1. Ableton Click Track
2. Ableton Live Click Tracks
3. Ableton Live Gospel Click Tracks
4. How To Use Click Tracks
5. Ableton Click Track Routing

A pioneering range of VST plugins for Ableton and Logic Pro X to help you write chords, basslines, melodies and drum parts. No musical theory necessary – you can audition, compose and edit thousands of patterns, phrases, chords and riffs in limitless ways inside your DAW. Ableton, Click Tracks, and Backing Tracks in Musical Theatre (Part 3) from Maestra Music PRO on April 14, 2021 Receive Updates Share your email with the creator & receive updates via Vimeo. How To Create A Count In And Click Track In Ableton Live. In this video, I show you how to create a midi count in and a midi click track in Ableton Live. Here is where you can find instructions for finding the default Ableton metronome sounds to use with your midi click. Here is where you can download the free guide cues from Multitracks. When you first open Ableton Live, you will notice that there is already a click track ready to go. It will always open at 120BPM and the yellow shading indicates that it’s armed and ready. Here’s what it looks like: The problem with this click track is that it’s the ‘Master Click.’.

Alrighty Kids, here’s some info about our journey switching from Pro Tools to Ableton Live for running click, loops and tracks for live performance, specifically in our worship services.

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Up until a few weeks ago, we used Pro Tools as our on-stage software to create and run loops, sequenced programming and a click track. I do most of my music creation via Pro Tools – whether a simple loop for a worship song, or a full, complex video score. So using Pro Tools to play some or all of those audio elements in conjunction with a live band was totally natural. ESPECIALLY since you can create a click track using the “Click” plug-in and route it to a specific audio output, apart from, say, a stereo loop track.

Pro Tools also allows “Markers”, which we would use as the start of the next song. You can tab to them, or select them with the mouse in a special Markers Window. There is also the powerful ability to input tempo changes, time signature changes, and click subdivision changes at those markers, or anywhere in a song’s timeline.

If you’d like more info on running loops via Pro Tools in a live performance situation, check out: Gear Questions: Pro Tools running loops

So Pro Tools is very powerful in many cases – but not all…

While I see myself using PT as a main Digital Audio Workstation for song creation, video scoring, and audio recording, it still falls short in many areas that we need, specifically our live performance / worship services.

Enter Ableton LIVE…

While I was not unfamiliar with Live and its concepts from years past, there were still some things that fell short for me. But many of those have been addressed/changed/tweaked and generally improved over the last few versions.

However, the biggest dislike I had – and still have – of Live is its internal click.

I mean, it’s horrible.

First, the click tone is obnoxious, and cannot be changed without highjacking the root library in your computer’s Operating System (NOT advisable for the faint of heart). And second, you cannot subdivide the click PROPERLY.

Sure, other sites or videos show someone manipulating the song’s tempo and/or time signature, but that’s not the way it should be. I SHOULD be able to enter the proper tempo and time signature of a song, and have the ability to choose a click tone and subdivide it.

Why do I want to subdivide a click? Because if you’re playing a song at anything less than about 110 bpm, your ability as a singer or instrumentalist to “lock into the groove” of a song is GREATLY increased when you can hear/feel the subdivisions of a measure (1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &).

So for me, even now, Ableton Live is a great program, we WANT to use it for all that it can bring to a live performance (MIDI mapping to external pads/triggers, easy song tempo change without messing up other songs later down a “timeline”, etc.), but it still has this one giant FLAW – the click.

It’s kind of like dating the best person in the world – but they smoke.

PROBLEM = SOLUTION

So this was my Everest. I wouldn’t switch to Ableton until we could figure a way around this click issue.

Well, after lots of research and brainstorming – and a few trials, errors, and less-than-satisfactory solutions, Jared Hamilton and I came up with a winner.

Or at least the winner until something better comes along or Ableton gets their act together…

IMPULSE + SAMPLE = WINNER

If you’ve used Redrum in Reason or Boom in Pro Tools 8, or any pattern-based drum machine, you’re already ahead of the game….

Basically, we created an instance of Impulse, Live’s drum pattern sequencer, imported a desired click tone, and created MIDI notes in the sequencer to trigger the sample as desired (quarters for fast songs, quarters and 8ths for slower songs). We even increased the velocity (thus volume) of the downbeats to help define where the “1” is…

Then we saved the instance of Impulse (with the desired sample and MIDI data) as a clip to the clip library. That way, in the future you can just drag that Click clip into an audio column in about 2 seconds – never having to create a click clip from scratch again!

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STEP-BY-STEP:

OK, here’s are the steps…

#1 – TURN OFF the horrible internal click of death.

From this:

To This:

Ahhh, much better…

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STEP #2 – Create an instance of IMPULSE:

Impulse can easily be found by clicking on the Live Device Browser (yellow icon on LEFT underneath the arrow). Click on Impulse and drag it into a MIDI track or “Clip/Device Drop Area” (big grey area that says “Drop Files and Devices Here”.

So that’s totally easy. 🙂

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STEP #3 – IMPORT DESIRED CLICK TONE (Audio File)

For us, we love using the MPC click tone from the Pro Tools click plug-in. We’ve used it for years now, and all our players are fans. It’s distinct enough to establish tempo, but subtle enough to not drive you crazy or interfere with the sound you’re trying to create as a band.

But that’s just us – you can use a cowbell, woodblock, or car horn for all I care 🙂

So now drag that sample (audio file) into the first “audio sample slot” in Impulse. Below, you can see my MPC Click sample in the far left sqare. It’s greyed-out to show that an audio file has now been assigned to that slot.

NOTE: You may wish to change the DECAY or other parameters to suit your taste.

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STEP #4 – ENTER MIDI DATA in Impulse’s Sequencer Window

Ableton Click Track

Just double click on the grid where you want the click sample to activate.

Here’s an example of a sub-divided click (1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &):

And here’s a simple quarter-note pattern:

Note the VELOCITY increase for the downbeat of the bar (lower half of the window). You can play around with this until you get what tones / volumes you desire for the downbeats.

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STEP #5 – RENAME and SAVE CLIP(S) for future use

OK, now the hard part’s done. And by saving this clip, you can then easily drag and drop desired Click Clips into a session as you desire.

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STEP #6 – SETTING TEMPOS for Songs

If you’re already using Ableton for a multi-song set, you’re probably familiar with how tempos are set for the different songs using the Master Scenes.

Ableton Live Click Tracks

Using the Rename feature (click on a box and type z-R), you can then type the name of the song, its TEMPO (be sure to add “bpm” after the tempo), and its time signature. (Press RETURN when you’re done!)

Now, when you click on that Master Scene box in the future, the click (and any other audio files/loops/programming, etc.) that you’ve imported along that horizontal scene will start at the exact tempo you’ve typed in.

Here’s an example of a recent Ableton Live set used for a live worship service performance.

All of those scenes had Click clips, while only some of those scenes also had count-offs, loops, and programmed tracks as needed.

While you can manually activate the scenes by clicking them, you can also map them to either keys on your computer or – more effectively – by MIDI-mapping them to an external controller. Products like M-Audio’s Trigger Finger and Novation Launchpad are widely used, while we currently use the Akai Professional LPD8 due to its smaller footprint.

But that’s a different story…

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There you go, kids! Have fun – and here’s a special treat: A download of the Click Clips and MPC Audio sample!

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It’s one thing to know how to create a rock-solid Ableton Session, but when it comes time to move from your church office to the stage, connecting your computer to the sound system is a vital step. As with many other things in Ableton Live, there are multiple ways of doing the same thing. It all depends on your setup, workflow and personal preference. There are three ways that I’d recommend looking at when deciding how to get your tracks heard through the sound system and the click to your band.

1. Headphone Jack
Sometimes simple is best. This is honestly the easiest and most affordable way to send tracks to your sound system. It’s also perfect for beginners or worship leaders who want a really fast setup. Many people who first start using tracks are confused by the headphone jack. They think that because it’s a single jack it only has one output. However, your headphone jack is a stereo output. This means you can use the left side of the headphone jack to send your click and the right side to send your tracks. In Ableton Live, all you need to do is choose “Built-in Output” as your audio output device from the audio settings tab in preferences. Then on each track, choose “Ext. Out” in the dropdown called “Audio To”. You’ll be given another dropdown where you can choose which side of your headphone jack to send the audio. Selecting ‘1’ will send the audio to the left side of your headphone jack and ‘2’ will send the audio to the right side. You’ll need to buy a Hosa CMP-153 Stereo Breakout cable. You’ll then be able to plug each 1/4″ jack into Direct Boxes for your click and tracks. This is the setup I use about 75% of the time when I lead worship because I travel a lot to different churches and need an easy, quick and uncomplicated setup.

Ableton Live Gospel Click Tracks

2. Audio Interface
The downside of using the headphone jack is that it doesn’t give your sound team full mix control over each individual track. When using the headphone jack, you’re sending all of your tracks out a single, mono output. This means that if your sound team wants to turn down the tambourine track, you would need to adjust it for them on the Ableton Live computer ahead of time. To solve this issue, another way to send audio to the sound system is by using an audio interface.

There are a lot of great options out there that will get the job done. I would recommend looking at anything by PreSonus, MOTU, or an audio interface that I helped design that’s called Track Rig. Don’t bother with an interface that doesn’t have at least 4 outputs. You need at least 4 outputs to make this option worth it. When using an audio interface, Ableton Live will let you choose which output each of your tracks goes out of. You can connect these interfaces directly to the sound system, or through direct boxes. I’ve never needed to use more than 8 outputs, because it can feel like you’re playing to a karaoke track. My best-practice tip is to group tracks together that have similar sounds. For example, I group and send all of my key tracks together out their own output. I do the same for percussion tracks, like shaker and tambourine. I also group and send all synth lead lines together and send them out their own separate output. This will be important for your sound team so they can EQ and mix the tracks properly.

Track Rig is an 8-channel audio output interface that gives you everything you need to run tracks, including a 4-port USB hub for MIDI controllers and hard drives. It has 8 XLR jacks, which eliminates the need for direct boxes. It’s really easy to set up because there aren’t audio drivers and configuration software to install. Be sure to check it out at TrackRig.com.

How To Use Click Tracks

3. Dante
I’m beginning to see more and more larger, tech-driven churches use Dante to send audio from Ableton Live to the sound system. If your soundboard is compatible with Dante, you can use Dante Virtual Soundcard to send up to 64 channels from Ableton Live to your sound system. What’s awesome is that it uses the ethernet port on your computer, which eliminates the need for a snake, direct boxes, and other cables/adapters. When you plug in the ethernet cable, you’ll be able to route your tracks to up to 64 different channels – which is by far the largest number of channels you can get. No USB audio interface will give you that many. If you’re able to go the Dante route, it’s a great option. It’s very stable and the audio quality is excellent. To learn more about Dante systems, visit audinate.com.

These are all excellent ways to get your track audio from Ableton Live to your sound system. If you’re just getting started with tracks, I would recommend the headphone jack. If you’re really comfortable with Ableton Live, try using an audio interface like Track Rig or Dante. If you’re interested in learning more about running tracks in worship, take my free course at tracksinworship.com.

Ableton Click Track Routing

Matt McCoy