Hello wishbone,
Thank you for your question.
What you are looking for is called a Harmonizer. It changes pitch,
without changing the speed of the recording which is how it was done
in the old days (think Chipmunks):) The original was made and invented
by Eventide in the 70's and was fighteningly expensive. They still are
at $3-5,000!! Now-a-days, with cheap digital electronics, they have
become more affordable.
At the time of this writing, the Eventide site is down, but might be
worth checking later at www.eventide.com
Here are some less expensive alternatives:
Musician's Friend is a good online place to shop and they show 3
options, the best probably being this one:
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/srs7/sid=030827164957207212133004056081/g=home/search/detail/base_id/59521
Akai HV1 Duo Buddy Vocal Harmonizer
Tired of singing with off-key bandmates?
The Duo Buddy adds one-voice harmony to melodies giving depth to
vocals in performance or the studio. Because it doesn't require
complex preprogramming and MIDI syncing, it is a great tool for
technically impaired vocalists. Formant control allows you to change
the gender and other characteristics to create the impression of 2
singers. A random delay feature lets you set the delay rate between
lead and harmony to produce realistic sound. It features true bypass
and easily connects between your mic and mixer with XLR I/O. The Duo
Buddy tunes to other instruments and provides a reference tone for
matching up to non-tuning instruments such as pianos. 9 factory and 9
user presets let you tweak the harmony to match your singing style.
Features:
-Adds one-voice harmony for vocal depth in performance or the studio
-No complex preprogramming or MIDI syncing required
-Formant control allows you to change the gender and other vocal
characteristics
-Random delay produces realistic harmonies
-True bypass leaves your sound uncolored
-Easily connects between your mic and mixer with XLR I/O
-Tunes to other instruments
-Reference tone for matching up to non-tuning instruments such as
pianos
-9 factory and 9 user presets let you tweak the harmony
$219.99
Sam Ash shows several including software base solutions (search for
pitch). This one is most promising at their site:
http://www.samash.com/catalog/showitem.asp?ItemID=13340&TempID=3&Method=2&CategoryID=0&BrandID=0&PriceRangeID=0&PageNum=0&DepartmentID=0&DepartmentKeeper=&pagesize=15&SortMethod=0&Word1=pitch&Contains=%22%2Apitch%2A%22&Search_Type=SEARCH&GroupCode=nonetodaythanks
The BOSS PS-5 Super Shifter is a next-generation intelligent pitch
shifting pedal with killer sounds and BOSS first features. This single
box provides pitch shifting, harmonies, detuning, and wild tremolo
arm/flutter effects-all with simple, knob-based control.
$189.99
And there is an even broader selection at Sweetwater Sound:
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/search.php?search=pitch&action=search&rsort=1&st=2
Serato Pitch 'n Time
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/PitchNTime/
Software based $729.00
Prepare to be Amazed! You've Never Heard Ptich-shifting Like This
Before!
Odds are, if you've worked with samples, you've had problems
stretching time. No more. Audio professionals are raving about the
Pitch N' Time Audiosuite plug-in for the Pro Tools platform! Pitch N'
Time gives you complete, independent control over pitch and time, with
results that are nothing short of stunning. Your source material
doesn't matter; Pitch N' Time works its magic on music, speech,
ambiance, sound effects, and anything else you care to sample,
delivering professional results every time. Pitch'nTime integrates
into your Pro Tools session so you can preview and make changes in
real time. With its easy operation and unprecedented time stretching
and pitch shifting functions, the Pitch N' Time plug-in is a must for
anyone processing audio on a computer. Find out why Pitch N' Shift is
one of the most exciting tools in computer-based audio! Order today!
• Modify tempo from 50% to 200% of original and simultaneously shift
pitch by ±12 semitones.
Boss VT-1
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/VT1Boss/
An Exciting New Kind of Voice Processing!
The VT-1 Voice Controller represents a pinnacle in voice manipulation.
The state-of-the-art VT-1 isn't just some hyped up pitch shifter to
make you sound like the Chipmunks. It offers separate controls for
pitch and formant, so you only have to sound like the Chipmunks if you
want to. And you probably won't want to, considering all the other
options you'll have. The VT-1 is even capable of a full +1 octave
shift (you can sing a romantic duet with yourself - words of love
coming from someone who means them), a "robot" feature for a
vocoder-like effect, and many other options. A great tool for DJs,
Karaoke MCs, and home video producers.
