In this new tutorial series focused on building a DJ template, Dubspot’s Rory PQ shares his insight about digital DJing with Ableton Live and takes us through the steps to build a customized DJ Template. Included is a FREE Ableton Live DJ Template download. Learn more about our DJ/Producer Ableton Program and Enroll Today!
May 14, 2013 New and updated DJ Effects Racks from Tarekith Musician, sound designer and mastering engineer Tarekith's Ableton Live Audio Effects Racks were an essential set for performing with Live 8 - from practical EQs for DJing to zany, stacked processes. Jun 15, 2016 Wicked Parallel FX Racks Trick in Ableton. We look at setting up a parallel effects rack in Ableton to quickly create cool effects for build ups and general movement throughout your track. Sep 20, 2015 How to build an incredibly useful Ableton Live FX rack that can act as the workhorse for DJ-style live mixing. How to build an incredibly useful Ableton Live FX rack that can act as the. Download free synth presets, synth patches, ableton packs, and more. Browse; Faq; Contact. Ableton Live Project to download, tweaks, play. 1032 downloads. FREE Download. Wet / Dry Audio Effect Rack (Sends Style) by Refurb. Audio Effect Rack with Wet / Dry Control 940 downloads FREE Download. Back again with another Free Rack Wednesday. Today is a cool one, recently I did a workshop for Beat Lab about Lofi Hip Hop. I’ve made an Ableton template project and a few racks. Figured I’ll share the coolest one here. It’s a collection of a bunch of effects aimed at deteriorating the sound of.
Ableton Live is a powerful tool for producers but it also excels as the ultimate digital DJ platform. Live’s innovative approach to live performance allows you to create and customize DJ templates that suit your needs. It opens up possibilities and gives you the tools to expand your creativity and evolve as a DJ. Blurring the line between production and performance, Live’s unique interface and features make it possible to transform the stage into a performance studio.
This tutorial will be the first in aeries on building a custom DJ template in Ableton Live. We will explore some of the advantages of digital DJing using Ableton Live and create a basic DJ template. The template included in this tutorial will be the foundation for creating additional custom effects in a series of other DJ template building tutorials.
Before we get the wheels spinning, you’re welcome to follow along by downloading the FREE Ableton Live DJ Template below. Includes guide for mapping each control.
What is Digital DJing?
Digital DJing is a more modern approach to performing using computer-based DJ software driven by various MIDI controllers and analog devices. This style of DJing allows for highly customized setups that are intuitive and streamlined. It essentially eliminates the time spent Beatmatching for more creative possibilities. Digital DJing has evolved rapidly over the years and Live has become one of the leading weapons of choice for many forward-thinking artists looking to take advantage of its non-linear approach to live performance.
Visit here to see more of Dubspot’s DJ Kiva ‘Guided Dub’ Performance w/ Ableton Live + Akai APC4.
Advantages of Performing with Ableton Live
Ableton Live’s capabilities and versatility allow artists to create personalized DJ setups tailored to meet individual artistic needs. Below are just a few of the many advantages of using Live as a powerful performance tool.
- Trigger an unlimited number of songs and samples
- Mix songs seamlessly in sync without manual Beatmatching
- The tempo can be changed without affecting a songs pitch
- Capable of creating remixes and mashups on-the-fly
- Ability to create complex effects configurations
- Real-time manipulation of audio and MIDI
- Unlimited flexibility and customizability
- Capable of using third-party plugins
- Unlimited amount of virtual decks
- Integration abilities with other DJ software platforms
- Portability
Building a DJ Template
Lets start this party by switching over to Live’s Session View. Session View was designed for live performance and is ideal for creating a DJ setup for many reasons. Mainly, because its easy to visually navigate and simultaneously launch various clips and scenes, create virtual decks and signal routings, stay organized, and have the option to use Live’s built-in cross fader. In addition, most if not all MIDI controllers that are compatible with Live are designed to control and navigate Lives Session View.
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Template Overview
The DJ Template includes the following:
- Two virtual decks labeled Left Deck and Right Deck
- One track for additional samples
- Custom four band DJ EQ racks for each deck
- Lowpass and Highpass filter racks for each deck
- Gain and Mute controls for each deck
- Custom Short Verb Delay racks for each deck on Return tracks
- Expansion Macros for additional effects we will create in other tutorials
Creating Virtual Decks
To keep things simple at first we will only create two virtual decks to emulate the left and right turntables of a traditional DJ setup. However, I do encourage experimenting with this template and creating as many decks as you like.
