Waves Tune Real-Time Plugin Review, Tips, and Alternatives

Waves Tune Realtime is a powerful pitch correction software created by Waves Audio that allows users to correct their vocal recordings in real time with ease. It is a great tool for singer-songwriters, sound engineers, and voice-over artists who want to modern sounding vocals, and is light-weight enough to be used for live performances.

This blog post will review the features of Waves Tune Realtime and provide some tips on how to get the most out of the software. We will take a look at how to use the pitch correction tools, how to adjust the settings for different vocal styles to preserve natural movement of the voice, and how to avoid common pitfalls when working with the software. 

Note: some of the links below may be affiliate links, meaning that I receive a commission if you purchase through them.

1. Overview of Waves Tune Realtime

Waves Tune Realtime is a real-time pitch correction plugin that helps you fix pitch and intonation issues in your vocal recordings. With its intuitive controls and simple workflow, Waves Tune Realtime makes it easy to get professional sound quality on your vocal tracks.

It also offers comprehensive editing tools, including the ability to fine-tune pitch and formant corrections, adjust timing and groove settings, and add effects. In addition, Waves Tune Realtime features a real-time pitch view, so you can easily visualize the tuning process. With its intuitive design, simple layout, and powerful features, Waves Tune Realtime is an essential tool for any vocal recording.

It also features a virtual keyboard that allows you to input specific notes.

2. How to use Waves Tune Realtime

Before you turn on Waves Tune Realtime, you need to ask yourself a question: are you trying to enhance the vocalist’s natural vocal sound with subtle pitch correction or are you trying to create "T-Pain" style autotune effect by triggering a creative pitch quantization effect?

Waves Tune Realtime can do both, but you'll want to use much more subtle settings if you're trying to hide the fact that it's a tuned vocal. Generally, the more extreme the settings, the less you can hear a singer's articulation or the emotion of their performance.

Waves Tune Realtime is an innovative vocal pitch correction software that allows you to quickly and easily correct vocal pitch issues in real-time using state-of-the-art correction technologies. With Waves Tune Realtime, you can make subtle or dramatic pitch adjustments to get the perfect pitch for your vocal performance.

Here’s how to use Waves Tune Realtime:

1. Install the Waves Tune Realtime plug-in in your DAW or add to your live setup. I usually add it after plugins like Waves Vocal Rider (full review here) and noise gates so that it only has to process a clean, consistent signal.

2. Set up your vocal track and make sure that your vocal is correctly routed to the Waves Tune Realtime plug-in.

3. Choose a preset and adjust the settings to your liking.

4. Record your vocal performance or perform live.

Key Controls on Waves Tune Realtime

5. Adjust the settings as you go and listen to the vocal track to make sure that the pitch is correct.

A. The most important setting to set is for the scale of the song (so make sure you know it in advance)! That said, if you're trying to get a more extreme autotune effect, you may want to set the scale incorrectly to force the pitch correction to trigger more.

B. Adjust the plugin’s sensitivity - the more sensitive it is, the more perceptible the tuning will be

C. You can adjust the amount that Wave Tune adds to the singer's vibrato. For a natural sound, try to match it to the amount that a singer is using vibrato naturally

By following these steps, you can easily and quickly use Waves Tune Realtime to get the perfect vocal pitch for your performance.

And if you're looking to boost your vocal performance, be sure to check out the my review of the best Waves Vocal Plugins.

3. Pros and Cons of Waves Tune Realtime

Waves Tune Realtime is a powerful tool for vocal tuning and pitch correction. It offers a wide range of features, making it perfect for professional or home recording studios. 

The pros of Waves Tune Realtime include its intuitive user interface, fast and precise pitch correction, and the availability of multiple tools for vocal editing. It also offers real-time processing and the ability to export to a variety of audio formats. It is probably the best choice for live performances, as discussed below.

The cons of Waves Tune Realtime include the fact that it is only available as a plugin, and it is not compatible with some audio formats. In addition, some users have reported occasional glitches when using the product. Furthermore, it's not the most "clean" autotune plugin out there.

Overall, Waves Tune Realtime is a powerful tool for vocal tuning and pitch correction, and it is easy to use. With its comprehensive feature set, it is perfect for any recording studio.

4. Tips for getting the best results from Waves Tune Realtime

If you’re looking for the best results with Waves Tune Realtime, here are five tips that can help you get the most out of the software.

First, use the built-in presets to get you started. They provide a great starting point and can help you get familiar with the software.

Second, experiment with the settings and effects. You can easily customize the sound to your liking with the available controls.

Third, practice a lot. The more you use the software, the better you’ll become.

Fourth, if you’re having trouble getting the desired results, don’t be afraid to reach out for help. The Waves Tune Realtime community is full of helpful members who are willing to offer assistance.

Finally, if you're dealing with an out of tune recording, try to manually tune the most out of tune notes using your DAWs built-in pitch correction editor or a plugin like Melodyne or the more-affordable Waves Tune.

5. Alternatives to Waves Tune Realtime

Waves' Tune Realtime is a great tool for tuning vocal and acoustic tracks quickly and easily. But if you don’t have access to the software or just want to explore other options, we have compiled a list of five alternatives to Wave Tune Realtime.

Antares Auto-Tune Pro is a popular choice for pitch correction. It offers real-time pitch correction and powerful editing tools, plus it has a sleek user interface. It can be used to correct off-key notes and it also has a few special features like vibrato and growl.

To be honest, Antares plugin is the better of the two for in-studio pitch correction and what I use in the studio, where lag and processing power isn't an issue. But it's also a lot more expensive than Waves' Tune Realtime. For live sound applications, Waves is probably the best choice.

Other options include iZotope Nectar Elements and Celemony’s Melodyne Essential. Both are great choices for vocal tuning and have a range of features. 

In conclusion, Waves Tune Realtime is a powerful and versatile tool for audio tuning and vocal processing. It's perfect for both professional and amateur producers looking to take their sound to the next level. With its low CPU usage and intuitive user interface, Waves Tune Realtime is an essential addition to any studio setup.

Whether you're a beginner or an experienced audio engineer, Waves Tune Realtime is an invaluable tool for creating professional-quality vocal and instrumental tracks.

6. Compatibility

Waves' light weight plugins are designed to work seamlessly on a home desktop computer or a live console environment. Waves plugins like Tune Realtime are generally compatible complex setups like eMotion Mixers, SuperRack, MultiRack, SoundGrid Driver, SoundGrid Rack for VENUE, SoundGrid Studio, StudioRack and Tracks Live, but be sure to check the specific system requirements before buying.

It features touchscreen compatibility as part of Waves Soundgrid Applications, making it a dream tool for Soundgrid systems. And if you're looking for other great choices, here are the best Waves Plugins.