$299.97
Digitech Vocalist Workstation
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/VocalistEX/
The "EX" stands for "Expanded!"
Now you can have flawless vocal harmonies on stage and in the studio
with the new Vocalist Workstation EX! Featuring improvements like
automatic doubling, automatic pitch correction, MIDI/Pitch-bend wheel,
expanded special vocal effects, and a plug-in editor for Cakewalk
Pro-Audio, this is one vocal event you won't want to miss.
• New easy-to-use programs
• 2-5 part natural sounding stereo vocal harmonies
• Hands-off automatic pitch correction
• Great-sounding programmable reverb
• Real-time faders for lead, harmony, and reberb levels
• Multiple non-MIDI and MIDI control modes
• Automation ready via Cakewalk Studioware panel
• Complete sysex control
• Microphone and line inputs
$499.95
Digitech Vocalist VR
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/VocalistVR/
The Sound Of REAL Harmonies!
At Sweetwater, you can find what you need to live in harmony with
other musicians. It's the Vocalist VR, an exiting, low-cost vocal
harmonizer that can maintain the characteristics of the human voice
with truly striking results. Great for every application from your
demo to final recorded product to live performance, the Vocalist VR
can easily produce up to 5-part harmony, letting you remove or add
voices with the touch of a button. The different options are equally
impressive: Chordal or Scalic harmonies, key and scale selection, and
you can even determine whether the harmonies are above, below or in
unison with your own voice. The best thing about the Vocalist VR
(besides its low price) is that your vocals don't sound processed.
They sound full, natural and realistic.
$339.95
And probably the most cost effective device with high performance for
you would be the TC Helicon at $1,000 retail, but available for less
at online shops and local dealers:
http://www.tc-helicon.tc/
The TC-Helicon VoiceOne is designed for the creative producer/engineer
who wants to create fresh, innovative, outstanding vocal tracks. We
believe VoiceOne has the best quality voice shifting of any product -
realtime or nonrealtime - and this combines with our award-winning
VoiceModelingTM technology (now in its second generation) to make
VoiceOne an amazing vocal creativity tool.
At its core, VoiceOne is built around a newly developed, vocal-trained
pitch-recognition algorithm - an industry first. Its superior pitch
recognition supports all of the following features:
* Four kinds of voice pitch shifting:
In the PureShift, full-DSP mode, you can shift using Instrumental,
Formant Corrected, and HybridShift(TM) (set the percentage of
instrument vs. formant corrected). In the regular operating mode, all
shifting is done through the VoiceModelingTM section. It's useful
having all of these options depending on the kind of voice you are
working with and the sound you want.
* FlexTime (TM) time elasticity algorithm.
This allows you to control vocal phrase stretching/shrinking either
directly or automatically, with up to 500ms of freedom. For example,
the VoiceOne can be used to take a sustained vowel and sustain it
longer than the singer does, then gradually reduce the delay in the
phrase as time goes on in order to catch up with the singer - super
for doubling or rephrasing.
* Second generation VoiceModelingTM.
Enhance or even transform vocals using algorithms which include
Vibrato, Breath, Growl/Rasp, Inflection, Spectral and Resonance.
* Advanced pitch correction and Repitching.
VoiceOne offers advanced automatic and manual forms of pitch
correction, however, it goes much further by allowing you full control
to repitch melodies to any pitch.
* Intelligent harmonization algorithms.
Naturally you can control it via MIDI, by internal scale, or custom
write your own scale. The sonic quality of the shifted voice is
outstanding. In combination with modeling you can create amazing
backing vocals.
* Pitch to MIDI conversion.
* Full MIDI implementation.
* 100 Factory and 50 User presets.
http://www.tc-helicon.tc/Default.asp?Id=418
They also have other models and they can be compared here:
http://www.tc-helicon.tc/Default.asp?Id=1402
If this is out of your price range, Digitech may be the way to go. Do
look around Sweetwater and the Digitech pages at:
http://www.digitech.com/
Look under "vocalist".
Search Strategy:
personal audio knowledge
I trust my research has provided you with options for hardware and
software solutions to your pitch change needs. If a link above should
fail to work or anything require further explanation or research,
please do post a Request for Clarification prior to rating the answer
and closing the question and I will be pleased to assist further.
Regards,
-=clouseau=- |
