Want the quick answer? Most users have picked Waves Tune Real Time as their favorite vocal production tool.
Two of the largest names in vocal production are Waves and Antares. Waves has built their prestige from countless plugins that shape vocals in amazing ways from compression to vocal correction. Antares became a staple with the long list of artists who have used it such as Skrillex, Cher, Bon Iver, and countless others.
Each of these top tier companies has made their way into the live environment of vocal production. Waves Tune Real Time and Auto-Tune Artist have both become a fantastic addition to any live engineer or artist’s arsenal of plugins and effects. But which would be best for you? We are going to take a look at what makes each so great and what they fit best with stylistically.
How We Compared Waves Tune Real Time vs Auto-Tune Artist
Each of these plugins is made as a live pitch correction tool that can be used in a live environment or a studio. They need to be as low latency as possible (making them have to be fast and accurate). This is why there are so few options for live pitch correction that are of a professional level. Currently the 2 best choices out there are Waves Tune Real Time and Auto-Tune Artist (formerly known as Auto-Tune Live). Because they are both at the top of the food chain we decided to do a comparison as well as showcase the best parts of each.
Basic Features
Here we will take a look at some specifics regarding each of these plugins, and check out the price as well. Remember there is more to each of these plugins than what all is covered here.
Waves Tune Real Time
- Total Price: $199
- Best For: Live Vocal Correction
Correction – The biggest points that make Waves Tune Real Time stand out is how the pitch correction works in both live and studio settings while being able to correct vibrato without damaging the sound. This means that it is detailed enough to correct pitches all while allowing the natural sound of vibratos to come through and not making the voice robotic.
Midi – Waves Tune Real Time works with midi to allow you to correct the pitch by playing it or having it pre programmed.
Live – With Waves Tune Real Time, you can run it on any console that has Multirack SoundGrid. This lets the controls be run from front of house and cuts down on what the performer needs to worry about.
| Mac | Windows | |
| Memory | 8 GB RAM | 8 GB RAM |
| Operating System | 10.12.6-10.15 | 10 |
Auto-Tune Artist
- Total Price: $299
- Best For: Live Vocal Correction
Flex-Tune – To smooth out the pitch correction and for a more transparent sound, Antares added in Flex-Tune to make this all happen. There are also other modes such as classic mode for the specific “Auto-Tune 5 sound.”
UI – You have 2 options when it comes to the interface and controls. There is the basic view that is made for ease of use and great for live performance. Then there is the advanced view which holds more in depth controls and is much better for programming before a performance.
Expansion – You can expand your Auto-Tune arsenal with the Auto-Key plugin (runs about $50.00). The Auto-Key works to determine the key of the song, you simply attach the plugin to one of your tracks (alone or attached to another plugin) and it will determine the key for you.
| Mac | Windows | |
| Memory | 4 GB RAM | 4 GB RAM |
| Operating System | 10.13 – 10.15 | 8.1 – 10 |
Direct Comparisons
Waves Tune Real Time is great in live settings or in recorded settings. If you want to see how to implement it in the studio and some general guidelines, Waves has some content such as this video where Dave Darlington gives us the general taste of Waves Tune Real Time. But as a general plugin, I could see this being used live a lot. Waves has become one of the top companies when it comes to implementing their plugins on live consoles. They even have some special hardware that can improve the processing power of your system for their plugins. Waves also regularly has sales on their products and you will regularly find Real Time on sale.
Auto-Tune Artist is easy on your computer pulling only that 4 GB of RAM and you can switch between low latency mode and off. This versatility gives you opportunities to lower the power required in studio and pre recorded settings because you do not need the low latency involved in a live show. One aspect I like about Auto-Tune Artist is that you can choose more than just the vocal type you are using, you can even go into details regarding scale type (beyond just major or minor) as well as change the input type to instrument or even bass instrument.
Final Analysis
Auto-Tune Artist and the Waves Tune Real Time have aspects that are similar to each other but also that are dissimilar. This gives each one an edge over the other in different areas. Waves is the perfect choice for simplicity, and Antares is the best choice for versatility. Both work extremely well live. I think Waves might be slightly better equipped for a live setting due to all that Waves has put into their live use. In a studio however, for live takes, I can see Auto-Tune Artist being the best choice because you can use it for so much more than the initial performances.
Both of these plugins are amazing final products from Waves as well as Antares. The decision comes down to your needs and what best suits your style, and using all of the information above, you should be able to determine which will be best for you.
Correcting the Problem
When working with artists, there are going to be off days. They could be fighting some kind of cold or flu that congests them. You never know. With products such as Waves Real Time and Auto-Tune Artist, you can help take the pressure off of scratch takes and live performances. That being said, this shouldn’t be a crutch and the vocalists and performers need to put their full effort in, but stuff happens that doesn’t always allow that.
We hope this comparison was informative for you. If you would like to learn more about other plugins and reviews, click here.
Jarrett is a hardcore Lover-Jazz Lover-Rock Lover-Blues Lover-just a music lover. He has the hair to match — Jarrett and provides in-depth insight into all things guitar and music engineering.