TC-Helicon VoiceTone Correct User manual

ENGLISH VERSION

Introduction .................................................... page 4
Quick Start .......................................................page 6
Using Two VoiceTone Pedals ....................... page 12
Front & Back Panel Descriptions ............... page 13
Setup Configurations ....................................page 16
Phantom Power ..............................................................page 16
Standard Setup ................................................................page 17
Main/Monitor ...................................................................page 18
Sound Engineer Setup .................................................page 19
Advanced Setup .............................................................page 2
Using & Understanding the Effect ..............page 22
Using the Effects ............................................page 23
Adaptive Shape EQ ......................................................page 23
Adaptive Compression ...............................................page 24
De-ess ..................................................................................page 25
Pitch Correction .............................................................page 26
Understanding Live Engineer Effects .........page 27
Understanding Pitch Correction ................page 31
FAQ & Troubleshooting ...............................page 33
Specifications ..................................................page 35
Table of Contents
3
TC Helicon Vocal Technologies Ltd.
[email protected]
Manual revision 1.0 – SW – V 1.0 | Prod. No: E60507211
English Version

4
Welcome to VoiceTone Correct
We at TC-Helicon believe that VoiceTone Correct will
finally make you truly satisfied with your live vocal sound.
More than any other musicians, vocalists are
understandably not happy with their live sound. The
reason is typically obvious - the singer has no control of
the sound system and most often there is no sound
engineer to help. Correct to the rescue! Correct listens
to your voice and adjusts your tone and dynamics
automatically to produce studio quality vocal tone that
you and your audience will appreciate. In addition, the
pitch correction effect is like a metronome for pitch. It
lets you know when you're out of tune and you naturally
decide to correct yourself, or not.
An incredible amount of live sound research was
undertaken for VoiceTone Correct and that means you
can trust it as a capable and reliable sound engineer. In
terms of audio quality (noise floor, harmonic distortion,
and frequency response), Correct surpasses anything
that has come before it, and unarguably exceeds even
the most stringent "audiophile" requirements.
Many audience members, band members and sound
engineers may be surprised to see a singer taking
control over their sound. We think it's about time!
Features:
Pitch Correction:
o Auto-chromatic pitch correction acts as a guide for
you to improve your pitch
o Accurate input pitch and correction display
o Correction can go to monitors, mains or both
Live Engineer effects (LE effects)
o Adjustable Adaptive Compression
o Multiband Adaptive Shape EQ dynamically sweetens
raw mic sound
o Sibilance-smoothing de-ess algorithm
o Add rich lows on deep voices with the Warmth
button
o XLR mic level I/O
o Clean, studio quality mic preamp with phantom power
Introduction

5
About TC-Helicon
At TC-Helicon we truly believe that the voice is the
world's most beautiful instrument. We don't mean to
degrade other beautiful instruments, but the singing
voice is the anthropological source for all things melodic.
In the words of the founders of TC-Helicon,
"Everything we do is dedicated to this instrument (the
singing voice). We envision a world where those who
work with the voice in live and recording situations can
bring out the very best from any performance, and
where the possibilities of vocal craft are endless."
Our mission was galvanized by a simple question:
"Isn't it time that someone finally provided dedicated
tools and solutions for voice?"
So what does this all mean to singers? It means that you
should know there is a dedicated group of engineers,
researchers and product specialist based in Victoria, BC,
Canada that spend every waking moment of their
working lives listening, talking, singing, and interacting
with singers and those who have passion for the singing
voice. All this knowledge and experience is used to
design products respecting and empowering the
modern vocalist. Our products focus on removing
barriers and inspiring creativity in performance. That's
why our products range from near-field personal vocal
monitors to floor-based vocal multi-effects pedals.
Enjoy.
The TC-Helicon Team
a TC Group company
Introduction

6
Step 1:
Connect your microphone to a mic cable
Step 2:
Connect the mic cable to the Mic Input on Correct.
Quick Start
Make sure Correct is not powered.
NOTE:

7
Step 3:
Connect a mic cable to the Main Output of Correct.
Step 4:
Connect the mic cable from Correct to a mic input on
your sound system.
Quick Start
At this point it would be best to turn the gain and/or
volume on your sound system's mic input to off.
NOTE:

