sl zero and live 6

Discuss music production with Ableton Live.
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slzero
Posts: 18
Joined: Wed Oct 25, 2006 4:57 pm

sl zero and live 6

Post by slzero » Wed Oct 25, 2006 6:04 pm

:) Hi all, i am a newbie to this forum.

I just got my novation sl zero. I am enjoying it with live 6, specially the automap feature. Mahn, this thing really rocks.

However, still have some questions on mapping sl controls with and without editor app. I need help from you gurus out there!
And maybe as well from Novation folks, just in case if someone from there is reading this.

This is what I have been successful so far with my sl zero:
- OS v2 updated using new novation editor app (includes os update option)
- copied my automap template (i.e. template # 40) to template # 15 for editing within sl zero unit using built in options
- dumped all templates using bulk dump from sl into pc, using sl editor app
- saved single template separately from bulk dump as a separate file for editing
- mapped sl controls not assigned in automap template using ableton's midi map option i.e. solo buttons that are left out from automap for some reason


So it rocks, but here is what I need to accomplish to achieve nirvana.

I need to be able to know template mapping details and preferably in a step wise fashion, how to edit the templates for mapping controls to specific functions. When i load the automap template for live6 into the editor app, it shows the layout but there are no specific examples of how to map a certain control to a certain function within the template.

For example, instead of mapping the left side of sl's unassigned controls to solo buttons using live's midi map as i have done, i need to be able to map the right toggle button (in the template) to do the same solo functions per track via the row of buttons adjacent to the right toggle button

My ultimate goal is not to depend on ableton's midi mapping feature but entirely on the sl's template alone, modified. One reason being that any song i load into live does not need to be pre-saved with liwe's midi mappings or as a follow up chore after song load, as i have to resort to at present to get by.

Tone Deft
Posts: 24152
Joined: Mon Oct 02, 2006 5:19 pm

Post by Tone Deft » Wed Oct 25, 2006 6:10 pm

sorry, but 95% of your post is totally unnecessary info and only clouds your question. short, concise, well worded questions get better results.

slzero
Posts: 18
Joined: Wed Oct 25, 2006 4:57 pm

Post by slzero » Wed Oct 25, 2006 6:13 pm

i take your point, it's a good one for future posts, thanks.

Tone Deft
Posts: 24152
Joined: Mon Oct 02, 2006 5:19 pm

Post by Tone Deft » Wed Oct 25, 2006 6:16 pm

I was but I edited that out of the post because it sounds like you already knew about that.

In general you can't change automap. The rest of the buttons and whatnots can be given cc#s or notes or whatever and used as midi assignments into Live. If they're not working, make sure they're going out the correct port.

Another question that comes up is that impulse isn't mapped to the drum pads, you have to change the drum pads to C2, D2, E2, F2, G2, A2, B2, C3

slzero
Posts: 18
Joined: Wed Oct 25, 2006 4:57 pm

Post by slzero » Wed Oct 25, 2006 6:23 pm

From my reading of editor app's short help file, it seems that it may be possible to modify automap template with additonal control buttons mapped, copy it under a different name and send it back to the sl as a single template to a different location from among the 40.

I am not sure if my understanding is correct here.

Tone Deft
Posts: 24152
Joined: Mon Oct 02, 2006 5:19 pm

Post by Tone Deft » Wed Oct 25, 2006 6:27 pm

so you're talking about assigning automap controls to other places, wherever you want?

check out the .txt files here:
C:\Program Files\Ableton\Live 6.0.1\Resources\MIDI Remote Scripts\_Tools

they talk about how to make your own automap for ANY device, they might give you the insight to tweak automap better.

This what they say:
InstantMappings HowTo
=====================

With the file 'UserConfiguration.txt'provided in
this directory, you can create your own Instant
Mappings.

Note: Since this mechanism relies on the scripts
added for Live 6, you can solely map the given
functions to your Control Surface. You can neither
add functions nor can you change the banks of
device parameters.


1. Create a directory in 'User Defined Scripts'.
The name of the directory will show up in the
list of Control Surfaces in Live.
Naming: The name of the directory should not
start with '_' or '.'.

2. Copy the the file 'UserConfiguration.txt' into
your directory. The name of the file needs to
remain unchanged.

3. Edit the copy to adapt it to your needs. The
comments in the file will tell you what to do.

the other one says:


# Config File for User-defined Instant Mappings

# We assume that the controls on your MIDI controller
# send CCs. All controls, except the sliders for volume
# and the encoders for device parameters, are expected
# to use the global channel. CCs are counted from 0-127
# and channels from 0-15.

