Vocal Harmony & Real-Time Pitch Correction for Guitarists Owner’s Manual Professional audio equipment
WARNING FOR YOUR PROTECTION READ THE FOLLOWING: KEEP THESE INSTRUCTIONS HEED ALL WARNINGS FOLLOW ALL INSTRUCTIONS The apparatus shall not be exposed to dripping or splashing liquid and no object filled with liquid, such as vases, shall be placed on the apparatus CLEAN ONLY WITH A DRY CLOTH. DO NOT BLOCK ANY OF THE VENTILATION OPENINGS. INSTALL IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE MANUFACTURER’S INSTRUCTIONS.
DECLARATION OF CONFORMITY Manufacturer’s Name: Manufacturer’s Address: declares that the product: Product name: Product option: Harman Music Group 8760 S. Sandy Parkway Sandy, Utah 84070, USA Vocalist® Live 5 all (requires Class II power adapter that conforms to the requirements of EN60065, EN60742, or equivalent.
Warranty We at Vocalist® are very proud of our products and back up each one we sell with the following warranty: 1. The warranty registration card must be mailed within ten days after purchase date to validate this warranty. 2. Vocalist warrants this product, when used solely within the U.S., to be free from defects in materials and workmanship under normal use and service. 3.
Overview..................................... 1 Introduction.......................................1 musIQ® Technology..........................1 Included Items...................................1 Front Panel................................. 3 Numeric Display...............................3 Part A/B Display................................3 Alphanumeric Display......................3 Stereo Button....................................3 Phantom Power Button...................3 Key Display.......................
Overview Introduction Congratulations on your purchase of the Vocalist® Live 5. The Vocalist Live 5 is a breakthrough processor that automatically generates live multi-part vocal harmony by analyzing guitar chord progressions. Armed with patent pending musIQ® Harmony Technology (which includes both musIQ note detection and musIQ harmony generation), the Vocalist Live 5 gives you accurate vocal harmonies even with complicated songs because only Vocalist Live tracks guitar chords, along with your voice.
The utmost care was taken while your Vocalist® Live 5 was being manufactured. Everything should be included and in perfect working order. If anything is missing, contact the factory at once. Please help us become acquainted with you and your needs by completing your warranty card or registering online at www.vocalistpro. com. It is your safeguard should a problem arise with your Vocalist Live 5.
Front Panel 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 22 21 20 9 10 11 19 18 12 17 16 15 14 13 1. Numeric Display Shows the number of the selected preset. 2. Part A/B Display Shows which part is currently active, Part A or Part B. 3. Alphanumeric Display Shows the name of the selected preset. While editing, it will show the parameter name and value being edited. 4.
7. Guitar Signal LED Ladder Shows the signal strength from the guitar input. Green indicates that a signal is present, amber indicates the signal is approaching levels that may clip and red indicates clipping. Clipping may degrade the ability of the Vocalist® Live 5 to detect the guitar notes. NOTE: Adjust the guitar input sensitivity in the Utilities menu to optimize the signal level that works best with your guitar (see page 25). 8. Vocal Signal LED Ladder Shows the signal strength from the Mic input.
17. Effects Matrix The Effects Matrix provides information regarding the current preset and parameter edit functions. The buttons running down the left side of the Matrix provide a visual indication of which effects are in use for the selected preset. While editing a preset, the flashing button LED indicates that the Effect row is selected for editing. Use the five Parameter knobs above the Effects Matrix columns to edit the parameters for the selected effect row.
Rear Panel Mic/Line In Left Out Input Gain Guitar In musIQ is a registered trademark of 3dB Research Right Out Ground Lift Guitar Thru On 1 2 3 4 5 Left Line Out Right Line Out Stereo Headphone Expression Pedal 9VAC 1.3A Off 6 7 8 9 10 1. Mic/Line Input Level This knob adjusts the gain of the Mic and Line inputs. Turn clockwise to increase gain, or counter-clockwise to decrease gain. If the Vocal Signal LED ladder reaches red while you sing, you need to decrease the Mic gain. 2.
8. Headphones Use this jack to hear the Line Out L/R mix through headphones. 9. Expression Pedal The Vocalist® Live 5 can use either a standard passive guitar volume pedal or a resistance-based expression pedal. If using a standard guitar volume pedal, it should use a 250 kOhms or higher pot. If using an expression pedal, it must offer a TRS connection and offer a minimum resistance of 10kOhms. See the Utility Parameters menu on page 25 for information on expression controllable parameters. 10.
