Ableton Mixing Tutorial (In Arrangement View)

[abc]

Open ableton and make sure you are in the arrangement view!

http://img90.imageshack.us/img90/9343/arrmc6.png

then go into one of the 3 browsers and and find the folder you created

http://img90.imageshack.us/img90/1302/broswerov7.png

and drag and drop these two tunes in the clip/device drop area

you can zoom in/out by clicking in the marked area by moving your mouse up/down

http://img204.imageshack.us/img204/4909/zoomyq2.png

afterwards press the marked buttons to see the wave of the tunes

http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/5130/wavekm7.png

ok now we start real work... click on bass society twice. and we start to edit its bpm...

first... set the yellow marker to the first beat, REALLY PRECISELY

(you can zoom by clicking in the upper side of the clip dispay and moving your mouse up/down [the lower part is for prelistening])

http://img89.imageshack.us/img89/3310/firstln5.png

lets zoom in more properly

http://img89.imageshack.us/img89/9903/first2ts2.png

set the little markers to the start of the beat. do this in the middle of the music and finally @ the end

http://img89.imageshack.us/img89/9297/endwd6.png

if you did everything well the tempo of Perry's Bass Society should be 130 BPM!
do exactly the same with Vinny Troia feat. Jaidene Veda - Flow (Gareth Emery Remix) (should be 135 BPM)

if u need help you can swich in the metronome...

http://img291.imageshack.us/img291/5027/metdt1.png

...it should be perfectly in tempo with the song

if you prelistened the song you may recognised it sounds ... uhm...

lets make it listenable...

first lets set the output bpm (ableton stretches all songs to this bpm) type in 132 and

press enter

http://img85.imageshack.us/img85/4616/132sl7.png

secondly lets select the mode of warp. lets choose re-pitch. DO THIS @ BOTH TUNES.
the tunes will act like a record on a turntable (make sure warp button is yellow)

http://img172.imageshack.us/img172/9118/repitchao4.png


i reached the max images in one post so i contuninue explaining in the next post[/size]

[abc]

ok, now lets hide the broswer to make more place by pressing the little triangle

http://img172.imageshack.us/img172/7533/hideib8.png

now lets find a good start point and place the flow track under the bass society track

http://img172.imageshack.us/img172/8199/mixdi9.png

no, no dont be so happy we not finished yet...

we need eq-ing so go the devices broswer and drag & drop EQ Three to BOTH tracks

http://img3.freeimagehosting.net/uploads/c0f496a3a8.jpg

you can see the EQ Three

http://img3.freeimagehosting.net/uploads/bf5b92f1c5.jpg

go back to clip overview and press Envelopes button (E)

a box will appear

http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/7059/envelopeswk9.png


from here, there are variable technics to play with...

you can set the envelope of the volume...

http://img3.freeimagehosting.net/uploads/b1b32f8721.jpg

...and bass/ mid / hi

http://img3.freeimagehosting.net/uploads/475c1b80c0.jpg

note that you can add a breakpoint by clicking twice

the envelopes of Perry O'Neil - Bass Society (Original Mix) looks like this for me (i only cut off from the volume and the bass)

http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/8357/basssocietyfp4.png


the envelopes of Vinny Troia feat. Jaidene Veda - Flow (Gareth Emery Remix) looks like this for me (i only cut off from the volume and the bass)

http://img3.freeimagehosting.net/uploads/da4db50331.jpg

i hope this little guide helped...

if you have any questions feel free to ask here or drop me a PM!

[dav_mt]

gr8 post !
always wanted to learn how to mix with ableton
will try and post result

[Ebete]

I didn't realize that 2 songs were mixable in the arrangement view too .. I always used the session and the crossfadare with A & B .. .... .. I have to definitly try this way !!!!

[JuyLe]

Haven't really thought about mixing with Ableton, thanks for this tutorial :) !

[Hossa]

great post mate, ty.

i have no idea why my serial # doesn't work... i tried entering it and it says its wrong. :(

does anyone have VIRTUAL DJ full version (not trial version) or a crack of it??

