Color Code Melodyne Blobs

I am experimenting trying to do multi-track vocals using Melodyne. Just playing around to see what can be done.  Is there a way to color code blobs that one copies to create harmony? If not color coding is there another way to separate and keep track of the copied and newly created  blobs?

I've never come across such a facility and I've been using Melodyne for over four years.
To create harmonies I just clone the main vocal track and work on the clone, so I don't need to separately identify blobs.  Or have I misunderstood your question?

The mix is pretty quiet, but I like the vocals! Those harmonies were all done with Melodyne? That's pretty good going. However, I have to say - you have a damn good voice, is there any reason why you didn't just sing all the parts manually? 

cpkoch
Someone else suggested that I should record the songs with a higher volume.  Is that what you mean about the mix being "quiet" ... i.e., turn up the gain? 

Two issues: a) Total level is probably not high enough, and b) the accompaniment seems too quiet compared to the vocals.
 
It could be that just bringing up the overall gain will make the accompaniment apparent enough.  Do you have a limiter plug-in?  If so, drop that on the master bus as the last effect and use the limiter controls to bring everything up.  (If you have Producer, then you should have the "Boost" limiter.)
 
If you want to get more sophisticated, you can use side-chaining techniques to automatically push down the accompaniment a little whenever the voices are there, and then bring the accompaniment up between the vocal lines.  Too much of that effect is obnoxious, but a small amount can be very helpful.

cpkoch
Like someone once told me ... "I'm not sure I understand all I know about what you said".  None-the-less thanks for the tips.  I am not up to speed on the limiter nor have I heard of Side Chaining.  That sound like a very powerful tool.  I need (and will) look into using both.   Thanks again CPARMERLEE      

Boost works fine as a limiter, and you should have it in your Producer system automatically.  I strongly recommend you add this to EVERY project, as the last effect on the main bus.  That will protects against distortion and speaker damage.  It also provides an easy way to bring up the overall gain level, in a safe and musical way.  Very easy.  Just locate Boost in the explorer and drag it onto your mast strip, making sure it is in the bottom (last) position.  Lately I use Cakewalk's Concrete Limiter.  It runs as a ProChannel module and I think it sounds a little better than Boost.  It is not included in Producer.  That is extra money, but not too much considering you will use it on every project.
 
Side chaining is a bit more involved, but not that hard.  Here are the steps in general.
 
Step 1: Send all your vocals to a new bus that has nothing but the vocals.  Don't send the vocals directly to master.  Instead the vocal bus will go to the master.  This is a good thing to do even if you are not side-chaining because you may want to apply some effects (compression or reverb e.g.) to the vocal mix without affecting the accompaniment tracks.  After you have done this step, your mix should sound just as it did before, but now you have the extra level of control of all the vocals at once.
 
Step 2: If you have more than one accompaniment track, send all the accompaniment tracks to their own bus, just as you did with the vocals.  Now you have two sub-masters: one for vocals and one for accompaniment.  Again, the mix should sound the same as before.
 
Step 3: On the accompaniment bus, insert a compressor that can accept a side-chain.  Open up the ProChannel on the accompaniment bus.  There will probably be a compressor there already.  The Producer version comes with a ProChannel compressor that accepts side chains.  That is called "PC4K S-Type Bus Compressor".  If that isn't already on the accompaniment bus, then add the PC4K and remove any other compressors to keep things simple.  Please note that the PC4K has a switch near the bottom that says "S Chain".  It is off by default.  Set that switch to the up position to allow a side chain.
 
Step 4:  Now go back to the vocal bus.  That bus should have its output sent to the master mix.  But you will also need to send this bus' output to the PC4K compressor.  So add a send.  When you do that, you will see a list of destinations for that send.  One of those destinations should be that compressor you just set up on the accompaniment bus.  Select that one.  It should say something like "Bus compressor - Accomp"
 
Step 5:  The mix should still sound the same.  Steps 1-4 were just for set-up.  Now you are ready for some fun.  Go back over to the PC4K compressor on the accompaniment strip.  While you are playing a section that has loud accompaniment while the vocals are singing, adjust the compressor's threshold until you see the needle move a little.  If you have everything set up right, whenever the vocals are strong, that should cause the accompaniment to compress.  You an play with the attack and release controls until you get a natural sound.  The objective is to let the vocals be heard better, but with only subtle compression that doesn't sound like somebody shut off the accompaniment.  You will be surprised at how a small amount of compression can bring out those vocals.
 
Just for clarification, that extra send from the vocal channel doesn't end up in the mix.  It simply goes to the PC4K compressor to tell it when and how much to compress the accompaniment.
 
Good luck.
 
P.S.  Make sure to use the stereo field to help the vocals be heard too.  You might want to try setting the stereo field wider on the accompaniment and narrower on the vocals to keep them in the middle of the mix.  If you have a bunch of separate tracks for the accompaniment, then you can simply pan those accompaniment tracks wider.  If the accompaniment is a single track that came from another source, you can insert Cakewalk Channel Tools (which you should have) on the accompaniment bus to widen that stereo field.  (Or better yet, the Blue Tubes Stereo Imager, if you have that.  It is easier to use and I feel like I get better results with that one.)

cpkoch
... As to why not do all live vocals [...] I tried messing around with Multi-track using Audacity and/or NCH Wave Pad and the like  but became a little frustrated as I tried syncing the several parts ...

Conrad, I apologize for the late response to this since I am on my cell more these days and quoting is a bear.
 
