Loupedeck CT with Ableton Live Before you start… 2

MIDI setup and startup 3

WORKSPACES 5

WORKSPACE 1: Editing and recording 6 TOUCH PAGE 1: editing functions 6

editing automation on arrangement / in clips 11 working with midi notes 12

TOUCH PAGE 2: recording functions 14 TOUCH PAGE 3: delete actions 15 TOUCH PAGES 4+5: utilities 15

TOUCH PAGE 6: record quantization 15

WORKSPACE 2: Device Mode 16

WORKSPACE 3: Clip Parameter Mode 18

WORKSPACE 4: Clip Launch Mode 21

WORKSPACE 5: Session 23

WORKSPACE 6: Mixer controls 26

WORKSPACE 7: Views and Browser 28

Loupedeck CT with Ableton LiveBefore you start…

Before getting familiar with Loupedeck Creative Tool (referred to in this manual as “CT”) and all that it offers for Ableton® Live™ use, let’s go through some things that are important for your usage and ideal understanding of the device.

• Please read this manual as well as the User Guide on how to use the Loupedeck Configuration software to fully understand the depth and usage of the device and its software before fully getting into it to avoid potential confusion and misunderstanding.Remember your very first session with Ableton® Live™? It probably felt like looking at the cockpit of a plane. The very first sessions with CT may feel similar, as there is a lot of functionality. Manual will clarify these things.• Learn how to use the Home View for convenient visual access to your workspaces and different modes. • Most workspaces have several pages for touch pads, dials, and wheel, which you can find by swiping left/right and up/down – they are chock-full of functionality! You will see the names of the pages on the CT Setup software. If you feel that a certain essential function is missing, it is likely that you will find it on some of the pages. Also please refer to the Loupedeck Configuration software search function to see if the function exists (e.g., tap on a touch pad on the CT Setup, and type the name of the function on the search field). • The workspaces that you will get by default have been created for your best user experience in our opinion, but you can – and should – freely customize most workspaces and the the placement of actions to best suit your needs and workflow. Having what matters to you where it matters and memorizing it will speed up working with CT. Customizing the profile is definitely “a thing” with CT!Think of the factory profile as a “serving suggestion”: it may work well for you, but feel free to make it yours. • While some actions are seen as words only, some use icons. If you are unsure of what action an icon is for, pressing and holding down on the icon shows the name of the action on the wheel.

• You can have several profiles. Use Loupedeck Configuration software to make the profile – or several, if you wish – perfect for you and save them (on the built-in CT storage, for example).• CT is not designed to eliminate all mouse usage. Moreover, with some functions, CT works best when it gets a little help from your mouse (e.g., selecting a clip with the mouse and then working with the clip with CT). With some actions, CT nicely takes the workload off the mouse, though – e.g., selecting a range, moving clips, etc.

• The CT keyboard mode can come in pretty handy with some functions, as it always offers you arrow keys, Undo, and Save. Esc is performed with Fn + Enter, and it is useful for closing dialogs, deselecting a clip/range, etc.

IMPORTANT ABOUT THE CONFIGURATION OF THE BOTTOM HALF BUTTONS. The bottom half buttons have been pre-mapped to work with the Fn button to cover some of the functions that an Ableton® Live™ user needs very often (you can change these, too). Stop and Play can be triggered with Fn + C/D (the middle row arrows). Arrangement Record and Session Record are operated with Fn + A/B, (the top row arrows).To toggle the detail view (the bottom bar in Live), click button E (the bottom right key).A quick way to switch between Arrangement and Session is Fn + E. Another way to quickly switch between Arrangement and Session is to press the bottom left Keyboard button + 1 (in this way, Keyboard key acts as a modifier, and CT will not enter keyboard state).The Save button has a secondary function with Fn: device view on the bottom bar. This determines what you see in the bottom bar: either the selected clip content or the device(s) on the selected track. Because of this, Save button always works as “Save Live set as” instead of Save to avoid accidental saving. Using the CT Setup software, if you wish, you can replace all these with your own favorite functions that you use a lot (e.g., replace “Save Live set as” with “Save”.

MIDI setup and startup

Before CT can work with Ableton® Live™, you need to activate it as a control surface in the MIDI setup section of Live’s preferences: see picture.

When you use CT, first start the Loupedeck app, open its Setup window, and then start Ableton® Live™.You will see Control Surface (Loupedeck) > Connected text on the bottom bar of Ableton® Live™. Once this text has disappeared, you can start using CT.

WORKSPACES WORKSPACE 1: Editing, creating and recording

WORKSPACE 2: Device mode

WORKSPACE 3: Clip Parameter mode

WORKSPACE 4: Clip Launch

WORKSPACE 5: Session mode

WORKSPACE 6: Mixer controls

WORKSPACE 7: Modules and browser

WORKSPACE 8: empty

ACCESSING WORKSPACES Access the workspaces directly using the dedicated buttons.If you double-tap the home button, you will see a “home screen” that has links to workspaces and special dynamic working modes. The order the workspaces are on the pads of the home screen reflects the order they are on the physical workspace buttons. These can be set by the user.If you are viewing a page of a workspace that is not its first one, the first tap of home button takes you to the first page for touch pads and dials of that workspace.You can have more workspaces than 8: you can have sub-workspaces that you access with the Fn key. This could be handy, for example, for creating a sub-workspace for your favorite editing functions under the main editing workspace.MANUAL LAYOUT The way this manual works for explaining the workspaces is that it describes the actions it offers (as opposed to presenting full lists of every action in every workspace). Most workspaces have several pages worth of actions. They are listed in the beginning of each section. Not all pages for wheels and dials are explained one by one or as a list either, as many of the actions actually combine functions on wheel/touchpad/dials.

