[James Lugo]

I'll start this by saying this not a question this has become a quest.

I'm so close I can taste it. I started tracking vocals on my own record this week. The best chain of what I own is E49>LTD-1>1176. It sounds massive and warm but still sounds a hair like it's being recorded and converted to ones and zeros. I love the vocal sound on 3 Doors Down's song 'When I'm Gone'. That's kinda what I'm after.

We took one of my vocal tracks and added some plug ins, Phoenix, UA1176, UA La 2a and Sony Oxford EQ. I had 3 killer engineers in the studio helping me. It sounded 90% but there was still a touch of the ones and zeros thing happening in the upper mids.

Is it possible to make vocals in protools not sound digital?
Would adding another piece of tube gear in the chain warm it up the last 10%?
If so, what? Tube compressor? Tube pre? And which kind?
What's the chain on the song 'When I'm Gone"? Was that tracked in digital or tape?

I know this is such a broad stroke but it's the best I can do. This post means everything to me right now. This record I'm completing has to be insane, I can't have a woulda shoulda coulda feeling. I need to feel I did the best I could.

Thanks

p.s. the phoenix plug in is incredible sounding. I'm not one for getting a h**d on about plug ins but that thing rocks.