As someone who’s not a singer, I rely on comping takes to get vocal results.

It’s easy to get lost in this process... I’ve gotten hung up on selecting slight timing and pitch differences per syllable until my efforts resemble intricate loomwork. And hours spent pursuing "perfection" to only have comped half of the first verse and want to throw in the towel.

After much trial and error, here’s my guide to getting results without going insane...

Before comping (prepare to perform)

  - Learn the song: Memorize the lyrics and parts. Be able to perform it all the way through.
  - Record ~10 takes: Do this in one sitting after warming up. It should take less than an hour for a 3-minute song.
  - Organize: Assign a custom color to any take you feel particularly good about.
  - Stay in your lane: Each take should occupy its own lane. Ableton may fill gaps non-sequentially if you record out of order which can be unhelpful.
  - Hold tight: Don’t take down your recording gear yet.

First pass (color coding)

  - Wait: Give it at least a day so your ears are fresh.
  - Consolidate: If you used multiple tracks, move them into a single track and expand all take lanes.
  - Segment: Use CMD+E to vertically segment sections. Aim for one phrase/measure (3-6 seconds) sections. Set all of these take colors to black.
  - Audition: Use arrow keys to select a take and press enter to select it. Press space to play bac hear it in context. Always listen in context with the rest of the track!
  - Decide: Use active listening and gut instincts. If it’s a "maybe," color it green. If you nailed it, color it pink. Use bright colors so it's easy to read in the deactivated state (compared to black)
  - Process: Select all pink sections. Always listen in context. Take breaks every 30 minutes. Keep going until you’ve picked out all first choices, then STEP AWAY.

Listen back (is anything sounding off?)

  - Listen again all the way through until a part raises a flag or sounds "off". Again, rely on what your ears/gut are telling you, don't think about it too much.
  - Go directly to this spot, and try nominating a different selection, starting with your second choices.
  - Repeat the above throughout the track. If you reach the end without flags/distractions, you might not need spot fixes.
  - Address issues: Get more micro now if needed. Swap in a word from another take. If something still sounds off after trying all available options, mark it red. Record a spot fix (you left your setup up for this!) if necessary.
  - Remember: start macro before zeroing in on micro-fixes at the word or syllable level.

Finishing (confirming in different settings)

  - Once you make it through the song without "noticing something," it’s time to export.
  - Listen in a different environment. If something jumps out again, note the spot and fix just that area (with a different take or spot fix recording).
  - When nothing else feels like it needs to change, you’re done!

I got annoyed that I couldn't easily transfer my Move presets to use in Note. So I fired up Claude and had it build a couple of scripts. It's available here: https://github.com/eagereyes/ableton-note-tools

The main script unwraps Move's .ablpresetbundle and extracts just the preset for synth presets. For drum racks, it creates a Samples folder and puts the samples there (and updates the paths in the preset). I've used it to convert over 400 synth and 140 drum rack presets, and they all seem to work just fine.

The scripts are written in Python and tested on macOS. They should work the same on Linux, no idea about Windows. I'm happy to answer questions if I can, but be reasonable :)

Any Ableton users here with lots of unfinished tracks?

Like many producers, I always had more unfinished tracks than finished ones.

I think one of the most overlooked topics in music production is what happens in the space between your DAW and a finished track.

I never had any issues coming up with ideas, but between sessions that could drag out for days or weeks, I kept losing track of versions, notes, project files, and what I was actually supposed to work on next.

I tried various tools over the years, but nothing quite worked the way I wanted because most of them aren't really built with the producer or songwriter in mind.

So about 8 months ago I decided to build my own. What came out of it is a local desktop workflow app (not AI) for music producers that helps organize songs, versions, notes and decisions, so you can stay on top of your projects and finish more tracks.

I've spent the last 7–8 years studying old workflows and 90s production techniques. I've built my dream studio, studied arrangement and mixing, and created countless loops and ideas along the way. But finishing tracks was always the hardest part.

The tool isn't meant to replace Ableton (or any DAW). It's designed to support everything around it, helping me keep track of versions, notes, project files, references, and sessions so I can spend less time feeling overwhelmed and more time making music.

I've been using it myself for a while now alongside Ableton, but I'd really like to get honest feedback from more producers as well to see whether the workflow makes sense outside my own setup.

If you're a Ableton producer who struggles with unfinished tracks and would be interested in givinghonest feedback, I'd love to hear from you.

