the nominal song key. This super smart circuitry has been incorporated into two recently launched floor pedal effects units, the Vocalist Live 2 and Vocalist Live 4. The latter is the one reviewed here, while the former is smaller, simpler and less expensive by 70, providing a maximum of two-part harmonies along with a more restricted range of related features.

Reverb, Delay and Guitar Mix. Any selected effect can then be modified via the rotary control quintet, with each pot allowing a particular parameter to be amended as desired. This array spans no less 45 aural options, which must be more than enough to meet most sonic demands. When all alterations are accomplished, the end result can be stored in a bank of 50 user presets, which is partnered by the same number of factory alternatives. The Edit buttons also
through the relevant menus. The back panel bristles with differing inputs and outputs. The Vocalist Live 4 has to be the first link in the signal chain for both guitar and the lead vocal mic, so all appropriate sockets are supplied. Guitar In and Thru are on standard 1/4 jacks, likewise the Line In and Line Out Left and Right links, while Mic In is an XLR connector, as are the Left/Mono and Right balanced outputs. A 1/8 mini jack is provided for headphones
an all-new generation of harmony generators designed to deliver effective additional vocals via a minimal amount of fuss and effort.
allow access to Utility mode, where yet more personalisation of programs and presets is possible. The final three pots make up the units on-board mixing section, balancing the relevant levels between lead vocal, harmony vocal and guitar. If desired the final blend can then be fed directly to an amp or powered speakers, obviating the need for a separate mixer. The lower front edge carries a quartet of sizeable square foot switches. The first governs effects selection (also engaging the on-board guitar tuner when required), while the second is for harmony on/off and each switch has an attendant LED indicator. The final pair provides hand-free access to presets, scrolling down or up and the same sort is employed for Aux In duties. This input allows a CD or MP3 player to add recorded music to the units signal mix, although no level control is included, so volume adjustments must be made at source. The connections quota is completed by another standard 1/4 jack that accommodates an expression pedal, providing foot control of any parameter in the effects matrix, courtesy of the Utility modes customisation facilities. A small knob governs Mic/Line Input level and this important control deserves something better is terms of position reference visibility. The moulded marker on the top needs a lick of white paint, especially as this pot is prone to accidental knocks that can easily alter its crucial setting.

Aural options

Initial impressions of the Vocalist Live 4 are encouraging, as it cuts a quite impressive figure. Its about the size of a well-endowed multi-effects pedal (something that DigiTech knows a lot about) and comes clad in a sturdy feeling, satin silver metal casing with plastic end cheeks. The upper front accommodates a display section, with the first window showing the number of a selected preset, while its larger neighbour portrays the relevant preset title, various parameter values or editing prompts. Further along is the Harmony Control section, for use when the musIQ function is disabled (via a very prominent on/off switch), incorporating key change buttons, an appropriate display and a major/minor scale mode selector. The slightly recessed centre panel carries the Vocalist Live 4s eight rotary controls. The first five are parameter adjustment pots for an effects matrix that offers comprehensive customisation of both vocal and instrument performance. Edit up/down buttons navigate nine options of aural enhancement: Preamp, Compressor/Gate, EQ, Pitch Correction, Lead Effects, Harmony,
performing-musician.com | October 2007
A lower-level type or a less exposed location would lessen the risk of this happening. The same can be said for the two touch-type switches sited along the panel above the connections section. The first selects the on-board 48V phantom power facility, while the second determines overall Stereo/Mono operation. Both can be inadvertently activated a little too easily for my liking, usually when fiddling about with plugs on the back or moving the unit around. The attendant LEDs on the front will indicate any such accidents, but its something worth bearing in mind. Guitar and lead vocal signal levels are also monitored by function LEDs, these being the colour-changing type that warn of impending input overload. A mini push-switch engages a ground lift, which could prove useful if an earth-type buzz or hum is heard from either the guitar amp or PA. The necessary 9V DC power is delivered via the supplied DigiTech PS0913B wall-wart and the company emphasises that only this type should be used.

On-stage performance

Integrating the Vocalist Live 4 into an existing guitar amp and PA set-up is quite straightforward, although it does involve a number of extra connecting cables, so be prepared to buy or make up those that are necessary. Once all link leads are available then installation is pretty logical, being determined by the pedals clearly designated connections, although the comprehensive instruction manual clearly answers any questions that may arise. The straight guitar signal (either via cable or wireless receiver output) goes directly to the appropriate input on the Vocalist Live 4. The Guitar Thru output then feeds whatever is next in line, ie. any pedals or the amplifier and the instruments sound doesnt suffer at all. The vocal mic also goes to the Vocalist Live 4 first and the latter is then hooked up to the PA via the relevant outputs. Once everything is connected correctly, optimum operating levels need to be ascertained by setting instrument volume and the units controls. Players who like to ride the volume pot could encounter problems, as consistent output is a must to maintain accurate harmony tracking. Again the manual describes all set-up procedures in easily understood manner. Once
these have been followed its then down to achieving the ideal blend of live and harmony vocals, while adding any effects to taste etc. Of course, theres a wide choice of the latter, so this could take some time! The effort involved should prove well worthwhile, because the size of the menu is matched by the quality of the effects. The various sonic options are low on gimmickry and high on practical performance benefit, although obviously not every user will require each and every option. However, all are well considered and do their bit towards ensuring an impressive
as they exhibit an inherent synthetic edgy shimmer, but when balanced by the live lead vocal they sound very convincing indeed. Its also surprising just how loud they can go and yet still successfully blend with the original.

Almost uncanny!

DigiTech has been very successful in making the Vocalist Live 4 the most user-friendly harmoniser, at least for guitarists anyway! The way it works is almost uncanny in terms of operational ease. Providing the originating instrument is in tune,
when balanced by the live lead vocal, they sound very convincing indeed.
outcome, some enhancing the instrument side while others can make the most of any vocal. The harmonies are naturally the most important feature and the DigiTech Vocalist Live 4 certainly doesnt disappoint. As its designation suggests, this version generates up to four parts simultaneously, the choices being a third, fifth or one octave above the lead vocal; the same intervals below, plus unison or unison with pitch correction. The Voicing facility in the Effects matrix offers 31 different combinations of these, while yet more variety is offered via the other harmony related features: Balance, Variation, Voice Styles and Style Amount. The end results should allow more than sufficient scope to satisfy all but the most ardent a cappella enthusiast! Heard in isolation, its apparent that the harmonies arent exact copies of the real thing, accurate and inspiring harmonies simply appear as if by some sort of sonic magic! It could be considered a cheat machine, but very few acts have the ability or even enough personnel to produce the massed harmonies Digitechs clever device can deliver. Employed sensibly this pedal will prove a very powerful and effective onstage enhancer, as well as being great fun. The simpler Vocalist Live 2 might be sufficient to suit some needs, but laying out the extra 70 for the Live 4 buys a load of additional aural goodies for guitar and voice, not merely two more harmony parts. Either model offers excellent value, because both do the business in the simplest, no-nonsense way possible. Guitarists really have never had it so good!

Tech Spec

Vocalist Live 4
Vocal harmony pedal. Automatic key/scale detection. 2-, 3- or 4-part vocal harmonies. Pitch correction. Guitar effects. Vocal effects. 50 factory/50 user presets. Integral mixer. Weight: 19.3kg.