getting mp3 dubs set to a specific tempo using ableton live

[dubzach]

I need ur help! I have a bunch of dubs sitting on my hardrive that I want to warp the tempo all to one tempo to mix with without using the pitch control when i dj becuase i dont have one... I have an mp3 player and a regular cd player that I want to use along with my vinyl but dont have any pitch changing or speed changing capabilities with them but still want to get my dubs in synch.... how do make sure each track is exactly on the same tempo?

[Disco Nutter]

Use the WARP!

[djshiva]

getting ableton to "beatmatch", or just adjust song tempos is a piece of cake. you just have to tell it how to play the tunes. that's where warping comes in. for those who haven't quite gotten their heads around that, i give you this:

DJ Shiva's Super Duper Slacker's Guide to Easy Warping in Ableton (that was a tad sarcastic).

set your tap tempo to a key. listen (without warping) and use tap tempo to find the tempo (there is a reason for this, trust me).

then in the clip properties, click "warp". MOST of the time, autowarp gets the approximate tempo right, it just doesn't set the first marker correctly. if it doesn't get the tempo right and sets up a trillion warp markers, click on one, select all, and delete them. then enter the approximate tempo you found in the Seg. BPM box.

now, once the tempo is close to correct, place the first warp marker on the first beat you want to warp from. sometimes you can place it at the beginning of an intro, sometimes it may be simpler just to find the first real beat of the song. turn on your metronome. this is a simple way to make sure your track is lined up with the correct tempo.

most electronic music is sequenced, which makes it easier. i usually go to the 17 mark and check to make sure things are in sync. if they are, continue to the 33rd. if things are still synced, they will prolly stay that way. to make a warp marker, double click on the number and that will make a warp marker. if you need to move it, click once and drag. do not double click until you have it where you want it, and do not drag if you have already made a marker. you can do this at varying points throughout the song, depending on how in sync it already it.

what you are looking for are the transients at the beginning of beats. use your eyes and your ears and eventually you will be able to do this in your sleep. it takes me about 30 secs to a minute to warp a tune, depending on the complexity.

i generally make warp markers at the beginning of phrases, like when the bass first drops, when there is a beatless break, when the beat breaks down for the outro. i use them as visual reminders, as well as telling ableton how to play.

if you have a tune that is NOT sequenced by a computer (live music, bands, etc.), you will need to make many more warp markers. use your ears. the great thing about this is that you can use ableton and warp markers to play tunes together that you never in a million years would have been able to work together on the decks.

and most importantly, when you are done warping each tune, click on "save" in the clip properties box in the "sample" section. if you do not do this, you will lose all of your work when you pull up the tune. if you transfer your tunes to another computer or folder, take both the tune AND the corresponding .asd file.

typically, you want to use repitch mode instead of beats (beats mode can leave some ugly transient wibble on a steady bassline), unless this would drastically alter the pitch (say it's a 130 bpm tune with a vocal, we don't want any chipmunk action here). then complex warp comes into play.

be forewarned, complex mode will not only use more processor to play, but will also alter the sound a bit (deadens the highs and undermines the lows just a smidge). there are some methods you can use (involving bbe sonic maximizer and PSP vintage warmer) to fix that that you can find at http://www.abletonlivedj.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=6262.

this is the super fast version of the explanation. check youtube for some great video tutorials and also go to www.ableton.com and get into the forums. tons of great info there. www.abletonlivedj.com is another fantastic source.

p.s. if you want to then have the tunes to play on cds or whatever, just render them to wav with your master tempo set at whatever you want and then batch convert them to mp3. but if you have ableton, you might consider playing around with it and a MIDI controller. it can be loads of fun if you drop the idea of using it like 2 turntables and really get creative with it.

i hope this helps, and if you need any clarification, holla.

[kastor]

tons of warp tutorials on youtube
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=8W6BWkRNEig

[tempest]

getting ableton to "beatmatch", or just adjust song tempos is a piece of cake. you just have to tell it how to play the tunes. that's where warping comes in. for those who haven't quite gotten their heads around that, i give you this:

DJ Shiva's Super Duper Slacker's Guide to Easy Warping in Ableton (that was a tad sarcastic).

set your tap tempo to a key. listen (without warping) and use tap tempo to find the tempo (there is a reason for this, trust me).

then in the clip properties, click "warp". MOST of the time, autowarp gets the approximate tempo right, it just doesn't set the first marker correctly. if it doesn't get the tempo right and sets up a trillion warp markers, click on one, select all, and delete them. then enter the approximate tempo you found in the Seg. BPM box.

now, once the tempo is close to correct, place the first warp marker on the first beat you want to warp from. sometimes you can place it at the beginning of an intro, sometimes it may be simpler just to find the first real beat of the song. turn on your metronome. this is a simple way to make sure your track is lined up with the correct tempo.

most electronic music is sequenced, which makes it easier. i usually go to the 17 mark and check to make sure things are in sync. if they are, continue to the 33rd. if things are still synced, they will prolly stay that way. to make a warp marker, double click on the number and that will make a warp marker. if you need to move it, click once and drag. do not double click until you have it where you want it, and do not drag if you have already made a marker. you can do this at varying points throughout the song, depending on how in sync it already it.