8
Step 5:
Set all EQ and/or compression on your sound system
mic channel to off, or unity (middle position - no boost
or cut).
Step 6:
Turn the Input Knob fully left and set the last four knobs
on Correct to their default position as indicated.
Quick Start
Correct is going to supply the EQ and compression
for your voice automatically. After it has been turned
on for your voice, a live sound engineer can decide if
they want to do any further processing. But know
that for the vast majority of the time, there is no
need for extra EQ or compression.
NOTE:

9
Step 7:
Connect Correct’s power adapter to main power and
to the Power Input on Correct.
Step 8:
While singing through your microphone, turn the Input
Knob to the right until the Input Light turns green,
sometimes orange on louder parts, but never red.
Quick Start

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Step 9:
Raise the gain and/or volume on your sound system mic
input channel and master volume until you hear a good
level from your vocals.
Step 10:
You're ready to hear Correct on your voice.
a. Turn the Live Engineer effects on or off with the
Right Footswitch
b. Turn the pitch correction effect on or off with the
Left Footswitch
Quick Start

Step 11:
Here are some quick tips on understanding what
Correct will do for your live vocal sound.
Live Engineer (LE effects): On
Regardless of your microphone, mic technique or
whether you are a Bass or Soprano, the LE effects will
optimize the balance of low and high frequencies and
smooth the loud and soft parts of your singing to make
you sound your best. Your sound will be clear and
defined and will fit well into your mix.
Pitch Correction effect: On
Singing with the pitch correction effect can ensure that
your vocal is on pitch. You'll hear the pitch corrected
version of your voice that will act as a reference so you
can self adjust your pitch to be right on key.
Quick Start
11

Using Two VoiceTone Pedals
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You can use two VoiceTone pedals in series. For
example, a great combination is to have VoiceTone
Correct feeding a VoiceTone Create pedal. Generally,
Correct should be the first device in the chain.
Step 1:
Follow the Quick Start guide for both VoiceTone Pedals.
Step 2:
Instead of connecting your first VoiceTone pedal to the
PA, connect its mono output to the mic input on Create.
Step 3:
Connect the secondVoiceTone pedal, in this case Create
to the PA.
Step 4:
Set VoiceTone Create’s Input Knob fully left.
Step 5:
Use the first pedal’s Input Knob to set the microphone
gain.

1. Guide Output
Alternate output with full time pitch correction when it’s
only desired in stage monitors. Diagram below shows
possible routings
2. Main Output
Typical output for use with sound system. Diagram
below shows possible routings.
3. Mic Input
Microphone connection
Front & Back Panel Descriptions
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3
2
1
POWER
PPIITTCCHHEENNAABBLLEEDDLLEEEEFFFFEECCTTSS
EENNAABBLLEEDD
MMAAIINNOOUUTTPPUUTTGGUUIIDDEEOOUUTTPPUUTT
No No Dry Pitch
Ye s No Dry Pitch
Ye s Ye s LE Effects + Pitch LE Effects + Pitch
No Ye s LE Effects LE Effects + Pitch

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1. Input Knob
Controls the microphone pre-amplifier gain. Correct can
accept dynamic or condenser microphones.
2. Input Light
Indicates the input level of the microphone. Flashing
green, sometimes orange is good. Flashing red is clipping,
which is not good.
3. Shape Knob
Controls the amount of Shape EQ on the voice. 12
o’clock is the default position, full left is off.
4. Compress Knob
Controls the amount of compression on the voice. 12
o’clock is the default position, full left is off.
5. De-ess Knob
Controls the amount of de-essing on the voice. 12
o’clock is the default position, full left is off.
Front & Back Panel Descriptions
1 2 3 4 5 6
8
7
10
13 14
11
9
12

