Why do YOU choose Ableton?!

[SilverNeedle]

should this post be in the lounge?

[SilverNeedle]

my response though -

I've been using Live recently after using Logic for a few years - and as it stands for me it's pretty much just the session view that's a bonus. I'm enjoying playing about with clips and stuff, and a MIDI controller geared up for this (PUSH is a probable at the mo) could make thing's even more interesting.

Generally I find Logic better at editing, both MIDI and Audio. I like the screensets in logic, the ability to have floating windows, tool kits and setting a CMD tool help on the editing front.

I haven't worked out lives automation yet - but logic has a really good page for automation assignments that works very well.

so yeh - session view basically.

[H20nly]

should this post be in the Logic forum?

[SilverNeedle]

lol your really funny H20nly

[marcoskohler]

Session View and Drumracks...If Logic Pro implemented something as fluid as Session View (for sketching) and the ease of Drumracks I would probably go back to Logic for a bit.

[SpeedKing]

I've been a musician for ~15 years, but have been very traditional in that I just play my instrument and write songs the 'traditional' way. I have an old version of Cakewalk that I would occasionally record stuff on. Beyond that, nothing.

A couple years ago, I really wanted to get into the home recording/studio game, so I decided to do some research on what was out there. I decided to look into Pro Tools first, obviously, and then I looked into Reason, Logic, Cubase, Studio One and I think Ableton last. I was looking hard at Cubase or Studio One and had definitely narrowed it down to one of those two, and then I remembered that I got a trial version of a weirdly named program with my audio interface I bought. So before I made my decision, I decided to look into this program called "Ableton". I was shocked at how it was the literal one and only DAW that did something different to facilitate the actual songWRITING and arranging process. The idea floored me.

From my first days of writing and transcribing songs to my days in musical theory classes college, music was built ONLY linearly, from left to right, with harmonies and additional voices locked into place. Sure, you could move things around, but it was a lot of effort for an unknown good or bad result. But in any case, music was LOCKED, left to right, linear.

I was instantly hooked at the idea of session view and all the nuances that came along with it. One could record parts and instantly see how they sounded with other parts at different places. One could instantly arrange songs differently. It was just a new concept that still kind of blows me away, coming from ~15 years of 'traditional' music writing.

So yeah, Session View and the actual forwarding of a new way to think about and write a song. It's something that Ableton has done that no one else has come close to. I like most things about Ableton, but Session View sealed it for me.

[Machinesworking]

I thought of and still think of Live as a sampler on the lines of an MPC or an old EMU workstation, one that can also host plug ins.
I too also use another DAW at times, but Live is still the one I reach for to take a loop idea and make it into something more, it's still the best audio playground I use.

I specifically like it for live performance though, and hope it has software improvements going in that direction beyond Push.

[Pasha]

I got Live because of the workflow.
Composing music in the non linear session view is great and helps me getting things done.
It's like improvising for hours with a band (using follow action to give more 'randomness')
and then cherry picking and assembling in the Arrangement View.
I love it.

-Best
-Pasha

[-art-]

i think i got into live because of its minimalist UI

when you're starting out, audio programs can be pretty daunting.

i was using cool edit pro 2 before anything, and also Reason a little bit.

i think i dug how easy it was to use live. and the effects. everything in the UI kinda made sense.

and a friend recommended it to me and said NIN used it, or something

[Pasha]

i think i got into live because of its minimalist UI

when you're starting out, audio programs can be pretty daunting.

i was using cool edit pro 2 before anything, and also Reason a little bit.

i think i dug how easy it was to use live. and the effects. everything in the UI kinda made sense.

and a friend recommended it to me and said NIN used it, or something

I agree. So clean and intuitive.

[-art-]

oh, and everyone was using pro tools. but u needed an mbox, and i didnt have one. i dont know if u need one any more, but at the time, it was a deterrent.

[Timbeaux]

i just wanted to change my worklflow, to be more efficient then with reason.

now iam addicted.

[timday]

Session view, racks, live performance, workflow. I got it for live performance (there's really nothing else that does what Ableton does for that) and grew to like the other stuff, especially drum and instrument racks. I have grown to prefer Ableton's workflow to pretty much any other DAW.

However. If you are solely into audio mixing, editing, comping and production, especially for film/video, Pro Tools is superior. There's loads of little Pro Tools workflow tips and it has an enormous amount of depth. And you need to be careful what plugins you use mixing in Ableton as there is a delay compensation issue that can screw up your mix under some circumstances.

Cards on the table, I teach at a college which is an Avid training partner, but we also do a lot of teaching with Ableton. I'm the "Ableton guy" at work but even I have to admit that if you fancy working in a professional studio Pro Tools is the one you need to know. If you want to write stuff quickly, and especially if you want to do stuff live, go for Ableton. Horses for courses I guess.

[Sibanger]

I just come here to read the forum.

[Angstrom]

Actual Answer: Parallel Processing.

It's much easier and quicker to parallel process in Live than it is in most other DAWs. Most other DAWs parallel processing GUI involves creating cumbersome bussed insert tracks. These tend to be huge on space and poor on usefulness. I prefer to have a nested save-able rack of racks in Live.

Many other areas of Live have gone to hell, but the Racks keep me using Live.