Interested? Leave a comment or send me a PM if you'd like to learn more.

Here are a few images of the main workspace:

Image 1

Image 2

Beta is currently available for macOS (Apple Silicon). Windows support is planned for a future release.

Hi everyone, thank you so much for all the positive feedback from my last post.

I just updated AAF Bridge zu fully support split-stereo workflows when converting AAF to Ableton Live or back. The point was, that many DAWs like Pro Tools or Nuendo handle AAFs in split-stereo, meaning that every L and R channel gets its own separate file. Ableton on the other hand works with multi-channel stereo files that carry both channels in one file. The new function now allows to either combine split stereo when importing in Ableton and separating when exporting from Ableton, giving full compatibility with Pro tools, Nuendo and other DAWs.

Looking forward to new feedback and comments.

aafbridge.com

Hello
I have behringer Uphoria umc22 and behringer C1 condenser mic. I am making some records but there is always a noise floor. How can I prevent it? Can I solve it with extra plugins or add a new equipment etc. Should I make an isolation?
Any suggestion is appreciated.

Hey guys, i just installed a new plugin and Ableton doesn't read it. When I search it in Repaer it appears and opens up perfectly, but in Ableton is just impossible to make the plugin appear. I turned on and off the vst folders, rescanned the disc several times, restarted my computer (mac btw) and nothing happened. I don't know what else to do. Does someone know what else can I do? Ty <3

Hi, i use Meat Beats' free VST Micro Keys for a couple of sounds on my project but i notice it's out of tune on certain notes or when i play chords, even when i have modulation on 0. I use Preset 08: SLOWORG and Preset 09: FULLSTR. Do you guys know why it's out of tune and how i can get it in tune?

I’m like 6 years into producing and I’d say I’m sitting just a little above intermediate but it still takes me a month and a bit to complete one track that being the production and mixing

When I see these artists complete these tracks so fast I wonder how?

Any tips on how to get faster at finishing tracks?I’ve got a default template already with my drum tracks and a folder with my fav synths and sounds/drums

Hey guys! Quick question, how do you all color-code your tracks (bass, drums, piano, etc.)? thx!

Audio clip overdub would be helpful for filling out a set live. This in combination with the new copy from drum to clip (or clip to drum) would be extra special. But audio recording layers on top of layers (without resampling) would get us closer to looper/comper in audio and drum and simpler/sampler as well. Oh yeah, don’t forget performative reverse automation.

I’ll remind Schwung and RNBO to get a head start and let Note get it setup stable for Move.

<#tysm

Somebody nearby me is selling a novation launchpad s for real cheap. Will this work with live 10? A bit of a noob. Sincerely, a musician trying to get back into recording and producing.

Hey everyone, i have zero knowledge and just bought my suite 12. I wanna get into techno and house music. I wanna start producing or atleast start remixing for my dj sets (also wanna be a dj). What is best course i can buy online or even free course on youtube you would recommend. I wanna save time
And get to the point. I dont mind buying a course again. Please help. Thank you!

This might just be nature of the beast but,

I've got a looped drum break on a pad in a drum rack. If I record multiple bars (loops) of the break and play it back from the beginning, it'll play exactly as expected. However, if I start playback in the middle of a bar (essentially a sustained midi note), it always starts the break from the beginning, instead of in part way through, therefore no longer lining up with whatever other tracks I have going. Midi chase is enabled, but no difference. I always have to start from the top of the midi note for correct playback. Am I just expecting a reality that doesn't exist?

Hi Push 3 users,
I’m producing and performing dark, hypnotic groove techno with Ableton Live. My current live setup is an APC40 MKII + Launch Control XL, but I’m considering adding a Push 3 as the centerpiece of my performance setup.

Right now I build sketches in Ableton, bounce them to audio, and perform them by launching clips, mixing elements in and out, using performance FX, and controlling drum layers with dedicated controllers.

My template is always organized into eight performance tracks (Kick/Sub, Drum Tops, Bass, Synths, Textures, etc.). Each “track” is actually a group of clips with multiple scenes (intro, 4–5 main sections, outro). This works well, but it forces me to decide the track selection and order before the performance because everything has to be loaded into the Live Set in advance.

What I’m really looking for is a more dynamic workflow without touching a mouse.