Getting Started Before connecting the Vocalist® Live 5 to your amplifier, make sure that the power to your amplifier is off and that the Vocalist Live 5 is plugged into the wall and powered on. There is no power switch on the Vocalist Live 5. To turn the Vocalist Live 5 on or off, connect or disconnect the included power supply from the Power Input jack. Connecting a Microphone and Guitar to a PA (Mono or Stereo) This is a basic setup for stereo or mono outptut.
Connecting a Microphone and Guitar to a Guitar Amp and PA (Mono) This setup bypasses the Vocalist® Live 5 guitar effects via the Guitar Thru output. A mono vocal and guitar signal is sent to the mixer. Turn the Stereo button off on the front panel for mono operation. Mic/Line In Input Gain Left Out Guitar In musIQ is a registered trademark of 3dB Research Right Out Ground Lift Guitar Thru On Left Line Out Right Line Out Stereo Headphone Expression Pedal 9VAC 1.
Connecting a Guitar and Microphone from a Mixer/Preamp to a PA (Stereo) This setup includes a preamp or mixer between the microphone and the Vocalist® Live 5. Use the ¼” input of the Mic/Line input as the Microphone is running through a preamp. Turn the Stereo button on the front panel on for stereo operation.
Adjust the Vocal Level Using the Input Gain knob on the rear of the unit adjust the level so the Vocal Level LED Ladder bounces around amber when you sing loudly and bounces in the green when you sing quietly.Avoid having the Vocal Level LED Ladder bouncing in the red. Adjust the Guitar Level Ideally the Guitar Signal LED Ladder should be in the green or amber range while playing. Most electric and acoustic/electric guitars send their signal at a level appropriate for the Vocalist Live 5.
Using the Vocalist® Live 5 Each preset has two parts, an A part and a B part that can be toggled with the A/B footswitch or button. This can be helpful for subtle changes within a song. For example, you could have different harmony settings for the Verse and Chorus of a song. Each preset has a name, number, part, as well as a set of harmonies and/or other effects assigned to it.
4. 5. Change the Preset Name (if desired). To change the preset name: • Turn the second Parameter knob to select a letter in the Alphanumeric display (or use the Key Up/Down buttons). The selected letter will flash. • Turn the third Parameter Knob to change the selected letter. Press the Store button again to save your settings (or press any button other than Store to cancel). Note: There are two kinds of presets: User and Factory.
Effects and Parameter Descriptions Preamp The Preamp row includes a model of a tube-based preamp, a De-esser and audio frequency band limiting. The preamp is controlled by the Type and Gain parameters. The De-esser is controlled by the De-esser parameter, and band limiting is controlled by the Resonance and Band Center parameters. In order to turn the preamp row off, you need to set Type to Pre Bypass, De-esser to 0, and Band Resonance to 0. Type PRE BYPASS Bypasses the preamp model (turns it off).
Comp/Gate The Comp/Gate affects the incoming vocal dynamics. The Comp/Gate can be used to smooth out a vocal performance by adjusting the output gain of the signal based on the incoming amplitude of the vocal. The Gate function is useful for removing background noise from the incoming signal, or for muting the signal when it falls below a certain threshold. In order to turn the Comp/Gate row off, you need to turn Type to OFF and Noise Gate to GATE OFF. Type Ratio cmp off Turns the compressor off.
EQ The EQ parameters allow the tone of the incoming vocal to be adjusted as indicated by the table below. This function cannot be entirely bypassed via a single parameter, instead the Low Cut must be turned OFF and the remaining gains (dB Bass, dB Mid Gain, dB Treble) must be set to 0 dB to bypass this feature. Locut off Low cut feature is turned off. Locut xxxhz All frequencies below xxx Hertz are attenuated. Range: 60Hz – 120Hz Bass Db bass Reduces or increases the volume of bass frequencies.
Pitch Correct Pitch correction detects the note you’re singing and processes it to make it more precise. For example, if you’re singing a C, and it’s a little flat (but not quite B), pitch correction alters the note so that a more precise C is heard through the mixer or P.A. Pitch correction requires you to choose a scale (or mode) and a key (or root note) so the Vocalist® Live 5 knows what notes to correct to. The parameters below control how pitch correction is applied to the lead vocal.