WORKSPACE 1: Editing and recording This workspace contains a variety of actions needed for editing and recording as well as some utilitarian functions. Make sure to swipe left/right and up/down to swipe through all the pages to find all the functionality that CT has to offer. Do take some time to explore and see what the pages have to offer, as memorizing what is where will speed up your workflow. Do remember: you can customize a lot of the content as you wish (only so-called “modes” cannot be customized). On some pages, you will also see links to other pages. However, do note that not every page could fit links to all other pages. These, too, you can add yourself with the Setup software to have links to pages you use often in meaningful places.Many of the functions you will see will be self-explanatory to you as an Ableton® Live™ user, but this manual covers points relating to CT use that are best explained.Below is a list of the pages for touch pads, dials, and the wheel for workspace 1.You will find similar lists in this manual for every workspace.

TOUCH WHEEL DIAL p 1: editing functions p 1: play/stop/rec/scroll p 1: utilities p 2: recording functions p 2: grid wheel p 2: loop, tempo, global quantize p 3: delete functions p 3: locator wheel p 3: control dialsp 4: utilities page 1 p 4: vertical/horizontal tool p 4: vertical/horizontal dialsp 5: utilities page 2 p 5: zoom p 6: record quantization p 6: track select p 7: multitool wheel

TOUCH PAGE 1: EDITING FUNCTIONS On page 1 for touch pads, you will see several functions you will need when editing content in Live. These editing functions work in both Arrangement and Session view.TIP! A very quick way to switch between Arrangement/Session: press Fn + E. Moving around on Arrangement View Use the first wheel page – the Play/Stop wheel (see pic) – to move around horizontally on Arrangement and in arrangement clips: turning the wheel moves the playhead left and right. Alternatively, you can use a ←→ dial (see top left). This dial also works for scrolling inside clip view. Pressing down on this dial plays the song.These moves are based on the grid.TIP: You can actually use the ←→ dial for whatever uses left and right commands. If you want to use this dial for scrolling (as opposed to the wheel), make sure to click on Arrangement first to make sure you are not controlling or

moving something else – a parameter or a clip, for example. Moving vertically / selecting a track To move vertically on Arrangement / select a track, use the Select Track dial on top right or the track selection wheel. There is also a track selection wheel, should you want to select tracks that way.Playing your song You can use the wheel as well as the ↔ dial to determine where the song will start when you start the

song, as the song will play where you leave the vertical playhead.To play, press/push one of the three options: ↔ dial, the play icon on wheel, or Fn + E.

Play has been assigned to the push function of the ↔ dial, so it’s convenient to scroll the vertical playhead

where you want the song to start: just push down on the dial to play.Moving around on Session ViewOn Session View, use the arrow keys to move the clip selector around. Also see dedicated Clip Launch and Session modes (later in the manual) for more specific control (e.g., with wheel and dials) on Session View.These moves are based on the grid.Quickly “skipping” clips on Arrangement There is a way to move very quickly on arrangement.Page 4 for dials is control dial page. There, you will find a Skip ←→ dial.On Arrangement, as long as you are not on automation mode, this dial can be used to skip over the clips very quickly. Also, if you have Locators on Arrangement, selection will stop on them as well.Note: If automation mode is on, this does not work. This reflects actual Ableton® Live™ behavior.

Setting grid density You can conveniently change the grid density by using the grid wheel.Rotating the wheel counter-clockwise makes the grid wider, while clockwise rotation makes it more narrow.In addition to rotation, these actions are also in the wheel as touch actions: you will also find touch actions for making the grid fixed as well as disabling snapping to grid. Grid can be set both on Arrangement and in clips, depending on your currentfocus, and the resolution also depends on zoom level.TIP: Want to have this on a dial for even quicker grid-setting action? You can!

Selecting regionsSelect ←→ dial performs horizontal selection (and Select ↑↓ selects vertically). Use this dial to highlight a desired range to be manipulated. Once this is done, you can copy and paste the selection, move it, etc.For example, if you want to manipulate a clip and/or its automation on Arrangement, select the relevant range and use arrow keys to move it as described above. This dial also works in midi clip note view.To deselect a range, either press down on the Select ←→ dial (an “esc” action has been assigned to be

the press action of this dial) or press Fn + Enter (which works as an “esc” action).NOTE: If the vertical movement of Select ↑↓ feels illogical to you, there is also an Select ↓↑ action available via the Setup software, so the direction is different. TIP! If for any reason you love using keys, the keyboard functionality can be used for selecting a region: enter keyboard mode by pressing its icon on bottom left. Then, use shift (button 2) + the either the Play/Stop wheel tool or arrow keys to highlight a region.

Selecting clipsA very quick and handy way to select clips on Arrangement is use the Skip Select ←→ dial (on dial page 4): starting from the playhead location, it selects all clips to its left (counter-clockwise rotation) or right (clockwise). Selection stops at Locators, if there are any.TIP! This is a very quick way to copy, paste, and move a clip on Arrangement: first use Skip ←→ dial to move playhead in the beginning of a clip, then use Skip Select ←→ dial to select the clip, copy, deselect by clicking Fn + Enter (=Esc), use the Play/Stop wheel to select the location where the clip should be pasted, and finally paste it.

Zooming on Arrangement and in clips You can use either a zoom dial or a zoom wheel tool.See the magnifier tool on a dial for zooming in and out. It zooms on wherever you vertical playhead is, so first use the ←→ dial or Play/Stop wheel page to determine where to zoom. This zoom dial works on arrangement view and inside a clip view. NOTE: For this zooming to work properly on a Mac, your computer keyboard should be using UK or US keyboard settings (you can change this in your computer’s settings). It does not work properly with Scandinavian and German layouts, for example.