[sizor™]

very good post!
thanks mate!

[sizor™]

great post mate, ty.

i have no idea why my serial # doesn't work... i tried entering it and it says its wrong. :(

does anyone have VIRTUAL DJ full version (not trial version) or a crack of it??

for what version are you talking about ????
i have 3.2

[chojin]

wow thanks man

i just spent about 30 mins trying to use mixmeister then by co-incidence i found this post :)

i've tried using ableton in the past but couldnt find a simple step by step to putting together a mix. cheers!!!!

but so far i prefer mixing non-digitally :P

edit:

it took me about 30-60 minutes until my frustration with digital mixing hit breaking point. it's so angering when you know what you want to do, but you don't know how to do it using the software, so i had a 30 min mix on my decks to cool my temper.

i could get two tracks almost perfectly matched [but not perfect, still minor difference]. i tried using EQ three and i managed to get it sounding okay, but then i couldn't work out how to set points where you want to start/stop the device other than doing it manually as the song is playing, i.e i wanted to stop the device when the chorus broke. i also couldn't use the training songs because rapidshire is utter fucking shite and doesn't like my IP.

sorry, anger management now needed :P

edit2: im determined to get this digital mixing thing sorted so i had another go, with different tunes.

this is the result:

http://www.sendspace.com/file/dlkonp

no EQ management, just plane old bunged on top of eachother [i also had to work out how to save sections but managed it, then converted it from wav>mp3 using audition.

no real effort put into it as of yet though...

and im possibly getting a bit too big for my boots with this one ;)

i cant wait to be good enough to put together a whole mix of mash ups like this :)

http://www.sendspace.com/file/ihby31

[Gordy]

ive been using abelton to make my mix cds for about 6 months now, and i love it. never live though. it takes all the fun out of it.

[prody]

thx for tutorial man

[Vascog]

thank you it was pretty in depth, can you give me a few more examples of how to mix with ableton though? i'd be extremely grateful... if you want i could teach you how to rape virtual dj :clap: .. which is still my favorite program for livemixing to date, it offers you everything physical mixing devices offer you, (except a good mixer.. and from time to time the BPM chaning gets sucky) but its pretty solid, ableton seems like a much more powerful program, but it's really not for mixing live, it's for pre-mixing DJ PRESS-PLAY status. although if it's a mix tape or mix cd or a mashup mix or something it's exceptional, it would be great to use both programs together, IE use ableton to pick up the slack at editing bpms and levels and such, then using those ableton edits in your mixes on virtual DJ.. will be amazing when i start doing this, but yeah, just a bit more ableton advice/examples pleeaaase thank you!!!!

[abc]

wow thanks man

i just spent about 30 mins trying to use mixmeister then by co-incidence i found this post :)

i've tried using ableton in the past but couldnt find a simple step by step to putting together a mix. cheers!!!!

but so far i prefer mixing non-digitally :P

edit:

it took me about 30-60 minutes until my frustration with digital mixing hit breaking point. it's so angering when you know what you want to do, but you don't know how to do it using the software, so i had a 30 min mix on my decks to cool my temper.

i could get two tracks almost perfectly matched . i tried using EQ three and i managed to get it sounding okay, but then i couldn't work out how to set points where you want to start/stop the device other than doing it manually as the song is playing, i.e i wanted to stop the device when the chorus broke. i also couldn't use the training songs because rapidshire is utter fucking shite and doesn't like my IP.

sorry, anger management now needed :P

edit2: im determined to get this digital mixing thing sorted so i had another go, with different tunes.

this is the result:

http://www.sendspace.com/file/dlkonp

no EQ management, just plane old bunged on top of eachother [i also had to work out how to save sections but managed it, then converted it from wav>mp3 using audition.

no real effort put into it as of yet though...

