Plugin Pulse April 27th: Your Weekly Audio Update
This Week in Audio Plugins we talk Excite Audio Bloom Vocal Choir and discuss how to get a great choral effect with plugins you might already have.
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🔊 Industry News:
Excite Audio Announces Vocal Bloom Vocal Choir
Bloom Vocal Choir presents you with a platform to piece together your own choir and dive deep into vocal harmony.
Read more → Bloom Vocal Choir*Eurovision Song Contest - 69th version
The Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2025 takes place in Basel, Switzerland on Saturday 17 May. Will you be listening?
Get ready to watch → Learn howKorneff Audio are having random sales
I think its worth signing up to their mailing list as I’ve had a few sneaky sales drop in my inbox this week.
Read more → Link to Korneff
💡 Plugin of the Week:
Bloom Vocal Choir
Type: VST
Category: Synth
A choir at your fingertips
Excite Audio returns with Bloom Vocal Choir - a deeply expressive vocal instrument that brings the emotion and power of choral music into the hands of producers and composers. Stack harmonies using the intuitive sequencer all in key and in tempo with your projects.
Get it now → At Plugin Boutique*
Essential Techniques for Crafting Rich Choral Vocal Effects
Creating a convincing choral texture begins with gathering multiple vocal performances. Invite singers to record the same part on separate occasions, or record your own voice several times. Even the smallest variations in timing and volume will combine to give the impression of a larger ensemble. When compiling these takes, resist the urge to line up every syllable perfectly. A few natural timing differences will lend authenticity to the choir impression.
Once your vocal layers are in place, consider enhancing them with a gentle ensemble effect. A plugin such as Soundtoys Little Microshift* excels at adding subtle pitch and delay modulation, widening the sound without overt warble. Keep the mix setting low to preserve clarity, and apply slightly more to background layers than to any solo line you wish to remain prominent.
Reverberation plays a central role in situating a choir within a space. Valhalla Room offers a range of hall and chamber emulations that are well suited to choral textures. Choose a medium to large hall setting and reduce early reflections to prevent muddiness. Leave a little room in the same reverb for lead instruments so that everything feels cohesive.
For a more synthetic choir effect, gently shift the pitch and formant of duplicate tracks. Soundtoys Little AlterBoy* makes it easy to transpose by a few semitones while preserving vocal character. Subtle changes suggest additional voices without sounding mechanical.
Spatial placement can further reinforce the sense of a broad ensemble. Pan inner voices closer to the centre and reserve wider positions for higher and lower registers. Automating slight panning moves or level fades over time can mimic the natural ebb and flow of a live choir, helping the effect feel alive rather than static.
Balance is crucial when integrating choral effects into a full mix. Carve space with equalisation by rolling off unnecessary low end and taming any harsh frequencies between two and four kilohertz. A gentle compressor on the group bus will even out peaks and help the choir sit comfortably under other elements. If the result feels too pristine, a touch of tape or tube saturation can introduce warmth and character.
Above all, trust your ears. Take regular breaks to prevent listening fatigue and return with fresh perspective. Compare your choral treatment against reference tracks to judge width, depth and tonal balance. Don’t rely solely on visual meters or plugin presets; listen for how each adjustment changes the emotional impact of the choir. Sometimes the smallest tweak to timing, modulation or ambience will have the most profound effect. By tuning in to what sounds right, rather than what looks correct, you’ll achieve a choral vocal effect that feels both natural and captivating.
Podcast Vocal Recording Tips for Broadcast Quality Sound: Best Microphones and Settings
Achieving a clear, engaging vocal sound for your podcast begins with choosing the right microphone. Two broad categories dominate the field: dynamic and condenser microphones. Dynamic models tend to handle high sound pressure well and reject background noise, making them ideal for untreated rooms or lively environments. Condenser microphones are more sensitive and reveal finer detail, which can lend a sense of intimacy but may also capture unwanted reflections if your room is not well controlled.