Key pc x Selects the key or root of the scale. For example, if the Type is set to MAJOR, and Key is set to PC C, the notes that will be corrected to are C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. Note: This parameter is ignored when the scale type is set to PC CHROM. Window PC Window The window parameter controls the window or extent around each note that pitch correction will be applied. If the window is small, then your pitch will only be altered if your input pitch is close to the note already.
Lead Effects The Lead Effects modify the incoming vocal by changing its pitch or timbre in real time. There are Persona effects, which change the character of the voice, and Mod effects which add modulation changes such as tremolo or chorus to the incoming vocal signal. The effects in the Lead Effects row can be turned off by setting the Persona to OFF, and the Mod Type to OFF. Note that Lead Effects apply to the lead vocal (your voice) only.
Mod Type 1 VMOD off No mod effect. 2 Vmod thick Thicken. 3 Vmod chor Chorus. 4 Vmod flang Flanger. 5 Vmod trem Tremolo. 6 Vmod stutr Stutter. Mod Amount Vmod amt Determines the amount of mod effect heard in the output. Range: 0-99 Mod Speed Vmod speed Determines the speed of the mod effect’s modulation. Range: 1-99 Harmony These settings let you select the number and type of background voices that are generated by the Vocalist® Live 5.
Note: Turning on either a Lead Effect, persona or pitch correction requires the use of a harmony voice. If all harmony voices are being used in the current preset, the least important harmony voice is automatically selected for this purpose. No harmonies. 17 U u Two voices of unison. 2 8D Octave down. 18 3u 3u Third up, third up. 3 5d Fifth down. 19 3u 5u Third up, fifth up. 4 3d Third down. 20 8d 5d 3d Octave down, fifth down, third down. 5 U Unison.
Balance harm bal Variation When the musIQTM button is lit: 1 musiq main 2 musiq alt When the musIQ button is NOT lit: 1 key var1 2 key var2 3 key var3 Voice Styles Style Amount 22 1 vst time 2 vst tm pch 3 4 vst onset vst gospel 5 vst mixed 6 vst gals 7 vst guys 8 vst drunk vstyle amt Controls the balance between the generated harmony voices. If there is only one voicing, then this control has no effect.
Reverb Reverb affects both the processed vocal signals and harmonies as well as the Guitar Mix, as set with the Guitar Mix Reverb Level (see below). There are five reverb types (Studio, Club, Hall, Stadium, and Coarse), each reflecting different decay times and diffusion settings. Reverb can be bypassed by setting the Reverb Type to RVB OFF. Reverb is turned off. Sounds like reverb in a recording studio. Sounds like reverb in a medium sized club. Sounds like reverb in a concert hall.
Guitar Mix Guitar Mix affects the amount of Guitar signal that is processed through the two guitar effects. The guitar effects are Reverb and Mod. The Reverb is shared with the main Vocal and Harmonies; hence the only parameter for the guitar is GtrRvb lvl (Guitar Reverb Amount). Reverb settings are programmed in the Reverb row. Reverb can be bypassed by setting the GtrRvb lvl to zero. If Reverberation Type is OFF in the Reverberation row, then the Studio Type is used by default.
Utility Parameters The Utility parameters are accessed by simultaneously pressing the Edit Up/Down arrow keys in the Effects Matrix. The main display will show UTILityand the Numeric Display flashes U. Once this occurs, each knob controls the value of a particular system parameter, as shown below.
Factory Reset If you want to restore the Vocalist® Live 5 to the state it was in when first delivered, you can use the Factory Reset function. This will: • Copy all Factory presets to the corresponding User presets, overwriting all changes you may have made to the user presets • Restore the state of the Utility parameters to the factory defaults (FXFS ALL, HARMFS TOG, GTRSENS LO) • Set the Stereo/Mono state to Stereo To perform a Factory Reset procedure 1.
Troubleshooting I don’t hear any sound coming from the Vocalist® Live 5. • • • • • • Make sure the power supply is plugged in to both the Vocalist Live 5 and the power outlet. Make sure the guitar amp, P.A. system, or mixer is plugged in and turned on. Make sure the guitar amp, P.A. system, or mixer volume levels aren’t turned all the way down. Make sure the guitar volume isn’t turned all the way down, and the microphone isn’t turned off (if it has an on/off switch).
