User Manual

77
Chapter 6: The Auto-Tune Vocal Effect
(i.e., the Cher/T-Pain-Style Effect)
In addition to its adoption as the worldwide standard in professional pitch correction,
Auto-Tune has also gained renown as the tool of choice for what has become one of
the signature vocal sounds of our time.
First heard on Cher’s 1998 mega-hit “Believe,” variations of the effect have gone on to appear on
songs from a huge variety of artists. Most recently, its use by T-Pain and many of his collaborators
has rekindled intense interest in it. Since there seems to be a lot of mythology about how it’s
accomplished, we thought we’d provide the official Antares version here.
What is it?
Quite simply, the Auto-Tune Vocal Effect
is what is technically known as “pitch
quantization.” That is, instead of allowing all
of the small variations in pitch and the gradual
transitions between notes that are a normal
part of singing (and speaking, for that matter),
the Auto-Tune Vocal Effect limits each note to
its exact target pitch, stripping out any variation,
as well as forcing instantaneous transitions
between notes.
How to do it.
There are basically two key elements to
producing the Auto-Tune Vocal Effect:
1. Retune Speed = 0
2. Pick the right scale
That’s pretty much it. Really.
There are, however, some possible variations
in approach, depending mainly on whether
you want to use Automatic Mode or Graphical
Mode. Here are the details:
Automatic Mode
1. As we already mentioned, start by setting
Retune Speed to 0.
2. Set the Key and Scale to the key and scale
of your track.
3. Play your track. If you like the result, you’re
done.
4. If you’re not happy with the result, try one
or more of the following:
•
Edit the scale notes. Depending on the
specific vocal line, adding or removing
scale notes can give you distinctly different
effects.
•
Try a different key and/or scale.
•
Try the chromatic scale (although our
experience is that if you’re going for the
classic effect, chromatic rarely provides it).
•
Try a Retune Speed of 1 or 2 or a bit slower.
This will allow slight pitch variations and
slightly less instant note transitions, but
may result in the right effect for a particular
performance.
5. Don’t forget your host’s Bypass function.
Limiting the Auto-Tune Vocal Effect just to
specific phrases can provide sonic contrast
in your song.