The Autotune Thread

[LostArt]

I did the same thing on something without pitch correction, but used various other VST plug-ins, and the same thing happened. That's not a proof that there was pitch correction used, just digital effects.

This^^^^^

But pitch has been modified, in a way that it stairsteps through pre-defined pitches.  If THAT's not a product of pitch correction, I don't know what is...

I hear what you hear, Sir.
I still wonder why and if this does not sound like this in the venue. About 70 thousand people have heard the live shows, many of them enthusiastic fans that deaf-happy to be therer, others not so much, and among them professional music writers. Apparently none of the guys that made any of these recordings heard anything funny live. Had this half-step sliding and wobbling taken place before 140.000 ears, this should be MAJOR scandal already. But it's just a topic in a die-hard fan forum.

Yeah.  If the effect can't be heard by the ticket buyers in the seats, then it's not an issue.

[b00ts]

I did the same thing on something without pitch correction, but used various other VST plug-ins, and the same thing happened. That's not a proof that there was pitch correction used, just digital effects.

This^^^^^

But pitch has been modified, in a way that it stairsteps through pre-defined pitches.  If THAT's not a product of pitch correction, I don't know what is...

I hear what you hear, Sir.
I still wonder why and if this does not sound like this in the venue. About 70 thousand people have heard the live shows, many of them enthusiastic fans that deaf-happy to be therer, others not so much, and among them professional music writers. Apparently none of the guys that made any of these recordings heard anything funny live. Had this half-step sliding and wobbling taken place before 140.000 ears, this should be MAJOR scandal already. But it's just a topic in a die-hard fan forum.

Yeah.  If the effect can't be heard by the ticket buyers in the seats, then it's not an issue.

We are also living in a time when pitch correction/autotune are used in nearly every top-40 song, commercial, film, etc. Hell, I saw an indie band at a local club last year, who rely on harmony for much of their music - they had a rack full of Antares units in the backline, but they were singing very close to on-key so there was no audible stepping.

In truth, I think people want to give Brian a pass, and as you said, most people don't hear it or don't care - or they explain it away as being some other kind of effect. If it were picked up by the right media source, it might possibly become an issue, but I doubt it.

[Aegir]

Hell, I saw an indie band at a local club last year, who rely on harmony for much of their music - they had a rack full of Antares units in the backline,

Fuck 'em.

[b00ts]

Hell, I saw an indie band at a local club last year, who rely on harmony for much of their music - they had a rack full of Antares units in the backline,

Fuck 'em.

Agreed. It was a band that my friend was trying to get me into, and any respect I could have had was ruined by their reliance on mummery. Plus, it's not like they couldn't sing properly, so why bother with those rackmount Antares units? Terrible.

[runnersdialzero]

Hell, I saw an indie band at a local club last year, who rely on harmony for much of their music - they had a rack full of Antares units in the backline,

Fuck 'em.

Agreed. It was a band that my friend was trying to get me into, and any respect I could have had was ruined by their reliance on mummery. Plus, it's not like they couldn't sing properly, so why bother with those rackmount Antares units? Terrible.

JUST THE KID

[anazgnos]

Hell, I saw an indie band at a local club last year, who rely on harmony for much of their music - they had a rack full of Antares units in the backline,

Fuck 'em.

Agreed. It was a band that my friend was trying to get me into, and any respect I could have had was ruined by their reliance on mummery. Plus, it's not like they couldn't sing properly, so why bother with those rackmount Antares units? Terrible.

Grizzly Bear?  Animal Collective?

[Heysaboda]

Do you guys know what The Hum is?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hum

This discussion somewhat reminds me of The Hum.  My wife claims to hear a low frequency Hum in our house (in southern California).  Even though I have good hearing, I never hear it.  Does that mean it doesn't exist?  (well, no.)

But hearing can be so, so subjective, more subjective than we realize!

[b00ts]

Hell, I saw an indie band at a local club last year, who rely on harmony for much of their music - they had a rack full of Antares units in the backline,

Fuck 'em.

Agreed. It was a band that my friend was trying to get me into, and any respect I could have had was ruined by their reliance on mummery. Plus, it's not like they couldn't sing properly, so why bother with those rackmount Antares units? Terrible.

Grizzly Bear?  Animal Collective?

No, I have never heard Grizzly Bear but I like what I've heard of Animal Collective overall. I will find out the name of the band in question. Even without the pitch correction, it was not the type of music I would be receptive to normally. However, the fact that this band, which was based around two young guys performing fairly simple vocal harmonies, relied on pitch correction immediately put me off.

Everyone there seemed to love 'em regardless. People are so used to pitch correction nowadays as a matter of course; we are immersed in it. It is used in many places where it is simply not necessary. I have seen and heard so many productions - TV, film, records - utilizing vocalists and actors who can sing beautifully and professionally, and they are still run through pitch correction. The mind boggles.

[Rocky Raccoon]

You can't autotune live vocals...

[b00ts]

You can't autotune live vocals...

Good point!

[runnersdialzero]

You can't autotune live vocals...

