The Waves Vocal Chain I Use on Every Acoustic Rap Track
Acoustic rap is a weird space to mix vocals. You've got an acoustic guitar sitting in the same frequency range as your voice, intentional dynamic swings from quiet to loud, and you need the vocal to feel raw and real without sounding like it was recorded in a bedroom. That last part is the hard one.
This is the chain I built to solve those problems. You can hear it on my latest single Phases — a song about moving through the good and the bad and coming out the other side. The vocal needed to feel honest but sit cleanly in the mix. This chain is how I got there.
The Full Chain in Order
Order matters. Every plugin in this chain is doing a specific job, and each one sets up the next. Here's exactly how it's stacked:
- 1. Waves Tune Real-Time — pitch correction before anything else touches the signal
- 2. Scheps 73 — preamp color, frequency shaping, low cut
- 3. Waves Sibilance — de-essing before the compressors see the signal
- 4. CLA-76 — fast dynamic control, tightens the performance
- 5. CLA-2A — smooth gain riding, catches what the 1176 lets through
- 6. CLA Vocals — tone shaping, space, final texture
Why Each Plugin Is There
Waves Tune Real-Time
Pitch correction needs to see the cleanest signal possible. If you put it after EQ or compression you're making it work harder than it needs to. I keep it subtle — just enough to catch notes that land slightly off without making the vocal sound processed. Acoustic rap lives and dies on authenticity. Obvious tuning kills it.
Scheps 73
This is where the vocal gets its color. I'm using it for the preamp warmth and running a low cut around 80-100Hz to clean up any mud before the compressors see it. Acoustic guitar and vocals share a lot of the same frequency real estate. Cleaning the bottom end of the vocal here means both elements can breathe in the mix without fighting each other.
Waves Sibilance
My Apollo Twin is an honest preamp — it doesn't flatter harsh S and T sounds, it just captures them. If those frequencies hit the 1176 before they're controlled, the compressor pumps on every sibilant and the whole vocal feels uneven. Sibilance before compression fixes that. It's one of the most underrated moves in a vocal chain.
CLA-76
I rap quiet in some parts and loud in others on purpose. That dynamic range is part of the style. The 1176 running at 4:1 with a fast attack tightens up the loud moments and the consonants without killing the energy of the performance. It controls without squashing.
CLA-2A
Whatever dynamic range the 1176 lets through, the LA-2A catches. It's running subtle in compress mode — not obvious compression, just a smooth glue that keeps the vocal sitting consistently in the mix from the first bar to the last. This is the plugin that makes a vocal feel like it belongs in a record instead of just sitting on top of one.
CLA Vocals
Recording in a treated home setup means the room is clean but dry. CLA Vocals is where the vocal gets its space — reverb, delay, warmth all dialed in at the end of the chain. Doing this last means you're adding space to an already polished vocal, not trying to hide problems with effects.
The Tools Used in This Chain
Want the Preset?
I'm packaging this chain into a Pro Tools template preset you can drop into your own sessions. Follow me on Instagram @droll or join the Discord to be the first to get it when it drops.
Stream Phases
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Dreams work when you do. – Dylan Droll