Avid Protools joining the clip launching party with 2023.9 update!

[jens]

It's 2023, electronic music is kind of important, a little more than guitars and rock at the moment.

Well, actually to me it seems it's more the old farts who are still into electronic music the most...

[vurt]

It's 2023, electronic music is kind of important, a little more than guitars and rock at the moment.

Well, actually to me it seems it's more the old farts who are still into electronic music the most...

psst, it may come as a shock to you, and im sorry, but these days, we are the "old farts"

[jens]

Yeah, I know, I know...

Just got me a cruiserboard the other day to compensate. (Had to ask the wife for permission first though.)

[elxsound]

Yeah, no possible way Jens is escaping the old farts label

[jens]

Certainly not - I'm officially in my 50s now...

[vurt]

Yeah, I know, I know...

Just got me a cruiserboard the other day to compensate. (Had to ask the wife for permission first though.)

[vurt]

Certainly not - I'm officially in my 50s now...

still got 6 months before i hit 50

[jens]

So you're a good year younger than me, kid!?

[vurt]

yup, gramps.

[jens]

[seangm]

Can anyone explain to an ignoramus (me) what "clip launching" is exactly? Based on the video it just looks like a way to trigger samples? Is it just a fancy name for that or is there more to it? Thanks.

[elxsound]

Can anyone explain to an ignoramus (me) what "clip launching" is exactly? Based on the video it just looks like a way to trigger samples? Is it just a fancy name for that or is there more to it? Thanks.

It might be better to think of clip, with a capital "C" because just like you say, it is just a name for triggering a sample/recording of any length.

The point or benefit of it is navigation/workflow-based. In a traditional DAW, you can only hear/playback what is in the single shared timeline of multiple tracks.

In a Clip-based workflow, each Clip is its own timeline and you can play different clips on different tracks, and in different scenes to quickly come up with different arrangement ideas by creating different combinations.

It's a great sketchpad for ideas, that has its roots in electronic music performance.

[andypryce]

i hope i didnt imply there was anything wrong with it

i have no issue with anyone using whatever they wish, be it premade audio loops, or self recorded live instruments, its all music to me

Of course you did not My post was not directed at you or anybody in particular but the common view of the feature as an untalented toy.

[seangm]

Can anyone explain to an ignoramus (me) what "clip launching" is exactly? Based on the video it just looks like a way to trigger samples? Is it just a fancy name for that or is there more to it? Thanks.

It might be better to think of clip, with a capital "C" because just like you say, it is just a name for triggering a sample/recording of any length.

The point or benefit of it is navigation/workflow-based. In a traditional DAW, you can only hear/playback what is in the single shared timeline of multiple tracks.

In a Clip-based workflow, each Clip is its own timeline and you can play different clips on different tracks, and in different scenes to quickly come up with different arrangement ideas by creating different combinations.

It's a great sketchpad for ideas, that has its roots in electronic music performance.

Got it, thanks.

[whyterabbyt]

Can anyone explain to an ignoramus (me) what "clip launching" is exactly? Based on the video it just looks like a way to trigger samples? Is it just a fancy name for that or is there more to it? Thanks.

It really depends on the implementation, but in Live, for example, there's quite a bit more. Its a wee bit more 'metasample' maybe because you could be triggering samplers.
So, clips can be audio or MIDI, looped or oneshots, tempo-matched and sync'd to the project or not, quantized or not, they can include a sort of sequencing control over what clip gets triggered next (aka 'Follow Actions'), and can be triggered individually or as entire 'rows' of clips together.
Also, in Live, the 'clip' launching ('Session View') is actually independent of and exclusive from the timeline ('Arrangement View'); its the same set of tracks but each is either in clip mode or linear timeline mode (and you can switch them, of course), though you can record your 'performance' of clips into the timeline, or drag stuff from the timeline in as clips.

The main point, is performance of those clips. Its not baked into a timeline and fixed,(though you can record the results into the timeline) You can have interactive live control over dropping in or out lines or percussion or whatever, but also your whole intro, verse, chorus, bridge, etc. You can build sequences of clips to play with randomisation in them, then improvise the playing of others.

https://www.ableton.com/en/manual/launching-clips/

And yes, some of that you could do with a sampler. Its sort of an evolution of a kind of phrase sampling approach into a full method of construction/composition. But the seamlessness of it as DAW functionality makes it more than that. Cliche is that its only for very tempo-drive, repetitive stuff, but that's kind of a superficial view, so personally I think its actually quite useful on the other extreme, too. Quite simply, the notion is 'DAW as an instrument'

(I'd also say that I think its an interesting basis for 'composing' any interactive or live audio, including things like games, (where looped and layered triggered clips are used for effects and music, being that that kind of audio playback is baked into the game engine/middleware functionality) or even theatre audio. )