Zoom into a selected region For zooming in and out of a selection, use the same above-mentioned zoom dial: Zoom to/from region action has been assigned as the press function of this dial. This action expands the view to cover the selected range, and another click zooms out of it (for selection a region, please see below).All the above-mentioned actions are also found on a zoom wheel tool (see pic) – with the exception that it has a zooming action for Arrangement as its rotation action. This way you can even zoom in/out of Arrangement when you are in a clip view!Deleting a highlighted range A quick way to delete the selected material is to use the trashcan icon (delete).There is also a dedicated Delete page on this workspace for more specific deletions.TIP: Clicking Keyboard + 7/8 is a very quick way to delete pretty much anything that has been selected (a range, clip, midi notes, etc.)! This always works regardless of the workspace you are in. Note that when you click on 7/8 while holding down the keyboard button, it acts as a modifier, and CT will not enter keyboard state.

Looping a region Highlight a region. On dial pages, you will find a loop icon (as well as other loop controls): click the dial, which activates the loop brace for the highlighted region. If a region is not selected, this can be used for disabling/enabling the existing loop brace.On the same dial page, you will find controls for loop position and loop length.This applies to arrangement and clip views.Working with locators on Arrangement There is a wheel for adding/deleting locators on Arrangement.Set Locator adds a locator, and Delete Locator deletes it if the playhead is on one.There is also a dial for this: one push adds a locator, while pushing down deletes it if the playhead is on one. Turning the dial moves between locators.

TIP! With CT, it is very convenient to use locators as points in your song on Arrangement and quickly move between them. You can have locators on intro, bridge, drop, etc. and easily switch between the different sections. Moving between locators has never been easier: when you have locators on Arrangement, just turn the locator dial – or use the wheel’s Previous Locator and Next Locator actions! This can be done both when the song is stopped and when the song is playing. This function works exactly like the locator arrows in Live that control this action: relative to the playhead. Consult the Live manual for more specific information on this. TIP! Scrolling function has been assigned to the rotation function of the locator wheel, so it’s easy to move around on Arrangement and add/delete locators using the same wheel. If you wanted to, you could replace scrolling with Next/Previous Locator, so you could use the wheel for quickly moving from a locator to another. Be careful, though, to not accidentally jump from a locator to another while the song is playing, should you change it. Moving locators A very fast way to move locators based on grid is to select one with your mouse and use the ←→ dial. Selecting a clip and/or automation on Arrangement to manipulate Select ←→ dial performs horizontal selection, while Select ↑↓ selects vertically.To view automation on Arrangement, first enter automation mode by touching the Automation icon (it can be toggled on/off on using the automation icon on a touch pad Utility page. Also find it on Workspace 7: Views/Browser). If the playhead is on a clip on Arrangement, clip view opens and shows automation for a clip, and if the playhead is not a clip, this action toggles automation view for Arrangement tracks.TIP! Use the Track height tool on dial page 1 to make the automation view of the desired track nice and tall – or use the Optimum Height pad on one of the touch pages to make tracks as tall as possible. When viewing automation on Arrangement, you can select either just the clip – or both the clip and

automation – for manipulation. When moving the flashing playhead up and down on tracks, you will notice that the playhead can stay in a clip’s top bar area – or the bottom half (see pic above).

Selecting ranges that cover the top bar area affect both the clip and its automation, while selecting the bottom area only affects automation. Note: While Select Track does change track selection, it cannot switch between clip and automation content field, so use CT arrow keys to quickly set that. Notice that if you are not in automation mode, automation will always be manipulated with the selection (unless envelopes are locked) even though it is not seen.

Selecting and moving a specific clipWhen a clip’s header is selected on Arrangement, you can use the ←→ dial to move clips. You can also use the Play/Stop dial or arrow keys for this if you wish. Movement is based on the grid.TIP: After a clip has been duplicated with Duplicate action, it is selected. Want to quickly move it to a new location? The ←→ dial is your fast friend! Renaming a clipTo rename a clip, select a region that covers the desired the clip and tap the Rename touch pad on Utility page 2 (selecting a part of the clip is enough).Tap Fn + keyboard button (in that order) to enter a text input mode. You can then input your desired clip name; click the CT Enter button to enter the name once you are done typing.Once you are done with naming, click Fn + keyboard button again to leave text input mode.If a region covering more than one clip is selected, renaming does not work. Also, you need to be zoomed in to a certain extent to be able to rename. Both these points reflect actual Ableton® Live™ software behavior.

Clip length on Arrangement If you want to change the length of a clip on arrangement with CT, first place the cursor on the clip edge. Then, enter Workspace 1 and find Horizontal mouse tool on the whee or dial: this emulates horizontal mouse movement while mouse button is being held down. Rotate the wheel or dial to set clip length.

Applying a fade to an audio clip on arrangement Fading an audio clip in or out is easy: just highlight the range you want to fade in or out and use the Create Fade action on touch page 1.

Muting/deactivating clips and tracksYou will see Mute and Mute track/clip on the pads.Mute track always mutes a track regardless of where your selection is, but general Mute can be used to mute either, depending on what is selected: if track header is selected, track is muted, but if a clip is selected, it mutes the selected clip.TIP! The general Mute works like the key 0, so it can also be used to turn devices on/off! Turning devices on/offThe Mute action can be used to turn devices on and off: just selected the device from its top bar and use the Mute action. Moving a track vertically / horizontally (sorting tracks) On page 4 for dials, you will find Horizontal / Vertical dials. These emulate mouse click + horizontal/vertical dragging.To sort tracks and move a track upward or downward, place your cursor on a track header and operate the Horizontal dial to move it. Vertical dial can be used to sort tracks in Session View.

