The Ableton Q&A Thread

[magma]

This is surprising.

Someone like hurlingdervish might know for sure...

[nowaysj]

Sampler does have an lfo, but from what I could see, there were only like 4 things you could modulate with it.

[magma]

Sampler does have an lfo, but from what I could see, there were only like 4 things you could modulate with it.

Yeah, same in Simpler... you can assign to pitch, filter cut off, panning etc, but you can't just enter any random parameter like you can when drawing automation manually.

Tbh, it's not that much effort to draw automation for shortish clips (get one triangle drawn and copy/paste) and it'll give you a little bit more control, but it's not as intuitive as just having an LFO generator somewhere!

[nowaysj]

Yeah, I've really come to rely on lfo's to do a bunch of stuff, like just using a square wave set to cycle over a bar, with a skewed symmetry so it only triggers say a send on the first quarter note, etc etc.

[nowaysj]

Correct me if I'm wrong about this, but you can't record automation into clips? That is ableton's major downfall.

[magma]

Correct me if I'm wrong about this, but you can't record automation into clips? That is ableton's major downfall.

Yeah, you can... make sure you've got MIDI Overdub set, perhaps? Should be able to play in with any controller... I use my RemoteSL for this all the time...

[magma]

Correct me if I'm wrong about this, but you can't record automation into clips? That is ableton's major downfall.

Yeah, you can... make sure you've got MIDI Overdub set, perhaps? Should be able to play in with any controller... I use my RemoteSL for this all the time...

[hurlingdervish]

trust me man, when the synths support midi data into clips it is a MAJOR PAIN IN THE ASS. its much better the way it is. Clip automation is relative to real automation, so you can draw in sweeps, then when "perform" you can get sweep those sweeps...or even make LFO's like this
It should be recording pitch bend...mod wheel...those type automations, included is usually the macros from the synth. Massive would always record the lfo movement, but I really just got annoyed with it and deleted it afterwards

you can modulate the end time with Sampler's LFO's, you can set the destination to a ridiculous amount of things

or if you want a sound to stop when another one plays like MPC's monophonic mode, you could make choke groups, by opening up the I/O settings on the actual drum rack tab

[nowaysj]

How do you modulate the end time with sampler's lfo?

[hurlingdervish]

How do you modulate the end time with sampler's lfo?

its in the destinations of the AUX and LFO's

start time and end time as well as other random things

[mks]

Yo friendly ableton homies -

Got a q:

So I've got a high hat sample, its not quite open or closed, it kind of just sustains for a while. I had it in a simpler in a drum rack, tried to move it to a sampler in a drum rack to do this: I'd like to use an lfo to modulate the decay/duration of the sample. How do u do that sort of thing in live?

I'm all ears.

Got another Q, but don't want to muddy the waters

One thing you can do, even though this doesn't specifically answer your question, is in Impulse randomize the filter, pan, and transposition. It is especially effective on hi-hat to give it some movement. I just been messing around with this recently and it's pretty cool. Those sections all have a random box where you can set a percentage. I'm still working out how it relates to velocity but I've already gotten some good movement from this.

Check it out!

[nowaysj]

Hey homies, often vst's will open with the title bar or whatever you call it off the edge of my monitor is there a way to either prevent this, or to move a stuck vst? THX

[Mad_EP]

Not a specific Q or A...

...but to anyone who doesn't know about this thread, should definitely take a peak. The title says it all---

Stuff in Live you wish you figured out a long time ago
http://forum.ableton.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=56637

I am going through it right now, and by page 11 I have already given myself a concussion from smacking my own forehead so many times, not realizing there were simple solutions to so many of my day to days issues....

[magma]

Not a specific Q or A...

...but to anyone who doesn't know about this thread, should definitely take a peak. The title says it all---

Stuff in Live you wish you figured out a long time ago
http://forum.ableton.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=56637

I am going through it right now, and by page 11 I have already given myself a concussion from smacking my own forehead so many times, not realizing there were simple solutions to so many of my day to days issues....

Oh my Lord... I'm amazed how much there was on PAGE ONE that I didn't know..!

[magma]

Right, here's a possibly daft question (possibly answered in that forum thread, but I can't find it)

If you have a vocal that has a bit of a lead in, but not a whole bar (or not as much as your quantise is set to) how do you lot normally trigger it? Give it it's own quantise settings and launch it after another clip?

It's rreeaaally annoying having vocals that start with a "Yo" or something that's supposed to be on the fourth beat of the last bar, or before any other clips are in at all...

I haven't explained that very well, have I?

[hurlingdervish]

Right, here's a possibly daft question (possibly answered in that forum thread, but I can't find it)

If you have a vocal that has a bit of a lead in, but not a whole bar (or not as much as your quantise is set to) how do you lot normally trigger it? Give it it's own quantise settings and launch it after another clip?

It's rreeaaally annoying having vocals that start with a "Yo" or something that's supposed to be on the fourth beat of the last bar, or before any other clips are in at all...

I haven't explained that very well, have I?

no i got you perfectly

in music phrases rarely start on the actual downbeat...theres always a lead in

in your intro leading up to that (or make one) set it so it comes in for just that word before the downbeat. (might be a headache if you have a 32 bar intro, but then you just just fire the clip off one bar before if the word is at the end of the bar)

or

ignore it until you get to the arrangement mode, then just stretch the start point of the clip to the beat before it comes in, giving your that word that you missed

[nowaysj]

Had the same q, that is a WORKAROUND, but not terribly satisfying.

I was hoping there was some type of offset that would allow the clip to trigger a quarter earlier or something.

[nowaysj]

Show hide plugin windows = COMMAND+ALT+P.

That is another pet peeve. I hate having to click that little tiny circle to call up devices. Of course there is a shortcut, and I've got big hands, but I just cannot stretch out to hit that damn p. Two handed short cut is no short cut at all. I am constantly flippnig around tracks, having to launch vst windows, it is a freakin drag.

[magma]

Show hide plugin windows = COMMAND+ALT+P.

That is another pet peeve. I hate having to click that little tiny circle to call up devices. Of course there is a shortcut, and I've got big hands, but I just cannot stretch out to hit that damn p. Two handed short cut is no short cut at all. I am constantly flippnig around tracks, having to launch vst windows, it is a freakin drag.

Use the Ctrl/Alt keys on the right hand side of the keyboard?

[magma]

Right, here's a possibly daft question (possibly answered in that forum thread, but I can't find it)

If you have a vocal that has a bit of a lead in, but not a whole bar (or not as much as your quantise is set to) how do you lot normally trigger it? Give it it's own quantise settings and launch it after another clip?

It's rreeaaally annoying having vocals that start with a "Yo" or something that's supposed to be on the fourth beat of the last bar, or before any other clips are in at all...

I haven't explained that very well, have I?

no i got you perfectly

in music phrases rarely start on the actual downbeat...theres always a lead in

in your intro leading up to that (or make one) set it so it comes in for just that word before the downbeat. (might be a headache if you have a 32 bar intro, but then you just just fire the clip off one bar before if the word is at the end of the bar)

or

ignore it until you get to the arrangement mode, then just stretch the start point of the clip to the beat before it comes in, giving your that word that you missed

Cheers for the reply, that's pretty much what I've been doing... either end up with a couple of beats of silence at the start of the clip or coming in on the downbeat phrase whilst I'm jamming around.... it seems like there should be some sort of offset option on the quantise for live playing, but I guess not! Ho hum!