Melodyne or Autotune (from a perspective of using V-Vocal

So I heard that V-Vocal is no longer shipping with X3, and I'm just starting to think about switching to Melodyne or Autotune for vocal correction/FX.
 
I've heard that Melodyne's engine is superior to AT's, but just from looking at it (e.g., watching YouTube videos, etc.), it looks a lot more painstaking to use than V-Vocal.  One of the things I really liked about V-Vocal was all of the different drawing tools (pencil, line, etc.).  It looks to me like Melodyne does not have this (?).  As for Autotune, I can't tell.
 
So my question is: coming from a background of using V-Vocal and getting used to the workflow that it enables, what would you all recommend: Melodyne, Autotune, or even perhaps something different?
 
Thanks!

Thanks @Sanderxpander.  Yes, I'm mostly (if not exclusively) editing vocals with this.
 
My main workflow consists of manually shifting "nodes" (as you've termed them), and tightening vibrato (to get the more electronic-voice effect).  Rarely do I use the pencil tool, but I would definitely miss the line tool (occasionally I use this to "ramp" up a pitch for effect).  Do you know if this is possible with Melodyne?
 
I'm just trying to figure out if Autotune's "graphical" mode is any better for my needs.  I'm hoping that Melodyne would work, as I know a version of it comes with X3 Studio/Producer...

It would work slightly differently in Melodyne but it's possible. Basically you'd split the note around the place you'd want the ramp to end. Then pitch it up however far you want, and make the transition longer (otherwise, you'd obviously get an abrupt jump). I just tried this and it works fine for me, though of course I can't be completely certain it's exactly what you want.

EDIT: I'm using Melodyne Editor for this, not Essential which comes with Sonar. You'd need at least "Assistant" to edit the transitions, but that's a 100 bucks upgrade from Essential and a lot cheaper than an entirely new Autotune.

EDIT 2: I only just realized I only replied to what seemed to me the more tricky part of what you're used to doing, as I'd never done that before. All the other operations you mention are really simple in Melodyne and for me personally feel more logical than V-Vocal. You'd still need Assistant though.

Agreed - V-Vocal is a great tool to have in the tool box.
 
It'd be fantastic if Roland would release it as a stand-alone program.
That way, we could port tracks out to it (- like using iZotope RX as an editor).
 
Maybe we'll get lucky and Roland will see the light...
 
...or Gibson Research will buy the rights to it...

If you have Sonar X2, then you still have access to vvocal through the track fx menu.

Lots and lots of folks I know praise Melodyne.
I use Auto Tune as my go to editing device
....I'm glad X3 will still access v-Vocal as I like to use it once in a while

Here are some videos on the Celemony website.  Might give some helpful tips as to what can be done.
 
http://www.celemony.com/cms/index.php?id=videos

Sanderxpander
they really should've included the Assistant version instead of the Essential one.

This is marketing.  Neither Cakewalk nor Celemony are in the business of giving stuff away for free.  They aren't charities.  These aren't open source projects.  I don't know what the agreement is between the two companies, but Celemony undoubtedly agreed to license Essential for little or no money in order to get access to some of SONAR's user base.  That only works if a significant percentage of users buy the upgrade to Assistant or Editor.  I'm on the fence.  In reality, Essential will do almost everything I really need to do, but after doing the 30-day trial of Editor, I really miss the pieces that are not part of Essential.  So I have to make a decision whether to put my money on a hardware upgrade, upgrade Melodyne, or save that money for Finale 2014, which will be out in a few weeks.

I have Melodyne Editor. (ME)
 
I considered all 3 of the big players .... Autotune, V-Vocal and Melodyne. I did my research and opted to buy ME.
 
My decision was based on the need to fix vocals and other instrument tracks as transparently as possible and leave NO evidence or artifacts behind.
 
ME allows this.  I used to take the easy way out and use the automatic correction in ME. While ME has an "auto correct" function and makes the process fairly quick and painless, the best results are obtainable with manual correction. Yes, it does take longer to go through a vocal track and correct pitch and drift and split notes and make the changes needed manually......however, the result is well worth the time you have to spend. Once you learn the features and how to use them correctly, this manual process goes fairly quick.
 
Too much vibrato in a note... or not enough? ME can fix that.
Note starts flat and slides up or opposite that? ME can fix that.
Note timing is wrong, or starts or ends early/late?  ME can fix that.
One wrong note in a chord? ME can fix that.
Need to move a note only a couple of cents? ME can fix that.
 
And it does it all without leaving artifacts in the music to tell you it was there. ME is quite the program. The functions I use are pretty simple and straightforward. When I watch the video's on the Celemony website, I realize that I am, quite literally, only "scratching the surface" of what this program can actually do.
 
 
 
 

I always had the opposite experience - V-Vocal always seemed to have a terrible user interface to me, after using Melodyne :)
But you're right, you should go with what fits your workflow best and look at it from all sides.