EDITING AUTOMATION ON ARRANGEMENT / IN CLIPS Editing automation is similar to editing clips: select the range as described above, and perform desired editing functions. On Arrangement View, as well as inside Session View clips, you can toggle automation view with the automation icon.TIP! Use the Vertical Zoom tool on a dial to make the automation track view nice and tall. You can also use the Optimum Height pad on one of the touch pages to make the track as tall as possible.

Automation breakpoints, moving and curving First enter automation mode by clicking on the automation icon. Then swipe the wheel to find the tool with Vertical, Horizontal, and Double Click tool.

• Adding breakpoints: place your cursor to a desired location on the automation line and use the Double Click tool. • Moving an automation line: To move an automation line (between two breakpoints) horizontally or vertically, place the cursor on the automation line using your mouse so that it is highlighted (see pic). Use the Horizontal mouse wheel tool or dial to move the highlighted line left/right and Vertical tool to move the line highlighted range up/down. This is the same as clicking on and holding onto the highlighted automation line and moving it with a mouse.

Moving is applied to the region between the first and last breakpoint of the line, which reflects the behavior in Ableton® Live™ software. TIP! This is handy, for example, for changing the selected region’s Track Volume values (pic). Actual clip gain values can be set, too: see manual section on Clip Parameter Mode. • Moving a highlighted automation region: You can quickly move a whole highlighted automation region left and right with the ←→ dial, Play/Stop wheel or arrow keys, based on the grid (in this way, cursor is not on the automation line; region is highlighted).• Moving breakpoints: Place your cursor on a breakpoint and use Horizontal and Vertical wheel or dial as described above with moving automation lines.• Stretching automation: Highlight an automation region. Then place the cursor on a square icon you see on left and right sides of the automation range. Use Horizontal wheel or dial tool to stretch the automation as you wish. • Applying a tilt to automation: Highlight an automation region. Place the cursor on any square icon you see on the corners of the automation range. Use Vertical wheel or dial tool to apply an upwards or downwards tilt to automation.

WORKING WITH MIDI NOTES Working with midi notesCT can operate as a handy tool for working with midi notes. The dials for these actions are found on dial page 4: control dials. First select a particular note with your mouse, so selection-related actions can be used.TIP! To quickly select all midi notes, use the Select All action you can find on Utility page 1. TIP! To quickly deselect everything, press Fn + Enter (functions as Esc). • Change note selection: Once a note is selected, Skip ↓↑ dial skips over notes: it changes the selection from a note to another, “browsing” the notes while keeping the selection in one note at a time.TIP: To browse between notes in the selected key only, use Skip ↔. • To extend note selection / add more consecutive notes to selection: Once a note is selected, Skip Select ↑↓ dial extends the selection, adding more notes to selection.• To select a range between notes:

When a note is not selected, Skip Select ↔ dial selects a range containing notes, moving from a note to

another (starting from where the vertical playhead is).• To select a range based on grid: Use Select ↔ dial.

• To change note length: Use Select ↔ dial once a note (or several) is selected. • To move note(s) up/down by an octave: Once a note is selected, Select ↑↓ moves the note up and down by one octave. • To move selected notes: Use the ↔ dial, Play/Stop wheel, or CT arrow keys to move them.• Move between notes: If a note is not selected, Skip ↓↑ dial “browses” between notes.

WORKFLOW TIP! Got overlapping bass and kick midi notes? Open up the midi view for both clips (see pic above): first double-click on one, and then CMD/Ctrl-click on the other to see both. Select one note and use Select ↔ dial to

change its length. Without removing the selection, use Skip ↓↑ to move to the next note, and set its desired length once again with Select ↔ dial.

PROTIP: To quickly switch view to midi editing / “piano roll” using CT: place the selector on the clip you want to edit and quickly tap Fn + Save twice. This takes the focus inside of a midi clip for editing. It may help to think of this as a “double-click”. To change focus back from clip midi note view to track or Session, hold Fn and tap button E twice.

Quantizing midi notesOn Utility touch page 1, you will find both Quantize Settings and Quantize. The former sets the parameters for quantization and the latter performs it. Cropping a midi clip Crop function deletes material that is not inside the current clip loop region.Find Clip Crop action on the Delete functions page.PROTIP: The last wheel of this workspace is a multi-tool wheel. It contains lots of rotation-based actions such as scrolling, zooming etc. in one list. You choose the tool

by swiping up and down and rotate the wheel to do the selected action. This can be a very helpful wheel type, as you can have your most-used actions in one list. The wheel in this workspace probably has too many actions in one list, but it is there to hopefully trigger some usage thoughts and show you the power it can have. Familiarize yourself with it and customize it to your liking!

TOUCH PAGE 2: RECORDING FUNCTIONS

The touch page 2 presents several functions you will need when recording and creating content in Live.

Arming a track Before you can record on a track, you must arm it.

