ELXRAbleton Live guides
Short, practical guides to common production problems in Ableton Live, and how to solve them fast.
How to sidechain in Ableton without a compressor
Get the pumping sidechain sound in Ableton Live with volume shaping instead of a compressor: three ways to do it, step by step, with settings that sound right.
Read the guide →How to make a trance gate in Ableton Live
Chop pads and synths into rhythmic trance gates in Ableton Live: what a trance gate is, three ways to build one, and settings that keep it musical.
Read the guide →How to make a mono synth sound wide in Ableton
Why widening a mono sound in Ableton doesn't work with Utility, and the three ways that do: Haas delay, chorus and micro-pitch doubling, without breaking mono.
Read the guide →How to make your bass audible on phone and laptop speakers
Phone and laptop speakers can't play sub bass, so your bass disappears. How the missing fundamental trick brings it back, three ways to do it in Ableton Live, and how to check it.
Read the guide →How to make laser zap sounds in Ableton
Turn snares, kicks and plucks into laser zaps and pews in Ableton Live: how the dispersion effect works, how to get it, and settings for snare lasers and kick thwips.
Read the guide →How to make polyrhythms in Ableton Live
What polyrhythms are (3 against 4, 5:4:3 and more), how to program them in Ableton Live with the grid and clip loops, and a faster, visual way to play them.
Read the guide →How to make smooth pitch risers and dives in Ableton
Make smooth pitch risers, drops and tape-stop style dives in Ableton Live without semitone steps: why Live's pitch tools step, and how to get one continuous glide.
Read the guide →How to make dull synths brighter in Ableton
Why boosting highs with EQ can't fix a dull synth, and how adding harmonics with an exciter brings it to life in Ableton Live without harshness.
Read the guide →How to make drums punchier in Ableton Live
Make kicks and snares hit harder in Ableton Live: transient shaping vs compression vs Drum Buss, step by step, plus how to tighten tails and bring out the room.
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