PM1D Effects

Many ask what effects I use for vocals in my mixes at KCC. I’ve found I can achieve just about every sound I’m looking for using these two presets. I’ve also found that these programs work well on just about every piece Yamaha makes with built-in effects – MC7L, 01V96, etc.

Effect 1 – Vocal Plate, 1.4 sec decay, 45 ms pre-delay, various hi & lo cuts to make the verb shimmer or mellow to taste. For a ballad I might extend the decay to as much as 2.4 sec.

Effect 2 – LCR Delay, 1/4 note delay at C, level of 80, 1/8 note, dotted 1/8 note and other combos for the left and right with levels usually in the 40-60 range. A favorite right now on real heavy rock stuff like the song from this weekend and the Nickelback tune a couple weeks ago is a 1/4 note delay to song tempo with the high cut set to about 2k, so the delay is really really mellow and muffled.

Add it in to the lead vocal at deliberate parts of the song – choruses, the bridge, the verses – you decide. But treat it just like an accent that is used to set a part of the song apart sonically and it becomes a really nice finishing touch to polish the song and make it “studio quality”.

With these two effect programs, along with creative use of the hi & lo cut on both programs, it is amazing the variety and quality of vocal verbs you can create. Highly recommended!