Although we will be performing on two decks, we will create four Audio tracks. Two Audio tracks will emulate our virtual decks and contain all the clips used in the DJ set. The other two Audio tracks will be used for routing the signal to all the audio effects, including ‘Dummy Clip’ effects that we will create in the next tutorial of the series. The audio signal will be routed from the Left and Right Decks to the Left and Right Out tracks. This setup allows the original signal to keep playing without any playback interruptions when effects are triggered. It also allows the signal to pass through in parallel unaffected for stability and better performance.
Step One | Creating Virtual Decks
- Create four Audio tracks in Session View
- Label the first track Left Deck
- Label the second track Left Out
- Label the third track Right Out
- Label the fourth track Right Deck
- Optional – Create an empty Audio track to separate the left and right tracks
Step Two | Routing the Signal
Dj Effects Sound
Expand Live’s In/Out Section and set the following routing destinations for each track.
- Left Deck – Select Left Out from the Audio To chooser
- Left Out – Select the Monitor ‘In’ button
- Right Deck – Select Right Out from the Audio To chooser
- Right Out – Select the Monitor ‘In’ button
Creating Audio Effects
Now that we have virtual decks to playback our club bangers, its time to set up some basic controls commonly found on most DJ mixers. For this demonstration we will use Live’s EQ Eight. We could also use EQ Three or any other third-party EQ plugin.
Creating a DJ EQ Rack
- Drop in an Audio Effect Rack
- Load an EQ Eight device
- Activate the first four filters
- Macro map the Gain controls for each filter to each of the top four Macro controls and name them accordingly
- Macro map the Frequency controls for each filter to each of the four bottom Macro controls and name them accordingly
- Select low shelf for filter one and set the frequency between 100-200 Hz
- Select bell for filter two and set the frequency between 200-1.5 kHz
- Select bell for filter three and set the frequency between 1.5-6 kHz
- Select high shelf for filter four and set the frequency between 6-12 kHz
- Duplicate the EQ Eight. This will create a steeper filter slope in the signal for a sharper cut. Alternatively you could stack filters on each other with the same settings to create 24 dB slopes.
Creating Lowpass and Highpass Filters
- Drop in another Audio Effect Rack after the DJ EQ rack
- Load two Auto Filter devices
- Select highpass for the first filter and lowpass for the second filter
- Macro map the Frequency control for each filter to separate Macro controls
- Macro map the Filter Q for both filters to the same Macro control
- Optional – Macro map the Device Activator switch for both filters to the corresponding Frequency Macro controls. This will deactivate the filters when not in use. They will switch on when the Frequency Macros are adjusted
- Select both racks and press CMD (Mac)/CTRL (PC) + G to Group the two racks into a main Audio Effect Rack
- Macro map the Highpass control to Macro 1, Lowpass to Macro 2, and Filter Q to Macro 3 on the main Audio Effect Rack
- Rename the Macro controls accordingly
Creating 12 O’Clock Gain Controls
Many artists prefer there mixing controls to be centered at the 12 o’clock position for 0 dB. Like the DJ EQ’s, we will create a Gain control that zeros out at 12 o’clock.
- Drop in another Audio Effect Rack after the Filters rack
- Create three device chains
- Load a Utility device to the top and bottom chains
- Macro map the Gain control for both Utility devices to the same Macro control
- Open the Chain Select Editor by clicking the Chain button
- Macro map the Chain Selector to the same Macro control as the Gains
- The top chain will be used for positive gain. Click and drag the blue Zone bar to define the range from 64-127 and then drag the top bar to create a fade range
- The middle chain will be a dry unaffected chain. Click and drag the blue Zone bar to define the range from 48-80 and then drag the top bar to create a fade range for both ends
- The bottom chain will be used for negative gain. Click and drag the blue Zone bar to define the range from 0-64 and then drag the top bar to create a fade range
- Macro map the Gain Macro to Macro 5 below the filter controls and rename it accordingly
- Click the Map button to open Macro Map Mode and adjust the following parameters
Creating a Transform Switch
A transform switch is essentially a button that cuts the audio off quickly. It’s commonly used for scratching techniques and manual rhythmic gating effects.
- Drop in another Audio Effect Rack after the Gain Control rack
- Load two Utility devices
- Macro map the Gain control on both Utility devices to the same Macro control
- Macro map the new Gain control Macro to Macro 4 and rename it accordingly
- Click the Map button to open Macro Map Mode and adjust the following parameters
Creating Reverb Delay Effect Sends
The last set of audio effects we will create will be triggered by Send controls. The rack works great for creating wide delay effects with a touch of saturation and reverb.