Recording on Arrangement To start recording in the desired location, use the CT wheel, ↔ dial or arrow keys to place the playhead

where recording should start. Activate Arrangement Record and press play. Punch In/Out controls are found on touch page 2 in case you want to define the area where recording can only happen. Loop controls for setting the recording area (relating to by Punch In/Out) are on the second dial page. TIP! The fastest way to enable Arrangement/Session recording is with Fn + A/B (works in any workspace or view).The Play/Stop wheel also contains Arrangement and Session record icons, and you can also see them on the bottom row of touch page 2. Recording on an existing Session clip slot Make sure track Arm and Session Record are activated. Use arrow keys to highlight the clip you want to record into and press the CT Enter key.Recording on an empty Session clip slot To record in an empty clip slot on Session View, first select the desired track (use the top-right dial or use the track select wheel) and arm it. Use your mouse or the CT arrow keys to place the highlighted selector on a clip slot where recording should start. Use the CT Enter key to start recording. Stop or de-arming a track stops clip recording. Creating new midi clipsYou can insert empty midi clips on Arrangement View (length is based on highlighted region) as well as Session clip slots by using the Insert Midi Clip command. You can also copy clips from Arrangement and paste them to Session – and the other way around.Creating new tracksInsert Midi Track and Insert Audio Track actions are on touch page 2.

Capture Midi Technically speaking, Ableton® Live™ is always listening to midi tracks that are armed.Tapping Capture Midi creates a new midi clip, or if an existing clip was selected, musical notes will be added to the selected clip.This works on both Arrangement and Session, and the captured midi information will be added on whichever view is in focus when Capture Midi action happens. Refer to Ableton® Live™ manual for more specific information on Capture Midi behavior. Automation Arm Manual automation changes can be recorded on Arrangement and in Session clips when Automation Arm is enabled. Midi Arrangement Overdub Allows for adding newly recorded midi notes to be mixed with existing midi notes in clips. If overdub is not enabled, old midi notes will be discarded in recording. This is an Arrangement feature.

TOUCH PAGE 3: DELETE ACTIONS

The third touch page presents various delete and discard actions. These are somewhat self-explanatory.The general delete (trashcan pad or Keyboard + 8) work fine for most deletion needs, but does not work for everything. For example, should you need to delete time off Arrangement, Delete Time is the tool for that.

TOUCH PAGES 4+5: UTILITIES

Several utilitarian functions that you may need quite often are found on these two pages.For example, metronome, back to Arrangement, tap tempo, follow song, renaming action, height/width optimization, and keyboard mode can be found on these pages.Remember: you can arrange all the pages and actions to your liking! For example, for ever faster access, you could create a whole new workspace dedicated to all the utilitarian actions that you use the most.

TOUCH PAGE 6: RECORD QUANTIZATION

On this page, you will find the most commonly used recording quantization settings.You can also turn recording quantization off.Some of the less-often needed settings such as 32nd note triplets were left out of this page, but you can add them with the Setup software if you wish.

WORKSPACE 2: Device Mode

Device Mode is a special dynamic workspace that reads all the parameters of a selected device (instrument, audio effect, midi effect, etc.) and displays them on the touch pads and dials for manipulation. While pads and dials are used for control, the wheel is used for selecting the device.Due to the way this dynamic workspace has been built, it is not customizable by the user. Entering Device ModeEngage Device Mode via home screen links or by clicking button 2.This automatically brings you to the bottom bar, which shows all the devices on the track. There, use the wheel or arrow keys to select the device that you want to control. PROTIP: If the device isn’t selected automatically and you don't want to use your mouse, hold Fn and press Save twice – this will select the device at the bottom bar, and you can then use the wheel or the CT arrow keys to select and browse devices on the currently selected track. Pads: toggle actions Toggle-type actions (e.g., on/off type values) and some dropdown-type actions (e.g., filter types, oscillator shapes) are found on pads, and tapping the pad browses through the available values of that parameter. Dials: handy parameter manipulation and automationParameters with freely set numerical values appear on dials (e.g., filter cutoff, dry/wet, volume, etc.) for convenient knob-type control. Note that there are often several pages worth of parameters to unravel for most devices. Pushing the home button always takes you back to the initial page of the device.TIP: Dials are made to be experimented with! Do get creative with them, and do note that pushing down on a dial will always return a parameter to its default value, so if you want to get wild with effects, for example, you can, as you can get back to the initial value very easily. Or, if you want to record a filter sweep and return the filter to its default position? No problem: just record the sweep and press the dial...handy! Too many parameters?Do notice that Device Mode lists all parameters – even ones that may not be active or visible in your current operational state of the plugin. For example, for Delay audio effect, you will see L Time and R Time, which are inoperable if you are in Sync mode: they only work when you switch sync off, but CT displays them all the time. Same goes for filter Drive features: they are always seen, but unless a filter type using Drive is in use, they do not do anything.This is not a bug: CT is supposed to show all parameters of the plugin.

Macros for convenience It may often make sense to group a device to enable Macros in Live and then map your most often used parameters to them, in order to make seeing and operating the most important parameters more convenient and immediate. CT will read and report the Macros immediately. Note that even when you have enabled Macros for a device, you can still move the device selection to the actual device and see all its parameters again, so using Macros does not exclude being able to see all parameters.

Third-party device parametersYou may come up with a question: “What parameters do my third-party devices show, and why can’t I see them all on CT?”This has to do with how the device is configured to work in Ableton® Live™ and does not have to do with CT. Refer to Ableton® Live™ manual (relevant section: “Plug-In Configure Mode”) for how to display third-party plugin parameters (so you can see them in and operate them with CT). Also seek information on line “-_PluginAutoPopulateThreshold=32” for options.txt file, which has to do with the number of third-party plugin parameters that is reported automatically.TIP: abundance of parameters – many creative possibilities!While browsing through a vast list of parameters – offered by Live’s synths, for example – can be arduous in a way (using Macros help a lot in this regard), seeing everything that a plugin has to offer and playing with the parameters can actually great for many “happy accidents” and a serious source of ideas and inspiration. Many synths as well as plugins have a lot of features and parameters that can either be hidden or something we have never played with.For example, you can change the Oscillator type of Analog (parameter: OSC1 Shape) with a simple touch of a button, and same goes for the Algorithm that Operator uses: you can simply click through them. And what’s best, you can record all this action. So, do explore what your devices have to offer, as there is often more than immediately meets the eye. CT is made to help you unleash the creativity with your favorite devices!

