So I'm in a 3 piece rock band. I sing lead (plus play guitar), and the other guys (drummer and bass player) do backing vocals. However, we'd like to experiment with some extra harmonies, vocal doubling, octaves etc using a vocal processor, not to overdo it but just to enhance and fill out our sound a bit more.

I was talking with the bass player today and we were looking online at some vocal processors by Boss and TC Helicon. We wondered if there are any vocal processors which can have more than 1 mic input, so that we can plug all 3 of our mics in and get extra harmonies etc on all 3 of our vocals. Or will we have to buy a separate vocal processor each?

We will consider any unit, even rackmount (which we'd need to control with a MIDI foot controller onstage) and even something used/older and no longer in production as long as it sounds good and the price is reasonable.

Also, we don't necessarily need the processor for reverb, delay etc since our mixer (Behringer XR18) already has these. But it'd be great for extra harmonies, doubling, octaving etc. Are there any vocal processors which do harmonies only? What are some possible options for us? Thanks.

No. All vocal processors that do harmony assume a single input. Additionally, in order to get the "cord" of the harmony correct, they need an additional input either from a keyboard, or the guitar so that they can "sing" the correct harmony.

IME, TC Helicon has the very best vocal processors. The Harmony G XT are great as are the VoiceLive Play (not acoustic, used). Their current offering at a lower price range (~$200.00) is the Harmony Singer 2.

If you are serious about vocal harmonies, they offer their Voice Live 3 Extreme (around $1000.00). It also has a guitar looper and backing track support.

Just get a processor for each singer. 1 processor would be hard because it would limit the choices for each singer to that one setting you're running. With different units for each singer, you can choose your chords and effects per mic. Also less annoying because you don't have to have one person changing settings when another wants something different.

One singer through a harmoniser pedal is grim enough, but three of them - shudder...

So long as I get a dry split, I don't mind so much.

NB - never set your FX levels while singing. Record a section and play it back, or have some else set the FX level. Bone conduction etc means the singer hears themselves differently, and they tend to crank the FX up to 11 to compensate. The audience receives an unintelligible mess as a result.

Chris