- Create two Return tracks and rename them Left and Right Delay
- Drop in an Audio Effect Rack
- Load a Saturator and adjust the Drive to taste. This will add a bit of analog warmth to the delay signal
- Load an EQ Eight to cut out any unwanted low frequencies below 200 Hz
- Load a Filter Delay Device and Macro map the Feedback and Pan controls
- Adjust the Delay Time to taste and ensure the Dry control is set to –inf dB
- Load a Reverb device and Macro map the Dry/Wet control
- Adjust any parameters to taste
- Load a Compressor and Macro map the Threshold control
- Enable Sidechain and choose the corresponding deck from the chooser menu to help keep the delay signal in check from cluttering the mix
- Load a Utility and Macro map the Gain control
- Rename the Macro controls accordingly
Additional Setup
The following additions are optional, but just to be safe from overloading anything I dropped in a Limiter to both Left and Right Out tracks, as well as the Master channel. In addition, I created an Audio track used to trigger additional samples.
Final Thoughts
Sa-weet, that brings the record to a stop for the first tutorial in a series of building a DJ Template. The next set of tutorials in the series will focus on building additional audio effects for the deck racks and creating punch-in effects using Dummy Clips. In the meantime I encourage you all to experiment with the template, come up with your own set of effects and configurations, and most of all HAVE FUN!
Snag the free Download of the DJ template, load your favorite jams, hang the disco ball, and bump the club!
Be sure to check out the other tutorials in the series.
Part Two: Ableton Live Tutorial: Building Dummy Clip DJ Effects w/ Rory PQ + FREE Download
Part Three: Ableton Live Tutorial: Creating a DJ Assist Mix Fader Rack w/ Rory PQ + FREE Download
Ableton Live Producer Certificate Program
The flagship of our music training, with every Ableton Live course offered at the school. After completing this program, you will leave with a portfolio of original tracks, a remix entered in an active contest, a scored commercial to widen your scope, and the Dubspot Producer’s Certificate in Ableton Live.
What’s Included:
- Ableton Live Level 1: Beats, Sketches, and Ideas
- Ableton Live Level 2: Analyze, Deconstruct, Recompose, and Assemble
- Ableton Live Level 3: Synthesis and Original Sound Creation
- Ableton Live Level 4: Advanced Sound Creation
- Ableton Live Level 5: Advanced Effect Processing
- Ableton Live Level 6: Going Global with your Music
This program is about learning Ableton Live by going through the entire process of being an artist, by developing your own sound through a series of sketches and experimentation. You will also learn the ins and outs of this powerful software through a series of exercises designed to help you master the steps involved in producing your own music. After a level of getting familiar with the tools that Ableton has to offer, you will then develop your sonic ideas into full-length tracks. You will be exposed to a variety of approaches to arrangement and composition, storytelling techniques, ways of creating tension and drama in your music. At the end of the day, it is the sum total of your choices as an artist that define your sound, and levels 2 – 6 will give you the experience of actually completing tracks to add to your portfolio.
If you have questions, please call 877.DUBSPOT or send us a message.
In this third part of a series on building a DJ template, Dubspot’s Rory PQ takes us through the steps of creating a DJ Assist Mix Fader Rack used to mix two tracks effortlessly for seamless transitions. Included is a FREE Ableton Live Audio Effect Rack. Check out our DJ/Producer Master Program, classes start soon.Enroll Today!
In the first two parts of our series on building a custom DJ template in Ableton Live, we looked at how to build a basic DJ template and created some DJ-style effects triggered by Dummy Clips. In this third part of the series, we will build up the DJ template even further by creating an Assist Fader Rack for seamless mix transitions.
Before we get to mixing our club bangers, check out the previous tutorials in our series on building a custom DJ template below.
Part One:Ableton Live Tutorial: Building a Basic DJ Template w/ Rory PQ + FREE Download
Part Two:Ableton Live Tutorial: Building Dummy Clip DJ Effects w/ Rory PQ + FREE Download
In this tutorial, we will focus on creating custom mix faders that will allow us to execute seamless transitions from one track to another quick and easy. The Assist Mix Fader Rack we will develop in this tutorial can be downloaded for FREE by filling out the form below.
What Does the Assist Mix Fader Rack Do?
