Ableton Live 4: any buyers?

[headquest]

I'll probably upgrade from Live 3, although (and call me crazy) I still LOVE FL Studio for most of my composing. It's so uncluttered, simple, and powerful (for my needs) that I've yet to be lured away from it. However, I really like Live and consider it an amazing piece of software. With V 4 I may use it even more now that I can use my VST's etc. I just need to spend a little time with the demo.

www.davidlinn.com

Live4 and FL could make good ReWire partners? (presumably with Live as master)?

I think you'll prefer the FL piano roll editor for MIDI work, but Live 4 for audio and project management, (quite apart from the looping functionality.

Played with Live4 beta and will almost definitely get it soon. I have Live 2 which, frankly I've not used as much as I thought I would (partly because I fell in love with Tracktion in the meantime...). I think I would use Live4 more than 2, and the upgrade price is reasonable.

[Jaybez]

Just ordered

[Ebenezer Squeezer]

Live4 and FL could make good ReWire partners? (presumably with Live as master)?

FL should work as a VST within Live. Or are there other benefits with going the ReWire route?

[olafmol]

i am afraid live 4 will replace my main sequencer/DAW.... i don't have trouble laying down a rough idea in a traditional lineair sequencer, using loop mode, but when it comes to creating an arrangement out of this rough idea i almost always stop after 15 minutes with a serious case of lego-boredom..... i was always looking at a way to combine the more jam/pattern-oriented way i can create music using an RM1x/RS7000 unit and create a lineair arrangement this way.....and Live 4 is exactly offering this functionality with it's session and arrangement view...

i didn't care for live 3 as i dont really use samples/loops and really work mainly using MIDI...so Live 4 is a godsend.....it's really easy to record a midi sequence, add other layers of midi or audio, all synced in time, then drag the midi clip to the arrangement view, consolidate individual parts of it to new clips, and drag these back into the session view for further jamming..... this is really the way i love to work.....

it's a pity that there is no automatic plugin delay compensation (i use my UAD1 card extensively), no "export all tracks to individual files" and some other things like the fact that midi editing is fairly basic compared to other lineair sequencers...but all in all it's amazing how Live 4 let's you keep and maintain your creativity and flow while recording everything you do..i love it!

Olaf

[headquest]

Live4 and FL could make good ReWire partners? (presumably with Live as master)?

FL should work as a VST within Live. Or are there other benefits with going the ReWire route?

As I'm going for the boxed Live update its not here yet so I've not checked out how well VST vs. ReWire works with FL in Live version 4 yet. Anyone else?

That said both should work, and there are minor pros and cons either way. VST is sometimes smoother implementation (less to go wrong), but imho ReWire gives a good workflow because of syncronised transport, etc (I like working in each application full screen and with its own sense of autonomy, but that's me!).

So what ever suits your workflow best, I would say.

[Rozzer]

Is anyone using Live4 with external midi gear? For example to create loops with hardware synths and then recording them in as audio. How well does it work ?

I'm unable to test it as Live crashes whenever I select my asio drivers And using the Dx/MME drivers causes huge latencies in the external midi.

[headquest]

There are still some crashes with a number of VST plugins on MacOS9 and some memory allocation problems, so it doesn't feel as rock solid as Live3 did. Some cosmetics with the MIDI implementation are also necessery...

There's a lot that you can not do in Live,
Hence: It's the best second car ever!

From the beta I got the impression it could be a first car, but would need a sidecar ReWired in (Reason/FL/P5/etc).

Can you expand on the specific problems you have found with VSTs and the MIDI implementation?

[meister eder]

..... i was always looking at a way to combine the more jam/pattern-oriented way i can create music using an RM1x/RS7000 unit and create a lineair arrangement this way.....and Live 4 is exactly offering this functionality with it's session and arrangement view... i didn't care for live 3 as i dont really use samples/loops and really work mainly using MIDI...so Live 4 is a godsend.....

Interesting that nobody seems to have ever used the Jamming page in Muzys, which is quite the same as Live's Session view - but for MIDI. That's why I used to use Live3 and Muzys beside Logic.
With Live4 however, Muzys is about obsolete now - for me.

it's a pity that there is [...] no "export all tracks to individual files"

That's my main wish for next feature addition, too... that, and/or OMF. Though OMF export would have to be combined with a bounce down or freeze function anyway, because otherwise you couldn't transfer the files.

