The best software for electronic music production (Ableton Live 6)

Member Name: LaptopAcidX

Product:	Ableton Live 6
Date:	27/05/09 (15 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: VST comaptible, built in instruments and effects.

Disadvantages: Lacks audio editing features, initially complicated to use.

Ableton Live is rapidly becoming the industry standard DJ/Producer software (for mac and PC), allowing the user to mix music tracks in a variety of audio formats (wav, aiff, even mp3). In addition to this it also comes with a variety of built in instruments and effects and is compatible with the industry standard VST plug-in format opening Live up to the almost endless variety of virtual synthesisers and effects.

There is a steep initial learning curve despite the incredibly intuitive user interface, but once conquered Live really opens up to the user allowing a totally personal way of working. Learning the software is made easy by the inclusion of several inbuilt tutorials teaching various aspects of the software.

Although many producers use this software for producing music, it has evolved from a loop based sample sequencer and is therefore skewed towarsd the production of electronic music. This is still evidenced in the main screen which consists of an almost spreadsheet like matrix of slots arranged into tracks.

The user can drop short samples into audio slots for music creation or full audio tracks for dj'ing. Effects can then be added but unlike most sequencers Live as it's name suggests can perform all these actions in real time allowing complex dj'ing and sample jamming on the fly. Of course this can be recorded and then edited in great detail, as every aspect of every sound can be drawn in.

A second type of slot or clip can be utilised this is a midi clip where soft synths either native or VST plug-in can be used. Notes can then be played or drawn like a traditional music sequencer although somewhat simplified compared to say Cubase. This doesn't bother me as I can't play particularly well anyway.

It is also possible to record audio into Live although this suffers from a lack of internal audio editing facilities which means ideally a third party audio editor is required for editing/creating samples. Luckily there are one or two free ones such as Audigy or Cool Edit Pro.

Live is an incredibly complex piece of software that requires only a little bit of patience and time to become usable, it is stable and with care will work on relatively low powered machines. In time you will be simply amazed by what it can do and perhaps more importantly how you can shape it to your own way of working.

Summary: If you want to produce electronic music this is the software.

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