what you are looking for are the transients at the beginning of beats. use your eyes and your ears and eventually you will be able to do this in your sleep. it takes me about 30 secs to a minute to warp a tune, depending on the complexity.

i generally make warp markers at the beginning of phrases, like when the bass first drops, when there is a beatless break, when the beat breaks down for the outro. i use them as visual reminders, as well as telling ableton how to play.

if you have a tune that is NOT sequenced by a computer (live music, bands, etc.), you will need to make many more warp markers. use your ears. the great thing about this is that you can use ableton and warp markers to play tunes together that you never in a million years would have been able to work together on the decks.

and most importantly, when you are done warping each tune, click on "save" in the clip properties box in the "sample" section. if you do not do this, you will lose all of your work when you pull up the tune. if you transfer your tunes to another computer or folder, take both the tune AND the corresponding .asd file.

typically, you want to use repitch mode instead of beats (beats mode can leave some ugly transient wibble on a steady bassline), unless this would drastically alter the pitch (say it's a 130 bpm tune with a vocal, we don't want any chipmunk action here). then complex warp comes into play.

be forewarned, complex mode will not only use more processor to play, but will also alter the sound a bit (deadens the highs and undermines the lows just a smidge). there are some methods you can use (involving bbe sonic maximizer and PSP vintage warmer) to fix that that you can find at http://www.abletonlivedj.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=6262.

this is the super fast version of the explanation. check youtube for some great video tutorials and also go to www.ableton.com and get into the forums. tons of great info there. www.abletonlivedj.com is another fantastic source.

p.s. if you want to then have the tunes to play on cds or whatever, just render them to wav with your master tempo set at whatever you want and then batch convert them to mp3. but if you have ableton, you might consider playing around with it and a MIDI controller. it can be loads of fun if you drop the idea of using it like 2 turntables and really get creative with it.

i hope this helps, and if you need any clarification, holla.

Great post, warping in laymans terms

[dsub]

For what it's worth, to my ears, the transients hit the HARDEST in "Beats" mode. There's soooo many different opinions on what modes you should be using and such, some people act like the Repitch mode is the way to go because it pretty simply repitches the audio like vinyl when you change the tempo. To me, it's all about hitting HARD, and I trust that whomever mixed the track in the first place knew what s/he was doing, and thus don't like to piss all over their work.

Complex mode just sounds kinda "off" to me.

----

To kinda amend what I just said though; if you're only mixing dubstep, which is generally all at the same tempo, Repitch *may* be your best bet as there shouldn't be much perceivable change in pitch. I'll have to do some A/B testing and such tonight... my experience is more with Glitch Hop / Lazer Bass than dubstep though, which are at far more varied tempos, thus that's why I generally stay away from repitch.

[nospin]

For what it's worth, to my ears, the transients hit the HARDEST in "Beats" mode. There's soooo many different opinions on what modes you should be using and such, some people act like the Repitch mode is the way to go because it pretty simply repitches the audio like vinyl when you change the tempo. To me, it's all about hitting HARD, and I trust that whomever mixed the track in the first place knew what s/he was doing, and thus don't like to piss all over their work.

Complex mode just sounds kinda "off" to me.

repitch mode should have less artifacts... the only real problem with repitch is if you are doing drastic tempo changes, some basslines, vocals, etc, might sound too funny.... but even so, a real drastic tempo change in the other modes will give you weird artifacts...

and i really dont get what you mean by "piss all over their work"?
repitch, as close to turnable mixing as you'll get, is pissing all over their work?
i'm sure most electronic artists expect their tracks to be used this way

[dsub]

All I'm getting at is that a pitched up kick loses some of it's thud, and pitched down gets kinda wobbly. Like I said, none of this is really an issue with dubstep with the limited range of tempos, but in some other genres you're going to get audio weirdness. I'm sticking to my guns there though, that the drums are most likely going to hit the hardest at the original tempo

[djshiva]

For what it's worth, to my ears, the transients hit the HARDEST in "Beats" mode. There's soooo many different opinions on what modes you should be using and such, some people act like the Repitch mode is the way to go because it pretty simply repitches the audio like vinyl when you change the tempo. To me, it's all about hitting HARD, and I trust that whomever mixed the track in the first place knew what s/he was doing, and thus don't like to piss all over their work.

Complex mode just sounds kinda "off" to me.

----

To kinda amend what I just said though; if you're only mixing dubstep, which is generally all at the same tempo, Repitch *may* be your best bet as there shouldn't be much perceivable change in pitch. I'll have to do some A/B testing and such tonight... my experience is more with Glitch Hop / Lazer Bass than dubstep though, which are at far more varied tempos, thus that's why I generally stay away from repitch.

complex is pretty wanky unless you know how to fix it, but beats mode causes some serious artifacts in any continuous bassline. throw on something with a continuous sine bass, and listen to it turn to wibble.

that can be used to great effect when producing, but you really don't wanna hear it do that to a great tune on a big system. trust me.