WORKSPACE 3: Clip Parameter Mode

Clip Mode allows for editing of clip parameters. This mode works for both Arrangement and Session View clips.What is seen on CT in this mode varies depending on whether an audio clip or a midi clip is currently selected.Due to the way this dedicated dynamic workspace has been built, it is not customizable by the user. TOUCH WHEEL DIAL p 1: looping, color, misc. p 1: scroll + clip name p 1: various controls p 1: zoom + play, stop, arm/rec p 2: various controls

The wheel has two pages. The first page has displays the name of the currently selected clip, and it has Arrangement scrolling as its rotation action.The second page does two things: it performs a zoom function (rotation), and it has play/stop/rec functions as its touch actions. To zoom, first click on the clip view or Arrangement on the bottom bar to determine where zooming happens.TIP! ABOUT CONVENIENT WORKFLOW ON ARRANGEMENT WITH THE WHEEL TOOLS

It makes sense to use either the first wheel or the Skip ←→ dial of this workspace to move the playhead on Arrangement when clip view is open (if you use the Skip ←→ dial, make sure to not highlight its top bar, or else the dial will move the clip).Moving the playhead changes the clip whose parameters you are able to tweak, and you will always see the parameters of the currently selected clip in the bottom bar in Live (note that with this workflow you don’t necessarily have to click on a clip as long as you have clicked of Arrangement once).E.g., in the picture, moving the playhead between the six audio clips using the second wheel rotation or the Skip ←→ dial allows the user to quickly set different gain and transpose values for the clips. The clip you will see is based on what clip area the playhead is currently in. If you want to zoom in on a clip, first click on the clip view and then use the wheel. If you click on Arrangement, Arrangement is zoomed.

AUDIO CLIP dials – page 1

Color Can be used to scroll through the color selection to assign a new color to the clip.

Start/end marker When looping is enabled, these controls can be used to set the clip’s start and end points.Clip/loop startWhen looping is enabled, this controls the starting point of the loop brace.When looping is not enabled, this controls the starting point of the clip.Clip/loop endWhen looping is enabled, this controls the end point of the loop brace.When looping is not enabled, this controls the end point of the clip.Clip/loop positionThis sets the loop position.AUDIO CLIP dials – page 2Gain For setting the gain of the clip in 0.1 dB increments. Pushing down on the clip gain resets it to zero.Semitone For adjusting the sample pitch transposition in semitones.DetuneFor adjusting the sample pitch transposition in cents.AUDIO CLIP – touch pads Loop on/offEnables and disables the clip’s looping. Set its length and position with dials.

Warping on/offEnables and disables the clip’s warping.

Warp modeFor changing the clip’s current warping mode. Only works when warping is active.

Load to RAMLoads the audio of the clip into your computer’s memory instead of reading it in real-time.This may lessen the hard disk load. Useful if you are getting lots of hard disk overloads (indicated by the “D” symbol on top right of Live). MIDI CLIP dials

Color Can be used to scroll through the color selection to assign a new color to the clip.

Start/end marker When looping is enabled, these controls can be used to set the clip’s start and end points.Clip/loop startWhen looping is enabled, this controls the starting point of the loop brace.When looping is not enabled, this controls the starting point of the clip.Clip/loop endWhen looping is enabled, this controls the end point of the loop brace.When looping is not enabled, this controls the end point of the clip.Clip/loop positionThis sets the loop position.MIDI CLIP – touch pads Loop on/offEnables and disables the clip’s looping. Set its length and position with dials.Crop Crop function deletes material that is not inside the current clip loop region.Duplicate loop This action duplicates the loop and doubles its duration.

WORKSPACE 4: Clip Launch Mode

TOUCH WHEEL DIAL p 1: clips p 1: clip grid control p 1: various controls p 2: various controlsThis workspace allows you to play (and stop) clips in Session View.For editing clip parameters (start/end/looping), please see the dedicated Clip Mode (previous chapter / workspace). Due to the way this dedicated mode has been built, this dynamic workspace is not customizable by the user.

Clip grid / clips on padsUpon entering this mode, you are taken to Session View.You will see a 4x3 grid (or less wide if you have fewer than 4 tracks) appears on Session View in this mode. This grid corresponds to the 4x3 CT pad layout. To move the grid, use the wheel tool of this workspace: slide your finger on the wheel in different directions, and the clip grid will follow. The CT pads will automatically update to show the names of the clips that are inside the clip grid.NOTE: On dial page 3, you will see Toggle Clip Grid dial. Push it to hide this clip grid when it’s not needed (e.g., when using other workspaces).Playing / stopping clipsTriggering a clip is as easy as tapping on its name on the touch pad. If a clip is not playing when it is triggered, it will start playing. If a clip is already playing when it is triggered, it will stop.On dial page 3, you will find Stop All Clips. Selecting and triggering a sceneThe wheel has a scene select rotation function: rotating the wheel selects the scene and displays the selected scene on the wheel. Touching the wheel (without movement) triggers the scene. If another scene is selected and wheel is touched, another selected scene is triggered.Touching the wheel while the scene that is playing is selected, the playing scene is stopped.

Selecting a trackThe wheel also has a Select Track action: hold Fn + rotate the wheel to select a track. This is handy with the Mute Track dial, for example. There are three dial pages for various control actions – the dials are as follows.Play/Stop songTo start and stop the song, use this dial. Note that this is a press function.

