Celemony Melodyne Uno

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A New Design For Better Workflow

Melodyne Uno 1.5 only works with audio files that contain melodies without accompaniment
or percussive audio files like drum loops and such; that is files where you hear only one note at a time. It uses the same procedure of previous Melodyne versions; i.e. the first time you load an audio file it analyses the audio in order to detect each note and rhythmic relationship between them. Later, Uno shows note representations on the screen, allowing total freedom to edit the melodies; in fact, we can modify the notes of a melody in the same way as we modify notes on a MIDI track. The results of this analysis is stored in a special file that Melodyne uses every time you work with the same audio file.

Due to the variety of human timbre voices and instruments, and to the different recording conditions, it could be possible that Melodyne Uno detects a note in an erroneous way. To solve that inconvenience the user can apply command Correct Detection, from the Edit menu. There, using the multi-function mouse pointer, you can correct the buggy note, manually. We also find the Separations slider that tells Melodyne Uno to detect more or less single notes.

It is also possible to change the algorithm used to detect the notes: the possibilities are Melodic and Percussive. For example, if we work with a slap bassline and we find some problems, we could change the algorithm and check the results.

Expert Tools

The new design of the Expert Tools facilitates edit work, saving time avoiding many tool changes to carry out a certain editing task. See figure 1.

Figure 1

At first glance, the main screen is the same as before, however several sub-tools have been removed - those that appeared when you pressed the mouse button on some tools of the bar have been replacedwith tools that appear automatically when you move the mouse pointer over the note that is being edited. This behavior has been taken from the new version 3 of Studio Edition or Cre8.

Now, the user can go through the audio file in a much simpler and more direct way. Pressing CTRL/Command (PC and Mac) key, and dragging the mouse, it’s possible to scroll the screen until you reach the area where one want to focus the editing. Also pressing the Alt key, and moving the mouse diagonally, it is possible to zoom in or out.

Transitions sub-tools dealing with editing of pitch, formants and amplitude have been removed. To modify transitions. move the mouse toward the end of the note you wish to edit and the tool will appear automatically.

Using the Time tool, you can place the mouse in the center of a note and move it according to the established quantization - or freely by pressing the Alt key. Placing your cursor at the end of a note, it is possible to modify its duration.

The Note Separations tool keeps its sub-tool dedicated to the creation of segments, but with this version it is also possible to create segments by pressing the Alt key.

Besides the changes in the tool bar, new commands have been added in Edit menu that allow the user to manipulate notes with more freedom. For example, when selecting a note that contains vibrato or trill and applying commands from the Edit Notes Separations sub-menu, we can transform the variations of the vibrato into single notes to be able to edit them in an individual way using Separate Note as Trill. See figures below.

An entire note

A Note where the vibrato is seperated out

Automatic Correction

Correct Pitch and Quantize Time macros allow the user to edit the content of the entire melody – or selected notes in the same way as one would work with the specific tools for pitch ant time editing.

Figure 2 shows the Correct Pitch dialog. The upper slider adjusts how much correction will be applied to the average pitch of the notes. Correct Pitch Drift slider allows to remove – or control – pitch drift. We should not confuse pitch drift with vibrato. Melodyne Uno interprets pitch drift as any up/down deviation from the central axis of pitch, without an established rhythmic pattern; or in other words, pitch variations at random.

Figure 2

Try different settings while listening to the the results. Melodyne Uno allows you to check the results without closing the dialog box. In this way, the user can modify at will, even at radical levels to check the results of this macro.

Figure 3 shows the Quantize Time dialog box. There we see a group of buttons labeled with rhythmic figure values that the user can choose for quantizing notes.

Figure 3

It may be very creative to change the quantization of a drum track or loop, for example. It is very simple to change the feel of the groove completely by applying some triplets assignments. As it happens with the other macro, the changes can be previewed without the necessity of closing the dialog window. The default option is None. This doesn't mean that any correction won't be applied. A 0% value leaves the file in the original conditions, whilst applying a 100% Melodyne Uno accommodates the notes according to what it determined as rhythmic positions during the analysis carried out when you loaded the file. The option None should be your first attempt in case of needing to accommodate the time of the notes slightly, displacing Quantize Intensity slider until you find the right feel.

Scale Snap

Melodyne Uno is much more than a program for "tuning" vocals or melodies. It is a complete melodic production system. One of their unique features is Scale Snap. Activating the Snap button - see figure 4 - and choosing the key we can make the entire melody change key; i.e. if the original melody was recorded in Am, we can convert it into G. The Snap button forces all edits to fall into the chosen key.

Figure 4

Also, this feature is an excellent way to create background lines for vocals. After selecting the notes, using the Main tool – or Pitch tool –, you can drag the notes up or down until you find the right harmony. To get some variation from the original version, you can modify formants of the new version slightly, differentiating, in this way, its timbre.

Tempo Changes

Stretch makes it possible to modify the tempo of a melody in such a simple and effective way, like changing the tempo in a MIDI track.

When loading a melody, Melodyne Uno detects the tempo automatically. The user has the freedom of changing the tempo - without modifying the pitch - to accelerate or to slow down the audio file. In my tests, I applied changes in vocal melodies; for example I moved from 88 bpm to 68 bpm, and I could listen to the voice as if it had been recorded to the new tempo. We are speaking of extreme changes so when working with subtler changes nobody, even the musicians, will know if the melody was recorded with that tempo or another. To apply tempo changes, the new value is entered in the Tempo panel and the checkbox Stretch is activated.

New Preferences

You can also record audio in Melodyne Uno. Considering that, in the new version the user can indicate the physical audio input that the program will use. In case of having a soundcard with several inputs, or if the computer has more than one audio card, the user can specifiy the signal path via the Input option in the Hardware section.

Also, an option has been added to set a folder where the files recorded in Melodyne Uno will be stored. In the section Default File Format, you’ll find the option Recording Folder, to select where your files will be stored.

As I mentioned before, the Scrub mode is automatically active when you change the position of a note. If this is annoying, you can disable the option Monitor Note Pitch On Editing, in Configuration section.

Last Comments

Melodyne Uno can be ReWired into your compatible sequencer of choice. This way, we can run together a project from Cubase SX3, for example, with some file – melody; bassline; solo; etc. – that is being edited in Melodyne Uno.

Although some plug-ins exist that allow tunning a melody, Melodyne Uno 1.5 goes much further on, and the differences can be read in this article. Most plug-ins correct the pitch and formants in global mode, whilst Uno allows to edit the whole melody - using the macros – or on single notes. Also, the possibilities that Melodyne offers are not found in other programs: pitch, vibrato and pitch drift control; timing changes; tempo modifications; snap to scales; etc. There are big differences. Without doubts, Melodyne Uno 1.5 is the right tool for vocal and instrument melodies production/editing program.

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