11. Pitch Shifter

Ever had that "Mickey Mouse effect"? Like when you accidentally played an LP record at 45 RPM instead of the correct 33 RPM, making Ritchie Blackmore's "Smoke on the Water" solo super speedy and helium-pitched?

To transpose the frequency spectrum of a signal in real-time without altering its duration, you need a pitch shifter. These devices are quite complex on the inside, but let's focus on their capabilities.

With a pitch shifter (also available as a computer plug-in), you can do harmonically spot-on transpositions. Think of it like adding a second voice in a particular key. Solo performers dig this effect, especially in the 19" hardware version.

Now, for the icing on the cake – automatic pitch correction for vocals. It gently irons out some off-key moments, even in real-time. The catch? The machine needs to know the right melody, usually via MIDI. But keep your expectations in check; you still gotta be able to sing ;-).

Editor page of the Antares Auto-Tune plug-in. The correction based on pitch quantization is clearly visible. The blue line represents the improved track.

Tip:

Don't go overboard with settings. Shifting by several whole tones? Well, it won't sound great in my book. You can patch up a messed-up vocal track, but it can be time-consuming, and eventually, it stops being fun!