Daniel Sokolovskiy’s Blog: posts tagged Ableton

Beat Repeat MIDI-mapping

Wed, 25 Jan 2017 08:11:48 +0100

Hi Daniel, as far as I’m aware you are using Xone K2 controller. How did you control Beat Repeat when played a set at PDJ TV (at 0:37 sec)? It seems that you turning on and controlling the repeat value by a single rotary knob, but I can’t figure out how to map it that way.

Neil Paterson

Well spotted, Neil! Yes, I use Allen & Heath Xone:K2 in my current setup, and I trigger Beat Repeat and controlling its value with a single knob.

Effects like reverb or delay typically have a Dry/Wet parameter, so it’s easy to adjust the desired amount of parameter and the rotary knobs of Xone K2 are perfect for this. But Beat Repeat is different, and basically, you have to map two separate parameters: turning the device “on” and “off” and the repeat value. And this is very clumsy when playing a set.

Beat Repeat default parameters

The trick is to make some starting point where nothing happens whilst the device is “on”. It can be achieved in a few different ways, you can just set the same parameters as I do:

Interval to 1/4
Grid to 1/6
Gate to 4/16
Turn on “No Trpl” button

You see, since we turned on the “no triplets” button and set the initial grid position to 1/6, nothing really happens. it means we can map this as a maximum left position of the knob to emulate the “off” state.

Beat Repeat trick

Half work is done, now we have to make a proper mapping. By default, when you map the Grid parameter, it sets 1/256 as a minimum value (left position of the knob) and 1 Bar as a maximum (right position of the knob). Obviously, we don’t need that.

First, you need to do the right-click choose “Invert Range” because we want our knob to control the grid in the opposite way. And now set the minimum value for 1/6 as this is Beat Repeat initial state as described above. I also suggest limiting the maximum at around 1/48 because 1/256 is way too extreme.

Mapping the Grid parameter with inverted range.

That’s it — this is exactly what I used during the set at PDJ TV.

But we can go further and bring this effect into a level by adding an extra EQ that would cut the low frequencies along with the intensity of the Beat Repeat. Here’s how to do it.

Add EQ Eight with a low-cut filter after the Beat Repeat and group them into a new Effect Rack (Select both → ⌘+G). Now do the right-click on the Grid and select “Map to Macro 1”, and then do the same for the EQ’s filter frequency:

Mapping both parameters into a single macro knob

Now open macro mapping tab by clicking on the “Map” button and set a maximum value for the filter frequency at around 1000 Hz. It doesn’t have to be precise, but I suggest limiting the frequency that way otherwise the signal will be completely filtered.

And here is a tiny video I’ve recorded (excuse the shaking camera and the editing, I’m not a pro on making videos). You don’t need to do this effect that often obviously, this is just for the demonstration purpose:

Track playing on the video: Daniel Lesden – Ignition (Waveform Remix).

Controlling parameters in Ableton using clips modulation

Wed, 11 Jan 2017 07:17:48 +0100

How to make non-destructive editing of automated parameters so I could change it in one place and apply to the entire clip’s length?

Ilya Birman

Let’s say, we have some bassline with cut-off automation recorded using a MIDI controller:

The automation curves recorded for the bassline’s filter cut-off parameter (highlighted area)

Bassline automation example

It’s only an eight-bar long loop and we want to stretch it out for the entire track’s duration. The problem is when you stretch out the clip, the automation doesn’t follow along the way:

The automation curves are not stretched out along with the clip (highlighted area)

The obvious ways of making the automation keep going are:

Flatten automation into a solid piece of audio
Copy-paste automation manually throughout the entire duration

As you can guess, both of these methods aren’t perfect: flattening is a destructive type of editing meaning you cannot go back to fix it if anything is needed, and copying and pasting manually is just not very productive. Besides, if you want to change anything in this automation, you would need to copy-paste all the changes again and that’s not what we want.

But here is a better way to solve this — using modulation.

Modulation is pretty much the same as automation, but with two key differences: it controls parameters within the clips (not on the global timeline) and relative to the defined parameter value.