MuteMute can be used to mute a track or a clip. What is muted depends on what is selected: if track header is selected, track is muted, but if a clip is selected, it mutes the selected clip. Use the CT arrow keys or your mouse to change the selection.Mute trackMute track always mutes a track regardless of where your selection is. Select Scene Use the top right Select Scene dial to select a scene AND play/stop it: pushing down on the dial triggers a scene, and pressing again on the same scene stops it.CrossfaderFor doing A/B crossfading for your tracks in Session View, there is a dial control for crossfader. TIP: Pushing down on this dial resets the crossfader to default state, i.e., the middle. This is how all dials controls work: pushing resets to default. Global quantization As quantization plays a big role in triggering scenes, global quantization is conveniently set with a dial in this workspace. To disable global quantization, rotate the dial counter-clockwise until “None” is set as quantization value. Delete clipIt is easy to delete clips in this mode by pushing down on this dial.Delete sceneThis push dial deletes scenes. You don’t have to move the selection all the way to the scenes row: scene deletion is based on what scene/row your highlighted clip is on.Create sceneThis push action creates a new scene below your currently selected scene.You don’t have to move the selection all the way to the scenes row: scene insertion is based on what scene/row your highlighted clip is on.Capture and insert scene This action makes a new scene out of all clips that are playing when the action is triggered. The new scene is created below the current scene selection (see above for the insertion rule).This is very handy for being creative: when you use Session View as a sketchpad to jam and play clips here and there, it is convenient to create a new scene out of all currently playing scenes that “makes sense” and captures your current idea/loop/theme. Duplicate This push action can be used to both duplicate clips and scenes – based on where your selection is.If a clip is highlighted, a new duplicate clip will be created below it. If a scene is highlighted, a new duplicate scene will be created below it.TIP: use the CT arrow keys or your mouse to move the highlighted area to scene selection if it is on clips. Stop all clips On dial page 3, you will find Stop All Clips: this is a press function of the dial.

WORKSPACE 5: Session

TOUCH WHEEL DIAL p 1: Session/Clip actions p 1: scene select/play p 1: Session/Clip actions p 2: clip navigation p 3: track select + arming This workspace presents an alternative Session View workflow with actions and functions as well as editing tools, but with less focus on clips than Clip Launch Mode. Some of the functionality is close to that of Clip Launch, but there are more actions on pads with a more immediate access. Also, this workspace is yet again fully customizable (unlike Clip Launch Mode, Clip Parameter Mode or Device Mode). Select a scene and play it Use the first wheel to select a scene (rotation action) and touch its Play Scene action to play it. You can also use the top right Select Scene dial to select a scene AND play/stop it: pushing down on the dial triggers a scene, and pressing again on the same scene stops it. Note that this does not stop the song; for that, there is an action on the wheel.There is also a Stop all Clips action (on the wheel in this workspace), which stops all currently playing clips.TIP: For convenience, both scene selection (rotation action) and play/stop scene (press action) are currently on the same dial – even though you only see the “select scene” text. You can easily combine rotation and press actions on the same dial – in order not to use two dials for related actions. If you wish, you can separate these, of course.

”Play next scene” workflow If you wish to tell Ableton® Live™ to play the next scene, the easiest way is to move the selection to the scene area (use CT arrows or click with a mouse) and just use the CT Enter button. This will always trigger the highlighted scene and conveniently move the selection to the next scene. This way you can use Enter to trigger the next scene easily whenever you want.TIP: Selecting a scene with the Select Scene dial and playing it with the same dial also highlights a scene.

Playing a clipYou can play clips in this mode, too: use the CT arrow keys and/or or the second wheel tool to move the clip selection and just press Enter on CT to play a clip. There are also Play Clip and Stop Clip actions on the pads.This wheel also has scene selection as its rotation action, so using this wheel it is easy to select and play the the clip you want.

Recording a new clip / into existing clipsFor clip recording, refer to recording functions on the manual section Workspace 1. The third wheel has track select as its rotation function and arming is as touch actions on the wheel.

Duplicate a sceneUse Duplicate to make a duplicate of the selected scene. For scene duplication to work correctly, selection must be in the scene field (use CT arrow keys for your mouse; selection is also automatically on scenes after launching a scene).This can also be used to duplicate clips by highlighting a clip instead of a scene.Delete a sceneDelete Scene removes the currently selected scene.Create an empty scene Create Scene creates an empty new scene below the currently highlighted scene.Capture and insert scene This action makes a new scene out of all clips that are playing when the action is triggered. The new scene is created below the current scene selection.This is very handy for being creative: when you use Session View as a sketchpad to jam and play clips here and there, it is convenient to create a new scene out of all currently playing scenes that “makes sense” and captures your current idea/loop/theme. Capture MidiThis function allows you to create a new clip out of what you just played or add information to an existing clip, if selected. This was explained in the section about Workspace 1.

Mute functions In Session work (e.g., when performing a song live from Session), muting is required often. You will see Mute and Mute track/clip on the pads.Mute track always mutes a track regardless of where your selection is, but general Mute can be used to mute either, depending on what is selected: if track header is selected, track is muted, but if a clip is selected, it mutes the selected clip.TIP: Use the track select wheel, in conjunction with Mute Track pad, for convenient track muting. CrossfaderFor doing A/B crossfading for your tracks in Session View, there is a dial control for crossfader. TIP: Pushing down on this dial resets the crossfader to default state, i.e., the middle. This is how all dials controls work: pushing resets to default. Global quantization As quantization plays a big role in triggering scenes, global quantization is conveniently set with a dial in

this workspace.PROTIP: While Fn + E quickly switches between Arrangement and Session, it also returns the focus from the clip view back to the track or the clip space. In other words, if your focus (the vertical playhead) is in midi note editor or audio clip and you want to quickly return it to track or clip space, double-tap Fn + E.

