Timing issues with Melodyne

[Mark Swanson]

Ok, I am recording some backing vocals. I decided to use Melodyne to tune them up a bit. When I render the track through Melodyne the resulting track is no longer in time. The different vocal phrases are early at the start of the clip and by the end they are late, the whole thing is shifted out of time. What is up with that and how can I fix it?

[pough]

It's been a while since I've used Melodyne but I recall that it liked to guess at the time/tune of the audio it receives (instead of just getting that info from the DAW) and never does a good job. I always had to tell it the BPM or it would change the timing.

I also vaguely recall that in older versions it was easier to correct it.

[Watchful]

I'm not experiencing anything like that, which should be good news.

When you import your audio into Melodyne, are you adjusting any of the individual timings, or just pitch? Are you using the macros to do work, or are you editing individual note elements? I don't fully trust the macros. For timing issues, I click on the note in question, hold down ALT, and shift left or right to get it right.

Also, I always make a backup (muted) copy of any Melodyned clip in case I need to make small changes later.

Then, I render the clip from the actions menu (render and replace). I'm usually satisfied with the results but sometimes need to undo and redo the rendering if Waveform butchers it.

[Mark Swanson]

All I am using it for is a bit of pitch correction. I select all notes, correct the pitch and then render the track. After that the timing is no longer right on with the original track- I used a duplicate track to work with and compare.

[Watchful]

Okay, that helps--the macros can sometimes shift notes in the wrong direction depending on how close the note is to a given beat.

I'm assuming that after you select all the notes, you just double-click on one of them to let Melodyne decide where to place them, pitch-wise? I'm wondering if that's also quantizing them unnaturally.

I'm sure you're pressed for time, but wonder if it's worth going note by note. That's what I do (it's a pain, I know), but you can focus on notes that are sharp or flat, and leave the ones that are close enough. Then you can also fix any shifts in timing that might occur.

One thing that might help you is how you address the Melodyne process. You might be doing this already, so I apologize if I'm suggesting something you already do.

*If* you're recording an entire backup track in one go, DON'T. Record them in smaller pieces to make a bunch of clips. Or...if that doesn't work for you (such as you're recording a live singer in real time), slice up the backing track into smaller pieces.

Then drag your copy of Melodyne directly onto the clip.

1.jpg

Work with your clips in smaller pieces...it'll make the time go faster as it's easier to take breaks, but more importantly, it will limit the effect you're seeing where notes are early at the start but late at the end. Then, render the individual clips.

In the screenshot above, you see how I've got 3 vocal tracks. Each track is cut up into smaller clips, and I've got a separate instance of Melodyne dragged right on top of each. I then double-click the plugin symbol to launch Melodyne itself. I can work on just that clip this way, limiting any adverse effects.

When they're all rendered, you can merge them into a longer track for yourself if you wish, or leave them subdivided.

Anyway, give that a shot and see if it helps you.