PULL Ableton Device/VST controller

[bytheriver]

On a train at the moment trying to get this to work on an adhoc network and just can't get it to work at all. I've set the ip adresses (although there seems to be no way of altering the iPads port which seems stuck on 8000) but nothing happens when I press the "large" button.

Do I need to delete the templates I have in Lemur or should Pull just come up on the screen anyway? Do I need to do anything in the Lemur editor? Or even have it open?

I didn't use adhoc, but you don't need anything in the lemur app on the ipad. The max4live device sends them over I think.

[puzzlefactory]

So, do I need to delete my existing templates or does it just overwrite them?

[h3rtz]

So, do I need to delete my existing templates or does it just overwrite them?

leave your templates where they are.

i also use adhoc connection, so i am going to describe what i did.

i am on mac so to see what the adhoc wifi IP address is, i have to right click the wifi icon and choose network preferences. thats whats called "computer IP" in the PULL manual, and it changes every time i set up a new adhoc network.

this IP you need to insert into lemur on your ipad at OSC Target / host. also, choose a port number (xmonsta recommends to use 8004 and for me that works)

Above this line you find lemurs IP address (fat letters), mine looks smth like 169.254.xxx.xx:8000.

Ignore everything behind the last "x", so leave out ":8000" and enter that IP into the m4l device on your master, also choose same port there as you did for OSC Target.

remember, you must also have the lemur daemon (not the editor) running on your computer and have it connected with your ipad (= MIDI target, see the tutorials at liine.com).

hope that helps!

[puzzlefactory]

Well, i'm at the hotel now using their wifi and it seems to all work fine. I'll try the adhoc network again on the train journey home and try your advice. Thanks.

[H20nly]

most router defaults have pretty long lease times though, so DHCP addresses tend to be pretty stable.

but for the reasons you mention, i reserve addresses for my devices in my router.

if you want to use the method you describe, then it is a good idea to go into the router settings and limit the DHCP server range so that you have a free space to manually work in. the downside of setting the IPs manually though is that when you go to a different network it's likely to not work.

the router will recognize the device by MAC address. so you can assign the IP based on that. the device will always have the same IP on your network without having to hard code it the device settings... and then having to remove it when you connect elsewhere.

using DHCP, a given device will only have a completely fixed IP based on MAC address if a static allocation has been made in the router. however even without static allocation, if your device is regularly on a particular network it will usually have the same IP as default lease times are usually quite long...

agreed... but "usually" is a variable. DHCP is an entire range of variable IP addresses. setting the device up on the router using MAC address filtering and a static IP removes the variable.

if you use DHCP to get an IP for an iPad and then turn that iPad off and the lease runs out... then your girlfriend's sister's boyfriend's friend who comes over and says "is it cool if I connect to your wifi?" could get the IP.

since
- making the DHCP IP static on the device/iPad creates issues outside your network
- DHCP can issue a different IP or a different device your prefered IP
then
the only way to ensure that you always have the same IP at home and can use wifi elsewhere without adding extra steps (at that location and when you get home) is to assign IPs by device (i.e. MAC address filtering) on the router.

set it and forget it.

[xmonsta]

Sounds like a great way to get stability on your network. Thanks H2Only.

[xmonsta]

Yes, no need to open the lemur editor with this software, you can keep it closed if you like.

In terms of Adhoc, I usually set this up manually, because I have never been able to get an iPad to connect to a MAC automatically and to assign automatic addresses. If you want, you can set the MAC/PC automatically, and then set up your iPad manually, this way also seems to work (you just need to determine the MAC/PC IP, then enter into your iPad, changing the last digit).

Takes about 30 seconds to set up, once you've dont it a few times.

