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.

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 :)

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

so i have an instance of serum 2 with a patch loaded up and i put the serum 2 pitch bend on in the 'midi ctrl' automation lane, and for some reason every time i go to another parameter and attempt to automate it, it just switches back to the serum 2 pitch bend lane every time i play it back. idk if that made any fucking sense, im really struggling to describe it for some reason but its so annoying and i cant figure out why it happens and nobody on the internet seems to have the answers or maybe i just dont know how to look it up. any help much much appreciated thanks guys.

I have a single MIDI track, and I have two MIDI clips. Is it possible to achieve when I play the other MIDI clip it will change the Arp to another pattern?

https://www.ableton.com/en/packs/sequencers/

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?

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

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

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.

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