Tips and tricks for setting up Live 12?

Discussion in 'Live' started by ArticStorm, Mar 6, 2024.

  1. ArticStorm

    ArticStorm Moderator Staff Member

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    Since Ableton did add some nice new ideas to Live 12, i thought its maybe a good idea to share some tricks here.

    i will start:

    1) Hide Push and Cloud, go into Preferences --> Library: set Off Show Push, Cloud and All Downloadable Packs.
    2) Live 12 does autohide Scrollbars: Preferences --> Display & Input: set Show Scroll Bars to Always (found by dhlaudio :mates:)
    3) Live 12 Plugin browser still sucks, there is no way to get a folder structure like we had before. So my idea is the following, I created for every Plugin a rack with Pitch, Velocity, Random devices and set in the Plugin a default preset and created automation aswell. This rack i will save to a folder called Synth or for FX Plugins a folder with FX, this folder i can color-tag - so i can use Collections, inside the folder i can set Vendor/Company folders, which are picked up by Live 12, so i could recreate the beloved folder structure. No need for Live 12 overcomplicated plugin tagging system.
    4) Make two different User Libraries if you run Live 11 and Live 12 on the same system. Otherwise you get problems with missing items in the browser. Go Preferences --> Library --> Location of Library.
    5) ... now you :)
     
    Last edited: Mar 6, 2024
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  3. thantrax

    thantrax Audiosexual

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    0) Install Live 12 Suite on SSD or NVMe (better). Its starting scanning is so boring and last so long on HD.
     
  4. ArticStorm

    ArticStorm Moderator Staff Member

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    Okay i guess in 2024 nobody uses a HDD anymore, atleast i used the last time a HDD in 2014 or so ... but maybe its a good reminder, when people with older system complain about Live scanning 100 years.

    Another one: Remove empty Collections, Hover over the Collections Text, an Edit button will appear and you can remove the Empty Collections you want.
    Described here: https://help.ableton.com/hc/en-us/articles/360000268570-Using-Collections
    Finally was able to remove Samples, Clips, All, Drums and Sounds. Saved up for much Space for me. :trolls:
     
    Last edited: Mar 6, 2024
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  5. DJK

    DJK Rock Star

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    the browser sucks..........................
     
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  6. ArticStorm

    ArticStorm Moderator Staff Member

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    i wont use the browser simply, im using Collections. browser to overcomplicated and to slow ...

    like i wrote in 3) I will use racks and put them into collections. lets hope Ableton improves the browser, its nicely meant, but nothing for me ...
     
  7. thantrax

    thantrax Audiosexual

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    Guess who still use HD ? *

    (*) me :( // Still evaluating if worth build a new PC or cloning HD on SSD
     
  8. tchouangtseu

    tchouangtseu Kapellmeister

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    Might be useful for some..
     
  9. ArticStorm

    ArticStorm Moderator Staff Member

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    i know its offtopic, but i would simply backup the HDD somewhere, so you can copy stuff afterwards and simply start fresh on a new SSD.

    i have around 30k samples, which were indexed in 5mins together with scanning around 250 plugins, very quickly. I think Ableton has improved this a bit atleast.

    Well you still have to cancel the plugin scan, there is still no way to kick it off manual, without being started automatically or pause it or stop it.

    just had a look at the plugin browser again, such a mess, you have to click so much to find even with 250 plugins something. the folder were so much better, but well i use collections for the most used plugins, for the others i can search simply if i need them really.

    Another one, which is really new to Live12: Looks like you can force key and a scale on a whole project. There is the scale icon (b/#), which you need to activate in the menu area and in devices like Pitch, Scale.
    You can actually then swap scales and keys with one click for the whole project, which is massive.
    I then past i did it with having a pitch plugin on my master to pitch the audio, which worked semi okay for me. But this is what i was looking for me.
    here is more about that: https://help.ableton.com/hc/en-us/articles/11425083250972-Keys-and-Scales-in-Live-12-FAQ
     
  10. fnord23

    fnord23 Ultrasonic

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    New browser only sucks if you don't use it's full capacity.

    Finally we can overcome the limit number of color collections using the new possibilities.

    You can set up xategories for your delays, on for reverbs, on for classic synths, one for monitoring plugins and so on without limits in numbers. Or by company name if you're old-school I guess.
     
  11. ArticStorm

    ArticStorm Moderator Staff Member

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    but then you have to click so much, im fine with collections, its like 2 clicks and i find what i need. anyway going for the same plugins, samples.

    ofc if you have 5000 plugins and 1 mio samples and all ALPs installed then the browser can come in handy, but then you maybe have to question yourself, why you have so much stuff?

    hmm hope i can find more tips to make myself at home in Live12, so far i like it a lot better than Live 11.
     