This intuitive approach to mixing makes it extremely easy to mix two tracks together without the need to fuss with any EQing on your preferred controller or mixer. Essentially, you can achieve silky smooth transitions with one hand leaving your other hand free to make hand hearts and wave to your mom at the club during your performance. Sounds intriguing, how does it work you may ask? Typically when transitioning two tracks during a basic mix, a DJ will first introduce the mid frequencies of the next track being brought into the mix. Once the next track is introduced, the DJ will perform creative mix techniques using the high and low EQ’s, as well as have some fun with various effects. With a simple move of a fader, the Assist Mix Fader Rack will introduce the mid frequencies first and then begin to accentuate the high and low frequencies next. The frequencies will balance at unity once the fader reaches its maximum range, typically 0 dB. In addition, sidechain compression is used to duck the volume on the current track playing when mixing in the next track. Adjusting the fader automates the threshold on a sidechain compressor and slowly introduces sidechain compression that is triggered by low frequency range set on the compressor. This approach will retain a tracks punch and help remedy clashing low frequencies that can cause phasing, muddiness, and volume spikes. The result when using the Assist Mix Fader Rack is transparent transitions with controlled lower frequencies and clarity.
Bonus Tip: You could use this rack in Arrangement View and automate the Mix Knob controls to create transitions for mixes laid out in a linear fashion.
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Check out the Assist Mix Fader Rack in action below where I mixed two techno tracks together by simply adjusting the left and right Mix Knobs.
Tracks:Justin James | Not The Curator and Nicola Assi | Tree. Both tracks released on refused.
Let’s move forward and create this very versatile and handy mixing tool, shall we?
Building an Assist Mix Fader Rack
For this mixing approach to work, we will need to create identical Assist Mix Fader Racks for both the Left Deck and Right Deck tracks. The only difference will be the sidechain routings. Jumping right in, let’s first create the rack and then move on to MIDI mapping the controls and finishing the setup. For this demonstration, we will work with the DJ template created in the first part of the series. Free download HERE.
Step 1 | Setting up EQ’s
- Drop in an Audio Effect Rack to the Left Out track.
- Load an EQ Eight device.
- Group the EQ Eight into another Audio Effect Rack by clicking CMD [MAC] / CTRL [PC] + G on your keyboard.
- Select Filter 1 and the set the Filter Mode to Low Cut and Macro map the Frequency control and Activator switch to Macro 1.
- Select Filter 4 and the set the Filter Mode to Bell and Macro map the Frequency and Gain controls to Macro 2.
- Select Filter 8 and the set the Filter Mode to High Cut and Macro map the Frequency control and Activator switch to Macro 2.
- Rename Macro 1 to ‘Low’ and Macro 2 to ‘High.’
- Macro map both the Low and High Macros to Macro 1 on the first Audio Effect Rack and rename it ‘Mix Knob.’
- Click the Macro Mode Switch on the second Audio Effect Rack with the EQ Eight and adjust the following control settings in the Mapping Browser.
Step 2 | Noise Gate
This next step is optional but recommended to silence the output signal completely when the fader is down all the way.
- Load a Gate device just after the EQ Eight.
- Increase the Threshold to 6.00 dB.
- Decrease the Return to 0.00 dB.
- Macro map the Device Activator button to the Low Macro.
- Once again click the Macro Mode Switch on the second Audio Effect Rack and adjust the following Gate control settings in the Mapping Browser.
Step 3 | Sidechain Compression
For this step, we will create an additional rack for sidechain compression. This addition will help keep the low end in check during transitions while retaining the punch and clarity of the incoming track. It’s important to note that the Threshold is controlled by the opposite tracks mix fader. In other words, the incoming track will control the amount of sidechain compression being applied to the track currently playing. We will look at this further in the steps on MIDI Mapping the controls.
- Load a Compressor just after the Gate.
- Group the Compressor into another Audio Effect Rack by clicking CMD [MAC] / CTRL [PC] + G on your keyboard.
- Create a new chain by right-clicking the Chain List and selecting Create Chain.
- Rename the chain with the Compressor ‘Sidechain’ and the chain without a Compressor ‘Dry.’
- Macro map the Compressors Threshold control and Device Activator button to Macro 1 and rename it ‘SC.’
- Expand the Sidechain Controls view and activate the Sidechain button. From the Audio To menu select the opposite track for playing back audio. For this demonstration, it will be the Right Deck track.
- Activate the EQ button and select High Cut for the Filter Type. Next, adjust the Frequency to taste. I found 120 Hz to work well.
- Adjust the Ratio, Attack, and Release controls to taste. Try starting with a Ratio between 2:1 – 4:1, medium-fast Attack at 50 ms, and a fast Release at 25 ms. Optionally you could bump the Knee up a bit and set up the Compressor to react to either Peak or RMS.
- Click the Chain button to show the Chain Select Editor, and Macro map the Chain Select Ruler to the SC Macro.
- Adjust the Zones for both chains to match the image below.
- Next, Macro map the SC Macro to Macro 3 on the second Audio Effect Rack, and then Macro Map Macro 3 to Macro 2 on the first Audio Effect Rack. Rename the Macro control accordingly.
- Finally, click the Macro Mode Switch on the Audio Effect Rack with the Compressor and adjust the following control settings in the Mapping Browser.
Step 4 | Organization
This step is optional and only applies if you’re working with the DJ Template we created in the first tutorial of the series.
- Drag the entire Assist Mix Fader Rack over to the Left Deck FX Rack we created in the first tutorial and place it before the Limiter.
- Macro map the Mix Knob to Macro 8 on Left Out FX Rack and rename it accordingly.
Step 5 | Second Channel Setup
Before we move on to MIDI map the controls for a controller or mixer, we will need to create and set up an Assist Mix Fader Rack for the second channel. Luckily, much of the work in nearly completed. All we need to do is the following.
- Copy the Assist Mix Rack we just created and paste it into the Right Deck FX Rack just before the Limiter.
- Macro map the Mix Knob to Macro 8 on Left Out FX Rack and rename it accordingly.
- Expand the Sidechain Controls view on the Compressor and select Left Deck from the Audio To menu.
- Double check that the MIDI Mappings are correct in the Mapping Browser for each section of the rack.
Step 6 | Controller MIDI Mapping
This final step covers how to correctly MIDI map the Assist Mix Fader Rack to your favorite controller or mixer. It’s important to note that the DJ template has aux tracks set up for our DJ effects. We have the option to MIDI map the Assist Mix Faders to the aux track leaving the main Left Deck and Right Deck faders to work as normal faders. To take advantage of having both options, you would need a second set of faders available on your controller. Let’s check out how to get this rack up and running.
- Click CMD [MAC] CTRL [PC] + M to turn on MIDI Map Mode.
- MIDI map the Left Out fader and the left Mix Knob Macro to the same fader on your controller for the left channel.
- MIDI map the SC Macro to your controllers right channel, which will be the opposite channel fader than the Mix Knob.
- Repeat the steps above for the second channel.
- Finally, while still in MIDI Map Mode, adjust the Track Volume Max amount for both tracks to 0.0 dB, so the faders max range is unity and not 6 dB.
LET’S PARTY!
Great work, time to spin up the Disco lights and have some fun with your new DJ template. This tutorial may be the last in our series on building a custom DJ template, but it’s not the last time we will explore DJ and live performance techniques in Ableton Live. In the meantime, I encourage you all to experiment with the template, have fun, and shake some club speakers!
Ableton Live Producer Certificate Program
The flagship of our music training, with every Ableton Live course offered at the school. After completing this program, you will leave with a portfolio of original tracks, a remix entered in an active contest, a scored commercial to widen your scope, and the Dubspot Producer’s Certificate in Ableton Live.
What’s Included:
- Ableton Live Level 1: Beats, Sketches, and Ideas
- Ableton Live Level 2: Analyze, Deconstruct, Recompose, and Assemble
- Ableton Live Level 3: Synthesis and Original Sound Creation
- Ableton Live Level 4: Advanced Sound Creation
- Ableton Live Level 5: Advanced Effect Processing
- Ableton Live Level 6: Going Global with your Music
This program is about learning Ableton Live by going through the entire process of being an artist, by developing your own sound through a series of sketches and experimentation. You will also learn the ins and outs of this powerful software through a series of exercises designed to help you master the steps involved in producing your own music. After a level of getting familiar with the tools that Ableton has to offer, you will then develop your sonic ideas into full-length tracks. You will be exposed to a variety of approaches to arrangement and composition, storytelling techniques, ways of creating tension and drama in your music. At the end of the day, it is the sum total of your choices as an artist that define your sound, and levels 2 – 6 will give you the experience of actually completing tracks to add to your portfolio.
If you have questions, please call 877.DUBSPOT or send us a message.