Modulation vs. Automation. Ableton Live knowledge base

Do the right-click on the parameter you want to control and select “Show Modulation”:

Filter’s cut-off in the Spire synthesizer is the parameter we want to modulate

You’ll see a MIDI editor with the Envelopes tab opened. Copy and paste there all the curves from timeline automation to this area. Like this:

Now delete the automation since we don’t need it anymore. Do the right-click and select “Delete Automation”:

Deleting the automation which is no longer needed

Now all you have to do is drag the parameter (the little black triangle) up to its maximum value. Remember that modulation controls parameters relative to their volume:

Dragging the parameter up to its maximum value

And that’s it. Now you can stretch out your MIDI clip as long as you want, and the modulation will follow. I’ve recorded a quick screen video just to show it in action:

How to freeze Ableton channel with sidechain

Thu, 24 Nov 2016 09:46:44 +0100

Hello, Daniel. I make music in Ableton Live running on a pretty old PC. I always have to freeze channels in order to save up some CPU resources, but it doesn’t work if I have a sidechain compressor on a channel. Any advice on this?

Elijah

I used to make music on a laptop so I feel your pain on computer resources. It may sound obvious, but first of all, I suggest revising your plugins and keep using only those which you really need for that particular project. Less plugins — less resources usage.

Less is more

However, I like to use Freeze function regardless of CPU usage. To me it’s kind of a way of moving forward, otherwise, I can stuck on tweaking and more editing all day long. But just like you said, Ableton can’t freeze a channel if it has any kind of sidechain routing on it:

Computer audio resources and strategies. Ableton Reference Manual

A typical error that pops-up when you trying to freeze channel with a sidechain

Luckily, there is a trick.

Let’s start off by putting some sound supposing that it is your arrangement that you would like to freeze. I’ve put some kind of synth pad sample for this purpose:

Audio channel with our sound source

A sound source that we're going to freeze

Now let’s add a sidechain routing. I’m going to use a sidechain ‘pumping’ compression effect to make it sound obvious:

A typical sidechain compression with a kick as a modulation source

Sound source with sidechain compression

This stage is exactly where we usually see an error when trying to freeze channel. And here are a couple easy steps to bypass this:

Turn on a tiny I·O button on the right panel to show routing section.
At the signal source channel, seek for audio out the dropdown menu, it shows ‘Master’ by default. Click to choose a new Audio channel you’ve created instead.
At that Audio channel, look at the monitoring section with In, Auto, and Off buttons, with Off being turned on by default. Choose ‘In’ instead.

Routing our signal source to a new Audio channel

From now, the sound output of the signal source channel goes through the Audio channel, named ‘Signal Out’ in this example. All I need to do now is to cut-and-paste compressor to this channel and freeze the original channel.

As a result, we’ve got a frozen channel whilst having a sidechain routing going on. Quod erat demonstrandum.

Getting started with Ableton Live

Wed, 29 Jun 2016 08:57:21 +0100

How to make 432 Hz tuning in Ableton

Wed, 25 May 2016 07:55:09 +0100

I’m new to Ableton (switched from Logic), and I’m looking for a way to pitch tuning down to 432 Hertz. Is there some sort of global project settings for that in Ableton?

Vitaliy

I use standard “A440” pitch in my productions, so, to be honest, I don’t know much about 432 Hz tuning. As far as I know, there is no built-in way to change global pitch in Ableton, unlike Logic. However, there are some tricks that might you find useful.

A440 standard pitch

First things off, there is a Max For Live plugin called “Microtuner”. I haven’t used it myself, but according to its description and user comments, it should work exactly as you need — just put it on a MIDI channel, and your synthesizer’s pitch will be tuned to 432 Hertz automatically.

Max for Live allows to build instruments and effects for use within Ableton Live, and it comes bundled with Live Suite edition

Method number two requires some preparations, but in my opinion it is even better.

Open a synthesizer or plugin you’re using, find the oscillator pitch section, and tune it down to -32 cents in Fine tuning knob. I’m using Sylenth1 in this particular example:

Cent is a 1/100th of semitone

Do this for all other plugins, including Ableton built-in devices like Sampler, Simpler, Operator and more.