Effects Block Diagram Vocal Input DeEsser Preamp Band-limit & Low-cut Noise Gate Compressor Limitor EQ Pitch Correct Vocal Mod Persona Harmony Voice 1 Harmony Voice 2 Harmony Voice 3 Harmony Voice 4 Not available with Pitch Correct or Persona Guitar Input Guitar Mod Guitar Send Vocal Send Delay & Reverb 28 L Stereo Mixer R
Preset List 1A A simple 3rd above your lead vocal. Great for 60s duet folk songs. Utilizes a stereo chorus effect for the guitar. 1B Same as Part A but add a 5th up harmony voice. 2A The same preset as #1 but now the harmony is a 3rd down from the lead vocal. 2B Same as Part A but add a 3rd up harmony voice. CSN 3A Contains three part harmony: your lead vocal and a 3rd and 5th above to create a triad. Notice that VST GALS is used for the voice style.
12A Demonstrates a guitar tremolo effect with reverb. Play around with the speed and feedback parameters to customize your sound. The harmony has unison, octave down and octave up voices. 12B The same as Part A but with a 2 unison harmony on the lead vocal. BLIND BOYS 13A Very gospel-like, and utilizes a 5th down, 3rd down, 3rd up and 5th up. Including your voice, you have 5 part harmony. The lead vocal effect is a bigger persona to give you a huskier older male vocal.
21A Uses a thicker stereo chorus effect on the guitar and a smaller younger lead vocal effect. Utilizes a mixture of male and female background vocals with doubled 3rds below and 3rds above. 21B Same effects but using 3rd below and 5th above harmonies. 22A The ultimate blues singer preset. Great for singing bar-room blues and R&B standards with that big blues voice. 22B That same ultimate blues sound with Unison harmony. 23A Reminiscent of 2-part 70s country-rock vocals.
GALS DUET 32A Makes a male lead singer sound female. The harmony voice sounds like a female singer singing up one octave from the lead. 32B Similar to Part A but with a 2 Unison harmony. LOOSE DBLS 33A Creates a fat doubling by combining 4 unison voices with lots of decoupling. 33B The same as Part A but with chorus on the guitar. BANDERO 34A Provides a band limited voice that is often heard as a vocal effect. 34B Bandero lead effect combined with a unison harmony.
BOB ELVIS 7 BRIDGES TUNE A Min 47A Demonstrates large pitch onset effects. Try it while singing your favorite 60s solo folk songs. 47B Adds a 5th up harmony, everything else is the same as above. 48A Demonstrates a slow ballad sound, with strong stylized vibrato and slow pitch scooping at note onsets. 48B Adds a 5th down harmony, everything else is the same as above. 49A Excellent for songs with multi-layered acappella harmonies.
Specifications Mic Input Connector: Input Sensitivity @ -3 dBFS Equivalent Input Noise (EIN): Impedance: Line Input Connectors: Input Sensitivity @ -3 dBFS: Input Impedance: Guitar Input and Thru Connectors: Max Input Level Thru: Sensitivity @ 0 dBFS digital: Impedance: XLR portion of XLR-1/4” Combo Jack -35 dBu to 0 dBu -126 dBu, 20 Hz - 20 kHz (A-weighted) 1.2 kOhms balanced ¼″ portion of XLR-1/4” Combo Jack -20 dBu to +15 dBu 14.8 kOhms balanced, 9.
Power US and Canada: Japan: Europe: UK: Australia: AC Power Adapter Output: Power Consumption: 120 VAC, 60 Hz Adapter: PS0913B - 120 100 VAC, 50/60 Hz Adapter: PS0913B - 100 230 VAC, 50 Hz Adapter: PS0913B - 230 240 VAC, 50 Hz Adapter: PS0913B - 240 240 VAC, 50 Hz Adapter: PS0913B - 240-AU 9VAC, 1.3 A 8.1 Watts Product Dimensions: 8.33″ (L) x 14.1″ (W) x 2.56″ (H) 211 mm(L) x 358 mm(W) x 65 mm(H) Weight: 4.8 lbs., 2.
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8760 South Sandy Parkway Sandy, Utah 84070 PH (801) 566-8800 FAX (801) 566-7005 Vocalist® Live 5 Owner’s Manual 18-0776V-A ©2010 , all rights reserved. Vocalist is a registered trademark of Harman, Inc. musIQ® is a registered trademark of 3dB Research Ltd.
