Backing Vocals:

Purple Audio MC77 (Brainworx)

 

TLDR Notes:

Perfect for backing vocals. Models the 1176 very well and could be considered one of the best modeled compressor for vocals in general.

Can take a lot of gain reduction and still deliver a beautiful sound.

Image shows channel ’05-06′ in use. The plugin provides 20 stereo channels to choose from, each with subtle differences (Small variations in gain staging, stereo image and harmonics).

Flipping through the channels is a nice quick and subtle tone shaping feature.

Great as a general purpose compressor; fast loading, friendly to the CPU and good for workflow.

Review:

Purple Audio, Inc. is behind the original hardware, The MC77, a recreation of the 1176 Rev E, with matching modern components.

A compressor that sounded so good it was only a matter of time before a digital emulation hit the market, and Brainworx delivered the goods on this one.

It was an ambitious move on Purple Audio’s part to not only recreate the iconic 1176 compressor, but to also improve upon it. In a similar bold move, Brainworx wanted to recreate this in the box while adding extra functionality on top.

What you get with this classic FET compressor is the capability of high amounts of gain reduction at fast response times without distortion.

I was impressed by the way the Purple Audio MC77 grabs the audio , musically and smoothly, which is exactly what I want from compression on backing vocals.

Any compressor that works well on lead vocal can in theory be worth trying on backing vocals, but because backing vocals are typically less beefy sounding, without as much low and low mid content as the lead vocal, you don’t need a vocal compressor with a lot of low end retention, thus modeled compressors where the bigger strength is the movement in the compression action and are maximally workflow friendly seem to be perfect for this application.

TMT technology, while perhaps not absolutely necessary in this case, is a really nice bonus feature, because it lets you flip through a lot of different units with small variations within the plugin.
The reason why this feature is nice but not completely vital lies in the very small variations at play, so the value of the TMT may be up for debate.

“Monomaker” and “Stereo width control” have also been included as new additions specific to the plugin, and the ability to combine ratios via the “Hold” button. That means that you get the 4 classic ratio options from an 1176, “4”, “8”, “12,” and “20” plus any combination of them, including all buttons in.

On backing vocals I typically go the most simple route with a ratio of either 4 or 8.

My gain staging is such that I often need to turn up the input quite a bit to get some gain reduction, which I initially thought would be a workflow problem when I tested the plugin, but luckily there is a “link” feature (The button located in between the “input” and “output” knobs) so I can crank the input and it automatically turns down the output accordingly.

Even better, there is a “Headroom” dial (bottom, center), and just by decreasing that headroom value the compressor starts to compress sooner, so the desired compression regardless of gain staging is easily achieved.

I also like the HP sidechain filter for easing the stress on the compressor circuit induced by the low end.

I’ve heard the Purple Audio MC77 shot out against the hardware and it was remarkable how well this digital recreation held its own.

It does everything you need to for musical sounding compression on backing vocals, but the Purple Audio MC77 is also a contender for best all-around modeled algorithmic FET style compressor in the box.

 

BX Console SSL 9000 J (Brainworx)

TLDR Notes:

One of the quickest ways to get nice results on backing vocals, with it’s lowcut filter, compressor set to fast release, and the SSL EQ.
Optional gate/expander as well.

Review:

This plugin is the result of a fruitful collaboration between mixer Michael Brauer and Brainworx, a process that didn’t wrap until the product was as great at is needed to be and met Brauer’s high standards.

You get the SSL sound, but a little cleaner and a full more Neve-ish sounding bottom end. One could make the argument that this is the most versatile SSL console iteration out there.

When you want to load a plugin that does it all on backing vocals, sans the wet effects like delay and reverb, this is top of the list.

You can roll off the lows via a great low cut filter, reduce the low mids for less mud, decreased boominess and less unwanted weight on backing vocals, dip a problematic resonance and then sweeten the highs, all quickly due to the user friendly and logical SSL layout.

Use the gate or expander to address unwanted background noise, and use the compressor in the Dynamics section on individual backing vocals as well as the backing vocal bus.

On the backing vocal bus I like to use a “glue trick” where I lower the threshold considerably but set the ratio very low, so when all the compression occurs it does so at a very low ratio, resulting in a glue effect on the backing vocals. That’s because I don’t want backing vocals to be punchy, I want them to sound like they belong and gel together.

The only thing missing for the plugin to be a complete backing vocal solution in one, if you don’t want to do it manually via automation that is, is a de-esser.

What I like about the 9000 J is not just the features, which you will find in many SSL plugins out there, but the fact that it doesn’t drop the ball sonically in even one area, and that’s what sets it apart from the rest in a crowded field.

 

Abbey Road Saturator (Waves)

TLDR Notes:

Saturation and air to backing vocals. Effective. Use the ‘blend’ slider to adjust level of the effect.

Review:

This is a secret weapon for achieving airy backing vocals. You simply cannot get the sound of this thing with regular EQ.
I haven’t explored it thoroughly for general saturation duties as it does this one trick better than any plugin out there, and that is a certain type of high end air excitement on backing vocals. You can get them sounding unnatural but still great. Really nice for pad-like “ah” backing vocals for instance.

Simply use the blend slider to achieve this.

What creates this sound is the TG12321 compander from 1964, a truly unique sound that although I’ve heard a few other plugins do something in that ballpark, it doesn’t sound like this.

For that alone, I’d say this is an underrated plugin from Waves.

