Fine tuning a track, not real-time, but precision a must

[Frippertronix]

Hey everyone,

I've been looking over the other recent thread about real time pitch changes for a track and downloaded the plugin suggested there, but i'm not sure it meets my needs.

Basically, my wonder plug needs only to do this: take a polyphonic track (mostly electric guitar) and take it to concert (A=440) pitch as precisely and easily as possible with as natural a sound as possible in the processed track.

The reason is I have some old stuff that I was dumb and didn't tune very well to concert pitch before tracking, but I'd like to use it now and complete mixes at correct pitch. I've tried in vain before to tune it by ear, but I also think the pitch change tools (just those available on stand alone HD recorders) didn't have fine enough capabilities.

Any ideas on how I would do this?

Thanks much,
Dave

[Space Boy]

Try 'Choir Boy'. If the resolution of the pitch control isn't fine enough, let me know.

[useruseruser]

I think, your problem is, that the played instruments were not tuned right in correlation.

If those tracks are played polyphonic, so no tool in the world would be able to "pich it right" afterwards (exept single voices).

What you want to do, is only possible, if all the internal harmonies are in correct pitched correlation and the track is entirely "aut of tune" as it. Then you would have a chance to get it in tune with pitch shifting.

The only chance you meight have, is to detune all the arrangement in the manner, those tracks are detuned. That's then "microtuning" all instruments to fit to the others. But still meight be an experimental area.

My opinion is, that (if even possible) only Melodyne (elastic audio) would be able to achieve some results here in microsurgical manner.

So an offline processing tool, which processes merely monolitic files wouldn't do the job never the less.

[C00kie]

Supposed the guitar was in tune by itself, you only need a calculator (builtin windows Calc.exe will do) and a basic audio editor like CoolEditPro, or Adobe Audition. Maybe others are up to the task also.

First select one seperate reference note (lets pick an A for simplicity) of the recorded track, and let the tool analyse its frequency. Suppose its 218 Hz instead of 220 (one octave lower.) To get the track in tune you need to speed it up by factor 220 / 218 = 1.0091743 which is 0.91743%. Yes, five digits is more than precise enough.

The change in speed is often less critical than the pitch, and this method has hardly any artefacts that pitch shifters have.

[danyell]

I tried out the new waves pitch shifter at a friends studio (comes with diamond bundle I think). Damn was it clean. That would do the job for you. It handles polyphony better than most shifters I have heard. I want it bad.

[Frippertronix]

Thanks for everyone's suggestions.

Tuning wise, the guitars are "internally' in tune, just not tuned to concert pitch precisely enough.

The problem with one person's suggestion is that most of these are distorted chord parts so I can't really isolate a single note to analyze. I will look at some of these products, though, and see if they might work for me.

Thanks again!
Dave

[C00kie]

Even distorted power chords can be analysed, at least have a try. And you can do it with trial & error, home in on the proper pitch.

Speeding up & slowing down is the way to go instead of using a pitch shifter.