Welp, time to close the thread. Why didn't we realize this before? ^_^

[ontor pertawst]

Yeah, stuff like this doesn't actually exist:

http://www.amazon.com/TA-1VP-Antares-Auto-Tune-real-time-correction/dp/B004OA6JU2/

[Zach95]

Yeah, not quite sure what was meant by that. Live vocals most certainly can be pitch corrected.

[Iron Horse-Apples]

You can't autotune live vocals...

Welp, time to close the thread. Why didn't we realize this before? ^_^

Sorry, can't take you seriuosly without Hello Kitty, Is this the new you? Are we supposesed to just deeel with it? Well I can't. Bring back kitty, or the Kitty gets it!

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

But pitch has been modified, in a way that it stairsteps through pre-defined pitches.  If THAT's not a product of pitch correction, I don't know what is...

'
Other digital effects can affect pitch. At this point I think we're debating over semantics, but it wasn't  specifically "pitch correction" that was used; if it was, it'd be 1).  Melodyne as opposed to Antares, and 2).much more noticeable to the point where we wouldn't even be able to debate it, and the live audience definitely would have picked it out.

[runnersdialzero]

You can't autotune live vocals...

Welp, time to close the thread. Why didn't we realize this before? ^_^

Sorry, can't take you seriuosly without Hello Kitty, Is this the new you? Are we supposesed to just deeel with it? Well I can't. Bring back kitty, or the Kitty gets it!

<3 She'll be back. In the meantime, please enjoy this seven year old vomiting milk carton gif I found on an ancient, decaying CD-R backup. I know I am. = )

[seltaeb1012002]

Bump.

They're still autotuning the sh*t out of Brian's vocals.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZrIyFaPRTE

[anazgnos]

In no way would it be surprising if they were autotuning Mike or the other members as well.  They have the tools and seem to have no compunction about using them, regardless of appropriateness.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emVE_TqGBqw&feature=relmfu

[ontor pertawst]

Joe Thomas better have an alibi!

[harrisonjon]

But if the alternatives are...

1) The band refuses to do songs that are too tricky so fans miss out on 'Why Do Fools' or 'Wendy' for example?

2) The other members insist that Brian's mic is switched off during their numbers

...doesn't that mean we'd all lose out as fans if they didn't autotune?

At the extreme, we might only get an hour of music instead of three minus the intermission.

[Wirestone]

Except for the fact that Brian and this exact band have been putting on acclaimed shows throughout the U.S. and around the world for the last 12 years without a scrap of autotune -- or even echo, in a lot of places.

That's the thing I can't get over. If Brian's last decade of touring had been a disaster, or embarrassing, or even "meh," I could see the defense. But he's been acclaimed! He's regularly gotten better notices than Mike and Co. So why is everyone so embarrassed by the fact he sings a bit flat?

[SG7]

This thread made me think of this song.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXa9tXcMhXQ


Carry on...

[anazgnos]

But if the alternatives are...

1) The band refuses to do songs that are too tricky so fans miss out on 'Why Do Fools' or 'Wendy' for example?

2) The other members insist that Brian's mic is switched off during their numbers

...doesn't that mean we'd all lose out as fans if they didn't autotune?

At the extreme, we might only get an hour of music instead of three minus the intermission.

What do you mean, like, autotune is allowing them to do numbers that would otherwise be impossible?  You'd have to first believe that the autotune is actually working, when the primary complaint seems to be that it is not working, and instead just pushing Brian's pitch around in an unpredictable and musically unpleasant way.  And secondly they're not using it to reach notes they can't hit anymore, they have Jeff and the rest of the backline for that.

Unless you're saying it's just a contractual or psychological safety net for Brian or the other members regardless of its musical utility or effectiveness, in that it makes them willing to consider things they wouldn't otherwise because they assume that the autotune will make everything OK?  Doesn't seem incredibly sensible, but I guess anything's possible.

[hypehat]

Except for the fact that Brian and this exact band have been putting on acclaimed shows throughout the U.S. and around the world for the last 12 years without a scrap of autotune -- or even echo, in a lot of places.

That's the thing I can't get over. If Brian's last decade of touring had been a disaster, or embarrassing, or even "meh," I could see the defense. But he's been acclaimed! He's regularly gotten better notices than Mike and Co. So why is everyone so embarrassed by the fact he sings a bit flat?

Well, the Beach Boys have never been known for their sound decision making. But for a enterprise which is essentially down to Brian's wifeandmanagers....

Of course, I wouldn't be able to ever definitively say so until I see them. And that is not happening, because they're not coming to Britain. But on the evidence presented to me, Brian's lead vocals are definitely being pitch-corrected. I've even asked my friends (who tolerate my Beach Boys obsession) and they agree he's auto-tuned.

[Runaways]

Bump.

They're still autotuning the sh*t out of Brian's vocals.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZrIyFaPRTE

this HAS to be made worse by the camera, i don't doubt that there's some tuning going on.  But that video is the worst i've heard, and nobody would do that knowingly.