I’ve used it to add air to lead vocals as well, so try it on a microphone that’s lacking in that area.


Fresh Air (Slate Digital) – Free

 

TLDR Notes:

Saturation and air for backing vocals. Effective. Also good on live vocals recorded with say a Shure SM58, lead vocals or backing.

Review:

This is a terrific free plugin from Slate to add air to backing vocals. It sounds less otherworldly and less “magical” than the Abbey Road Saturator by Waves for that purpose, but there is no denying that it Fresh Air creates high air content effortlessly, cleanly and very effectively, and I believe this is a plugin every mixer should have.

It’s self-explanatory; you have mid air and high air. Couldn’t be much simpler than that.

I really like it on live performances where it can up the fidelity of somewhat dull dynamic mics.

It’s quite amazing that it’s free, although the drawback for some might be that you need an iLok account, although iLok Cloud is sufficient.

 

Little Microshift (Soundtoys)

TLDR Notes:

Spreads out the mono vocal and adds some chorusing type effect.
Adds some interest to a lead vocal as well.

Sometimes also useful on various instruments and reverbs.

Review:

This one is great for mono sources, say a mono vocal, when you want to make it wider, fuller and more interesting.

Mode “I” and “II” emulates the famous Eventide H3000 Harmonizer, and provides a form of sound enhancement on vocals familiar to listeners of albums from the ’80s on. The developers at Soundtoys are particularly well-suited for the job, as they were also behind the original H3000 unit.

You get an extra mode, “III”, which emulates AMS DMX 15-80, a popular 15-bit digital delay and pitch shifter introduced back in 1978.

All that is good to know, but the most important thing is not the history and aspirations but its usefulness on vocals in a mix. There are a lot of chorus type effects out there, and they rarely work on vocals in my opinion. With this one, you can use it subtly on a lead vocal for some widening and a richer more interesting texture, and dial it up for use on backing vocals. You can even try it out on the backing vocal bus for extra spread.

Another reason I like it for backing vocals specifically, is that it contributes to tonal and textural variations when the vocals are performed by the same singer. That’s why I like to use it selectively rather than on the bus in most cases.

So you might use it on one or two backing vocals but not on others to achieve this effect. This goes hand in hand with other differentiation tactics, such as lowcutting the backing vocals at different spots, and varying the EQ boosts as well.

Under of the hood of the plugin there are pitch shifts and delays happening that, when mixed in with the dry vocal, create the enhancement.

The good thing is that the user never has to worry about that. Just select a mode and mix it in via the “Mix” knob.

It does require authorization via iLok, but Soundtoys does not require a physical iLok for this, so anyone on OS and Windows can use it once they have an iLok account. The license can be stored locally on the computer.

 

Gem Dopamine (Overloud)

TLDR Notes:

Emulates two classic tape encoding processors, and uses them to enhance the sound naturally. The ‘Dobly A trick’ used in the ’80s on backing vocals.

Review:

This thing is a sheen-machine that can be very nice on backing vocals.

So what exactly is the ‘Dolby A trick’? And how does it add this sheen?

Well, the ‘Dolby A Trick’ was most famously used by Mutt Lange for his signature Def Leppard backing vocal sound, and can be heard all over Lange’s productions. It is characterized by a bright, shiny sound enhancement of the backing vocals.

As a way to deal with hiss from the good old hissy analog tape days, high frequencies were typically dealt with via noise-systems that compressed and boosted high frequencies before hitting tape and then the inverse for playback. That was a way to reduce the hiss that often resided quite audibly in the top frequencies.

So with this plugin Overloud gives us a way to use the result of these mechanics on our vocals. And even if you are not going for the full Mutt Lange sound (which would also require you to record a ton of backing vocals for layering) it can still give some extra magic just by adding it to a couple of the backing vocals. To add variation, especially if the backing vocals have been sung by the same singer, you may want to use both the 361 and the 180 model.

I find that it often helps backing vocals sit better in a mix, giving them their own space to sit.


Vintage Warmer 2 (PSP Audioware)

TLDR Notes:

The classic Vintage Warmer sound to saturate and glue the backing vocal bus.

Review:

I think there are two main camps when it comes to the famous and infamous Vintage Warmer from PSP Audioware;

One camp thinks it’s destroys the purity of the sound, especially when placed on a master-bus, fools the listener by an insane amount of gain increase, and is in general kind of a dinosaur plugin.

The other camp praises it for a sound that is unique in the digital domain, remains one of the most powerful “analogers” out there, a classic for a reason and with version 2 got even better.

I agree with some points from both groups. Yes, it does increase level a lot when you use the big “Drive” knob, and by a lot I mean…a lot. So remember to compensated via the ouput knob.

That said, it also deserves the praise for having an undeniably unique character that does add to perceived loudness and is sometimes just the ticket.

It compresses and saturates, and is right at home on a backing vocal bus for the way it adds extra harmonics and glue.

A backing vocal bus is a place where I can use the Vintage Warmer 2 fully to its saturation and compression advantage, without any drawbacks you might get on say a full mix, where it may not be subtle enough for some tastes and could impact the sound of the low end too much.

And the name is truer than ever. Not only is it at this point a genuine vintage plugin, it also contribute a warmth that pulls the sound a step away from the digital domain. It’s a fun plugin to have in your arsenal, and it’s often worth trying on a lead vocal and on snare as well.