MAC/PC Wifi Settings:
IP: 192.168.1.1
Subnet: 255.255.0.0

iPad Wifi Settings:
IP: 192.168.1.2
Subnet: 255.255.0.0
(sometimes I put in 192.168.1.1 in the Router and DNS settings of the iPad too, if Im having problems connecting)

Then on your Lemur, put in the MAC/PC ip address (192.168.1.1).
(On your Lemur use the IP and Port on the right hand side - you cant change the one on the left)

Then on your PULL v1.0.amxd put in the iPad IP address (192.168.1.2)

Both should be using port 8004

Lemur uses port 8000 for incoming connections (you cant change this) I think you can get away with using 8000 for your outgoing Lemur port on the MAC, but having tested this on PC, the two ports on the Lemur need to be different)

[xmonsta]

So, do I need to delete my existing templates or does it just overwrite them?

You don't need to delete any templates. When the large or small template gets sent to the Lemur from PULL, it deletes/clears everything on the Lemur and installs the template that's been sent.

[xmonsta]

I went ahead and got this today, took about 10 minutes to set up.

First impressions are: Bloody amazing!
In combination with Push, you really can do almost everything mouse free. I love the ease of adding an audio effect with push to a channel, then having it appear on the ipad in pull for editing. I've tried loads of these type of things before, different ipad programs, lemur templates, the novation automap stuff and so on. All of them ended up being to much hassle for not enough benefit and feeling like a gimmick. Pull is definitely different in that it feels like a really solid, quick and useful addition to Ableton. In fact its more than useful, I've used it for about 15 minutes and already the thought of doing without it is similar to having a hand tied behind my back. Great job.


I do have a couple of issues though:

1) Pull works great, but when I quit live I get a live error as I exit. The save changes dialog box appears, then a 'A serious program error has occurred. Live will shut down after this message box is closed. Please restart live and follow the instructions in the 'report a crash' lesson that will appear in lives's help view' appears.

2) Tapping drum rack pads doesn't do anything (not a big deal for me but just fyi)

Hi bytheriver,

1) I think this happens because your Live/Max versions are conflicting with each other (it happens with some version combinations). Which versions do you have? It might be worth upgrading to the latest version of both to rule out any problems. Also, you could try deleting the PULL device before your save. This might stop any crash from occuring. It's definitely worth sending your log file to support[at]xmonsta[dot]com , we can take a look at it and see if there's anything strange happening. Live's logs can be found here - https://www.ableton.com/en/articles/live-crash-packs/ . Another reason might be to do with your MIDI Remote Script. You could try and reinstall this. Delete the __init__.pyc from the _MxDCore directory, reinstall the Livelink files and then restart live.

2) To make the drumrack work, you just need to set up your Lemur Daemon. This uses midi to send notes from the pads. Take a look at the random velocity as well, quite nice for recording random hi hats

[fishmonkey]

the only way to ensure that you always have the same IP at home and can use wifi elsewhere without adding extra steps (at that location and when you get home) is to assign IPs by device (i.e. MAC address filtering) on the router.

set it and forget it.

agreed, that's exactly what i do at home, and what i suggested earlier as the best approach...

[xmonsta]

We've made an update to PULL:

1) Updated the manual to include screenshots of the install folders and common install errors.
2) Sigabort has updated the LiveLink _MxDCore fix, which is now much faster. Also some errors were showing in Ableton log, which now do not appear any more.

[bytheriver]

I tried the new files, still get the crash if I quit live, but its fine if I delete the pull plugin from the set before I quit. I sent the crash log to support as you suggested.

[xmonsta]

I tried the new files, still get the crash if I quit live, but its fine if I delete the pull plugin from the set before I quit. I sent the crash log to support as you suggested.

Cool, have replied. Just checking did you make sure to delete LiveLinkMxDCore.pyc before installing the new files?

[xmonsta]

In our testing, we've found that there may be some errors with Max and live 9.1.4, where Live crashes when saving the set, or resuming after Live has been idle for some time.

The most stable version of Ableton with Max 6.1.x appears to be Ableton Live 9.0.6 (we have tested this for a number of weeks)

[sigabort]

hey - do you have the details for 9.1.4 issues with the MxDCore update - not seeing any issues my side...