Building Instruments with Ableton Live Samplers
Join Ableton guru Stephen O'Connell for an engaging course that teaches you how to construct your own instruments using Ableton Live. Understanding the intricacies of Ableton Live's three samplers will equip you with the skills to craft unique custom sounds for your productions, enabling your music to stand out from the crowd. From different sampling playback modes to filters, modulation, and more, it's all covered! These videos are designed for Ableton Live users who are interested in sampling.
Videos
• Introduction (02:30) - In this introduction video, we'll discuss what we'll be covering in this course. You'll get a brief overview of the three different samplers we will be exploring and find out how your version of Ableton Live will affect your ability to use them.
• Exploring the Simpler Interface & Loading Our First Sample (13:36) - In this first Simpler video, we'll explore the interface of the first sampler, the Simpler, and learn its purpose, how the different sections are laid out, and how to load our first sample into it.
• Loading Samples from Other Locations into Simpler (11:50) - In the previous video, we saw how a blank Simpler can be loaded into a MIDI track and a sample from Ableton can be loaded into it. This time, let's see how a sample can be loaded from other locations, such as from tracks in the Arrangement view and from folders on your computer.
• Setting Up the Simpler to Play Back Your Sample Correctly (14:40) - So far, we've created a simple instrument by loading samples into the Simpler plugin. Now, let's look at how we can adjust the amplifier's envelope (ADSR) and set the loop position to help make this playable instrument sound more realistic and responsive.
• Adjusting the Filter & Pitch Controls (09:19) - Adjusting the amp and envelope controls can change how the note shape evolves, but what about changing the way it sounds? In this video, we'll see how the built-in Filter and Pitch Controls can help sculpt the frequency and pitch of your sample.
• Adding Movement with the LFO (07:53) - Adding movement to your instrument samples can really help them sound more intriguing. In this video, we'll explore how the LFO can be used to add movement to various controls inside the Simpler, such as volume and pitch.
• Building an Instrument with Effects & Saving Presets (06:37) - Now that we have a playable instrument, it's time to add some final touches with audio effects. We'll also learn how to save the instrument, with or without these effects, so we can reuse that sound at any time in any project.
• Using One Shot & Slice Modes (09:29) - While we've only been using one mode so far (Classic mode), there are actually three in total. In this video, we'll examine why and when you would use the other two modes: Slice and One Shot.
• Exploring the Drum Rack (04:56) - Now that we've gotten a handle on the Simpler sampler, it's time to move on to the next sampler: the Drum Rack. In this video, we'll explore the interface and get familiar with its different sections and functions.
• Creating Your Own Drum Rack & Adding Your First Sounds (08:10) - Selecting and adding different samples to the Drum Rack can be really fun, and, with so much flexibility, you'll have a lot of opportunities to experiment with sound combinations. In this video, we'll discover how to add your samples to the Drum Rack, hot swap the samples when you are looking for something different, and stack samples together to be triggered at once.
• Adding FX to the Instrument, the Pad, or the Sample (06:09) - There are actually a few different ways you can add FX to your Drum Rack. In this video, we'll see the different ways you can affect your samples - from the individual sample to the whole instrument.
• Adding Macro Controls for Performance (05:31) - After adding a load of FX to your instrument, you might find it harder to keep track of everything you want to control. Thankfully, Ableton's built-in Macros feature will help pull some of the most important controls to the surface.
• Exploring the Sampler (06:46) - Now that you've built instruments from a single sample with Simpler and loaded multiple samples into a Drum Rack, it's time to check out the Sampler and discover how much more flexibility it can offer you. To start with, let's explore the interface from one of Sampler's preset instruments.
• Loading Your Samples & Mapping the Key & Velocity (10:45) - Now that we understand how the Sampler works, we'll load in our own samples, arrange them by root key and key range, and set their velocity trigger ranges.
• Adjusting the Amp Envelope, Filter, Oscillator, Pitch, & Stereo Spread (07:01) - The Sampler shares some similar controls with the Simpler, but it does contain several extra features. In this video, we'll explore the volume, filter, and pitch controls we have in the Sampler.
• Adding Modulation to Your Instrument (07:17) - As well as sharing basic controls with Simpler, the Sampler also has similar modulation controls, albeit with a lot more detail and flexibility. In this video, let's see how the modulation controls get an upgrade in Sampler and how you can use your MIDI controller to adjust parameters as well.
• Saving Your Instrument & Wrap Up (04:29) - Throughout this series, you've gotten to know the Simpler, the Drum Rack, and the Sampler. It's now time to take one final look at saving your presets and depart the course with some final thoughts.