Ableton Live: Performing With A Pad Controller
Forum rules
By using this "Production" sub-forum, you acknowledge that you have read, understood and agreed with our terms of use for this site. Click HERE to read them. If you do not agree to our terms of use, you must exit this site immediately. We do not accept any responsibility for the content, submissions, information or links contained herein. Users posting content here, do so completely at their own risk.
Quick Link to Feedback Forum
By using this "Production" sub-forum, you acknowledge that you have read, understood and agreed with our terms of use for this site. Click HERE to read them. If you do not agree to our terms of use, you must exit this site immediately. We do not accept any responsibility for the content, submissions, information or links contained herein. Users posting content here, do so completely at their own risk.
Quick Link to Feedback Forum
- Taste Tester
- Posts: 36
- Joined: Wed Jan 13, 2010 4:53 pm
Ableton Live: Performing With A Pad Controller
Hey guys I'm pretty new to live performance with electronic music and I own an Akai MPD 32. I want to use it to trigger clips in session mode live but I dont understand how people can fit their whole set on just 1 mpd. Any help would be great, I'm thinking of getting a launchpad to trigger clips easier if i cant get this worked out.
Thanks in advance!
Thanks in advance!
Re: Ableton Live: Performing With A Pad Controller
my terminology may not be correct, and i dont know how "they" use 1 MPD for an entire set, but basically, my guess would be.... utilizing presets, or banks, or i dno wtf they're called.Taste Tester wrote:Hey guys I'm pretty new to live performance with electronic music and I own an Akai MPD 32. I want to use it to trigger clips in session mode live but I dont understand how people can fit their whole set on just 1 mpd. Any help would be great, I'm thinking of getting a launchpad to trigger clips easier if i cant get this worked out.
Thanks in advance!
i do not know if this is applicable to the MPD (i dont see why not though) but on my midi controller, which has 32 physical knobs and 9 physical sliders, i map preset/bank #1 with custom-assigned midi cc#'s or channel #'s to each physical knob/fader, and then switch over to preset/bank #2 and map the same knobs/faders to different midi cc#s/channels and do the same for preset/bank #3, etc. making sure that there are no conflicting value assignments. just read up on midi and there's prbly somebody here who knows how to do what you wana do on the MPD.
again, i dno if my midi syntax is correct, but whatever. i know how to make it work.
EDIT: i forgot the most important thing, the math! so 32 physical knobs and 9 physical sliders and 16 programmable (on my controller) preset/banks = 32x16=512 knobs and 9x16=144 sliders. (if my math is correct)
Last edited by LFpHUNK on Fri Feb 05, 2010 1:53 am, edited 1 time in total.
Re: Ableton Live: Performing With A Pad Controller
We have a bunch of launchpads at uni, and despite the possibility of some shortcomings against a trigger finger, they are a bit of a godsend for this kind of thing.Taste Tester wrote:Hey guys I'm pretty new to live performance with electronic music and I own an Akai MPD 32. I want to use it to trigger clips in session mode live but I dont understand how people can fit their whole set on just 1 mpd. Any help would be great, I'm thinking of getting a launchpad to trigger clips easier if i cant get this worked out.
Thanks in advance!
For Production Tips Guides and Files:http://secondrateaudio.blogspot.com
For My Tunes: http://soundcloud.com/astraldubstep/
For My Tunes: http://soundcloud.com/astraldubstep/
- youthful_implants
- Posts: 537
- Joined: Wed Jul 29, 2009 12:42 am
- Location: wheel up the tune fast like ramadan
Re: Ableton Live: Performing With A Pad Controller
I want to get into this!
- Taste Tester
- Posts: 36
- Joined: Wed Jan 13, 2010 4:53 pm
Re: Ableton Live: Performing With A Pad Controller
well, there are 4 pad banks on the MPD32 (A,B,C,D) and it just doesnt seem like thats enough for a whole set containing so many clips. is there a way to have more banks on ableton or something? I have done what you said with the mapping but it just doesnt seem like enough but i have seen many musicians do it before (flying lotus, nosaj thing, low limit, even rusko i think?)LFpHUNK wrote:my terminology may not be correct, and i dont know how "they" use 1 MPD for an entire set, but basically, my guess would be.... utilizing presets, or banks, or i dno wtf they're called.Taste Tester wrote:Hey guys I'm pretty new to live performance with electronic music and I own an Akai MPD 32. I want to use it to trigger clips in session mode live but I dont understand how people can fit their whole set on just 1 mpd. Any help would be great, I'm thinking of getting a launchpad to trigger clips easier if i cant get this worked out.
Thanks in advance!
i do not know if this is applicable to the MPD (i dont see why not though) but on my midi controller, which has 32 physical knobs and 9 physical sliders, i map preset/bank #1 with custom-assigned midi cc#'s or channel #'s to each physical knob/fader, and then switch over to preset/bank #2 and map the same knobs/faders to different midi cc#s/channels and do the same for preset/bank #3, etc. making sure that there are no conflicting value assignments. just read up on midi and there's prbly somebody here who knows how to do what you wana do on the MPD.
again, i dno if my midi syntax is correct, but whatever. i know how to make it work.
Re: Ableton Live: Performing With A Pad Controller
i just took a REAL REAL quick look at the MPD32 manual and it says you have up to 30 presets. so, with 4 banks per preset you get 120 different configs...Taste Tester wrote:well, there are 4 pad banks on the MPD32 (A,B,C,D) and it just doesnt seem like thats enough for a whole set containing so many clips. is there a way to have more banks on ableton or something? I have done what you said with the mapping but it just doesnt seem like enough but i have seen many musicians do it before (flying lotus, nosaj thing, low limit, even rusko i think?)LFpHUNK wrote:my terminology may not be correct, and i dont know how "they" use 1 MPD for an entire set, but basically, my guess would be.... utilizing presets, or banks, or i dno wtf they're called.Taste Tester wrote:Hey guys I'm pretty new to live performance with electronic music and I own an Akai MPD 32. I want to use it to trigger clips in session mode live but I dont understand how people can fit their whole set on just 1 mpd. Any help would be great, I'm thinking of getting a launchpad to trigger clips easier if i cant get this worked out.
Thanks in advance!
i do not know if this is applicable to the MPD (i dont see why not though) but on my midi controller, which has 32 physical knobs and 9 physical sliders, i map preset/bank #1 with custom-assigned midi cc#'s or channel #'s to each physical knob/fader, and then switch over to preset/bank #2 and map the same knobs/faders to different midi cc#s/channels and do the same for preset/bank #3, etc. making sure that there are no conflicting value assignments. just read up on midi and there's prbly somebody here who knows how to do what you wana do on the MPD.
again, i dno if my midi syntax is correct, but whatever. i know how to make it work.
again, that is if my logic is correct, which i cant be sure of unless i had the device in my own hands.
- Taste Tester
- Posts: 36
- Joined: Wed Jan 13, 2010 4:53 pm
Re: Ableton Live: Performing With A Pad Controller
ohhhhhhhhhh. thanks, i just realized what you meant by presets.
that helps a lot.

Re: Ableton Live: Performing With A Pad Controller
lol, like i said, my midi (or all) terminology is shit. but, glad i could be of some assistance.Taste Tester wrote:ohhhhhhhhhh. thanks, i just realized what you meant by presets.that helps a lot.
Who is online
Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 0 guests