FM | PRODUCER’S GUIDE
Version 12 might be the biggest shake-up to Live in a decade. Here’s what you need to know to get up and running…
Not so long ago, significant updates to Ableton Live seemed to be few and far between. There was a full five years between the release of Live 9 and Live 10, and a four year gap since the release of Live 8 before that. The announcement of this latest version comes just a little over two years since Live 11 hit the market, and we’ve already had a significant ‘point’ update in the meantime, which added a new synth, Drift. That all comes on top of a new version of Push and Ableton’s first iOS app, Note.
You’d be forgiven for assuming that the speed at which it’s arrived might mean that Live 12 lacks much in the way of radical new features, but in fact this latest update marks one of the most significant shake-ups in years. This is due, in part, to changes to Live’s UI – which has famously remained strikingly similar for most of the DAW’s life – that overhauls both the browser workflow and the interaction between elements like the clip launcher, arranger and mixer.
Live 12 also introduces some new concepts to the DAW, including generative MIDI creation tools, a tuning pool and a new ‘scale awareness’ function. Oh and there’s a whole new synth, an update to the much-love Granulator, and a new, multi-faceted distortion effect too.
5 big workflow changes for Live 12
The new browser requires some prep work
Upon opening Live 12, one of the most obvious changes is the redesigned browser. Gone are the old folders within each category – which broke, for example, Audio Effects down into Delays, Dynamics, EQ, and so on. These are now replaced by a system of filters that aims to help you find sounds or devices by type or characteristics.
As well as searching by name, each browser window now has a Filters section at the top, which allows users to refine the list based on things such as sound type, format and characteristics. Clicking the Edit tab next to these filters allows you to assign tags to anything in the browser, either using the pre-existing list and categories, or ones you create yourself.
It’s worth making use of these tags. While the new browser works nicely for Live’s stock content and official Packs from Ableton, it has little to help you navigate your own library of sounds and third-party plugins – at least not without doing a little prep work first. The first thing we’d recommend doing is adding ‘type’ tags to your plugins – eg, ‘synth’, ‘delay’ ‘EQ’ etc – to help you quickly find groups of similar tools.
After this, it’s worth turning to your most commonly used sample packs and assigning any tags you think could be relevant, such as s
