Fred Gunn (Hiram-Maxim – vocals)
SPB: From when you were starting out to now, what parts of your setup have really helped voice your sound over the years?
Gunn: Prior to forming HIRAM-MAXIM, I performed exclusively in punk bands. The extent of my gear was nothing of my own. I’d just show up and use the club’s microphone. Aside from being able to hear my vocal in the monitor, I never knew to ask for anything else. Full disclosure, I never knew there was anything else I could have done or asked for.
Lisa had an Earthquaker Devices Disaster Transport SR on her table that she ran a microphone through. After playing with it a few times I knew I needed one of my own. I was able to acquire the regular version of the Disaster Transport from my buddy, James. For those not familiar, the Disaster Transport is a delay and reverb pedal meant for guitar. I had also learned to request a ton of reverb be put on my vocals through the mixing board. The reverb from the DT is great but I only like to use the delay sparingly for the right moments and songs.
As time went on, I was starting to feel good about my new setup. That was until we played an outdoor gig at an art museum and I requested reverb and was informed by the sound guy that he was not able to do that with this particular soundboard. Well...shit! I was able to power through but after that show I decided I wasn’t going to rely on the soundboard for the reverb that I had grown accustom to. I searched and read good things about the Boss VE-20 Vocal Effects Processor. This thing is fucking rad, has tons of presets, has the ability to build your own, and it can also be used as a looper. However, mostly I use it for the reverb the I built and saved as my own preset. So after all that, I’m able to just make sure I can hear myself in the monitors again.