Popular dynamic choices include the Shure SM7B and the Electro-Voice RE20. Both offer a warm mid-range presence and built-in pop-filter design, helping to minimise plosives. The SM7B is often paired with a dedicated preamp or booster such as the Cloudlifter, which provides additional clean gain. The RE20 employs Variable-D technology to maintain consistent tonal balance even as you move slightly off-axis. If you need a condenser option, the Rode NT1-A presents a quiet self-noise floor and a smooth top end, while the Audio-Technica AT2020 offers a budget-friendly entry point without sacrificing clarity.
USB microphones can streamline your setup if you wish to record directly into a computer without an audio interface. Models such as the Rode PodMic or the Blue Yeti Pro provide reliable performance and convenient gain controls. Bear in mind that USB mics share the computer’s clocking and converters, so consistency between multiple contributors may require careful matching of levels and recording settings.
Gain Staging
Once you have your microphone in place, focus on gain staging. Aim to record with peaks around –12 dB to –6 dB on your input meter, allowing enough headroom to prevent clipping while preserving ample signal level. If using an audio interface, set the preamp gain conservatively and monitor the input LED or meter for occasional brief peaks into the yellow zone.
Mic placement can make a profound difference. Position the capsule roughly six to twelve inches from your mouth, angled slightly off-axis to reduce hard plosives. Experiment with distance: moving closer increases warmth and proximity effect, while moving back provides more air and natural room tone. Use a simple pop-filter or foam windscreen to tame bursts of breath without over-dampening the high frequencies.
Your recording environment matters almost as much as your equipment. Even modest acoustic treatment—such as thick curtains, bookshelves filled with soft items, or a portable vocal booth—can reduce unwanted reflections and flutter echo. If you regularly record in the same space, consider adding acoustic panels or bass traps at first-reflection points to maintain clarity.
After capturing a solid raw track, processing with a few key plugins will help polish your voice for broadcast quality. Start with gentle noise reduction to eliminate residual hiss or hum. A tool such as iZotope RX Elements* can adapt to the background sound and apply transparent reduction.
Next, apply equalisation to balance tonal character. Roll off the very low end below 100hz to remove rumble, then gently boost around one to three kilohertz to improve presence and intelligibility. A semi-parametric EQ like FabFilter Pro-Q 4* offers surgical filters and a sleek interface for visualising resonances.
Compression helps to smooth out dynamic variations, ensuring quieter phrases remain audible while preventing louder spikes from drawing undue attention. A classic optical compressor such as the Waves CLA-2A* lends a musical, program-dependent reaction that suits spoken word. Aim for two to five decibels of gain reduction on the loudest syllables, with a moderate attack and release to preserve natural speech rhythms.
To control sibilance without introducing artefacts, insert a de-esser after compression. The Waves DeEsser* can home in on harsh “s” and “t” sounds, attenuating them smoothly. Adjust the threshold until sibilants are tamed without dulling the overall brightness.
Level automation or a vocal riding plugin will maintain consistent overall volume. Waves Vocal Rider* listens to the incoming signal and moves the fader in real time, preserving your setting while handling subtle level shifts. This reduces the need for extensive manual automation and keeps the voice centred in the mix.
Finally, add a modest send-return reverb or ambience to place the voice in a natural acoustic space. A short plate or small room emulation can give a sense of depth without distracting from the narrative. Valhalla VintageVerb provides a range of vintage-style algorithms that suit spoken word. Keep the wet level low—just enough to prevent a dry, lifeless sound.
Throughout the process, trust your ears above all. Take breaks to rest your hearing and return with fresh perspective. Compare your processed voice against professional broadcasts or well-produced podcasts to gauge tonal balance, clarity, and loudness. Don’t become overly reliant on presets or visual meters; listen for how the voice sits in context and whether each adjustment supports intelligibility and listener engagement. A slight change in EQ curve, compressor release, or mic angle can yield dramatic improvements in warmth or presence. By following these guidelines and refining your approach with careful listening, you will achieve broadcast-quality vocal recordings that engage and convey your message with impact.
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