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6. Pitch Knob
Controls the amount of pitch correction effect on the
voice. 12 o’clock is default position, full left is off.
7.Warmth Button
Enables the Warmth EQ.
8.Adaptive Shape & Compress Buttons
Switch the Shape and Compress effects between
adaptive and manual.
9. Pitch Display
Displays your relative intonation.The top bar shows your
input pitch, the bottom bar shows your corrected pitch.
10. Phantom Power Light
Indicates status of +48V phantom power.
11. Dry to Guide Button
When enabled, the Guide Output will feature your pitch
corrected voice in parallel with your natural voice. This
can make it easier to hear the pitch correction effect in
high level situations.
12. Display Button
Turns the Pitch Display on/off
13. Left Footswitch
Turns the pitch correction effect on/off.
14. Right Footswitch
Turns all effects off in the Main Output of Correct (LE
Effects and pitch correction).
Front & Back Panel Descriptions

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Phantom Power
Before using any setup configuration, determine the type
of microphone you are using:
Dynamic microphone: phantom power off.
Condenser microphone: phantom power on.
Enabling Phantom Power:
1. Confirm that your sound system master level is off.
2. Connect Correct's power adapter to main power
and to the Power Input on Correct.
3. Press and hold Dry to Guide Button and Display
Button simultaneously until the Phantom Power Light
comes on.To turn phantom power off, repeat this step.
Setup Configurations
Set your sound system level to off when you are
turning phantom power on/off as it can create a
“pop” sound in your speakers.
NOTE:

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Standard Setup
The standard setup for VoiceTone Correct couldn't be
easier - put Correct between your microphone and
your mic input on your sound system. In this
configuration only Main Output is used.
Connecting and Enabling for Standard Setup:
1. Connect your microphone to Correct’s Mic Input.
2. Connect to your sound system as in diagram on this
page. Main Output to mic input channel on your sound
system.
3. Connect Correct's power adapter to main power
and to the Power Input on Correct.
Setup Configurations

18
Main / Monitor Setup
While Correct’s pitch correction is so transparent that
your audience may never know you're using it, we
suspect there'll always be purists who'd rather the
audience hear only their raw and naked voice. Using the
Guide Output, you can route your pitch corrected voice
to your monitor mix, while your audience hears no
correction effect from the Main Output.
Connecting and Enabling for Main/Monitor
Setup:
1. Connect your microphone to Correct's Mic Input.
2. Connect to your sound system as in diagram: Main
Output to your front-of-house sound system’s mic input,
and the Guide Output to your personal voice monitor,
or monitor mix channel.
3. Connect Correct's power adapter to main power
and to the Power Input on Correct.
Setup Configurations

19
Sound Engineer Setup
If you are in a situation where a live sound engineer
mixes your vocal sound, there are some details you
should provide to them when working with VoiceTone
Correct:
1. Correct can supply phantom power if needed.
2. Sending external phantom power to Correct will
not harm the pedal, but will produce a pop sound when
power is turned on/off.
3. The Main Output is for front-of-house, the Guide
Output is for monitors only if the singer wants to hear
the pitch correction effect separately in the monitors.
4. Set your sound console’s EQ, and any outboard
dynamic processing gear to unity or bypass. Correct’s
Adaptive Shape EQ and compress features adapt to
vocals over a short time. Correct is designed with the
assumption that the overall sound system has a flat
response with no dynamics processing.
In the vast majority of cases, it won’t be necessary to
add any more EQ or compression. If extra processing is
desired, only add addtional EQ or compression after
Correct has been running for thirty seconds, giving it
enough time to dynamically adjust to the singer's voice.
Setup Configurations

Advanced Settings: Tuning Reference
If you know that the instruments you are singing with are
not tuned to A440, or you hear that your corrected
voice doesn’t sound in tune, then you need to change
Correct’s tuning reference.
1. Press and hold the Warmth, Shape, and Compress
Buttons simultaneoulsy as you plug the power adapter
into Correct.The Pitch On Light flashes to indicate you
are ready to change the tuning reference.
2. Plug your mic into the Mic Input and set the level as
in Step 8 of the Quick Start section.
3. Place the microphone near an instrument you know
to be in tune (piano, guitar, bass, etc.), and play any
monophonic pitch.
4. On the pitch display you’ll see how far the instrument
is out of tune from A440 on the top bar. As the note is
held, the bottom bar will show the tuning reference
change to correct it. When the two bars match, press
the Left Footswitch. Correct will enter regular mode
with the new tuning reference.
Setup Configurations
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The tuning reference is reset to A440 the next time
power is removed from Correct.
NOTE: