Ableton’s new Push hardware represents to company’s first foray into controllers.
Ableton has done a Native Instruments on us! Not content to release its latest and much anticipated Live 9 software today, the company has also make its first leap into hardware, with the new Push Ableton controller.
This is much like Native launching the S4 alongside a new version of Traktor (and, indeed, the F1 with Traktor 2.5 and the Z2 with 2.6), and is an understandable development for the previously software-only company. It is likely to foster a more standardised, richer experience for Ableton DJs and producers.
Ableton Push hardware
The Ableton Push: The most desirable Ableton controller yet?
Everyone uses the Novation Launchpad for Ableton, right? At least, everyone I know does. Looking not dissimilar to a Launchpad on steroids, Ableton’s first foray into controllers for its software is a major move for the company.
Looking not dissimilar to a Launchpad on steroids, Ableton’s first foray into controllers for its software is a major move for the company.
It has 64 pads (unlike the Launchpad, these are velocity sensitive), 11 touch-sensitive infinity encoders, and controls for triggering clips, overdubbing notes and moving quickly between source material and variations. No crossfader, though.
It has an optional steel cover that doubles up, iPad-like, as a stand. While the unit is USB powered, there is a power adaptor input, the use of which brightens up the LEDs
It includes Live 9 Intro, and an interesting thing about it is that it is actually built by Akai, which begs the question: What now for Akai’s own Ableton controllers? It’s available 2013 Q1, but with a pretty high price of US$599/€499, I suspect lots of Launchpads will continue to be used and sold! You can get more info here.
Ableton Live 9 software
In Live 9, you can now record parameter changes directly into Session View for even more flexibility.
Session automation, a vastly improved browser (including folder drag & drop), more sounds, reworked effects, and new audio to Midi analysis algorithms should all aid your creativity. The Suite edition of Live 9 comes with a new, improved Max for Live.
Buyers of Ableton Live 8 get a 25% discount off the regular price…
While Live 9 won’t be available until Q1 2013, buyers of Ableton Live 8 get a 25% discount off the regular price as of now, and a free upgrade to Live 9 as soon as it’s released.
More info including videos available here.
A good move for Ableton? Does Live 9 contain what you were expecting? Have you been considering Djing with Ableton, and would these upgrades persuade you to start? Please share your thoughts in the comments.
Now go to:
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Tags: Ableton Live 9, Ableton Push
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The push controller looks awesome.
So what do I do now? I want to start learning Live in the weeks ahead. I have an unopened box of Live 8 intro at home and can still return it for a full refund. I qualify for the EDU full license. But there’s no upgrade path from Intro to an EDU license.
So do I get the EDU live 8 now with an additional (?) 25% discount and update to live 9 in 2013? Or is there a smarter way in the light of the upcoming release?
Will Push be available without Intro too? I originally wantedto get a Launchpad, but Push, being made by Akai looks damn sexy, and I only want one controller to avoid mouse/keyboard.
So many questions, please help
[ link ]Hold out for as long as you can. If the only info on Push is the text here and that low resolution picture then you can’t really tell if it will relieve you from mouse and keyboard. Do you plan to DJ or produce with it? Both? I have no doubt you can DJ with it just fine, but producing, unless you can avoid a monitor, will want you do reach for a mouse.
Wait and see! Too much money to jeopardize, especially since you’re a student.
[ link ]Just for your information about how Ableton 9 and Ableton Push work together. Have fun:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7dIkonCfFE
[ link ]Thanks for the sound advice
I can definitely hold off on the controller, I have to learn the software a little bit first of all anyways
What about the software though? Should I get rid of live 8 intro while I still can? Then go for live 8 (free upgrade) immediately? Or wait for live 9 (buy EDU license) so I will have one more free major upgrade after that?
[ link ]Wow, just watched all the videos and read the info on the ableton website. This thing looks amazing!
Dumb question: What does Maschine do (apart from its own sounds/instruments) that Push + Live can’t?
