I get alot of emails about this thread. Asking for help on how to do what I am discussing in this thread. Far too many emails to help everyone. Also telling me they did exactly what I said to do in this post, and are not getting good results.
SO I created a video tutorial. It does cost. Visit my myspace homepage
for more details.
This thread was initially just me messing around and experimenting with autotune, as indicated in the first paragraph of this thread.
I was not getting the sound I wanted. It took alot of trial and error, and many many hours to get smooth results.
Below is a blog I had on myspace with more info about my venture.
For a long time, I tried to get the smooth effects I heard using autotune.
The one that inspired me the most was by that playa with fire tracks known as
Jon Young.
I have asked him how to get the effects he has on his vocals, but he did not respond.
I messaged J Cash (his partner), but he said it was kind of a secret, that I should ask Jon Young. But again, no response.
I understand why I did not get a response, so I am not bitter about this.
Im sure he gets tons of messages asking how the effect is done. I was just another one of those people. So no hard feelings. Nothing but love.
Now the way Jon Young, or T-Pain, or anyone else gets the effect, I am still not 100% sure, everyone has their own way possibly.
I just know how to do it my way.
To get the effects I have with the dubbed "Autotune" sound, took many months of trial and error. I spent a whole summer almost trying to figure it out.
But I wasn't totally getting the sound I wanted. I did have audio examples posted in that thread, but they have been removed during cleaning of the site I believe.
But after trial and error, I figured out a way to get real smooth effects.
And also how to add a talkbox character to the vocal if needed.
The video where I show my methods is a little over an hour.
So, too type this up would be very time consuming.
I was getting hundreds of messages about how to do it. I couldn't even imagine trying to respond to everyone. So I got an Idea.
I found out about Video Tutorial Creation.
I researched how to create video tutorials for about 4 months.
Then after that, I had to figure out how to supply them to people.
So I put alot of work into it.
Why dont you just give it away for free Dozer???
Well, I also got to thinking, this is maybe something that should be kept secret.
But only a select group could find out. Those people would be my customers.
It would give them an edge over the competition so to speak.
We would share a piece of the pie.
That is why my customers are loyal. Because they paid for the info, so why would they give it for free. It gives them an edge.
Now they wont all get the same results. Everyones vocal has a different vocal character/timbre, so the resulting sound will be all their own.
Not to mention all the work I put into making the project happen.
Once I put the effect to use in my experimental tracks "Missing You", and "Since You Left." the messages flooded in like wildfire. So this tutorial video is my response.
Now take for instance T-Pain, alot of people were clowning him, saying he couldn't really sing, and all that jazz. But, he has shown he can.
And it wouldn't even really matter.
I could put someone in the booth, that sopposedly "can't sing" (just like TPain sopposedly can't).
Would this person be able to create hits like T-Pain?
Probably not.
Now go out and listen to some of the people using Autotune on their vocals.
You will see that some just dont sound that good.
But wait: they are using autotune...whats the deal.
As you can see, its not magic.
You got to have some vocal talent, if your just using Autotune.
Or if you dont have that talent, well then, thats where my video comes in.
Now I can get smooth autotune effects just by using autotune, but it takes more
Vocal takes to do this. And you have to monitor yourself in realtime/live in your headphones to get a good sound. And actually, when you are doing it this way, you have to sing kind of weird, to get good effects with it. And its just more time
consuming. That is why I devised a simpler way of doing it.
It is merely an effect. TPain and no one else is trying to cover up bad vocals(well most of us). They just want that sound.
Now I have nothing but respect for Little Wayne, and love his creativity and music. And I might sound like a hater when I say this. But this is my opinion from an sound aesthetic point of view.
When he has autotune on his vocal, it just doesn't always sound good. I would not have let that sound leave the studio. It sounds very garbled, and I have seen where it pisses alot of people off, and makes people frown on the effect. Ive seen some of his best fans(people I know) shake their head when they hear it, feeling ashamed.
Though there are small parts where it sounds tight.
Other than that, his flows are wicked, and his voice is like no other in the sense that it sets him apart from the rest. Plus the dude is gettn bank. And he is probably doing that on purpose for all I know. That, in fact, is the effect he wants. So more power to him.
I know that if he sent me his vocals, I could make them sound smooth as hell.
But again, that is probably not the effect he is going for, he would rather keep it the way it is. We all have our own taste, and creative Ideas.
---------- Post added 03-03-2011 at 04:00 AM ---------- Previous post was 12-23-2008 at 02:39 AM ----------
Damn, this thread has the most views in this whole section(minus the ones that are pinned), didn't realize it till I organized by views. I feel special...
---------- Post added 01-20-2012 at 11:50 PM ---------- Previous post was 03-03-2011 at 04:00 AM ----------
Im in Afghanistan learning Video Production, this audio stuff I know will take it farther. Thanks for all my peeps for support. Keepn it real.