Looper Multi-function Transport button broken

[vrt]

Hey there,

I recently bought a Macbook pro and Ableton Suite 8 to replace my RC-50.

With looper playing, after recording a loop and an overdub, a 2 second click and hold on the multi-function button should result in an overdub undo. This doesn't happen. The overdub goes right on playing, the dedicated undo/redo button flip flops from redo to undo with each successive click and hold on the multi button, but there's no effect on the loop or overdub that's playing.

I'm running OSX 10.6.6 and Live 8.2.1, one audio track, one looper and built in audio i/o. No midi footswitch involved, I'm using the trackpad to click on the buttons and hand clapping / finger snapping to build the loops via the macbook's built in mic. Eventually, I do want to use a midi footswitch and map 3 of its buttons to 3 multi-function transport buttons to control 3 loopers, effectively replacing my RC-50. But right now, the thing doesn't even work with a frickin' mouse.

I'm a bit frustrated since I just paid out about 2 grand and this thing doesn't come close to working as advertised.

Any ideas?

Thanks,
Sal

ps- I sent this to issue to Ableton tech support, they said, sorry, we never heard of that, it's too hard to troubleshoot without the laptop in front of us....etc.

[Ableton_David]

Hi, it sounds like your issue is in how undo/redo works with Looper. From the manual:

"The Undo button erases everything that you've overdubbed since the last time Overdub was enabled. Your original recording, and anything that was overdubbed in a previous pass, is preserved. After pressing Undo, the button changes to Redo, which replaces the material removed by the last undo."

So, anything that has been overdubbed in a previous pass (after which you switched to Play) will not be undone.

[vrt]

>>>Hi, it sounds like your issue is in how undo/redo works with Looper. From the manual:

Thanks. Glad to get an answer. That solves the undo problem (sort of, if you accept that you have to leave the channel open for recording while you let it play through again to listen to the overdub). So far, I've used an RC-50, a Jamman, an RC-2, and the Logic looper: ALL of these allow undo/redo of the last overdub from play mode. AND so does looper, if you use the dedicated undo/redo button.

Now, once that last overdub has been erased with a 2 second hold from overdub mode, how do you redo it via the multi-purpose button? The undo puts looper into play mode, pressing and holding again simply switches to a fresh overdub, rather than a redo.

Additionally, the undo/redo button does undo last overdub after looper has been put back into play mode after an overdub; you can toggle the undo/redo as many times as you like via the undo/redo button. The multi button 2 second hold does not do the same thing as the undo/redo button as the flowchart in the manual indicates.

Any further ideas? I mean, I can map multiple buttons on the foot controller and work with this thing as is, but comparing the behavior to the flowchart, and the written instructions, the 2 second hold is broken. As it is to get usable undo/redo I'm going to have to map 2 buttons per looper on my foot controller. And that's not to mention the clear problem via 2 second hold (which is this- from stop mode with sounds in the looper, do the 2 second hold for clear, the thing starts playing and then chops off abruptly at some fraction of a beat which sounds awful). So. To have clean looper functionality without a mouse, I have to map 3 buttons per looper: multi, undo/redo, and clear. That's a drag.

Is anyone else out there actually using looper for live performance where they use BOTH undo and redo via the multi-purpose transport button?

[Ableton_David]

When you have Looper in Play mode, holding the multi-purpose button toggles between undo and redo.

Have you read the section in the Ableton manual on Looper? It's chapter 20.20. There's a very useful diagram of the different functions of the multi-purpose button on p. 316 of the English manual.

[vrt]

When you have Looper in Play mode, holding the multi-purpose button toggles between undo and redo.

Have you read the section in the Ableton manual on Looper? It's chapter 20.20. There's a very useful diagram of the different functions of the multi-purpose button on p. 316 of the English manual.

Thanks for your reply.

Yes, I have read the manual and have examined the flowchart. I have watched more than 20 demos of looper on youtube and elsewhere, including lessons from Tom Cosm and demos by Dubstep as suggested by Nick with Ableton Tech Support. I understand how looper is supposed to function. Undo/redo via 2 second hold on the multi button simply does not work on my system.

Here's what I'm doing click by click (I'm only clicking on the multi-purpose transport button)
Click 1: record some stuff into looper
Click 2: play mode (I changed the default to play rather than overdub), this first take plays in a loop as expected.
Click 3: record some other stuff in overdub mode
Click 4: play mode, now both the first take and the overdub are playing, as expected.
Click 5 (with 2 second hold): both takes go on playing. The undo/redo button toggles to read redo. Further clicking and holding result in the undo/redo button's label toggling back and forth, but the overdub that's playing in looper does not undo/redo.

If at click 4, I do a 2 second hold, the overdub goes away, looper switches to play mode, but another 2 second hold does not result in a redo.

I don't know how to state this issue any more clearly. The multi button does not work as shown in the Ableton Manual flowchart on p.316. Undo/redo is broken via the multi button. At this point I'm getting tempted to shoot a video of my screen.

[friend_kami]

my looper plays back random buffers, even after i hit clear and record a new pass with something else.
never said anyhting abou tthat in the promotion video for it.
if it's a feature it's a pretty fucking bad one.

[mojofunk]

my looper plays back random buffers, even after i hit clear and record a new pass with something else.
never said anyhting abou tthat in the promotion video for it.
if it's a feature it's a pretty fucking bad one.

Mine was doing that for the longest time, with a little snip of a James Brownish funk drum beat - always the same one - then one day it stopped. No idea why . . .

[Mister36]

And that's not to mention the clear problem via 2 second hold (which is this- from stop mode with sounds in the looper, do the 2 second hold for clear, the thing starts playing and then chops off abruptly at some fraction of a beat which sounds awful). So. To have clean looper functionality without a mouse, I have to map 3 buttons per looper: multi, undo/redo, and clear. That's a drag.

Is this a known issue with the 2 second hold feature? I've just been getting pretty annoyed by this problem with clearing a Looper's buffer using the multi-purpose button (MIDI-mapped to a footswitch).