[Globals]
# The channel that the controller should send on
GlobalChannel: 0
# If your controller is connected via USB, replace ControllerName
# with the name of the respective port. Live will then try to
# recognize the ports for you when you select your Instant-Mappings
InputName: ControllerName
OutputName: ControllerName

[DeviceControls]
# The Encoders will control the device parameters (you can also
# use knobs or sliders). Replace the -1's with the CCs sent by
# the respective controls on your controller. You can also set
# the channel for each controller if it differs from the glabal
# channel (if you leave the channel of an encoder at -1, Live
# will assume that the encoder uses the global channel).
Encoder1: -1
Encoder2: -1
Encoder3: -1
Encoder4: -1
Encoder5: -1
Encoder6: -1
Encoder7: -1
Encoder8: -1
EncoderChannel1: -1
EncoderChannel2: -1
EncoderChannel3: -1
EncoderChannel4: -1
EncoderChannel5: -1
EncoderChannel6: -1
EncoderChannel7: -1
EncoderChannel8: -1
# Enter the respective map mode for the encoders here. The following
# map modes are available:
# - Absolute
# - Absolute14Bit
# - LinearSignedBit
# - LinearSignedBit2
# - LinearTwoCompliment
# - LinearBinaryOffset
# - AccelSignedBit
# - AccelSignedBit2
# - AccelTwoCompliment
# - AccelBinaryOffset
# Consult the controller's documentation to find out which mode to use.
EncoderMapMode: Absolute
# Buttons used here are expected to not be toggles (i.e., sending
# value 0 every second time you press it).
Bank1Button: -1
Bank2Button: -1
Bank3Button: -1
Bank4Button: -1
Bank5Button: -1
Bank6Button: -1
Bank7Button: -1
Bank8Button: -1
NextBankButton: -1
PrevBankButton: -1
LockButton: -1

[MixerControls]
# Again enter the appropriate CCs for the respective controls.
# If all sliders use the global channel to send their data,
# you can leave the channels at -1. You can, of course, use
# encoders or knobs instead of sliders.
VolumeSlider1: -1
VolumeSlider2: -1
VolumeSlider3: -1
VolumeSlider4: -1
VolumeSlider5: -1
VolumeSlider6: -1
VolumeSlider7: -1
VolumeSlider8: -1
Slider1Channel: -1
Slider2Channel: -1
Slider3Channel: -1
Slider4Channel: -1
Slider5Channel: -1
Slider6Channel: -1
Slider7Channel: -1
Slider8Channel: -1
MasterVolumeSlider: -1
MasterSliderChannel: -1
Send1Knob1: -1
Send1Knob2: -1
Send1Knob3: -1
Send1Knob4: -1
Send1Knob5: -1
Send1Knob6: -1
Send1Knob7: -1
Send1Knob8: -1
Send2Knob1: -1
Send2Knob2: -1
Send2Knob3: -1
Send2Knob4: -1
Send2Knob5: -1
Send2Knob6: -1
Send2Knob7: -1
Send2Knob8: -1
TrackArmButton1: -1
TrackArmButton2: -1
TrackArmButton3: -1
TrackArmButton4: -1
TrackArmButton5: -1
TrackArmButton6: -1
TrackArmButton7: -1
TrackArmButton8: -1
VolumeMapMode: Absolute
SendsMapMode: Absolute

[TransportControls]
# The transport buttons are also expected not to be toggles.
StopButton: -1
PlayButton: -1
RecButton: -1
LoopButton: -1
RwdButton: -1
FfwdButton: -1

slzero
Posts: 18
Joined: Wed Oct 25, 2006 4:57 pm

Post by slzero » Wed Oct 25, 2006 6:41 pm

Thanks for the post. It's interesting. Sounds like it's getting warmer now.
In specific, as a starter, I am after mapping buttons to solo function and adding ti to an existing template as a starter. Don't know how, yet.

Tone Deft
Posts: 24152
Joined: Mon Oct 02, 2006 5:19 pm

Post by Tone Deft » Wed Oct 25, 2006 6:46 pm

gotcha... and my hangover is clearing up ;)

features that aren't accessible via automapping cannot be automapped. as far as I know there are a bunch of controls that can be controlled via automapping but you can't add more controls to that list.

slzero
Posts: 18
Joined: Wed Oct 25, 2006 4:57 pm

Post by slzero » Wed Oct 25, 2006 7:16 pm

I did some reading on sl automap for pro-tools. Besides a tight integration, it includes solo functions as well, mapped within sl's automap template. So it appears that solo function mapping is possible with automap. Not sure if there are exceptions when it comes to different combinations of DAW software with sl.

Currently i am temporarily using the SOLO function mapped to 8 un-assigned left row buttons, using ableton's midi mapping to sl's template 40 for ableton. This works fine for now except one little problem. If i load a song that was not previously saved with ableton's midi mappings for solo functions as mentioned, then i have to re-map them after loading such songs.

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