OK .... I had some time to fool around today before work, so I make a few quick demos for you to listen to. First is Mr. Dyingly Sad, then a short Doo Wop thing (just to hear the harmonies in action without lead)
Enjoy !

The next sample is a shortened version of my Duprees medley - I actually forgot some of the changes! YIKES! ( That never used to happen before I started teaching ... I'm rusty! gulp) I wanted to show how the TC gets triggered in and out of words in action - the reason I can't use the Yamaha harmonizers - I can't afford the cutoffs.

Ooops - the title should read "Mr" Dyingly Sad .... silly me.

hey Kid you still got it

Dave,
Sounded great...so,
What style did you use on the Duprees medly? I should have it too.

What is it about the Yamaha VH that would be a problem the way you would use it? Still a issue on the T4?

Really nice job Dave! Of course, you touched on some of my favorite stuff, especially the Duprees. I had forgotten about Mr Dyingly Sad, but it's a great tune. I'll have to start doing it.

Great vocals,

Joe

Lee,
The style for the Duprees is "60s slow rock" in the rock section. I played the bass manually, though, so it won't sound exactly the same. I like to use the right hand to trigger harmonies whenever possible, so I have the auto bass turned OFF, and the acct set to RIGHT hand. Haven't played a Tyros since the first one, and I knew then that it was not for me, so I can't say about the harmonizer, but the lower levels are plagued with that "shutoff glitch" when you activate it. That just can't fly in my setup.
Thanx for the listen, guys!

Dave, very nice. How do you get the background ahhhs behind the harmony on the lead vocal? Also, are you in and out of the lead vocal harmony by using the touch screen or are you triggering it from a pedal. Thanks.

Oh, one other question, Dave. Does the 'songbook' on the Pa800 remember the harmony setups? Let's say you use V1 and V2 on one song, and V2 and V3 on another song. When you call up the second song, have the harmonies stayed at the V1 and V2 setting or, if you've written it into the 'songbook', the V2 and V3 are ready to go on the second song?

Dave, Nice sounding tunes and great use of the harmonizer.

After listening to these demos over again a few times thru my studio monitors, my only critique is on the mix....
IMO the Lead vocal voice is too much Up front outside the harmony balance for my ears...otherwise as always Dave is making beautiful music.

The background "Ahhs" are factory sounds from the Korg, played in real time with my right hand. I turn the harmonies on and off with a foot-switch. I use 2 - sustain and Harmony. Every other change is done by hand.
Donny, you're probably right - I think the overall vocals are too loud too, but I was in my living room, pressed for time and didn't really "mix" anything. I just turned it on and sang. If I were recording for real, I would fuss more, but as a quick demo of the gear - it filled it's purpose.

As for the Songbook - I know I'm missing out on some EZ setups, but I never use it. I do everything on the fly. The only thing I have pre-written are a core of tweaked sounds - Piano, Elec Piano, Guitar, Brass, Strings etc... I'm very spontaneous and motivated by the audience, so I can never predict what I need or what balance to use. I am always changing the balance of lead to harmony voices with the sliders too.

The recorder on the PA800 is so good and easy to use .... I'd love to spend an entire weekend in my bathrobe just recording someday. There's just no time right now. Hope this sheds some light on the TC harmony unit. It's even better than I showed because without an audience in front of me ... you don;t get my best stuff. I need that 2 way connection to really shine.

Thanks, Dave. Clearly, there's an improvement in the "Ahhh" sound from the Pa1X to the Pa800 - though it may be a matter of tweaks. I never use those sounds in my right hand (too busy playing embellishments) and, being a duo with another voice in on some harmonies, I could see myself getting mightily confused on who was where at any given instant when it starts getting a bit complex.

I'm a big believer in the Songbook (custom lists and all the rest of it), but the inability of it to retain harmony setups for individual songs is a real pain as I find myself stabbing at the screen during intros to set the harmonies I want for a given song. Man, if they solved that one in the Pa3X I think I'd be nervously fingering my Visa card right now.

Great Job! let's not forget it's just a quick DEMO.
I used the harmonizer a few times but couldn't get it right, most of the times it would clip, I guess I had something too high?

Dave,

You sound the same as you did when we first met along the Jersey Shore at the Rib Restaurant. Yep, you still have it.

Thanks for the memories,

Gary

The rib place went bankrupt and no longer there

Dave has closed more businesses...not just restaurants/bars...but music stores too..

Now I am not saying he is a jinx....wait a minute...maybe I am saying this..

Ouch! But Fran is right ... lol ... I have worked at more places that went under than I can remember! Too Funny.
Vangelis:
The early OS in the PA800 had issues with mic clipping that were resolved in later updates. I am using the very latest OS .... 3 something, I think.
If you are a strong singer, it's only natural to conclude that adding harmonies are like boosting the input signal by that many times ... your mic signal strength is very important to set, and the placement of your lips to the mic has to change from singing lead to singing with backups. I admit that I place vocals at the top of my priorities, so I obsess a little about the blend ... sometimes even at the expense of a weaker instrumental mix or something else that's sound specific.

These demos are just that ... quick trax to show a few techniques and possibilities. If you fuss with your own sound, you'll get more out of it.

BTW - the "Ahhs sound was a layer of 2 .... both Manhattan Transfer-ish ... one had more movement in it and the other was more smooth.

Sometimes too much use of VH adds to the Unbelievability from the audience that something deceivingly fishy is going on...this is mostly due to the advent that DJ's nowadays command the major venues for most of the public will attend, Weddings, dance clubs, etc etc .....people that sing and play are in the vast MINORITY and is sort of a novelty to the ever present DJ mindset most of the public is used to...and in that your a single act, & all that music and fluff is filling the air and they are bewitched bothered and bewildered big time to whats going on...... sometimes the player assumes that because they obviously know what their doing that the audience knows as well...WRONG? they mostly haven't a clue......this is the sad truth....it ain't like years ago when the whole world was listening to mostly the same music and seeing live bands almost everywhere they went for entertainment...its a whole new ballgame out there ....adapt or be eaten up for sure ....it ain't a bowl of cherries anymore for the dinosaur set out there .....have fun