Spiritbox - Courtney LaPlante

Name: Spiritbox - Courtney LaPlante
Price: 79 USD
Author: MixWave

by MixWave · Vocal Tool · Artist vocal chain

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Spiritbox - Courtney LaPlante by MixWave

A modular vocal processing plugin based on the vocal chain of Spiritbox singer Courtney LaPlante, for clean singing and screams.

It has pitch, distortion, compression, modulation, reverb, delay and line amp modules, for $79 on sale (normally $139).

Best for: Vocals. Genres: Metal, Rock & Indie.

Keywords: vocals, clean, tracking, gritty, modular, heavy, mixing, creative, oversampling, rhythmic, spacious, subtle, wide.

What it does

Spiritbox - Courtney LaPlante is a modular vocal suite built around the Spiritbox singer's own vocal chain. It is meant to cover her range, from "delicate melodies, towering cleans, and uncompromising screams."

Pitch: MixWave's own pitch shifting with formant control, for doubling, octave layers or changing the character of a voice.
Distortion: harmonic saturation and drive, from light grit to heavy, broken-up screams.
Compression: dynamic control with its own harmonic character.
Modulation, reverb and delay: modulation for width and movement, a reverb with Room, Ambient and Plate algorithms, and a delay for rhythmic or spacious repeats.
Line amplifier: an analog-style output stage for extra colour.
Mix tools: an EQ and a compressor that can sit before or after the chain, and a module order you can rearrange freely.
Tracking and quality: separate latency modes for tracking and mixing, mono and stereo operation, and up to 8x oversampling.

A 14-day fully working trial is available.

Source: MixWave product page

When to use it

Spiritbox - Courtney LaPlante is the better pick when you want a creative, ready-made chain for heavy vocals rather than a corrective toolkit. Compared with Nectar 4, it has no assistant or pitch-correction workflow, but its distortion, formant pitch and rearrangeable modules go further for screams and layered effect vocals. Unlike Pro-DS or Vocal Rider, it does not solve one specific problem such as sibilance or level riding; it shapes the whole sound. Its tracking latency mode also makes it usable live or while recording, not only in the mix.

Best for: screams, gritty doubles, formant-shifted layers and atmospheric clean vocals.
Genres: metal, metalcore and alternative rock, and any style that wants heavy vocal effects.
Look elsewhere if: you want corrective vocal work such as pitch correction or de-essing; Nectar 4 or Pro-DS fit better.
Tip: Gearspace users found that changing the module order gives very different sounds, and that it also works on guitars, drums and synths.

What producers say

Early users on Gearspace praised how quickly it gets good results; the few doubts were about whether it is needed at all.

Gearspace thread users called it "effects made easy" with "just enough options to keep you creatively engaged," and liked the clean reverb and delay and the formant control.
Comparisons: one user said it gave sounds they could not get from other vocal strips, including Nuro XVoxPro, Pulsar Vocal Studio and Neural DSP's Mantra.
Criticisms: one user felt stock plugins could do much of the same, and another wished MixWave had a stronger loyalty program; most found the intro price fair.

Gearspace thread

Where to buy

MixWave: $79 (regular $139)

Tutorials and reviews

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