hey i wrote it... double click on the line if u want to add a breakpoint to the envelope

and i listened to your transition.. play with these settings


first... set the yellow marker to the first beat, [B]REALLY PRECISELY

(you can zoom by clicking in the upper side of the clip dispay and moving your mouse up/down [the lower part is for prelistening])

http://img89.imageshack.us/img89/3310/firstln5.png

lets zoom in more properly

http://img89.imageshack.us/img89/9903/first2ts2.png

set the little markers to the start of the beat. do this in the middle of the music and finally @ the end

http://img89.imageshack.us/img89/9297/endwd6.png


thank you it was pretty in depth, can you give me a few more examples of how to mix with ableton though? i'd be extremely grateful... if you want i could teach you how to rape virtual dj :clap: .. which is still my favorite program for livemixing to date, it offers you everything physical mixing devices offer you, (except a good mixer.. and from time to time the BPM chaning gets sucky) but its pretty solid, ableton seems like a much more powerful program, but it's really not for mixing live, it's for pre-mixing DJ PRESS-PLAY status. although if it's a mix tape or mix cd or a mashup mix or something it's exceptional, it would be great to use both programs together, IE use ableton to pick up the slack at editing bpms and levels and such, then using those ableton edits in your mixes on virtual DJ.. will be amazing when i start doing this, but yeah, just a bit more ableton advice/examples pleeaaase thank you!!!!
i know vdj i even have a little controller for it, and i perfectly know all of its options... as i said before :S

[chojin]

i'll go back and mess with the EQ/fine tune the matching sometime this week :)

but im happy i put together an hour mix so far which just needs mastering/tweaking:icon_thumright:

[abc]

check these

Warping tutorial I. (http://www.andrewbohne.com/downloads/warping.mov) (.mov, 4:19 HQ, 74,7Mb)
Warping tutorial II. (http://www.andrewbohne.com/downloads/warping2.mov) (.mov, 3:56 HQ, 63,9Mb)
Warping tutorial III. (http://www.drum-aberdeen.co.uk/Ableton/How_To_Warp_a_Track.html) (flash)

[hk_andyc]

abc this is an awsome post man but by chance do u no how to use reaktor 5 too

[abc]

abc this is an awsome post man but by chance do u no how to use reaktor 5 too

nope :sad:

[sman]

Top post mate, nice one!

[dav_mt]

wow i managed to do the transition, sounds like a state of trance transition hehe

thanks a lot dude, this should be a sticky in the DJ/Producer Section

[abc]

wow i managed to do the transition, sounds like a state of trance transition hehe

thanks a lot dude, this should be a sticky in the DJ/Producer Section
i will pm tribal to move this topc

[Groove_Monkey]

thank you for posting this. This is gonna help me alot

[fernando]

Top post mate, nice one!

very top :nuts:

[umairdodi]

always wanted to know this
thanks!!!!

[teatang]

great "mini" tuto...
thx guys...
!!!

[maudio]

nice tutorial thanks

[zozonce]

Great advice there!

[Nemezijus]

thanx man, this is what I need :)

[Feldeejay]

:clap:THANKS MR. ABC!!!!!! :clap:

I´m learning with this fantastic tutorial !!

Thank you very much!

[Pieces]

Thanks for this wonderful guide, I'll definately give it a shot :)

[Alex E]

I can't get it installed :S Or is it supposed to be a demo? Some explanation please?

[donkeydrop]

just got my hands on ableton....i got a lllllllllllllllong way to go till i can create something:crybaby2: :bg:

[liquiDWa)(]

great post mate, ty.

i have no idea why my serial # doesn't work... i tried entering it and it says its wrong. :(

does anyone have VIRTUAL DJ full version (not trial version) or a crack of it?? Serial won't work unless you use the cracked application file below:

Mirror 1 (www.megaupload.com/?d=G1QUFC43)

Mirror 2 (www.sendspace.com/file/n95max)

You need to overwrite the original application file in the installed folder with this. Instructions included above.

[DuranDuran]

thanks for the share m8, its a nice

[Kaliber35]

Got a Mac version? :sad2:

[Bruno Lopes]

:O
nice killed my curiosity

[shady33e]

serial did not work for me :(

[cirx]

ive been using abelton to make my mix cds for about 6 months now, and i like it.

[nire_nire_nire]

Thanks a bil for taking time out to create this tutorial.. it's a big stepping stone for n00bs like myself.

