Avantis Backing Vocals starting point
Beginner Skill level for the five steps below. Optional intermediate and advanced tips are in Going further.
Dial these in, then adjust by ear in the full mix. Backing vocal mics also pick up drums and guitar amps; listen for bleed when they're not singing and mute between parts.
Avantis note: Put all BV channels on one DCA and use Ganging if you want their comp settings linked.
1High-pass filter
120-180 Hz (start around 140)
Illustration in the style of the Avantis low cut / HPF, not a screenshot. Drawn at 12 dB/oct; the shaded area is what gets cut. Drawn at 140 Hz, the card's suggested starting point.
Backing vocals need clarity, not body; a higher HPF keeps them from muddying the lead.
On the Avantis: Select the channel (touch its Name Block on the touchscreen, it shades green), set Screen Mode to Processing, then the Filter tab: HPF 20 Hz-2 kHz, slope 12 or 24 dB/oct, Butterworth or Bessel type (there's also an LPF). Gain, Pad, 48V (hold 1 s), Trim (+/-24 dB) and Polarity are on the Preamp tab.
2Gate
- Use
- No
Use mutes or DCA/mute groups between songs instead.
On the Avantis: Processing > Gate tab: Threshold, Depth (Avantis' name for range), Attack, Hold, Release. Side Chain lets you pick the key source and switch in an HPF/LPF key filter. The Gate Library also offers a Ducker in place of the gate.
3EQ
- HPF 140 Hz, 12 dB/oct
- 1 Bell 300 Hz, -2.5 dB, width 1.5 oct
- 2 Bell 3 kHz, -1.5 dB, width 1.5 oct
Illustration in the style of the Avantis EQ screen, not a screenshot. Curve shows the midpoint of the suggested ranges; HPF drawn at 12 dB/oct.
| Frequency | Gain | Q / width | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| 200-400 Hz | -2 to -3 dB | Wide | Removes body so they blend behind the lead. |
| 2-4 kHz | -1 to -2 dB | Wide | Lets the lead vocal own the presence range. |
On the Avantis: Processing > PEQ tab: 4 bands, +/-15 dB each. Width is set in OCTAVES, not Q (roughly: 1.5 oct = Q 0.9, the widest; 1 oct = Q 1.4; 1/3 oct = Q 4.3). LF and HF bands switch between shelf, bell, or 12 dB/oct cut. Drag the dots on the graph, or pinch for width. PEQ runs before the compressor by default; swap per channel via Options (saved in the Show, not in Scenes).
4Compression
Attack ~10 ms · Release ~200 ms (timing, not shown on graph)
Illustration in the style of the Avantis compressor screen, not a screenshot. The card gives a ratio range (4:1 (go to 5:1 if needed)); the graph shows the first value, 4:1. The threshold is an example only: it is set so a −6 dB peak gets about 6 dB of gain reduction, the middle of the card's target. Set yours by ear while watching the gain reduction (GR) meter. Drawn hard-knee with no makeup gain. Attack and release shape timing and don't change this curve.
- Ratio
- 4:1 (go to 5:1 if needed)
- Attack
- ~10 ms
- Release
- ~200 ms
- Gain reduction
- 4-8 dB
Backing singers often sing quietly then belt choruses; firmer compression keeps them consistent.
On the Avantis: Processing > Compressor tab: Threshold, Ratio (1:1 = no compression up to Infinity = limiter; the steps in between aren't published, so read the value on screen), Gain (makeup), Soft Knee, Attack, Release, Manual RMS or Manual Peak detector, Parallel Path for dry/wet blend, and a sidechain HPF/LPF. dPack adds DEEP compressor models (Opto, 16T, 16VU, etc.).
5FX send
Same vocal reverb as the lead, a bit more
Vocal plate (same as lead), about 1.2 s decay, send around -12 to -8 dB.
Illustration in the style of the Avantis sends view, not a screenshot. Bus numbering depends on how the venue file is patched; set the level by ear.
Pushes them slightly behind the lead.
On the Avantis: 12 RackExtra FX slots. In the FX screen's Back Panel, set the unit to Mix->Return and pick the FX send bus. To set a channel's send: press that FX send's Mix key on its master strip (input faders become send levels), or open Routing for the channel (On/Off, Pre/Post, level). Hold Pre + touch a Name Block to toggle pre/post.
Avantis specifics
- Avantis Solo runs the same Continuity UI, processing and 64-channel/42-bus engine as dual-screen Avantis, just with one 15.6" screen and 12 faders (Avantis has two screens and 24), so the steps above are the same on both.
- Dyn8 (multiband dynamics + dynamic EQ) only exists if dPack is installed (paid; 16 instances, or 24 on firmware 2.0+; check Setup > Config > Add-Ons). Insert it from the channel's Processing > Inserts tab: Insert A sits after the gate, Insert B after the PEQ/Comp. Handy for de-essing vocals or taming boomy acoustic guitars, but these cards don't assume you have it.
- Continuity UI: the strip rotaries handle gain or pan, and one button press folds the bank view to show EQ or compressor settings for every channel in the bank. Three soft rotaries take parameters you assign. Firmware 2.0 adds Smart Rotaries and PEQ, Source Expander and Dyn8 rotary options.
- Save a finished channel to the Input Channel Library (Preamp tab, or touch the selected-channel area). It stores filters, gate, PEQ, comp, delay and name/colour (plus preamp if you choose, and sends on 2.0 firmware). You pick which parts to recall.
🎧 What to listen for
Backing vocal mics also pick up drums and guitar amps; listen for bleed when they're not singing and mute between parts.
Going further (3 optional tips)
Not needed to get a good start. Try these once the basics above sound right.
- IntermediateGroup and gang the backing vocals
One DCA fader for the group; ganging can link the processing.
On the Avantis: Routing > DCA assign (16 DCAs), or Screen Mode Ganging (up to 16 gang groups). Which compressor parameters gang is not yet checked.
- IntermediateUse a de-esser instead of a static EQ cut for 's' sounds
It only turns down sibilance when it happens.
On the Avantis: Processing > Inserts > Insert B: assign a RackExtra De-Esser (3-8 kHz, up to 24 dB reduction). It uses one of the 12 FX slots. With dPack, a Dyn8 dynamic EQ band can do the same job.
- AdvancedDe-ess backing vocals harder than the lead
Stacked 's' sounds add up fast; heavier de-essing on the backing vocals is rarely noticed.
On the Avantis: route the backing vocals to a Group and insert a RackExtra De-Esser on the Group's insert.
Common gear for Backing Vocals
- Shure SM58 · Dynamic vocal mic
- Sennheiser e835 · Dynamic vocal mic
Scene / preset file
Coming later: downloadable Avantis channel preset for this card.
Sources
- Sweetwater InSync: 8 Essential EQ Tips for Live Sound
- Allen & Heath Support: Avantis Processing (Preamp, Filter, Gate, Inserts, PEQ, Compressor), updated 13 Apr 2026
- Allen & Heath Support: Avantis Continuity UI (screen modes, Name Blocks, Pre/Copy/Safes keys), updated 13 Apr 2026
- Allen & Heath: Avantis Firmware Reference Guide V1.30 (PDF; Routing > Aux and FX sends, FX Back Panel)
- Allen & Heath Support: Avantis 2.0 FAQ (dPack, Dyn8, Smart Rotaries, models)
- Allen & Heath Support: Avantis Solo Getting Started Guide
- Allen & Heath Support: Avantis Getting Started Guide (Mix key send modes)
- Sound On Sound: Techniques For Vocal De-essing
- Sound On Sound: Vocal Production (parallel compression, de-essing)
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