Got z3ta+ working now.  Thanks for the link.

sethmopod
Having a couple of problems:
z3ta+ - I can't get any sound to come out of it.  When I put it on the bus, no sound.  Turn it off (via the power button in the fx rack) and sound comes back.
 
VoxTools - The Mayhem Distortion button does the same thing.  When I hit the button, it cuts off the audio.
 
Thoughts?

The Mayhem Distortion function requires that TH2/TH3 be installed. Let me know if that's the case. Also, there are separate versions for Platinum or Artist/Professional; make sure you're using the right one.

I am running Platinum.  When I go to the VoxTools folder, there is only one thing in it: VoxTools(Platinum).
 
TH2 & TH3 both show up in my plugins list.  I haven't loaded either of them into a project yet since installing Platinum (which has only been a couple of days now).

Then it should work. However this isn't the first time there have been weirdnesses with THx in FX chains, and I don't know what the problem is...sorry.

No worries.  There are still some good tools there, and I'm glad to know where to go when I need some of them.

For a time-based FX, iZotope's Stutter Edit has a nice gambit of effects you can use on audio material. The trial is fully functional for 10 days, and if you disable the "Stutter" function, it adds a smoother effect pattern (the plugin is sort of misnamed as the Stutter is only one of numerous features, although is its prime selling point).
 
In case you try that, be sure to read the setup portion for SONAR. It goes into an FX bin like an audio FX, but then must have "MIDI Input Enabled" and a MIDI track feeding it. The transport must also be running for audio to pass through it (in case anyone tries it with a VSTi that can generate audio with the transport stopped).
 
Huge +1 to all of the amp sim recommendations above (amp sims are the best "all in one place" FX routers, and I also use Guitar Rig 5 for this feature).

Thanks for all of the feedback on this.  Here's where I ended up:
 
Love the patch points for this!! So easy to set up parallel processing that I expect to use this feature a lot.  This was super handy as the vocal in question was a blend of two mics and I could assign both tracks to send to the same patch point and each parallel processing track got the right blend of the two mics.
 
On 3 parallel tracks, I ran 1) a tape sim delay; 2) VoxTools with Cylon, Megaphone, & ADT at various levels; 3) TH3 with a Marshall-type setup.  Each track blended in to taste.
 
I tried a phaser on another parallel track, but had an idea that ended up way better:  I cloned the original tracks and then manually shifted their phase by 1/2 of a wavelength.  I then automated pan and volume oscillations in time with the music (1/2 notes for pan & whole notes for volume).  This gave a really neat effect as the the timbre of the vocal was changing in a really dynamic way and gave a bit of a swirling effect.
 
In the end, I didn't completely destroy the vocal, but blending that stuff in with the unprocessed tracks gave it a distant, ethereal effect that I ended up really happy with.
 
I love this forum!
Seth

sethmopod
I have a vocal in a mix that I'm working on that really needs something special.  I'm not sure exactly what yet, but I need some ideas of things I can play with.  The only thing that I'm sure of is that I want something really screwed up sounding.  What do you do when you need something like that?  Is there a synth that you can run it through with various filters?  I'm open to any suggestions!

You mean... like John Lennon's voice in the background of Yellow Submarine? That kind of thing?
 
Perhaps you've heard the story already, but... microphone, condom, bowl of water. Careful, though. Lennon nearly electrocuted himself.