[YUSH]

Nice tutorial m8....but can u re-up the tracks?...

[semenski]

this is great, thanx mate!

[scottb]

Nice tutorial m8....but can u re-up the tracks?...

Yeah that would be great!

[Yota]

thank you for sharing this... i was looking for a program that would do this job but they are all a little difficult to understand. This is a great minitutorial mate and people like me really apreciate it. Now the million dollar´s question, is this Ableton better than Acid Pro?, i would like to hear your opinion guys

Thank´s again

[YUSH]

yes..it is way better than acid pro..

[GeneralGump]

I have been following the example and it works pretty well. However, i am a little confused how to create a cue point in a song when you want to start from somewhere other than the start of the song for your mix-in. I move the yellow 1 over to my part, but it doesnt seem to be working right. Am i forgetting to do something? :huuh: also, how do i get the envelope bar to appear?

[djrah]

Thanx 4 the tutorial. I've been looking for a good one to get me started!!!!!

[dj_xelarate]

Im still getting used to other programs but im still waiting to try this one out.

[jobsey]

This is an excellent post!

Ive had a copy of ableton for a while now, and have been scratching my head
until now!:tuktuk:

Cheers:bg:

[blake88]

thanks abc heaps for this tutorial, but i have so many questions , does anyone know if their are any internet tutorials for ableton that are ridiculously thorough? :)

[Britkitty]

Ok I need a little help. I really started trying to learn how to use this tonight. I get the overall program but as far as queing the second song I am totally lost.

"this is the part I am lost at"
now lets find a good start point and place the flow track under the bass society track

http://img172.imageshack.us/img172/8199/mixdi9.png

no, no dont be so happy we not finished yet...

we need eq-ing so go the devices broswer and drag & drop EQ Three to BOTH tracks

That part is making me confused. I figured out how to zoom in with both songs and find the percise beat in song on the wave form to start the second track but actually draging it over to that spot is confusing me. I know were it nneds to go on the right beat but actually doing it is a diffrent story. I get the volumes, envelopes, and all the eq stuff as well. Its just setting up the que part and saving that location. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[daloser43]

I've tried mixing with the version of ableton that I have. I've found that while it picks up the beat for just about everything, sometimes the place in the beat it chooses is inconsistent forcing you to have to fine tune it. But that isn't possible when trying to mix live with it. I haven't yet found a way to get around it.

[The Bee]

tw abc you are a king:p

[chojin]

im so thankful to this thread :)

I'm still shit with ableton, but im learning at least!

[mostafaebid]

:yeah: great posting, Losts of Thanks:yeah:

[chojin]

i FINALLY worked out how to use envelopes today \o/

yaaaay:beer:

[Muraka]

Hey thanks so much for this, do you mind reuploading the songs for your tutorial, they seem to be deleted :(

Thanks

[Zhent]

Awesome! I (somewhat) succesfully managed to mix some tracks :)
Thanks for the great tutorial abc, i have been wanting one like this since i got Live.

[chojin]

Ok I need a little help. I really started trying to learn how to use this tonight. I get the overall program but as far as queing the second song I am totally lost.

"this is the part I am lost at"
now lets find a good start point and place the flow track under the bass society track

http://img172.imageshack.us/img172/8199/mixdi9.png

no, no dont be so happy we not finished yet...

we need eq-ing so go the devices broswer and drag & drop EQ Three to BOTH tracks

That part is making me confused. I figured out how to zoom in with both songs and find the percise beat in song on the wave form to start the second track but actually draging it over to that spot is confusing me. I know were it nneds to go on the right beat but actually doing it is a diffrent story. I get the volumes, envelopes, and all the eq stuff as well. Its just setting up the que part and saving that location. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

you just grab the little yellow '1' and put it to the start of the track.

however if you've lined the tracks up incorrectly your start point won't be the beginning of the track [i think or from experience]

try adjusting the begginning of the track WHILST playing both tracks together. this way you can hear if the song gets better matched or goes more like donkey stomps as you move it left or right

.....i find this way easier as it's like matching on decks :)

[adam86]

what a fantastic tutorial! i had no idea what i was doing on ableton before and thanks to this tutorial i now have a basic groudnwork in ableton and every day i discover new and exciting features as well as new methods to mix

[kurtbradd]

thanks for the lesson, very helpful, i always wondered how to mix with live

[mostafaebid]

:yeah: YAAAAAAAA i made it, Thanks alot, but now how can i save what i've done into mp3 file???????????

