Vocaloid Descriptions: Big Al
(Note: Sorry for the late release, I'm on vacation. It's worth it for Al though lol)
Big Al
Big Al's official boxart, illustration by Ash |
Big Al's Taiwan boxart |
Big Al's original boxart (my morality what is this Elvis monster morph thing) |
Voice donor: Frank S.
Engine: V2
Company: Made and sold by PowerFX
Company: Made and sold by PowerFX
Release date: December 2009
Updates and/or additional voicebanks: Nope :(
Language: English
Voice type: Baritone-tenor, American accent
Weaknesses: V2 isn’t very inherently realistic, and it’s discontinued. V2 can’t do low notes well either, so he has some distortion in his lower range. He also croaks at the start of words.
Weaknesses: V2 isn’t very inherently realistic, and it’s discontinued. V2 can’t do low notes well either, so he has some distortion in his lower range. He also croaks at the start of words.
Strengths: His voice type in general is quite unique. He has the lowest recommended range of all the Vocaloids. Big Al is the clearest English V2 and can even drown out some other Vocaloids sometimes.
Examples: Breaking Point, Rinse, Repeat, Viva La Vida, Bi☣hazard, Breathe, Obey, Last Dance
Reception: Forgotten and obscure, except maybe as a meme. Kodakami2 does do him justice, however, which I’m happy about. He actually has an interesting backstory, which I will recount as accurately as possible:
When Big Al was being developed for V1, under the name of “Ronie,” he had a voice donor we don’t know the name of. When he switched to being made for V2, for unknown reasons his voice donor changed to Michael King, an Elvis impersonator. However, midway through the recording process, he went on tour. The beta voicebank… Well, it sounded like this: I Feel Good, Make Me Feel, Slow Rap (HIGHWAY LIVERS:). If he was released like that, he would be the laughingstock of the emerging Vocaloid fandom forever. So they got one of their employees to record the voicebank, and they also switched the design, thank goodness.
My opinion: One of my favorites. I feel pity for all underrated, quirky Vocaloids in general as well.
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