Then from here, you have two options. You can either save it as device preset by clicking on the disk icon on the top right:

... or just save as default preset for this particular device:

Let’s say, if you save a tuned Simpler as a default preset, every next time you add a new instance of Simpler, it will come already with 432 Hz, i.e. with -32 cents. As easy as possible! I would advise sticking with that option.

Default presets in Ableton Reference Manual

Fellow producers out there! How do you tune your plugins? And what do you think about 432 Hz tuning in general as an alternative to the standard pitch? Share it in the comments box below.

Choosing a DAW

Wed, 17 Feb 2016 08:28:32 +0100

A question of choice for beginners

I would like to try myself in music production, what software would you recommend? What’s the different between them?

Daniel

Digital audio workstation, or simply DAW, is a question of choice of many beginners. There are so many DAWs out there! I bet you read many forums, but everyone suggests what they love and the “holy war” never ends. So which one to choose?

Here is the hint: you can achieve the same results in any DAW, like Cubase, Logic, Ableton, Fruity Loops and more. I repeat: you can achieve the same result — a quality produced track — in any software. But nevertheless, programs differ by four criteria.

The difference

Platform. Ones only for Mac, ones for Windows, the others – for both.
Price. Keep in mind It doesn’t affect either the process or the result. The cheaper doesn’t mean the worse, and vice versa.
Built-in plugins. There are different numbers of built-in instruments, plugins, and effects with various functionality.
User interface. Buttons, windows, menus — all that stuff. Ones look like the space operation center, the others much simpler. There are no good or bad interfaces, its perception is subjective. As for me, this is the most important criterion.

DAW	Platform	Price
Ableton Live	Windows, OS X	$99—749
Apple Logic	OS X	$199
Bitwig Studio	Windows, OS X, Linux	$299
Steinberg Cubase	Windows, OS X	$99—599
Propellerhead Reason	Windows, OS X	$399
Image-Line FL Studio	Windows	$99—737
Avid Pro Tools	Windows, OS X	$0—899
Reaper	Windows, OS X	$225
PreSonus Studio One	Windows, OS X	$99—399
Cakewalk Sonar	Windows, OS X	$99—499

Odd one out

The program choice is not important in the sense of music production. However, when it comes to live performances, one software stands out – Ableton Live.

Ableton developers made up such a unique system that doesn’t exist in other programs. I know the musicians who write music in Cubase due to preference or habit but still perform with Ableton. If someday you are planning to go beyond the walls of your house with your music, I recommend considering Ableton as the main program – both for writing and performing. It’s easier and plus cheaper.

Trial version

Fortunately, these programs are available as trial versions (except Logic Pro), so you can try before buying. Demo-versions usually have a 30-days period and may have limited functionality, but these are enough to understand whether you like it or not.

For me, one day was enough to test out Cubase and FL Studio: I just run them, horrified, and closed. On the contrary, 30 days were not enough with Ableton: I installed it on three different PCs to make a final decision. The choice of the program is subjective, that’s why I recommend trying all of them.

License

I wrote above «buy» purposely as I know in this digital era many prefer to download «cracked» software, and beginners especially. I recommend to actually buy DAWs not just because it’s right, not because of legal things, and not because it’s a very complex product and developers deserve to be rewarded. I recommend buying software because you’ll feel different about it: something that took you efforts to get, in the end, will get more attention rather than something you’ve got for free, play around for a week and then forget.

Buy licensed software if you have serious intention to begin a music producer’s career.

Creating a pitch rising effect in Ableton

Wed, 30 Dec 2015 09:06:55 +0100

Hi Daniel, can you advise how to make a pitch rise effect on a vocal? E. g. like in this video at 2:42, they call it the “dub delay”. I can’t find any good tutorial for this. Many thanks!

Andy

In Ableton Live, there are at least two easy ways to do that using built-in devices: Ping Pong Delay and Simpler. They give slightly different results, so choose whatever better suit your needs. Let’s go over both methods.

Method #1: Ping Pong Delay

First things off, we need to take an audio sample which we will use for the processing. I’ll grab just some random phrase from my library, a one-shot speech sample says “Dark”. It’s pretty raw and dirty, but okay for this example.

