Upgrade Melodyne or find alternative?

[hieroglyph]

I initiated the trial upgrade of Melodyne so I could doctor some tracks with the polyphonic algorithm. Basically I was focusing on individual notes/strings of strummed chords on acoustic guitar. I had moderate success with the tool but the $300 price tag for the Editor version seems a little steep for what I need it for. I do not plan on using the plugin for vocal processing, just a little bit of guitar repair work.

Is it worth the cost to upgrade Melodyne for singer songwriter music? Or are there more affordable alternatives with polyphonic capabilities? Are you guys married to Melodyne or does anyone use other plugins?

 

[SwitchBack]

The nice thing about Melodyne is the integration with Studio One. Registering the version that comes with Studio One will put you on Melodyne's radar for notification emails. They offer upgrading at a 50% discount about twice a year. Wait for that

 

[hieroglyph]

Thank you for the info. Looks like the last sale was in June and next one might be December.

Upon googling, I found a bunch of companies offering coupon codes. Seems to be so many of these offers that I don't trust clicking any of those links. I think you have to buy the coupon code and I don't like the idea of paying a third party middle man for a discount on something from a reputable company.

I'm pretty sure when I registered the trial for Studio edition, I opted out of all emails like I always do. I'll log in and look at the settings. Thanks!

 

[Gerran]

I upgraded my Melodyne over time using the frequent sale offers Celemony has. I don't recall the exact prices, but I don't use it as much to justify the cost of the full price upgrade. The upgrade cost tier by tier each sale offering was good enough of a deal to make me buy it..

 

[TimC340]

I upgraded to Melodyne 5 Assistant earlier this year, which I think cost me about £40 - the upgrade price is normally about £125, and the full price about £200, so the discount (which came direct via my registration) was significant.

 

[hieroglyph]

I upgraded to Melodyne 5 Assistant earlier this year, which I think cost me about £40 - the upgrade price is normally about £125, and the full price about £200, so the discount (which came direct via my registration) was significant.

Thank you for your reply. I am looking at upgrading to the Editor edition because it is the lowest tier edition that allows for the polyphonic algorithm.

I guess due to Celemony's partnership with Presonus, people around here are afraid to mention alternatives to Melodyne

 

[Craig Anderton]

I guess due to Celemony's partnership with Presonus, people around here are afraid to mention alternatives to Melodyne

Melodyne is the only pitch correction software I know of that can handle polyphonic audio. Because you mentioned processing guitar as a primary application, that locks you into Melodyne.

As an aside - Melodyne Essential can extract MIDI data (although not pitch bend) from polyphonic material. So you can obtain parts for MIDI guitar, even with Melodyne Essential. It can also treat a chord as a single "blob." For example, if you play an A chord on guitar, you can transpose it to C# or whatever. But you can't edit the chord's individual notes.

 

[tpittman]

Is it worth the cost to upgrade Melodyne for singer songwriter music?

I strongly believe so. In your case tho the cost may outweigh the benefit. I use Melodyne for for a small number of things and once you get the basics down it can be very helpful. I to, did like some of the others here and watched for sales.
I finally ended up with the "Studio Version" but, for what I generally do or what you stated you want to do the "Editor" version is great The Studio version as many features that editor may not have. For vocals the Studio Version is great as you can view and edit as many tracks as desired in the same window. This makes it easy to view and edit these multiple tracks

 

[hieroglyph]

Melodyne is the only pitch correction software I know of that can handle polyphonic audio. Because you mentioned processing guitar as a primary application, that locks you into Melodyne.

Gotcha. Thank you for clearing that up

 

[John Vere]

I did what others said and years ago I started grabbing the sale price for the upgrades. I had started out with the free version that came with Sonar Platinum.
I think that I just upgraded each year from the lowest to the highest so it took a bit but I’ve had the top version for a few years now.

I really didn’t figure out Melodyne until 5 came out and I started watching the videos they made.

I don’t use much vocal pitch correction but I do use it on vocals for Timing and amplitude. Especially for harmonies.
And it’s a must have tool to clean up guitar tracks. I have bad arthritis now so my fingers are clumsy and I make a lot of boners.
To me Melodyne is as important as the Daw for vocals and guitar.

I also use it for creating tempo maps. Most Daw’s totally suck at tempo extraction Melodyne makes it simple.Its great that S1 has it properly integrated.
Basically Melodyne lets me work with audio just like I work with midi.

 

[ianaeillo]

Editor is absolutely worth it. No other pitch correction comes remotely close, regardless of the affiliation with Presonus.

