Waves Audio has announced that it is now shipping the new Silk Vocal EQ and dynamics plugin for vocals that’s designed to help users more quickly and easily attain balanced, well-mixed vocals.
Silk Vocal automatically detects resonances across 2,000 analysis bands, zeroes in on problematic resonances, and helps to balance vocal tracks. A smart vocal engine is designed to determine where and when processing should occur – often the user just needs to dial in the extent of the desired processing.
The plugin includes several additional controls:
Low: Tightens the boomy, muddy, inflated low end that vocal recordings often suffer from due to proximity effect and room issues, while to ensure that the “natural warmth” of the vocal stays intact.
Mid: Adjustable filters that determine which frequencies will be processed by the smart EQ, while more finely focused EQ reduces harshness and “bite” without losing the voice’s character.
High: Toggles between sibilance and high processing to determine which one provides the smoothest and most balanced top end.
Dynamics: Once the user has tonally balanced vocals with the smart EQ, a few dB of compression can help to keep them tight and consistent.
Auto Makeup Gain: The default setting of the plugin is with auto makeup gain on, meaning smart EQ reduction is continuously and adaptively compensated with a level increase. Users have the option of turning this off and setting their own levels.
Additional Silk Vocal settings include:
HPF: A high-pass filter at 60 Hz that filters out sub frequencies from the vocal.
Speed: Adjusts the envelope of the smart EQ processing by way of a fixed attack-release ratio that, depending on the vocal; the user can set for faster or slower processing.
Precision: Adjusts the sharpness of the Q in each of the processing bands. Choose lower values for more surgical processing, and higher values for smoother results.
Purchasers of Silk Vocal also receive a license for Silk Vocal Live, a separate plugin that’s SoundGrid compatible, which is a real-time version of Silk Vocal. It operates like the original but utilizes minimum phase curves rather than linear phase, resulting in reduced latency. Silk Vocal Live is not only for live settings; it can also be used for recording in the studio, letting users monitor how the plugin sounds on the voice in real time.
Waves Silk Vocal is available as a single plugin or in the Mercury, Vocal Production, Pro Show, and SD7 Pro Show bundles. It has also been added to the Waves Essential plugin subscription, which includes over 110 plugins, and Waves Ultimate plugin subscription that provides all 230-plus Waves plugins as monthly or annual subscriptions. Go here for more specifics about Waves Silk Vocal.
www.waves.com
Australian Distributor: Sound & Music Promotions www.sound-music.com