[abc]

:yeah: YAAAAAAAA i made it, Thanks alot, but now how can i save what i've done into mp3 file???????????

select the part you want to render and click File menu > Render to disk...

[Britkitty]

Any recommendations for a midi controller for Ableton? I was looking into the X-Session Pro USB MIDI controller. Here is a video demo I came across while looking up info on the product.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JH1Ko630Ytc

[DucatiGary]

sasha has made his own specially for ableton, apparently it will be availible for sale soon, id wait if I was you britters!

:)

this was saturday he was using it live

<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="<A href="http://www.youtube.com/v/FgMR1h0U04I"></param><param">http://www.youtube.com/v/FgMR1h0U04I"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/FgMR1h0U04I" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object>

heres a veiw from the other side :P

<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="<A href="http://www.youtube.com/v/w6uNuME4a2s"></param><param">http://www.youtube.com/v/w6uNuME4a2s"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/w6uNuME4a2s" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object>

[Britkitty]

ooo goody! What about a DJM-800? I can use that for midi control right? I am still using a DJM-500:crybaby2:

[Damiani0]

Thx for this tutorial. It's really good :D

[mostafaebid]

what's the use of cubase SX with Ableton and how to use it with Ableton??

[mostafaebid]

Merry Cristmas to everyone, i need help how can i do this part by using ableton
http://www.filefactory.com/file/f58be4/ (http://www.filefactory.com/file/f58be4/) don't worry:blink1: only 200KB

[abc]

Merry Cristmas to everyone, i need help how can i do this part by using ableton
http://www.filefactory.com/file/f58be4/ (http://www.filefactory.com/file/f58be4/) don't worry:blink1: only 200KB

get some VST instruments, effects, drumloops and creativity :P

[mostafaebid]

sorry for asking stodgily but please i need more explansion "links, ..... anything" cause in my country i can't find anyone to help me :beer: .

[flaber]

Please update theBoth Tunes again :beer:
Thx for tut xD

[thad4lyfe]

I wanted to try it out but when I downloaded the Ableton the Rar files were split into like 10 parts and I cant set it up. What am I doing wrong?

[chojin]

half shameless promotion and half thank you:

I wouldn't have ever discovered/leanrt to use ableton without the help of this thread, and i am eternally in your debt abc! just did a new megamix which shows the new ill skillz ive got from this tutorial :)



http://www.trancefix.nl/showthread.php?t=81273

1. S.O. Project - Direct Dizko [Sander Van Doorn Remix]
------> The Killers - Mr Brightside [blank & Jones Remix]
2. Lange vs Gareth Emery - Another me, Another you
------> Tomy Novy - Your Body [Original]
3. Perry O Neil - Bass Society
------> Mylo - Drop The Pressure
4. Simon & Shaker - Zero
------> Chris Lake - Changes
5. Alex M.O.R.P.H & Rank 1 - A Life Less Ordinary
------> Bodyrox - Yeah Yeah (Tony Senghore's On Call Dub Mix)
6. Cara Dillon Vs 2Devine - Black Is The Colour (Coco & Green Remix)
7. Dallas Superstars - Higher (Original Mix)
------> Sharam - PATT (Party All The Time) (Original Mix)
8. Static Blue - Fade Away (Ian Betts Remix)
------> Leon Bolier feat. Elsa Hill - No Need To Come Back (Vocal Mix)
9. Super8 & DJ Tab - Wont Sleep Tonight (Original Mix)
------> Sugiurumn - StarBaby (Axwell Cyber Japan Remix)
------> Second Sun - Playground (Nu NRG Mix)
10. Envio - For You (Sunlounger Mix)

[FingerBoy10]

Hey guys... I was making an effort into mixing some songs. I think I got a decent mix, however when I try to render it to the disk, something happens. When it renders to the disk, for example my 54 minutes mix, only the first 6 minutes of the first song are rendered. The other 48 mins consist on an annoying beep. What could I be possibly be doing wrong? Thanks a lot for the help given.