WORKSPACE 6: Mixer controls

TOUCH WHEEL DIAL p 1: mute/solo p 1: track select + play/stop p 1: mixer functionsp 2: routing + monitoring p 2: Arrangement scroll + play/stop p 2: sends This workspace presents mixing functions. They work for both tracks as well as inside Drum Racks.The first page for touch pads offers mute and solo as toggle functions, and other, freely adjustable mixing functions are on the dials. Also see touch page 2 for monitoring and routing functions (explained in this chapter).Wheel functionality:One has a Play/Stop as touch action and track select as rotation action.The other one has Play/Stop as touch action and has Arrangement scroll as rotation action.NOTE! These two wheels look quite similar, but they have different rotation actions (which are not indicated by the wheel).

Select track / play song dialUpon entering this workspace, you will see a dial on top right that is used to select a track, but it also has a Play/Stop action as its press function.PROTIP! Mouse is a nice companion to CT. For example, when mixing a large multitrack project and adjusting track levels, it’s a very efficient workflow to use one hand to mouse-click on a desired track – or use this dial to select a track – and then use the other hand to adjust track levels with the top-left track level dial.

Track volume and panning Choose a track, and then you can use Track Volume and Track Panning to set the level and pan position of the desired track. Note that with these controls, too, pressing down on a dial returns the parameter to its default value (level returns to zero, and panning returns to center). These can be used for audio and midi tracks as well as return tracks.

Master volume On bottom left, Master Volume dial control can be found.Cue level There is a dial for cue level. Unlike in Ableton® Live™, setting Cue level while auditioning samples from the browser does not the playback of the sound that is being previewed.Mute and solo tracksMuting and soloing a track is as easy as selecting a track and tapping Mute and Solo pads.TIP! If you do a lot of soloing and muting, you could even assign mute and solo to the track select dial, so you could use the same dial to select a track and then mute or solo it by pressing down on the dial!

Send controls Send controls (for sending signal to Return tracks) are on the second dial page. The default profile has controls for six sends (A–E). You can have more than that: CT Setup will allow you to add 12 sends to your profile (they can be found for dials under Adjustments→Track folder in the Setup software).

TIP! All mixers controls also work inside Drum Rack: you can use the wheel or Select Track dial to scroll inside the Drum Rack and operate the mixer controls.Remember that CT is a great companion to your mouse, and it is also fairly convenient to select the desired track with your mouse and then use CT for desired actions (e.g., solo).Even sends work inside Drum Racks if you have created your own chains inside the Drum Rack. Get dubbing!

TOUCH PAGE 2: Routing and monitoring In addition to offering a monitoring function, the second touch page offers functions for routing and monitoring. You can adjust the following things:• Input Routing Type. On audio tracks, this toggles between sources that are available for the Audio From field. Here you can choose from an external input source (if it has been set in Audio settings in preferences), resampling the audio engine, and all available audio tracks as well as Return tracks. • Input Routing Channel. If you are recording from external input, this chooses from external input tracks (e.g., the input tracks that your audio interface has to offer). If you are recording from any of Live’s tracks, this selector chooses from Pre FX, Post FX, and Post Mixer. • Output Routing Type. Use this to set the output destination of the track: master, an audio track in your project, Sends Only, and External Out.• Output Routing Channel. If your audio interface has several outputs (and they are activated in Audio settings in preferences), this control toggles between all the available outputs.

WORKSPACE 7: Views and Browser

This workspace allows for a quick way to show and hide all main views important in Ableton® Live™.

BROWSER ON THE WHEEL / ON A PAGEYou see all your Ableton® Live™ content in the wheel: the order reflects that of Ableton® Live™ browser. If you want to operate the browser with touch buttons, you will find touch pad controls on second page (swipe).Folders are indicates with brackets [like this], and items you can load are without brackets.

OPERATING THE WHEEL BROWSER • To scroll up and down, rotate the wheel. • To enter a folder, double-tap it (or hold Fn and rotate clockwise). This reveals the folder contents, including sounds/presets/subfolders. • To to leave current folder (go back), either locate and click on [..] at the top of any list – or hold Fn and rotate anti-clockwise.• To preview a preset or a sound, tap it once. To stop previewing a sound, tap Fn + any browser item.TIP: There is a dial for cue level, so you can set a comfortable preview level. • To load a preset or a sound, double-tap it. Notice that double-tapping a device that has presets (e.g., Analog) opens up the preset view.• To load a device that has presets (e.g., Analog) in its default state, hold Fn and double-tap it.The browser refreshes itself every time you enter a new folder.However, if you want to refresh the browser to reflect the current state (after adding some folders or Collections, for example), you can use the Reload Browser touch pad. NOTE: If you have a folder containing thousands of files, loading may take a long time.

BROWSER SEARCH WITH KEYSHere you can also trigger a search function in Browser (the search happens in Ableton® Live™ software). Just first tap the search icon on bottom right of the touch page, and you will see that in Ableton® Live™, browser search field is activated. Tap Fn + keyboard button (in that order) to enter a text input mode. You can then input your search string, and you will see results based on what you typed immediately as a list in the Live browser. You can browse through and preview the items in the list using the CT arrow keys – just hit down arrow, and you are in the list. To load a selected item, just press the CT Enter key to load it. Once you are done with searching, just hit Fn + keyboard button again to leave text input mode.There is also a nice way to use the browser using the wheel (it is seen as wheel page 1 in this workspace).