Ableton Forum

Hi I am trialing Ableton and have manyquestons

I don't want to trigger anything live as such I just want the thing to run a linear timeline and play all my parts automatically.
Think of a glorified backing track with the option to play say a live piano or fender rhoses etc also from it - so I guess half live but half linear backing.

How best t do this?

More importantly and this is the thing that cubase doesn't seem to be able to do - can I stack multiple songs in ableton all ready to go with all their audio tracks, software synths, samples etc etc with no loading and messing between songs as this is a live gig and don't want to be hovering around the laptop any more than quick click into next song and then off we go.

Tracks need to be able to run independently qith tempo and plugins etc and the stop and wait for the next song to be started by me, Think rock band set list.

Currently I have put all my song instruments / midi tracks in asbank A clips. So bank A represents song number 1 in my set..

My next plan is to put a whole new set of clips in bank B to represent my next song. Song 2. Is this how I should be doing it?

The trick is getting the system to stop a the end of the last played notes of bank A so I can then jump to bank B to play the next song. Possible?

Also unsure wether I can load a totally new instance of a soft synth in banks a, b c and so on. For example I may want to have a version of Garritan Orchesral in the Kontakt player with a new instrument setup on banks a through to z. THis possible without nterference? Woud it be cpu heavy to do so? IF so I wonder if I can utilise some kind of program change to load a whole new set of sounds inyo Kontact?

Also unsure wether the timelines for bank, a, b, c and so on can function totall independently withtheir own time signature and tempo changes.

Any ideas,

Cheers,

Alex.

time sig and tempo changes are easy in Live7, only tempo changes are easy in Live6. Check the manual.

I see no reason for you to even load up a single soft synth into your "live set". If you aren't changing anything about the way the synth plays sound in real time, render it to audio, that will use up much MUCH less CPU. And, no, there is no way to load up Reaktor and have it "sit in the background for 6 of your 7 songs", you either have it loaded up for everything, using up CPU, or you have to open up a seperate Live file for the one song you want to use it on. Again, I vote render to audio UNLESS you are treaking it live.

Linear timeline = arrange mode. Again, check manual for what arrangement mode looks like.

Yes, you can load up 8 songs all into one Live file, with no need to spend time between songs closing out one "song" and loading up the next "song". This takes a llittle juggling, you'll find it easier if you find you can share Effects setups for different tracks from different songs... i.e. you may have 8 different drum loops for 8 different songs, but they all exist on one track and have the same FX plugins for all 8 songs (not necessarily with the same parameters). Again, check the manual under "file management" and this will tell you how to create a "super set" from your 8 different Live projects.

I think one solution would be to use arrange view. Each instrument has its own track. time signature changes go in the beat time ruler (by right clicking on it and typing in the signature). Tempo changes are automated in the master channel.
Put a gap between each song. Insert locators at the beginning of each song and then find something handy to map to all of these locators and start and stop... midi or keyboard map these and you're off.