I forget what audio interface you are using(?), but I am 100% with sharke on the "why not sing all parts." A few reasons for this one:

1. SONAR is not the programs you mentioned, and you can easily playback a song while recording (input echo on the track being recorded off, even without direct monitoring... if you have direct monitoring on your interface you are golden for this).
2. You will get a richer mix from this method, as those slight variations make it sound even fuller and humanized. If the notes are within your range, then all the better!
3. Lastly... time... software has the appeal of being able to surgically modify EVERYTHING. This is all well and good until you start spending 5 hours to do what could be done in another performance in 10 minutes. Additionally, performance improves your capabilities with your instrument (voice), so that is another factor to consider. But as I know you are on your "one song per week" crusade, time is the most limiting factor IMO.

   I am also with sharke on the vocals being damn good... and honestly (my opinion), it would benefit you more overall to unleash the capabilities of SONAR to get those other tracks done via performance. SONAR is extremely powerful, so do not "assume" things based on past experience with "other" programs.
 
   BTW, what audio interface are you using? I truly forget  (a signature would be nice for you too )
 

Hi Conrad, the vocals in Love is a Many Splendored Thing are very nicely done!!! So much so that the recording everything you possibly can via performance and only using Melodyne for the "tightening you shorts" stuff might be your quickest and most effective workflow (plus the credit should go to the source (you), not Melodyne, IMO).
 
I realize you are new, but SONAR X3's "Comp mode" is the quickest way to do vocals, by far (for me). For the sake of time, I will often run a take until I hit a spot I know I do not like. Rather than "play through" as many recommend, I have gotten into the habit of stopping, backing up a couple bars, and continuing. The reason for this is I have identical recording settings (and am in "studio mode"), so when I finish I know I have a complete "good" take with those settings. I have burned myself in the past with punch in/out because of the settings being "unknown" and the variation in performances can be audible.
 
I am not familiar with your interface, but you can easily record new tacks with "Input Echo" disabled, and monitor the master bus via headphones plugged into your audio interface (so it doesn't feed back into the mic). If you do not fully cover your ears, you have achieved "direct monitoring" sufficiently without having to fiddle with software anyway. If you have direct monitoring on your interface (which most have), it simply routes the mic signal to the headphones directly (same idea, all about latency). SONAR will then synch the tracks based on your latency without any modification by you (in most cases). There are a few instances that will require this; but honestly, until you get to those hurdles appreciate all of the things SONAR does for you automatically (which is a lot).
 
As far as signature, it helps when folks ask a question, since some are based on the system/interface they are running. All the detail given in a post gets the best and quickest response. It is frustrating to readers to see something like "Why won't my MIDI work???" and that is about the crux of it. It helps others help you (and this forum is an AWESOME group of folks). You can modify your signature by clicking "User control Panel" in the upper right, and then "Signature" in the left navigation pane. Of course, it is not a must, but helps a lot.
 
Unfortunately, I have been enveloped in other tasks lately, so music has taken somewhat of a back burner. I think this is why I continue to stay an "avid hobbyist," since I do it when I can but still love it to death "just because." Perhaps one of these days I will get around to allotting time "just for music," but until that point I sometimes feel like a closet recluse when I am doing music, lol. I signed up for a music theory course for next month (forget the exact name now); since I feel that is my biggest hurdle, but a part of that was hit on in the Develop Your Musicianship course, and I realized that maybe I do not give myself enough credit at times.
 
As always, advice is free, so take it for what it is worth (Actually, I told you when this all started that I do not abandon people... so I do read things, just not always respond.)

Hello again Mike
Thanks for the kind words and sage advise. I think I operate similar to the way you do  as far as mutiple takes are concerned.  I use the COMP approach after taking maybe 8 takes.I use the best of the 8 and attempt to fix the variations.  I say "attempt" because there is a lot  to learn in the recording process itself. I have no studio nor a desk-mount sound chamber. I need to look into building something and learn what difference acoustic treatment makes. The takes, unlike yours are sometimes at different audio settings .. sometimes close the mic ... sometimes standing up ... so the best of the takes need adjustments.  
 
I am going to try another Multi-Track very soon  ... maybe tomorrow!  Maybe something by the Platters ...  e.g., Smoke Gets In Your Eyes of My Prayer ... with a real Doo-Wop type sound.  I'll do it with live takes and try to apply the lessons you folks ( you, sharke and cparmerlee  as well as all) have been so good as to share.  
 
Funny thing about the Signature discussion you offered.  The very question you raised about why "my MIDI don't woik no gud" is the one that I'm trying to iron out.  I got the thing to playback once using Cakewalk TTS then replaced it with another Soft Synth.  So far ... nothing! My Yamaha keyboard through the  US-122 works but not through my speaker set that receives the US-122 output.   Yup!!!  I've much to learn!  
 

 
[
I think that is smart.  I learn a lot better when I am working through a practical problem.  And if you did all of that with Melodyne, then you learned a lot about that software.  That is time well spent, IMHO.
 
I think all people are saying is that the harmonies are so nice, we'd love to hear you also go through the process of multi-tracking those vocals.  I think the end result will be much more powerful, and again, you will learn a lot.  Tracking with Sonar is way more powerful than Audacity.
 

cparmerlee
It took a bit longer than I planned  but I did do Smoke Get's in Your Eyes using my own voice box.  This time  I  sparingly using Melodyne to make some modifications.   To be frank, it took me about 5 times as much effort as I expected; but, on the other, hand I think much of the effort was due to the piece being more difficult to produce than I expected.  Comments are more than welcome.  I also put the master bus thru Boost 11 which I noted made quite a difference.  I still nee to try out Side Chaining (I think that was the technique sou suggested)