 

[lokeyfly]

Editor is absolutely worth it. No other pitch correction comes remotely close, regardless of the affiliation with Presonus.

Ditto that.
@ hieroglyph, I've been using Melodyne editor version since 2015. Celemony never bother me with updates. I had one update which was for free. Their are no Polyphonic pitch editing alternatives accept Melodyne Studio, which I've never had a need for. Worth it if you actually need the studio version.The DAW integration and ARA2 performance of Melodyne Studio or higher, can't be emphasized enough.

 

[marrybanilow]

I guess due to Celemony's partnership with Presonus, people around here are afraid to mention alternatives to Melodyne

Strange comment

Out of every pitch correction tool i've used, (Repitch, Variaudio (Cubase), Flex Pitch (Logic) ), nothing comes close to Melodyne. There's a reason why it's the industry standard.

There's usually sales every year. I got an upgrade from Essential to Studio for around £200, but Editor would be more than enough.

 

[lokeyfly]

I guess due to Celemony's partnership with Presonus, people around here are afraid to mention alternatives to Melodyne

You can always check what are the best rated pitch to MIDI, and pitch converters first, before assuming such a position.

There was an initial partnership around introducing the initial ARA technology that both Celemony and Presonus explored. Since then, Melodyne has been adapted by every major DAW, as its success with Pitch conversion is unparalleled.

As to the thought of being "afraid to mention...", I'd challenge your premise. Knowone that I know in this forum holds back ideas, and concepts. Afraid isn't a part of what we do, here. This isn't a Presonus affiliated forum, and states so. You would have seen that at numerous junctures at the top of the page when you joined this forum.
As for me? Lol. I usually thumb my disagreements right up anyone's nose. Corporate, or otherwise.

The various melodyne offerings that include polyohonic pitch editing arent cheap, nor are they expensive. Celemony know what they have, and have priced their products very favorably in the market. They're a success story.

 

[John Vere]

Presonus is owned by Fender and Im pretty sure people talk about their Gibsons and Martin’s here.


I used to use Antares Auto tune years ago but switched over to Melodyne because it was included with Sonar. Im not sure Antares supports ARA. Sonar also long time ago before Melodyne included V- Vocal.
Im pretty sure it’s probably because Melodyne was the first one that adapted to ARA is why all the Daw developers jump on board.

 

[hieroglyph]

Thanks everyone for your thoughtful replies. My apologies for the 'afraid to mention alternatives' comment. I did not intend for it to be divisive or slandering. If the comment accomplished anything, it got people talking, which I don't see as a bad thing.

After @Craig Anderton's reply, everyone else pretty much had differing ways of saying the same thing: There is no alternative to Melodyne. Ultimately, that answered the OP question. I will be upgrading when the next sale comes around.

 

[Craig Anderton]

I'll add one more comment - once you have Melodyne, you realize it can do much more than you expected. For example:

• Do envelope-controlled flanging.
• Transpose drum sounds upward for a more analog drum/beatbox sound.
• Transpose individual chords as blobs when songwriting to try out different chord progressions (this also works with Essential).
• Create vocal harmonies as drafts and then learn them, so you can sing them. A Melodyne harmony won't sound as good as one you actually sing.
• Tighten timing issues with drum loops when stretching over a super-wide range (e.g., a 170 BPM loop to 120 BPM).

Yeah, Melodyne is really cool

 

[lokeyfly]

I will be upgrading when the next sale comes around.

Way to go!
Another quick tip. While the function buttons in Melodyne differ slightly from Studio One's, things like Alt + drag will enable moving notes. Vertically, or horizontally and avoids any grid control.
Copy and paste also work. Just like in Studio One, just be sure to set the playhead cursor first before pasting.
Enjoy!

 

[tpittman]

Way to go!
Another quick tip. While the function buttons in Melodyne differ slightly from Studio One's, things like Alt + drag will enable moving notes. Vertically, or horizontally and avoids any grid control.
Copy and paste also work. Just like in Studio One, just be sure to set the playhead cursor first before pasting.
Enjoy!

Yeah, good stuff and very helpful. One more thing is when editing: Be sure to deselect the note or notes you are
editing!! Seems simple enough but very easy to F things up if you forget to deselect

 

[Craig Anderton]

One more tip...for vocal doubling, copy the vocal track before doing pitch correction. Do pitch correction to only one of the tracks, then mix them together. The effect is more randomized than using LFO modulation for ADT. If you sing so in tune that you get flanging and such, then drop the copy by 10 cents or so.