The best mouse for using with ableton software

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AryaD
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Joined: Fri Feb 06, 2026 8:06 pm

The best mouse for using with ableton software

Post by AryaD » Fri Feb 06, 2026 8:15 pm

Hi everyone,

I recently got a new MacBook Pro and installed Ableton Live. I’m looking for a good mouse to use with the software, but I’m not sure which one would work well specifically for music production in Live.

If you use a mouse with Live, do you have any recommendations? I’m open to both wired and wireless options, and would appreciate any advice on features that are helpful for producing (e.g., extra buttons for shortcuts, smooth scrolling, ergonomics, etc.).

Thanks in advance for your suggestions!

login
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Joined: Sat Jul 16, 2011 12:41 am

Re: The best mouse for using with ableton software

Post by login » Sat Feb 07, 2026 11:36 pm

A lot of people in music production use trackballs, the kensington expert mouse is a popular model, but the orbit and other brands as Nulea also have good options.

Why a trackball? well it puts less strain on your wrist, specially for those that spend a lot of time editing. And second it uses less desk space, since you don't move it to operate it is always on a fixed spot, it is common to see them over mixing desks.

You can find wired and wireless options for a lot of models.

[jur]
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Re: The best mouse for using with ableton software

Post by [jur] » Sun Feb 08, 2026 6:24 pm

AryaD wrote:
Fri Feb 06, 2026 8:15 pm
I recently got a new MacBook Pro
Imo, you can't beat the trackpad. All the gestures work in Live, horizontal and vertical scroll, pinch to zoom.
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dna598
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Re: The best mouse for using with ableton software

Post by dna598 » Thu Feb 12, 2026 10:39 am

Used to use a mouse (logitech mx master2/3), but my index finger was taking a serious beating, mainly from scrolling.

Now I use a kensington slimblade trackball, with a basic autohotkey script (pc only, but there are mac equivalents).

I have the three mouse buttons on F1-3.
Left hand over the F keys does the clicking, right hand does the moving.
It's as close to pulling a fader with a mouse that I have found.
A wrist gel pad is necessary for ultimate comfort though.
Oh, and i replaced the trackball bearings with better ones. Another necessity, but well worth it. Wasn't difficult and it's super smooth now, as it should be.. :D

The script also does cool things like hover and split with a key command, using basic macros.
ctrl + left/right = select transient

ctrl + shift + left/right = select between transients

ctrl + space = play selection

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