autotune question

[JES]

Hi All,

So I'm working on a vocal where the vocalist just wants a little correction. I'd like to try graphical mode, but the manual is a bit confusing to me (or I'm doing something wrong).

I gather that I tell it to track the vocal, hit "play" in DP and then it displays a waveform when I'm done that I can manipulate. Except that it doesn't display the waveform?

I suspect that it's some stupid setting that I haven't figured out.

Thanks.

--JES

[westla]

Are you using it as a plugin on the vocal track?

If so, it just corrects the pitch, it dosen't "display" a new waveform.

[joconnel]

Hey,
When using it as a plug in, click graphic mode, then click track pitch, it will then start blinking. cue up the vocal to the pitchy spot, hit play. once you hit stop, it will show up in the AT window below the pitch tracking info. once you have made your correction lines, you then assign the output of that track to a new track so you can rerecord the changes. I usually do this by creating an aux send from the track i am working on and bussing it to a new audio track and recording each piece as i need it. Hope that helps.... also, you didn't mention which version of AT you are on, not that it really matters in this case.

[Tim]

After tracking pitch it shows actual pitch with red lines. You need to click a button (I forget what it's called) so it creates the yellow lines that can then be manipulated. The yellow lines will match the red ones until it's told to correct pitch (or you move them).

[JES]

Thanks everyone. I'll give it a try this and report back (I'm headed out of town for a couple days).

--JES

[JES]

Hi All,

Okay, I don't know what I was doing wrong before but I've got it working now. I ran through all the tutorials for graphic mode and now can more or less get it to do what I want. I still have two questions for those of you who use graphic mode:

1. Technique: how do I highlight just a *section* of corrected audio to delete the curve Autotune has imposed? I tried the I-beam tool and that didn't work. Am I supposed to snip it with the scissors at both ends, select two endpoints and then cut? that seems kind of kludgey. Again, I'm sure there's an obvious answer I'm missing.

2. Usage: When there are just a few pitch-y bits in a song, do you have the thing run an automatic curve and then delete what you don't need, or do you just draw in little bits?

Any other obvious or nonobvious tips for graphic mode would be much appreciated.

Thanks again and in advance.

--JES

[rainmaker]

Hello,

I usually don't have it put the auto curves on at all. I simply let it track the performance, then draw in straight yellow lines at the correct note where the singer is off. I leave the rest alone. Of course this only works if the singer is somewhere close to the ballpark in the first place and doesn't have a real wavery voice. If they are way off or waver too much, then you can have AT create a curve for just a selected portion of the track. Just select the portion you want it to create a curve for with the i-beam tool and then tell it to "make curve." I'm not in front of AT right now so I think it is the "make curve" or something like that... Hope this helps.

<small>[ July 03, 2005, 09:15 PM: Message edited by: rainmaker ]</small>

[Tim]

I try to stay away from drawing straight lines. I can't stand that lock to grid sound (like an old ARP synth or something) that it can make. I prefer to keep the original pitch variance/overshoot/vibrato and move the original pitch waveform 'til it sounds good. It takes more time to do it that way, but it's worth it to me. Of course, sometimes a straight line is all that one can do to make it sound decent (short of calling the singer back in).

I just can't believe (and it makes me ill) how obvious the vocal tuning is on many big time records that I hear. Do they not spend time on it (and set it on Fast/Auto)? Is that how they want it to sound (effected)? Do they just think it sounds nice and in tune, and not effected?

Once I actually pushed auto tune to obviousness so I could get that Disney Channel sound. I thought about it after, and decided I won't ever do it again (unless my kids are starving, and that'll feed 'em).

[JES]

Thanks guys. Much appreciated. I'm just new at the plugin, so the guidance is appreciated. I already figured the straight line thing -- it seems like with a soft enough response time (or whatever it's called) it's not too obvious. But I'll also try moving the waveform around.

Best,
--JES

[mkharvey11]

Hey, I tried the graphical mode and it always seems like a lot of work. Here's what I find is an easier way.

1. Cut up your vocal track into sections- 1 each verse, or so.
2. Duplicate the track.
3. On the copied track highlight one section at a time choose autotune from the "audio:audio pluggins" menu, and PREVIEW it with auto-tune auto setting. Adjust the parameters as best as possible for a natural sound, but don't worry about it being perfect. APPLY autotune to each clip, with it's best settings
4. Cut and edit together the best of the auto-tune processed track with the best of the original track.

[JES]

Interesting that you find that faster. After following directions here, I think I have a quick and workable pattern in graphical mode:

1. Hit "track" and listen to the audio as Autotune records it. As I listen, I write down the notes that need to be corrected.

2. Once it's tracked, I listen again, stopping to adjust the errant phrases with either the line tool, the "auto curve" or the "make curve" function depending on what sounds best or the problem of the specific passage.

Sounds frighteningly natural, and leaves the vast majority of the track unprocessed. I don't do a lot of cut-and-paste editing, though. If I did, perhaps that would be faster.

So thanks again everyone. I now feel like I have a good grasp of what the plugin can do, and the corrected track sounds a million times better than in "automatic" mode.

Best,
--JES

[Keith Henry]

Originally posted by Tim:

I just can't believe (and it makes me ill) how obvious the vocal tuning is on many big time records that I hear. Do they not spend time on it (and set it on Fast/Auto)? Is that how they want it to sound (effected)? Do they just think it sounds nice and in tune, and not effected?

I think it was Elliott Scheiner or Phil Ramone ?? that said they could remember the days before computers and Auto Tune when musicians and singers did the take again if it wasn't right.

Maybe this is why we've got so much cookie cutter SHYTE on the radio, labels producing here today gone tomorrow one hit wonders. Don't get me wrong, there's still some good music being made (on computers). The record industry's hurting themselves instead of mp3's.

PS I generally will make a duplicate of anything I'm doing scarey edits to, just in case I ever need to go back to the original.

<small>[ July 06, 2005, 03:11 AM: Message edited by: julio ugliass ]</small>

[JES]

I don't think it's the technology ruining the music, I think it's the industry. Seems like creativity ebbs and flows at the decision-making levels. You can see the same thing in Hollywood right now with a gazillion remakes, and publishing, where new authors struggle while the next blockbuster celebrity bio gets hyped.

As for musicians getting it right, yeah, but of course if you listen to lots of those old recordings, there are also way more flubs and errors than in contemporary releases. Perhaps audiences were more tolerant then, or perhaps musicians and engineers are less tolerant now.

Best,
--JES