Extract chains w/ arrangement view notes and automation

[schaeffertone]

Is there any way to extract drum rack chains in a way that includes the notes and automation from arrangement view? The default behavior seems to use the notes from clip view on the new tracks and doesn't preserve my arrangement or any automation I did.

While we're at it, can you extract all the drum rack chains to individual tracks at once?

The purpose being to export individual stems of my arrangement as audio files for mixing in Pro Tools.

[Stromkraft]

Is there any way to extract drum rack chains in a way that includes the notes and automation from arrangement view? The default behavior seems to use the notes from clip view on the new tracks and doesn't preserve my arrangement or any automation I did.

Please describe your extraction process in detail including track and drum rack setup.

Automation follows the Instrument
Both Arrangement and Session clips should separate out provided the instrument comes with the extracted track. You can't have automation to an instrument not on the same track. As soon as you lose the instrument you're playing you will lose automation as well, so watch out for that.

Edit: No, it seems the extraction kills the automation. I remember it the other way around, but it's years since my tracks started out as extracted from the beginning, so I must remember wrong. Arrgh. Why Ableton? Why?

Multiple extractions
You can't do multiple extractions to multiple new tracks at once unfortunately — I don't know a way anyway. Sometimes extraction results if some kits aren't predictable so might be advisable to do them one by one or group by group in any case.

Doing it by hand
You can also make extractions by hand if you can live with unused notes in the single type track you copy to. You do this as expected by dragging each pad — one by one or there are placement issues — to a new rack in a new track and then the MIDI clips by selecting all and alt-drag. Another approach is duplicating tracks and deleting instead. A bit messy but works.

Copying may keep automation better
Also copying or duplicating MIDI will keep the original automation on the instrument track if you're using a multi-timbral instrument that stays there and the pads in the extracted tracks use External Instrument going back to it. As the sound comes back to the extracted track it should sound the same.

As extraction is faster the manual way is just a fallback if the former doesn't work.

[schaeffertone]

Is there any way to extract drum rack chains in a way that includes the notes and automation from arrangement view? The default behavior seems to use the notes from clip view on the new tracks and doesn't preserve my arrangement or any automation I did.

While we're at it, can you extract all the drum rack chains to individual tracks at once?

The purpose being to export individual stems of my arrangement as audio files for mixing in Pro Tools.

I made a track with a drum rack and added different samples to each pad, then made some loops in clip view. When I was ready to arrange the song I switched to arrangement view and made an arrangement with MIDI clips on the drum rack track, so all of the drum sounds are contained in one MIDI clip. Then I did an automation pass on the Push 2 on the hi hat pad to change the pitch. I did this with the transpose encoder so the hi hat pitch changes over the course of the arrangement.

I want to export all the individual stems as audio files to mix in Pro Tools, so to separate drum sounds I right clicked each pad and clicked extract chains. This makes a new track for each pad and also creates a clip across the each track, but the arrangement in these clips is not the same as it was on the drum rack track. The clip created on the hi hat track also does not contain the transpose automation I wrote to that pad.

So far the best way seems to be to route everything to audio tracks and record, but this is slow since there doesn't seem to be a shortcut to cascade i/o. I have to route each track one at a time and then play through the arrangement in real time. There must be a more professional solution.

[Stromkraft]

As you can see above, the only way to keep automation is to go the duplication way and delete pads that are not needed. The MIDI notes you're not using can stay as it doesn't affect the sound. This is way faster than recording anyway. Consider it a workaround.

Really Ableton! I'm making a bug out of this and I suggest you do too when you find the time. That goes for you too reader. Make a little drum rack extraction test and tell them your expectations.

[Stromkraft]

Bug report filed. This is what I wrote:

What I do:
Extract pads/chains from a track with clips containing automation (in Arrangement) for multiple instruments in different chains.

What I expect:
The automation and modulation envelopes moving, with the notes and the Instrument it belongs to, into the new extracted track.

What happens:
Notes and modulation envelopes are extracted as is the Instrument itself, but the Arrangement automation is lost in the process. This would be expected if the Instrument didn't move to the new extracted track, but it does move.

This is REALLY serious. You're losing work of the user and you don't inform about this. Major fail!

[Airyck]

Bug report filed. This is what I wrote:

What I do:
Extract pads/chains from a track with clips containing automation (in Arrangement) for multiple instruments in different chains.

What I expect:
The automation and modulation envelopes moving, with the notes and the Instrument it belongs to, into the new extracted track.

What happens:
Notes and modulation envelopes are extracted as is the Instrument itself, but the Arrangement automation is lost in the process. This would be expected if the Instrument didn't move to the new extracted track, but it does move.

This is REALLY serious. You're losing work of the user and you don't inform about this. Major fail!

*Claps slowly and firmly*

Thank you for this Stromkraft!
When I found out about this I had exported everything and already started on a mixdown when I realized that things I remembered weren't happening with my drums. I then realized that the automation was missing from the audio I had exported after extracting my chains. It took quite a bit of closing and opening of various backups to find out what had happened and how to fix it. After hours of being sidetracked my very valuable and scarce time to work on music was ruined and I couldn't finish the mix that day

If Ableton doesn't want to fix this, at least warn the user that they are about to lose their automation so something like this doesn't happen. If I didn't have backups I would have lost all my work on my automation and probably wouldn't have been able to re-create it exactly.