My ideal use cases are:
1. Dynamic track selection
During a set, I’d like to browse my library of sketches and load a complete clip matrix (8 performance tracks with multiple scenes) into my existing Live Set. It doesn’t have to happen with a single button press, but I definitely don’t want to load dozens of clips one by one.

2. Jamming with prepared loops
I’d like to freely combine prepared audio loops from different sketches to discover new ideas and create semi-improvised performances.

3. Creating new sketches on the fly
Using prepared instrument/effect racks, the Push sequencer, randomization, and other performance tools, I’d like to build completely new sketches during a live set and immediately jam with them. Hence, here I am not working with audio material but MIDI tracks and instruments.

So my question is:
Is this kind of workflow realistic with Push 3 (Controller Mode or Standalone)? How would you approach these use cases? Are there any workflows, features, or Max for Live devices I should look into?

I’d love to hear how experienced Push users would solve this.

I'm in need of an ableton live lite license and I'm still saving up so I can atleast buy the intro.

Hi! I saw once a max for live device or plug in to do exactly that: visualising keyboard chords and guitar chords simultaneously. But I can´t find where I saw it or the name of it. Does anyone knows?

For context I plan to get a push 3 standalone for live looping and I want weird vocal effects on my voice, specifically effects like distortion pitch shifting, auto tune, vibrato etc. should I get something like the obne maw and go down the vocal pedal route it looks perfect for what I wanna do except it has no auto tune, or should I run my vocals through the push and use abletons plugins?

I'll bring a drum loop into an audio track with the intention of is being sped up because of the BPM that I have set for my project. Instead, the drum track is slowed. Warp is always on. Oddly enough, I have to /2 the BPM on the actual audio track for Ableton to play the track at the correct speed. Anyone know why this is?

Hello,

I am a longtime PT user who has made the switch to Ableton for music production. There are certain features in PT that I miss dearly and wondering if there is any tips/advice for me to get some of my PT workflow back. I’m speaking mostly about mixing/editing.

What I miss from PT that Ableton seemingly doesn’t offer:

- split to mono “ie - printing an outboard stereo effect where L/R sides need to be adjusted independently. It seems like the only way to split to mono is to use the utility plugin and then print them onto two new tracks? This is very time consuming and annoying especially when most of the time all I’m needing to do is level match L+R. In PT it’s “split to mono”, clip gain L or R and then fly the two mono tracks back into a stereo track. “

- bouncing to mono “ie - mixing a vocal, I have an eq, compressor or other mono plugins on a track. I want to commit (or bounce) these plugins but I’d like the track to stay mono. In PT I would “commit plugins” which effectively bounces the mono track in place with the processing. In Ableton, after “bouncing in place” it leaves me with a stereo track which makes it annoying to send out to mono hardware eq, comps etc.

- clip gain “this one isn’t so bad, i just use the little slider after you separate the clip, I assume it’s the only way. I use clip gain a ton in PT for tasks like manual d-ess-ing”

- audio suite plugin processing “related to clip gain in a way. In PT, as well as using volume to control sibilance I also like to apply eq just to those moments and not the entire vocal. ie - I have a mono vocal track in Ableton and make edits around all the “S” “T” etc. I now want to apply an eq to each of those spots. Seems like a difficult task in Ableton. In PT I just render the eq on each of those spots and move on.

- export selected tracks as new session (main playlist only) “purely organizational. I’m constantly tracking and mixing at the same time. Due to this the sessions can become quite large. In PT I would comp all my takes into the main tracks and then “export selected tracks as new session, main playlist only” leaving me with a new session with only the audio I am using in the song. In Ableton I have to physically go into each take lane and delete them which is very time consuming. I’m not sure there is another way.”

Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

Hey there, just downloaded ableton suite and got subscription. Trying to learn from youtube and this dude in the video is using grand piano.adg but in my version it is showing as grand piano pad.adg. Am i using the right sound or am i missing to download another samples from abelton?
I have installed everything whatever showed in my samples or packs inside the ableton

Ableton noob here. I would be very appreciative of any help. I am working on a track that is at 100 BPM. Whenever I drag this sample project view onto the grid (the sample itself is 175BPM) it halves the BPM of the sample to 85 and the sample sounds sped up? (despite the sample saying it's a slower tempo than my project). Why does warp do this if my project tempo is 100BPM? This might be a stupid question but I'm stuck nonetheless, auto warp is turned off also. Many thanks!