Thanks to endorsements from the likes of T-Pain, Kanye West and Lil Wayne, Antares Auto-Tune is now the only pitch correction plug-in in town as far as many people are concerned.
The fact is, though, that it does have rivals, some of which are actually very good.
Here are five other options to consider if you're happy to let the Auto-Tune bandwagon pass you by.
1. Waves Tune
Given the breadth of its catalogue, it should come as no surprise to learn that Waves has a vocal tuning plug-in in its portfolio, and it's a goodie. Sporting an easy-to-use interface and delivering the top-quality sound quality that has become Waves' hallmark, it's a serious rival to Antares' offering. You can buy it on its own, or as part of the Vocal Bundle. (Click for review)
2. Celemony Software Melodyne Plugin
Celemony has been making headlines over the past year for the development of its Direct Note Access technology, which will enable you to edit individual notes within a polyphonic audio file. However, if it's straight vocal pitch correction you're looking for, the current iteration of Melodyne Plugin will do you just fine. (Click for review)
3. Mu Technologies Mu Voice
Although it can do other things, too - generate 'artificial' harmonies and create a variety of vocal effects - Mu Voice also has a pitch correction option. Sadly, the results you get from this can be a bit hit and miss, but if you're looking for a plug-in with a broader scope, give it a try. (Click for review)
4. Cakewalk/Roland V-Vocal
If you buy a copy of Sonar 8 Producer, you might not even need a separate tuning plug-in, as this very capable one comes included. Version 1.5 even benefits from a pitch-to-MIDI option, so you can, for example, create a synth lead line from a guitar or vocal one. (Click for review)
5. Steinberg PitchCorrect
Another DAW exclusive, this one is making its debut in Cubase 5. It's actually based on Yamaha's existing Pitch Fix technology, and enables you to make pitch adjustments to a user-specified scale. For Melodyne-style manual pitch adjustment, Cubase 5 also has the VariAudio tool. (Click for preview)
Now read 13 essential vocal production tips
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