Running Live Visuals with Ableton

[DerekC]

Hi, I play with a live electronic band and we currently run our visuals from live in sync with backing tracks. I'm wondering if there is a way of triggering the visuals without the arrangment view ie. from the session/clip view so that the live show can be a bit more spontaneuos and modular? Also it'd be great to just hit a midi clip that could trigger the track rather than finding a place on the time line. Any ideas?
Derek

[Heraclys]

DMXIS

[siliconarc]

DMXIS

that's a lighting controller. nothing to do with video.

Derek, video clip triggering isn't possible in session (afaik), but there are other apps that can be midi triggered. modul8 is a good one. a mate runs it with his vj setup, and triggers video clips from his padkontrol. its not cheap though.

But there's also the upcoming Max for Live, which has jitter support (i think), so i imagine you'll be able to trigger video clips with it.

[blitit]

Actually you can trigger videos from the session view. You just have to add locators in the arrangement view for the videos and map them. After that, create a midi clip and map it to the same midi value.
The problem is that the video will end sometime in the arrangement view. You could omake a loop in the arrangement view to solve this but then there's no way to mix the videos.
So, in other words, live is no good for VJ's. At least for now.

What you can do is to have live synced to another program, like arkaos, using rewire or midiyoke, to create virtual midi ports.

[DerekC]

Thanks guys. I'll look into the locator business. I'm not quite sure how to map a midi clip to make it play but I'll see if I can work that out. The videos don't have to be mixed - it's just one visual set per song. I just don;t like having to go into the arrangement view when working live. I'd rather keep things simple in the clip view and just have to hit one clip to start a track. I can also have some audio and midi loops I can trigger along side them if need be and keep everything in sync. Derek

[DerekC]

Ok, I'm getting somewhere but can you explain how to map the locators to midi clips? I'm not getting anywhere figuring it out. Thanks guys

Derek

[blitit]

First, insert a locator in the arrangement view in the part you want and midi map it to a note (for example C3). Then go to the session view and midi map an audio or midi clip to the same note, so when you activate that clip, it will go at the same time to that locator.

[DerekC]

I can get the first part fine. I can map the locator to a key using my midi controller. Is this going to cause a problem when I start playing my midi controller to control a synth? The second part just isn't working for me and I'm not sure what I should do. I realise I need to set up a midi clip with the same note in the session view which I have done but I don;t know where I need to send this. There is no option to the track that contains the video.

[blitit]

So, you got your locator midi mapped to a midi message. Now, map a midi or audio clip to the same midi message. Im asumming you are using a keyboard or a mpc-ish controller, so what you are going to map are notes. You dont have to create a midi clip with a note, which i asume you did by your reply.

Step by step would be:

Insert a locator
Create a midi clip
Ctrl + M (midi map mode) --> map a key to your locator in the arrangement view
--> map the same key to your clip in the session view
So, whenever you activate that midi clip, its going to activate the locator and move the timeline to that position.

Also, you cant use this controller to play a synth, unless you use other midi channels diferent from the ones you mapped the midi clips.

[DerekC]

Man, I've tried it and I must be missing something or else they've taken that functionality out of Live 8 because it just isn;t working for me! It's so frustrating. I'm not an idot when it comes to these things. I've set up my locators and mapped a note on my midi controller to them. That works fine. When I press the note it goes to the correct locator. Then I go to session view and create a dummy midi clip. I then assisn the same note on the midi controller to trigger this midi clip. This doesn't do anything when it's triggered though! I'm gonna go crazy tring to figure this out!

[blitit]

¿It doesnt do anything? ¿It doesnt trigger the midi clip?

[DerekC]

i can trigger the midi clip using scene launch or clip launch or else or by pressing the key on my midi keyboard but the midi clip in turn doesn't make the arrangement go to the locator

[blitit]

And when you have your locator mapped, without the midi clip, does it go back to the locator once you press the key?

Maybe if you could post some pics of what you are doing, maybe i could guess whats the problem.

[leinad]

This might be what you're looking for.
http://www.resolume.com/

[blitit]

as far as i know, resolume doesnt work with midi clock, so it cant sync like derekc wants