[Misfire]

how do i change the bpm of mix, or steadily increase it as the mix goes on instead of just staying at one bpm?

[chojin]

Hey guys... I was making an effort into mixing some songs. I think I got a decent mix, however when I try to render it to the disk, something happens. When it renders to the disk, for example my 54 minutes mix, only the first 6 minutes of the first song are rendered. The other 48 mins consist on an annoying beep. What could I be possibly be doing wrong? Thanks a lot for the help given.

i selected all the mp3's and selected render to disk and it worked. are you selecting both rows of audio?

[Britkitty]

Good points chojin. I was not selecting both tracks to render to disk when I first started learning to use Ableton as well. Fingerboy 10, I think what the problem is that you need to slide the "loop start/Punch-in points" to the beginning and end of your mix. There is a little bar under in this diagram highlighted in red. Just click on it with mouse and drag it to the start and end of the mix. If your doing mulitple songs then just zoom out and make sure your getting all the tracks recorded. Good luck.


http://img204.imageshack.us/img204/4909/zoomyq2.png

[FingerBoy10]

Thanks a lot for the help given but unfortunately no luck for me. I think what's failing is to select all tracks, but I have tried to do it but I really don't know for sure the exact way to do it correctly. How is it exactly done?

[Muppy]

Where can i find the envelopes button?

[b18bturbo]

wow this was just what i was looking for earlier... i need alittle help with that program

[abc]

Thanks a lot for the help given but unfortunately no luck for me. I think what's failing is to select all tracks, but I have tried to do it but I really don't know for sure the exact way to do it correctly. How is it exactly done?
Press Ctrl + A


Where can i find the envelopes button?

http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/7059/envelopeswk9.png

its the little E button highlighted with red

[Muppy]

Haha thnx mate! I've been searching for about an hour and still couldn't find it;) Also thnx for this great tutorial!

[Luconia]

a very good tutorial, with an easy step by step pic....
this is the outcome of my transition.

using track Torrent & Bermuda, my current favorite

http://www.speedyshare.com/353966940.html

[Newb4ever]

Thank you so much. I am going to try this tonight! :)

[jer3]

Thank you so much abc. Learned how to use Ableton in about an hours time. The only problem I have come upon is often I get overlapping beats when trying to transition. What are some ways to fix this?

[Entity]

Quality tutorial, thanks loads for this dude

[welchy]

thanks for that - excellent run through.

[djswanie]

Great stuff, love ableton live. getting a new korg zero 4 to go along with mine

[Armin Van Des]

sic:/ please re upload the first few not working images

[ryder]

Great stuff, love ableton live. getting a new korg zero 4 to go along with mine
I've got one, it's wicked.... just need a way to feed the decks in too!

http://img81.imageshack.us/img81/1066/dsc0035a4od0.jpg

[JamesD]

this is a really helpful section ... lovin it. ableton has got so many possibilities and this helps ya on your way.

[raverence]

This might be useful for me!!

[MrStinky]

some picc's are missing :(
or is it me and ie8?

awesome post thanks a lot!!

[Tija un'Dean]

I have a question about Ableton. Whether there is such function in this program, that he is placing the identical volume in the entire set, mainly I mean so that graphically it looks out as this way as in for example Tiesto's Club Life.

[tracedj]

Cool tutorial! definitely helpful in near future thanks!

[asteski]

I have a question about Ableton. Whether there is such function in this program, that he is placing the identical volume in the entire set, mainly I mean so that graphically it looks out as this way as in for example Tiesto's Club Life.

It's just EQ 8 with Compressor. Or buy T-Racks. But I advise you not to do that as it kills dynamics and it really distort sound.