In this Mixing Music 101 part two, I’m walking you through vocal tuning in a real-world home studio mix—using a live church recording with acoustic instruments, lead vocal, and three background vocals. Before I even touch tuning, I quickly recap why clip gain and getting an even vocal performance matters first (this is “assistant editor mode” before you start leaning on compression and EQ). I also show how I’m using iZotope Tonal Balance Control 2 as a fast “rough mix” compass—pulling up a reference target so I can see where my lows, low-mids, and highs are drifting before I start making bigger mix moves. From there, I break down two tuning workflows inside Studio One: Melodyne (integrated) and Waves Tune Real-Time. With Melodyne, I explain the quick macro approach (pitch center / drift) and why it can backfire if the singer is far enough off that notes get pushed to the wrong pitch. I also show my preferred method: zoom in, get nitpicky, and move individual blobs so I’m not accidentally “tuning” guitar bleed and causing that chorusy/phasing weirdness. Then I demo Waves Tune Real-Time as the faster, more traditional plugin route—set the key (D major here), pick the vocal range, and dial in speed/transition. My takeaway: Melodyne for detailed lead vocal control, Waves Tune Real-Time for quick results (especially on background vocals).