Original sample

Put this sample to a new Audio Channel, and add Ping Pong Delay on top. By default, Ping Pong use an algorithm called “Fade”, we need to change it to “Repitch”. Click right mouse button on the device title and select it from the list:

From now on the modulation of the “Beat Swing” parameter will affect the sample’s pitch. Change it to the maximum value of 33.3%, and draw automation down to the end, at -33.3%. Here is what we’ve got so far:

Pitch modulation

The effect itself is fine, but as you can hear the sound fades out over time, and we don’t need it. To fix this, simply turn on the freeze function, a small square “F”. Now the delay effect will last infinitely as long as the freeze is turned on:

Pitch rise effect using Ping Pong Delay

Method #2: Simpler

Now let’s take a look at the alternative method. It requires a few more steps, but I like it more. I’ll put the same source sample to a new MIDI Channel, Ableton automatically creates a Simpler device. By default, Simpler has some parameters that we don’t need, let’s change it in four clicks:

Turn on the “Loop” button. With this, we can use a single MIDI note in order to repeat the sound.
Turn off the “Snap”. Snap to grid a nice feature, but to make the effect smoother, we don’t it here.
Change Warp method to a “Tones”. Other algorithms can work too, but I found this one is better in this case.

I highlighted these changes on the screenshot:

Now create a new MIDI clip, and draw a single MIDI note up to the full length. Make sure to put it on C3 — this is a default note for most samplers where a sample is played with the original pitch. Since we turned on the “Loop” function, it will sound like this:

Sample repeat

Now comes the most interesting part. Select the Simpler and press ⌘+G (or click with right mouse button on the title and select Group), it wraps the device into Instrument Rack. Then click on the top left button to open a Macro section, like this:

Then we have to make a MIDI mapping on the length and transpose parameters. To do that, do right click on the Length parameter → Map to Macro 1, and right-click on the Transpose → Map to S Length, as highlighted on the picture:

By default, it maps the maximum values of the parameters from left to right direction. It means that the maximum amount of the Macro knob (127) equal to 100% sample Length, and +48 semitones of Transpose. But we want quite the opposite, at 100% sample Length pitch should remain unchanged while reducing the Length should drop down the Pitch.

To do so, click on the “Map” button near to the Instrument Rack title, it opens the Macro Mapping window. Then right-click on the Transpose parameter and click “Invert Range”, set the maximum value at 0, and minimum up to your taste — I’ll set +36 semitones, which equally to 3 octaves.

That’s it. Now just draw an automation curve of the Macro 1 parameter, and enjoy the result:

Pitch rise effect using Simpler

Dear readers, if you know more viable methods how to achieve the same result, feel free to post it in the comments below.

What setup I use

Sun, 08 Jul 2012 22:00:00 +0100

This post originally appeared on my Facebook page. Watch also my 2017 Ableton setup (vlog)

People often asked me what setup I used in my recent gigs. Well, here is it.

So, I’m using 8-10 channels. First three audio channels – main tracks for mixing. Channel #4 I’m using for mashups (melodies, voice etc). On this channel – sidechain-compressor which use kick pattern from another midi-channel to prevent kick overlay. Channels #5-6 with some hats and percussion loops.

On each on these channels – EQ-Eight with Hi-Pass filter. Then few midi-channels with VSTs – I’m using it for live versions of my own tracks, playing some melodies or modulate synths in real-time. Then Send/Return channels with various effects such as Reverb and Redux.

So all these effects send to other channels via return, except several effects such Beat Repeat. So all of these things and many more such scene select, play, pitch control, filter and more I controlling in real-time using midi-controller.

p.s. So, who said “performing using laptop easier than CDs”?

Learning production

Thu, 08 Dec 2011 22:00:00 +0100

After DJing courses in Audio School, I decided to continue my education and now I study in the music production class.

Wow, so many new things to me: oscillators, vibrators, filters, generators, and other scary words. The whole concept of plugins seems nice yet strange after using ReBirth-303 and Reason.

And yes, I’m working a 138-BPM track.

Overwhelmed with plugins and new information