[ link ]Oh, and to answer your question: Controller would only be for producing, until someone hires me to play my stuff live! xD
[ link ]I use Traktor for my DJing and don’t plan to integrate Ableton into my setup as of now
Video here: http://gizmodo.com/5954948/ableton-push-the-mpc-of-the-future-is-here
[ link ]I produce/remix with Ableton, haven’t got around to learning how to dj with it yet. I prefer spinning with turntables & Serato anyways.
[ link ]Of course right after I decide on getting cubase instead of Ableton.. Can’t so I’m too unhappy though! Lots of folks I know pretty excited about Ableton 9 finally coming out.
[ link ]So glad their browser section looks massively improved.
[ link ]Does look like a love child of the launchpad and NI Maschine! It’s also priced somewhere in the top range between those two products.
Not sure what to do, I like my Akai APC 40, but it lacks pressure sensitive pads, let alone velocity sensitive. The launchpad for me was too simple, it lacked those extra buttons, sliders and knobs to control Live and its devices for real performance and DAW control. The Akai APC20 has pressure sensitive pads and sliders, but missing the knobs. The maschine was really a device to create your own MPC type box as a VST+library of sounds, to control Live you have to get a remap and its more of fudge than a solution, the only people I really saw using it out were pro DJ’s who were paid to do it in youtube video’s. So all in all I think its got a place in the market. However, the price needs to come down quite a bit more €499 is about £400, The Akai APC40 is £300, the APC 20 is £120. The Launchpad is £129, though many people are adding the Novation Zero SL2 Mk2 – you can get that as a bundle with launchpad for £329 much cheaper than this Push. As well as velocity pads I’m also looking to add keys as that is the next step in production for me – there is the akai mpk 49 which is £249. So the price for Push is clearly not competitive enough. I shall wait and see….
[ link ]Completely arbitrarily as I’ve not really looking deeper into it, but I’d like to have seen a crossfader on the Push.
[ link ]I sure hope that I’m wrong about this (please jump in and correct me!), but I haven’t seen any new DJ oriented features listed by Ableton for Live 9.
What I find particularly perplexing about this, is that many of the most oft upgrades requested by DJs fall into the category of UI changes, that would present already existing features in (optional) layouts that would be useful for DJing. For example, displaying 2-4 Clip Views at one time or multiple cue points and loops per clip, are things that Live currently “knows” how to do, but surfacing these capabilities in ways that are more logical and familiar for DJing, would greatly enhance workflow for DJs. Assuming that Live is a well designed and coded modern application, making these types of changes to the UI, rather than than say, the audio engine, should be straightforward.
Live has a fabulous audio engine that would support a killer DJ application and and I’ve been asking myself why Ableton would cede this rather large and lucrative market to other companies. Perhaps the explanation for the lack of new DJ features in Live 9 is that Ableton’s planning to use their underlying audio technology to develop a dedicated DJing product: a tantalizing, inspiring and at this point, entirely imaginary concept.
As I said, I would love to wrong about this, so if there are new DJ features in Live that I’ve missed, please let us know!
[ link ]Mmmm interesting idea re a completely new DJ product from Ableton…
[ link ]I’m a long-time ableton user and i work with a Roland A300 pro, which i a 32 key keyboard with 8 drum pads, 8 knobs and 8 faders.
Some points:
1.
moving straight from “never used ableton” to “using ableton and abandoning mouse and keyboard” would be quite impressive. Ableton is fairly simple, but like any music software, it will take some time to get used to. Learning to do all that with a controller you’ve never used before would be difficult.
Once you’ve learned it, and got your set organised, controlling it only using a launchpad (or push) is easy!
2.
For me, the big seller on the Push controller is the SCREEN that shows you what you are controlling without needing to look at your computer. that’s something fairly new (i think there were some Remote-SL stuff that did it, but i found it was more bother than it was worth)
3.
Agree that there are so many easy, small things that ableton could easily do to make it an excellent DJ application. Having said that, many people i know who use ableton are basically DJs with some live elements
4.
[ link ]i literally love ableton.