For now there is a workaround: Just create another number of audio tracks and assign the outputs of your playback tracks each individually to the input of another track. Arm all the record tracks and off you go "bouncing" all individual tracks at once. It's just not offline, but everything else is the same as a "export all tracks to individual files" function.

[Amberience]

Not many people are biggin' up the two new Ableton instruments: Simpler and Impulse.

Both are very good, and I've got some very crunchy beats coming out of the Impulse machine.

I have a GEM S2 and Live has inspired me to fiddle with the onboard sounds. I used to be afraid of audio, but now I try and commit everything to audio asap!!

Live works guys. It just works. It doesn't feel like a word processor either!!

[Fhangor]

How about recording from a mic? Is it easy to perform? Tried at my Live Adapted version without reading manual, but I have no clue how...

Easiest way I have seen to record a mic in Sonar 3...

[Aff]

i use alot of midi in cubase, just want to get this right before i intend to test the software (not much time you see).

people mention a pretty crude midi implementation. why exactly do people think that? i don't use very heavy midi, just input and usual cc.

i'm also a bit of an audio baby. maybe use a few breaks and vocals in cubase. can the midi be rendered to audio easily then? what if i want to change the midi aspect?

it's quite exciting that so many people are dropping their 'classic' sequencers for a new way of thinking. i love cubase but since day one i've just set the markers and worked within as a loop to build up the track, then expand them across the page to make my tune.

am i right in thinking because i work this way i could be suited to live? it's just throwing away alot of learning something quite fundamental to learn something else, which maybe un-ncessary.

but if it's more fun, creative and productive in the long run, i'm willing to do it.

the reason so many questions is i haven't the time to use the demo right now and i'm getting excited. also, i fear i may not be convined by the demo if it's timed as i don't have much time right now.

speak all cubase/logic converts!!!

[meister eder]

people mention a pretty crude midi implementation. why exactly do people think that? i don't use very heavy midi, just input and usual cc.

Don't worry, Live4 does that perfectly. Just when it comes to more in depth offline manipulation of MIDI data (read: "Transform", "Logical Editor", etc.) and sophisticated selection options, it lacks functionality. There is no list editor either. And when you want to play a MIDI instrument by more than one track, you have to consider one or two things more (read: "Monitoring") than in e.g. Logic. Things like that.

i love cubase but since day one i've just set the markers and worked within as a loop to build up the track, then expand them across the page to make my tune.

am i right in thinking because i work this way i could be suited to live?

Absolutely seems to be so! You obviously think more in patterns than in timeline.

[j.ho]

Live4 and FL could make good ReWire partners? (presumably with Live as master)?

FL should work as a VST within Live. Or are there other benefits with going the ReWire route?

As I'm going for the boxed Live update its not here yet so I've not checked out how well VST vs. ReWire works with FL in Live version 4 yet. Anyone else?

That said both should work, and there are minor pros and cons either way. VST is sometimes smoother implementation (less to go wrong), but imho ReWire gives a good workflow because of syncronised transport, etc (I like working in each application full screen and with its own sense of autonomy, but that's me!).

So what ever suits your workflow best, I would say.

If you buy the box version (upgrade or new) from the Ableton site, you also get a link to immediately download it.

Live 4 - I love it. I was one of the first 500 beta testers and this thing rocks.

[DHR53]

The impulse is capable of some pretty sophisticated beat creation, and if you're into mangling, it's as good as anything I've used (could use a couple more pads)... plus multi-out! The velocity changing on the fly (cmnd.) in the editor is pretty cool... and, I'm impressed how well clips seem to quantize in session view as your recording... I'm used to redoing a lot of midi stuff after recording to get it right... Live seems to nail stuff first time, an awful lot! Then, being able to just move the markers to make variations, uh, I could get used to this... and never go back! Really, you just don't get the impression this is a first attempt... very solid! Hmmm... I don't think I've found any bugs yet?

[Beardedone]

Yup looking pretty hot here. Have to spend more time with the midi part but so far I am wowed. I might even attempt Rewire now.

Cheers,
Gordon