Reviews

Ableton Live 6

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You can do so much with Live 6, it’s hard to know exactly where to begin describing this masterful software sequencer. So we’ll start at the top. With just a few clicks of an in-application help system, we were up and running with the program’s Operator add-on, creating notes and beats that sound as though they were pulled straight from a Keith Schofield music video. Awesome.

While the program references a number of functions that are a lot to swallow for a beginner—filter frequencies, resonances, waveshapes—the simple interface encourages the ol’ “try it” approach to learning the program. That said, audio enthusiasts will find plenty of opportunity for experimentation under Live 6’s hood: You can create your music using a MIDI-attached keyboard, directly edit the MIDI notes within your loops, and then change up your beats with a ton of plugin-style effects.

Live 6 would benefit from a better navigation system to simplify accessing its many functions, and the drab gray program needs some Apple interface treatment. But these are paltry concerns for such a sweet, learner-friendly music application

Click to Enlarge

Editing a track in Ableton Live 6 can be as simple as mixing and matching blocks of loops.

albeton, Live 6
www.ableton.com
plus
Light-switch rave

Fun to tinker around with, even if you have no audio-creation experience whatsoever.

minus
Pacifiers

Could stand an interface overhaul; a few more tutorials would be nice.

verdict:9

COMMENTS
avatarPro Audio Software Review - Hooray!

I am glad to see a review of an example of real pro audio software.

SAWStudio, Sonar Producer, Sound Forge, Acid Pro and others are all in this league and if you, as a musician, wish to work in the real world of music production you will recognize both the value and the necessity of utilizing one of these tools.

For me, Maximum PC has been a valuable source for hardware and software tips for quite a while and now with this review I hope this signals a move toward addressing some of the high end computing issues associated with pro audio and DAWs.

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avatar$500??

$500??

Helloooooo.......

[HAL]Dave, I'm sorry, I can't do that....[/HAL]

Seriously, It looks awesome and I'll try the Demo - b ut I can't afford that! You know what Will pays - thats like 4 years pay!

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avatarNo, I dig, Manta. But some

No, I dig, Manta. But some people have money to blow, and some people just want to hear about the software that -- one day -- they'll be able to afford (that's a-me!).

That said, Ableton rocks. Now get a loan, buy it, and use the profits from your new electronica career to pay it back. :D

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