Welcome to Robot Rocket

Thanks for spending some time to get more familiar with Robot Rocket. Robot Rocket is a vocoder plugin.

Vocoders need two inputs to function — one that’s typically a voice (modulator), and another that’s typically a synth (carrier). Sound will only be produced when the voice and synth channels are making sound. Here’s the steps to get Robot Rocket set up.

  1. Insert Robot Rocket on your voice channel.
  2. Create a synth channel. This can be a plugin synth, an external synth, or a recording.
  3. Open the Robot Rocket plugin and set up the side chain as your synth channel.

Robot Rocket will not produce any sound unless the side chain is set up and both channels are playing audio.

Retro mode #

In retro mode, Robot Rocket will sound very familiar, and a bit lo-fi. The “TalkBox” program is probably the one you’ve heard the most.

“NuVo” lets sibilant sounds pass through, adding to intelligibility. “NuVo” is a less popular setting, but it was used on at least one song you’ve very likely heard.

“TazMania” replaces the synth input with white noise, which sounds like robotic whispering. The robot is probably going to say “pssst… you should buy Robot Rocket”.

Modern mode #

In modern mode, more controls are available to push Robot Rocket into new soundscapes. Turn the quality setting up, and Robot Rocket will sound smoother, and more intelligible.

The shift control pitch shifts the voice input, which in turn moves the vocoder’s filter around. Drop it 2 semitones for extra bite and vibe. Crush lowers the bit depth and sample rate to 16-bit at 31.25kHz.

The low and high pass buttons enable low and high pass filters that have been carefully tuned to match the original.

Voiced and unvoiced buttons #

The modern mode has four buttons for determining what happens when sibilant sounds are detected. This is often referred to as voiced/unvoiced switching in vocoders.

Voiced: Sibilant sounds are ignored, and the synth input will always be used for the vocoder’s carrier.

Unvoiced: White noise will always be used for the vocoder’s carrier. The synth input is ignored.

Auto Noise: If a sibilant sound is present in the voice input, white noise will be used for the vocoder’s carrier. If a sibilant sound is not present in the voice input, the synth input will be used for the vocoder’s carrier.

Auto Voice: If a sibilant sound is present in the voice input, the original voice input will be used for the vocoder’s carrier. If a sibilant sound is not present in the voice input, the synth input will be used for the vocoder’s carrier.

UV level #

The UV level dial sets how loud the white noise is when in Auto Noise mode.

Threshold #

The threshold dial sets how easily Robot Rocket switches to being unvoiced when in Auto Noise and Auto Voice modes. A higher value means Robot Rocket is more likely to switch to the unvoiced signal.

Additional effects #

The modern mode has four additional effects that can be used to give Robot Rocket a retro vibe.

Compress: Adds a compressor to keep levels more consistent. The compressor has fixed settings. If you require more or different compression, we recommend compressing after Robot Rocket.

Crush: Lowers the bit depth to 16-bit and lowers the sample rate to 31.25kHz for some 90s hardware flavour.

High Pass: A 6dB per octave rolloff on the low end. In combination with the low pass filter, this produces a mid-forward band passed sound.

Low Pass: A 12dB per octave rolloff on the high end. In combination with the high pass filter, this produces a mid-forward band passed sound.

Tips #

There’s many ways to use vocoders, and it can be fun to use drum loops or other input sources. Feel free to experiment! But, if you’re looking for some more normal ways to get started, here are some tips.

  • Use a basic sawtooth with filter fully open or almost fully open for the synth input.
  • Use white noise for the synth input. Setting Robot Rocket to unvoiced will do this without needing to set up a white noise generator. It can sound good on its own, or as a subtle thickening layer to a vocal track.
  • Use a sawtooth and some white noise mixed for the synth input.
  • Use a simple envelope for the synth sound, with a quick attack and decay, sustain high, and a quick release.
  • Hold the synth notes down. Gaps in the synth channel will cause gaps in the vocoder output.
  • Don’t EQ the source vocal too much. If you want to do significant EQing, do it post-vocoder.
  • Don’t compress the source vocal too much. If you want to heavily compress, it might be best post-vocoder.
  • Make sure to speak or sing clearly. Overemphasising syllables can help with intelligibility.
  • Option-clicking or double clicking a dial resets it to the default position.

Robot Rocket sounds too buzzy! #

Depending on the settings and carrier used, Robot Rocket can be very buzzy. We felt it would be best to provide lots of controls to shape the sound how you’d like.

The retro mode gets you the sound of the original hardware with a single click. It enables the high pass filter, low pass filter, compression, sets the LPC order to 30, and turns on crush, which lowers the sample rate to 31.25kHz and bit depth to 16-bit. The retro mode cuts the top end buzz a lot.

The modern mode provides more control. We’ve been using Robot Rocket in the modern mode with an LPC order of 48, and with the high and low pass filters in Robot Rocket turned off. An EQ can then be placed after Robot Rocket to further shape the sound. We’ve also had a lot of luck using a carrier that’s a sawtooth with a low pass filter closed a little — that keeps the top end under control, provides a great vibe, but also sounds higher fidelity than the hardware.