    Last edited: Mar 6, 2024
  12. fnord23

    fnord23 Ultrasonic

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    Many clicks? No I mean somemthih else, it's just one click to open the "folder". I'll try to post a picture later I'm not at the PC atm.
     
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  13. nmkeraj

    nmkeraj Producer

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    The browser sucks definitely. It sorted out my plugins in a strange way. I can’t find all my Dmitry Sches plugins. The folder has disappeared in the browser.
     
  14. ArticStorm

    ArticStorm Moderator Staff Member

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    okay, look i mean the following, i usually have sorted into FX and Synth in folders. now i need to click and scroll again, since it lists now plugins i have installed, but dont really use as VST3, before it sorted also in VST3 and VST2.

    I hate that VST3 never let me sort stuff in folders, like we did for decades with VST2 plugins in Live. It worked fine.

    But maybe you are having a solution i dont see at the moment.

    As it stands now, i really hate this browser and want Live 11 browser back with all its flaws, which i got used to.

    for example i cant hide "Filters" ...
    i could use Search and enter something, but before i didnt need that, i scrolled a few lines and found a plugins, which i barely used, now its all cramped into one list, thank you, very productive ...
     
  15. Stevie Dude

    Stevie Dude Audiosexual

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    getting used to the browser and slowly tagging stuff and kinda like it. I'm doing it slowly on the go, while producing and after two days it's shaping up nicely.

    upload_2024-3-7_4-38-58.png

    I think the Bitwig's browser is way way more confusing. Ableton's is easier and more user friendly. "Saved Search" function on the sidebar also pretty nice but so far I only need it for the Fabfilter plugins maybe will tag my go-tos in the future. The rest are mostly manual tag. I don't mix in Live, I only use the same small numbers of plugins for production so for plugins I just need half day to tag my favs. I have things organized differently on the S1 that's more mixing focused. I have most my used samples in organized folders and I'm starting to tag them on the browser manually while working and things will slowly get better in time. I produced more in Bitwig than I have in Live throughout the entire Live 11 period, I think will be back to Live because the annoying always-scanning things are gone and the new browser being a really cool new feature. Still new plugin took around 1 hour to appear on Live, can't do anything about that, big plugs collection from s/s. :p
     
  16. ArticStorm

    ArticStorm Moderator Staff Member

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    i have it like this:

    brow.png
    its quick for me.

    i did make racks, which already have linked the scale stuff to the project scale, so i dont need to add pitch devices and link.
    i noticed i have only 25 synths.
     
  17. fnord23

    fnord23 Ultrasonic

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    I'm not on my PC but this is from the seed to stage video:

    There's no limit to the amount of folders or the type of content you can put in it. I think it will make live in live easier.
     
    Last edited: Mar 6, 2024

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  18. DiRG3

    DiRG3 Kapellmeister

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    I think the biggest boost to workflow speed for me in 12 is the ability to Ctrl+F literally everything as opposed to before having to click what i wanted to search in. I do hope they add a menu to put the plugins back into dev folders like before just like they did for the 10 update where all fx were listed one by one, people were pissed and they added a right click option to go back, I think that solution would solve a lot of peoples issue with the 12 browser. That said, I still think it's an overall massive improvement over 11's browser if nothing else but for the enhanced effectiveness of Ctrl+F.
     
  19. Pinkman

    Pinkman Audiosexual

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    That browser is very different. I was so used to the old way. The filters and Edit options are useful but I miss the old way, too.

    I ended up adding everything to the 'Creator' tag and it works kinda the same way as 11, but you can filter.

    upload_2024-3-6_15-2-8.png

    I know. Way too many plugins. Bring on the persecution
     
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  20. RobertoCavally

    RobertoCavally Rock Star

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    Thanx for the heads up. But let me understand this one.

    - With Ableton 11 I have 'User Library' folder in my Documents>Ableton location. Shoud I rename this folder e.g. 'User Library 11', copy it and rename the other 'User Library 12' and then point the respective versions of Ableton to respective folders?*

    - Also, can just point 'Installation folder for packs' to my existing one on my data SSD (that is big, hope they can share that). And BTW will I have to reinstall all packs for Ableton 12 to see them (hope not) ;)

    * that is if I want to keep both ofc
     
  21. Pinkman

    Pinkman Audiosexual

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    No. When I installed 12, it automatically picked it up. If it doesn't for whatever reason, point it to the same User Library location in Preferences.

    upload_2024-3-6_16-24-41.png
     
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