Ableton Forum

I am about to purchase Live 8 and it will be my first program like this so Im looking for find some materials to help me learn at least the basics.

Amazon has some Books & DVDs, what would you prefer?

Thanks,
Coby

Before you spend money on that just follow the included tutorials and read the manual. That's really all you need.

Plus there's a ton of videos on youtube or vimeo. Plenty to learn from there.

And don't just read and watch. Fiddle with the program. ALOT. Even if you don't know what you're doing, it will always get you somewhere. The read the effing manual to understand what you were playing with.

Before you buy Ableton, the best $50 you will ever spend will be to go to buy this overview video. (or a similar in depth overview)

Reading the manual and doing the in built lessons will be hopeless and frustrating if you are new to all of this.

gjm wrote:Before you buy Ableton, the best $50 you will ever spend will be to go to buy this overview video. (or a similar in depth overview)

Reading the manual and doing the in built lessons will be hopeless and frustrating if you are new to all of this.

So that is a really good learning material? I dont mind paying that as long as it will really help me.

Buy or print a copy of the manual and leave it in your shitter - much better reading than 'Everyone Poops'

reading the manual helped a bit, also messing with live when ever i possibly could, over time you'll get comfortable with live and it will get easier. Always watch the tutorials that come out or are already out there to learn new neat little tricks over time.

check youtube! and the printed ableton manual ...

i think the live manual is the best i ever found in any application. really usefull with a lot of tipps for startup, if u use live at the first time. the tutorials answering the most questions. i dont know any book with more informations in it. and the most books you can buy are really old and obsolete.

peace
T

wait before upgrading to 9.

its much easier to learn while everything is working.

clamber wrote:

gjm wrote:Before you buy Ableton, the best $50 you will ever spend will be to go to buy this overview video. (or a similar in depth overview)

Reading the manual and doing the in built lessons will be hopeless and frustrating if you are new to all of this.

So that is a really good learning material? I dont mind paying that as long as it will really help me.

When it comes to Ableton Live, there are two types of learning you have to do, depending on your previous experience with DAW's. If you have a good base of computer recording knowledge already via another program and you are simply swapping your focus, then you will already have a set of concepts and work flow habits to reference. All you are doing is going through a process of saying,"I used to do this in xxx program, how do I do it in Ableton?" It will be things like "Ableton does it this way, or Ableton calls it this name." This is where comments like "Its all in the manual or watch youtube" make the most sense.

However, if you are very new to computer based recording, with little or no gear, (even if you dabbled lightly with a few but have settled on Live ) then the biggest hurdle is understanding the big picture and its common concepts or workflow, uses of instruments and effects, file management, equipment set up etc. If this is a part time hobby for you, then your biggest battle will be putting together enough uninterrupted time to experiment in a way that you discover and then reinforce your learning. The problem with reading manuals and flicking back and forth through the in built lessons is that its actually a major interruption of the noob learning process (fine if you already have good experience).

A video like the one I have linked to basically divides up the big picture into 3-5 min chunks. What might take you an hour via reading and using the in built lessons can be viewed and understood conceptually first via a short explanation using Lives UI. You will pick up keywords and phrases as they are referenced to Live and its functions. You can then know how to better use the manual.


The manual is great for in depth explanations of specific functions. However, it will not guide you through your first project. Its also not really that helpful in regards to its indexing system. They could make it much easier for you to find information but they don't. Its not for customers who are new to recording. Its for people who have swapped one system for another. You will be very dissapointed if you expect it to tell you how to make music.

The problem with the in built lessons for the noob is that they don't give you a big picture view of Live. They don't tell you why you are doing what you are doing. They are great in taking the steps, but by the time your next 3 hour chunk of spare time comes around a week later, you have actually forgotten what it is you did anyway. Like I say, they are fine if you already have a reference point.

Conceptually there are much easier programs to learn than Live. Its a serious program that is deep and confusing if you are starting out. Don't forget, its not only about the software, its also about your outboard gear ie. control surfaces, sound cards etc. Your learning process encompasses more than just Ableton Live.

I think you can view the first few videos free on that macprovideo site. Just give them a go and see what you think.

i would not spend a single penny on anything, before you not:



intensively experimented around yourself with live, try and error, try and error, over and over again and again... day in day out.

used youtube videos, search for tom cosm

placed the manual on the loo and read it over and over again

you used the inbuilt lessons

then asked specific questions here on the forum

if you still don't get Live, then you can waste money on additional books or DVDs

Everyone has a different learning style. Some do better with words. Others prefer visual instruction. Still others like to dive in and experiment. There is no one way to learn.

Someone who is new to recording in general and to Live specifically cannot know ahead of time what the best method is for him/her to gain proficiency with the program.

The recommended video might be just the thing to spark the "a-ha" moment for a new Live user. Having said that, there is no urgency to run out and purchase the DVD straight away when one considers the vast amount of free resources that are available online - in addition to the lessons and the user manual.

gjm's recommendation will certainly be a good option if the OP finds the learning curve too steep.

Yeah, I am definitely just going to experiment with it, but Ill still need to learn what everything means. Ill get that Core Live 8, but Ill still have $50 left over for other material, and recommendations?

I mean do as you please but with that crazy amount of info on how to use live on the net, i would seriously spend those 100 $ on something nicer.

Mastering Audio by Bob Katz.

learn Live by using it, there's lots of free stuff online. go through this thread and you'll know Live quite well:
http://forum.ableton.com/viewtopic.php?p=174619#p174619

leave your Live help box open (lower left corner) and read about all the controls in Live.

force yourself to finish a song, it can sound awful but it will force you to go through the entire process in Live.

I've never read the manual fully, I've never read a book on Live. I answer questions here, when I'm wrong someone corrects me and I learn.

listen to sub funk, no need to throw money around. go buy some ice cream or send me the money.