Singing - effects processor mandatory ?

[sugarplumsss]

i've never really sang
i've procrastinated. preferring to back up others
but for economic reasons
singing solo myself, is seeming lately to be more pressing !

for a one man band act:

how do you rate singing with voice processor versus without it, "night and day" difference? - the resulting effect on the audience -
do they really care if they hear harmonies ?

Also this:
a separate voice processor ( is it spelled
helicon! ) is significantly superior to the onboard one in my t4?

thanks

ps. Our resident expert Gary had encouraged me to sing long ago ! thanks Gary. better late than never

[Lee Batchelor]

I think you can never replace a genuinely good voice with electronic help. The basic materials must be there, otherwise you sound like a robot with a sinus infection, like 99% of these modern day, no-talent singers.

If you feel you have a decently listenable voice by yourself, then you can add in some effects sparingly. I agree that the onboard vocal processors in the arrangers are basically garbage. They may as well not even be there. If you can integrate a Helicon processor, go for it 😉.

[J. Larry]

I would guess most experienced, singing, arranger players would say go lightly with the harmony.  Doing solo gigs with the SX 900, I use it sparingly----mainly on songs known for two-part harmony in particular parts of the song.  It's an attention getter, when used that way.  I've had good luck singing my own pre-recorded harmony parts, mixing it to a wav file, along with the backing track, and playing it via the keyboard's "player" function, all the while, singing the melody line.  That takes a lot of preparation, but it works out better at times.

[EileenL]

You have to feel confident that you can sing solo and make sure your Mic effects are adjusted to suit your voice. Use of vocal harmony should be kept to the bear minimum used as backing singers popping in and out.

[DrakeM]

I use the VH2 which comes with my S-950 keyboard. It works perfect for any type of music.

When to use it? Listen to the actual artist's recording for when to turn on and off the backup singers. It's as easy as that to know when to use it.

Always have at least 17% reverb on you mic when singing.

When singing with a backup singer, your voice MUST BE on top of theirs ... NOT equal to them.

I never use any sort of vocal correction ever.

Always sing the song in YOUR KEY, not the key the recording was made in or the key the music is written in. Use the transpose BUTTON.

Regards
Drake