WORLD OF MUSIC ; PORTABLE KEYBOARD

Ableton Live 12.1 Out Now – Here’s What’s New

8 Oct, 2024 No Comment

Earlier released in Public Beta, Ableton Live 12.1 is now available.

Live 12.1 introduces the new pitch correction and harmonization feature Auto Shift, compact sample player Drum Sampler, sound auto-tagging and more.

It is a free update for all editions of Live, including Live Lite, plus Push.

Live 12.1 introduces auto-tagging, making it easier to find the right sound in your user library. New tags are automatically assigned to all samples in the library less than a minute long, as well as to VST3 and AU plugins.

Auto Shift, Live’s new pitch correction and harmonization device, lets you manipulate and extract harmonies from vocals in real time. Choose a scale for Auto Shift to follow, and play and make harmonies from any monophonic signal with the dedicated sidechain.

Drum Sampler, Live’s new compact sample player, lets you tweak and enhance drum sounds on the fly. Limiter and Saturator have been redesigned, and the MIDI Editor now allows you to filter and select notes by time, pitch, or a number of other criteria. Two new MPE-specific MIDI Transformations – Glissando and LFO – let you create curves for the MPE parameters of selected notes.

Auto-tagging for all your samples. You can now search your entire user library faster with filters – and there’s no need to tag the samples yourself. Live 12.1 automatically assigns new tags to any sample in your library less than a minute long. VST3 plugins will also be assigned tags based on metadata.

Improved Limiter and Saturator. Limiter gets a complete overhaul – with a smoother release curve making for less distortion, better metering with the improved UI, and the addition of Mid/Side routing, True Peak, Soft Clip, and Maximize modes.

Along with a more focused front panel, Saturator sees the addition of a Bass Shaper curve ideal for low end processing. Drive 808 kicks and sub basses as hard as you like and let Saturator keep the frequencies in check.

MIDI improvements. You can now filter and select MIDI notes by time, pitch, velocity, chance, duration or by a number of other dimensions using a new toolbar in the MIDI Editor. 12.1 also introduces two new MPE-specific MIDI Transformations – Glissando and LFO – allowing you to create curves for the MPE parameters of selected notes.

Ableton Live 12.1 and Push. Live 12.1 comes with a host of updates to Push. With Push 2 and 3 you can now design sounds with more detail and control by mapping Macros, and experiment with a range of different sounds using Macro Variations. Push 3 now also lets you add groove instantly to all the MIDI clips in your Set with a single twist of an encoder.

The new update also brings Live 12’s filtering system to the browser on Push 2 and 3, as well as auto-tagging for samples on Push 3 standalone. Plus, you can now save Default Sets and Template Sets on Push 2 and 3, and organize your Sets by moving tracks and scenes.

Ableton Live 12.1 is available now as a free update for all owners of a Live 12 license.

Ableton Move In Depth Overview

8 Oct, 2024 No Comment

Sonic State – the latest video – captures an overview of the new Ableton Move, the company’s new four-track standalone sampling groovebox.

Ableton’s Johannes Russ & Brian Mauleon provide an intro to Move and its capabilities, the Move workflow, integration with Live and more.

Ableton Unveils Move, A Compact Standalone Instrument & Controller

8 Oct, 2024 No Comment

After having teased its arrival earlier this month, today, Ableton has finally unveiled its latest hardware device. Move is a compact controller and instrument that – like the latest version of Ableton’s flagship controller Push – can operate both tethered to Live and as a standalone device, thanks to an onboard CPU and rechargeable battery.

Ableton Move is offering a core library of over 1500 sounds and a simple workflow. It comes with 32 polyphonic aftertouch pads, a 16-step sequencer, a built-in speaker and a microphone for sampling.

Although it shares some obvious characteristics with Push, Move actually has more in common with the company’s iOS sketchpad Note. In its standalone mode, Move runs an onboard OS that closely resembles the workflow of Note. This allows the unit to run up to four tracks, each of which makes use of a version of one of Live’s Instrument Rack or Drum Rack devices.

These Racks make use of a limited selection of Live instruments and effects to produce both melodic and percussive sounds. The Drum Racks can contain 16 instances of the Drum Sampler device, which was recently added to Live 12.1, while the Instrument Racks can each contain a single instance of either Drift, Wavetable or Live’s Melodic Sampler. Each Rack can host two effects, one send and one insert, chosen from a limited selection of Live devices.

Patterns can be programmed using Move’s grid of 32 polyphonic pressure-sensitive pads, or via the button step sequencer along the rear of the unit. Both playing and automation can be recorded, overdubbed or recalled using Live’s Capture functionality.

The sounds offered by Move are largely preset-based, all sounds can be customised using the parameters controlled by a bank of eight touch-sensitive rotaries along the top of the unit.

Move also features onboard sampling capabilities. Users can sample via a built-in mic, a 3.5mm audio input on the rear of the unit, or by resampling the main output. It’s also possible to import samples via either a wired connection or Move’s onboard WiFi.

On that front, Move offers a number of methods for users to take ideas started in standalone mode for further development in Live. This can be done using the browser-based Move manager – again accessible via either wired or wireless connection – or by using Ableton Cloud, which lets users transfer Move projects to Note or Live.

Along with its standalone capabilities, Move can also function as both a controller for Live whereby its pads, sequencer and rotaries can be used to play and edit Live’s devices, trigger clips and input patterns. Move also functions as a USB interface.

The hardware itself has a fairly minimal range of I/O. The rear panel has 3.5mm jacks for audio input and output, which are joined by two USB ports. The first, a USB-C port, is used for power and connection to a host computer, the second, USB-A, is used for connection to MIDI devices. According to Ableton, Move’s onboard battery life is around 4-hours. It can also sync with other devices via Ableton Link.

Key Features:

Standalone – Up to 4 hours of music making per charge.

Four tracks – Set up any or all of Move’s tracks in Drum Mode, Melodic Mode, or as a sampler.
Session Mode – Mix and match your musical ideas, using Move’s pads to trigger clips.
Sampling – Use the built-in microphone or stereo line input to sample directly into Move — plus resample your tracks internally.
Repeat – Quickly create a series of repeating notes.
Capture – Move remembers what you just played, so you never lose an idea.
Parameter automation – Tweak the encoders to record dynamic changes to your sounds in real time.
Instruments – Drum Sampler, Wavetable, Drift, Melodic Sampler
Effects – Reverb, Delay, Saturator, Chorus-Ensemble, Phaser-Flanger, Redux, Channel EQ, Compressor

Hardware Specifications: