New Free Pack for Live 11: “š“¢š“¾š“¹š“®š“» š“š”€š“®š“¼š“øš“¶š“® š“•š“§”

This pack includes the bespoke Effect Racks from the š“¢š“¾š“¹š“®š“» š“š”€š“®š“¼š“øš“¶š“® š“¢š“øš“¾š“·š“­š“¼ retro keyboard instrument pack for Ableton Live i released in collaboration with Brian Funk (but not the instruments), updated for Live 11.

As usual, care is taken to map parameter values cleverly and gainstage things sensibly so that these racks are highly usable in many situations. I also tried to come up with unique signal processing chains leading to interesting results, like š““š“»š“¾š“·š““ š“•š“»š“²š“®š“·š“­š“¼ sounding like your inebriated companions trying to sing along with you very badly ā€” or like š“£š“±š“»š“Ŗš“¼š“±š“®š“» giving a one-knob guitar distortion that scales from subtle overdrive to brutal metal fuzz ā€” or like š“”š“²š“·š“°š“²š“·š“° š“”š“Ŗš“»š“¼  emulating… your ears ringing (perhaps to be used for film sound design) ā€” or like š“¢š“±š“®š“¹š“«š“Ŗš“·š“­ š“”š“²š“¼š“®š“» performing the auditory illusion of constantly increasing pitch.

(example device info)

Remember that you can hover your mouse over device headers and macro controls to learn about what they do.
Don’t fly blind! Or say screw it and go crazy with the random button. I’m not your parental unit.

^click to grab š“¢š“¾š“¹š“®š“» š“š”€š“®š“¼š“øš“¶š“® š“•š“§ for free^
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Super Awesome Sounds

We’ve got a new pack for you, Super Awesome Sounds, featuring samples of the Casio SA-20 Keyboard. This was my first instrument as a kid and thus has a very nostalgic place in my heart, so i recently re-acquired one and went nuts sampling its 100 patches and making instrument and drum racks for ableton live out of them (plus audio effect racks inspired by them), using the amalgamation of my accumulated knowledge over the years to create the most refined PerforModule instrument pack to date.

The SA-20

Since it seemed to fit nicely with his existing collection which includes quite a lot of 80s- and 90s-esque sensibilities, i’ve teamed up with Brian Funk to release the pack. We talked about it as well as various other random topics on his show, the Music Production Podcast. Many thanks to Mr. Funk for having me on, always an interesting and insightful time.

There is a free version of the pack as well as the full version linked below, which can be currently had for just $6 by joining Brian’s Music Production Club this month (along with a bunch of other cool stuff). That’s a sweet deal! The MPC is a great way to acquire a constant influx of goodies into your inbox every month for a very accessible sum, so that even poor, cheap bastards like me can afford it. It’s rad! The price for Super Awesome Sounds is otherwise $15, itself a tubular deal considering the vast assortment of wonderful gadgetry it contains within.



Click to check it out at Brian Funk’s site.


Read ON FOR NERDY TECH DETAILS…

“Bussification”

The newest sale pack is here: “Bussification”. It consists of channel strip racks designed for placement on groups of tracks, auxiliary tracks, and on the master buss during mixing. Each macro control for each is specifically restrainedĀ in minimum and maximum ranges to exemplify the relevant characteristics of different types of instruments.

Group Busses
By grouping similar instruments in a mix and placing different Bussification racks onto them, each is given a distinct frequency character “home”, leading to a clearer and more vibrant overall mix when applied carefully. For each buss, decide upon a frequency to enhance, in particular, to help it stand out. You canĀ sculpt the brightness and darkness to fine-tune the resultant tone, remove unnecessary frequencies with “tauten”, and infuse parallel saturation. There is a “juice” control which determines overall intensity of various parameters, parallel saturation calibrated uniquely for each buss type, and finally a knobĀ for natural-sounding, sophisticatedĀ level automation which works by balancingĀ various internal parameters.

Auxiliary Busses
Set up two returnĀ channels (CMD/CTRL-ALT-T), one for “Dirt” and one for “Space”. Solo themĀ and send just enough of each channel in the mix to it to be able to barely hear. Use “Dirt” to add a bit of edgy presence for a less muddy mix. Use “Space” to emulate a nice room tone, helping to glue all elements together and cohesify punchiness. After balancing all track sends, unsolo the return tracks, reduce their levels to minimum, and slowly introduce them into the overall mix for added vibe and color. A next-level trick is to automate those levels to introduce more dirt and space during different song sections.

Master Busses
Place one of these on the master buss to subtly alter the overall character from digital neutrality to match the media of choice.Ā These each have different controls. “CD” is for general-purpose, modern pre-mastering with an emphasis on the solidity of bass and the clarity of high frequencies. “Vinyl Record” adds in custom emulations of turntable rumble, stylus quality, and surfaceĀ grime, also with RIAA pre- or post-equalization. “Cassette Tape” is equipped withĀ a very nifty tape hiss generator which creates the hiss based on the original material as well as nonlinear subtle sub and air contour distortion.

Grab “Bussification” over at isotonik studios. Available now!

ā†‘ click on that ā†‘

Over 420 free effect racks for free VST plugins… WHAT

EaReckon VST Rack.PNG
Due to an increasing upcoming workload, we’ve decided to release the freeVST racks all at once, instead of in monthly batches as originally planned. That’s over four-hundred and twenty individual racks now available! Talk about an expanded toolkit.

These are “default/template” audio effect racks for many different plugins which are available publicly for free in 64-bit. You simply load any of these Ableton racks, and it loads its corresponding plugin (assuming it’s installed). Each rack includesĀ help textĀ which will be shown when hovering overĀ macro controls.

Most of the plugins we haveĀ racks available forĀ have 32-bit and mac versions as well; however,Ā some are 64-bit or windows-only.Ā Mac-only and AU plugin racks are planned in the future.Ā FreeVST racks here will be updated occasionally to reflect developerĀ updates. If youĀ knowĀ of a free vst developer we missed or encounter any issues, please leave a comment.

ABLETON LIVE 9.6 required (Intro, Suite, or Standard).
Yes, you can even use all of these racks with Live 9 Intro!

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New Packs

Guitaritis
guitaritis
A deluxe suite including combo amp racks making the utmost of Live’s built-in Amp and Cabinet devices, “Stomper” effects designed like guitar pedals and guitar Chord presets.
Stuff it comes with…

Combamps a whole bunch (30) of combo amps which are crafted to optimize Ableton Live’s built-in Amp & Cabinet devices to their utmost. These racks make it much easier to dial in your sound (combination of preamp drive, tone, envelope settings, biasing, and gain structure) without having to constantly adjust the output level to match as well. They also optimize your timbre selection options by providing many “dual” and even three “triple” racks, which combine and balance the tone of multiple amps. In testing, these multi-combamps have beenĀ much-appreciatedĀ for an expanded range of unique amp flavors, as you now basically have 30 unique amp models, instead of 6.Ā All combampsĀ have beenĀ gain-staged at multiple points in the signal chainĀ using both Peak and LU matching with both “Strat”and “Les Paul” styles, as well as bass electric guitars. The dual & triple combamps are gainstaged with a system resulting in relatively balanced levels at all gain settings when using wide panning (so that one amp is not way louder on one side than the other one).Ā SinceĀ every guitar has its own tone & envelope character, these values are guaranteed to be imperfect, but it should result in you only needing to make miniscule volume adjustments to fine-tune your ultimate sound.
Post Amp Compressor a simple compressor with settings calibrated ideally for taming an amp output’s transients.
Guitar ChordsĀ 35 presets for Chord based on actual human guitar fingerings.
Stompers 18 racks set up like guitar pedals, designed for use with aĀ CombampĀ akin to a physicalĀ guitar routing setup.Ā Ā If you have a midi foot controller you can use them exactly as such.Ā Includes…
Booster
Chomper
Comper

Dister
Dualay
Flonger
Gater
Glitcher
Phozzer
PitchDownDelay
PitchUpDelay
Smevel
Somber
Sproing
Swamper
Toner
Tremotary
Whamper

Groovification 2
groovenose
A robust collection of groove files which implement rhythmic “chop” effects in quarter, eighth, and sixteenth-note patterns.
Stuff it comes with…

Chopper Grooves 302 of them! Drop a Chopper Groove onto an audio OR a MIDI part, make sure your global groove amount is up, and hear it do its thing. Drop differentĀ Chopper GroovesĀ onto different tracks… then when you turn global groove amount up… they all start chopping in their own way.

Harmonicality
harmo
Audio effect and MIDI racks designed for enhancing and manipulating harmonics by various methods.
Stuff it comes with…

Harmonic Colorizer enhance harmonics using various different methods. By using different amounts of each knob, you can set up your own unique boostĀ texture toĀ help a part stand out against its various songĀ elements, or use it to subliminally add a particular color toĀ a submix or mix.
Overtone EQ (3 versions) EQ racks set up to select a target frequency, and then manipulate the harmonics based on that frequency. TheĀ Even & Odd version allows separate control of even & odd harmonics. TheĀ Even vs OddĀ will boost Even or OddĀ and attenuate the other (useful for hearing the difference between those types ofĀ harmonics).Ā TheĀ Sculptor version is usefulĀ for manipulating each harmonic interval individually.
Undertone EQ (3 versions) just like theĀ Overtone EQs, but these manipulateĀ lower harmonics instead (not as common of an operation). They include the same 3 versions.
Harmonic Chord Presets these will add in MIDI notes based on harmonic intervals. Simple, but useful. IncludesĀ 2nd throughĀ 4th harmonics which each add only 1 note and alsoĀ Coarse,Ā Perfect, andĀ Undertone versions which each add multiple harmonics.
Harmonics Extender (3 versions) MIDI racks which can be used to set (& automate) the amount of added harmonics. IncludesĀ Coarse,Ā Perfect, andĀ Undertone versions.

Amplitude Operands
ampop
Utility presets allowing to divide or multiply level according to Sound Pressure Level, Acoustic Intensity Energy, and Perceived Loudness Sensation.
Stuff it comes with…

Sound Intensity by Energy (Utility Presets)
Sound Loudness by SensationĀ (Utility Presets)
Sound Pressure by VoltageĀ (Utility Presets)
divide or multipy audio level by either “SPL”, “SIL”, or “Volume”. This is technical stuff. Check outĀ http://www.sengpielaudio.com/calculator-soundlevel.htm for more info. Basically…
-use SPL (voltage)Ā division when you want to sum parts perfectly (i.e. 5 copies of something each divided by 5 SPL and recombined will equal the exact level of the original)
use SIL (energy)Ā forĀ acoustic energy calculations. Like, let’s say you’ve got a really small sound, like a pin drop. Multiply it by 100 SIL to estimate the level provided by 100 pins dropping at the same time.
use Volume (loudness) for the human perception of level.
So, to make something seem twice as loud, subjectively, multiply it by 2 Volume.
There are also included some racks to choose/automate which multiplier/divisor to use:
SPL Divisor

SPLĀ Multiplier

Volume Divisor
Volume Multiplier

Note Range Setters
noterangemash
An assortment of midi racks, primarily for composers, which filter incoming notes according to standard instrument & vocal ranges, plus tools for making custom note ranges.
Stuff it comes with…

Note Range Setter (Absolute)Ā define a playing rangeĀ by setting the lowest and highest allowable notes
Note Range Setter (Relative) define a playing range according to distance from a root note
Note Range BlockerĀ (Relative)
setĀ a sub-range of notes to block from being played within a range

IncludesĀ individualĀ MIDIĀ racks for a vast range of classical and folk instruments, as well as standard vocal ranges:
Brass
36 instrument ranges
ExoticĀ 2 instrument ranges
Guitar & Plucked 58 instrument ranges
Mallets 8 instrument ranges
Percussive 5 instrument ranges
Piano & Keys 14 instrument ranges
Strings 15 instrument ranges
VoicesĀ 35 vocal ranges
Winds 88 instrument ranges
SimplyĀ set a note range before a MIDI instrument to allowĀ it to only play notes within that range.

NEW Sale Packs: “One Knob Wonders”, “Advanced Splytterz”

Two new premium packs for Ableton Live have been released, afterĀ extensiveĀ testing periods.
These are some of the most robust and practical stuff we’ve created yet!
All Premium PerforModule packs are self-installing, meaning that you simply drag them into Live and all the devices will now be in your library, categorized.

okw 1“One Knob Wonders”
Includes 64 different single-knob effects, each designed for a specific purpose.
They range from highly practical mixing tools to wacky, nifty performance tricks.
<- Click the link for more details.

Here’s a highlightĀ of some my favorites from the set…
Noisify: adds source-reactive noise and degrades signal
FonePhilter:Ā retro telephone tone with signal overdrive
DownFilter Dirty: performance sweep utilizing Live’sĀ new analog filter functionality
GrainPitch Up: crude realtime pitch shifter
Pianosator: “piano reverb” of chromatic resonances
BassCream: velvety bass guitar process based on a classicĀ pro studio workflow
Shredder:Ā scorching tone for hard rock/heavy metal lead guitar, easy-peasy
Characterizer: adds mid-rangeĀ richness and warmth
De-Essify: de-esser which worksĀ like magic
JuiceSnapper: aux buss finalizer / transient enhancer
SuperUltraMega: Makes. Stuff. Louder.
Chube: chorus to sound like going through a metal tube
Breepitate: glitchy fun
BrownLoop: loop and shift a clipĀ down to half speed
SeaShore: transform any audio into a pleasing surf wave
PongFreez: more glitchy fun
TapeFlange: emulates splitting the feed into an extra tape machine

Splytterz Icon
“Advanced Splytterz”
Includes template racks used for splitting up any audio source into multiple chains by various methods.
<- Click the link for more details.

Useful for when you want to do things like
-apply different effects to different frequency ranges
-apply different effects to the left and right sides of a stereo file
-apply effects to just the mid or side channels for super easy m/s processing
-different effects chains which alternate based on a time interval
-effects applied separately to above and below a transient threshold
-etc…
It also includes three “tri” devices pre-loaded with effects and a “behind the back panner” for an interesting phase-shift panning technique.

~ALSO~

drumhead smTelling you about the “Drum Enhancerz” Ableton Live pack by PerforModule.

<- Access the sale page by clicking on the drum head.

It includes racks which are calibrated for sculpting of specific drum elements. Included are…

Enhance Cymbals
Enhance Kicks
Enhance Overheads
Enhance Snares
Enhance Toms

Each rack includes 8 macro controls for sculpting your drum sounds with ease.
A few of the capabilities are…
-plush control for smooth cymbals
-smack control to add top attack to kicks
-smash: go-to overhead compression
-pitch-matched resonance for boomy toms

Vinyl Snackler

 

NEW free pack available via AfroDJMac: Vinyl Snackler
“Instrument with 128 Unique Analog Vinyl Noise Loop Samples.”

This is a sampler instrument which is designed to play a loop of background vinyl noise which you can select from 128 unique samples, each with their own character. Some of the samples are primarily background hiss, but some also have pops, clicks, and other artifacts which can be useful as percussion elements. Big thanks to the one and only AfroDJMac for hosting this device.
afrodjmac vinyl snackler
(It’s free! Go grab it!!)

PS…. if you are not already a member of the ADM Music Production Club, then you are missing out on a crazy-affordable source of insanely cool, high-quality, monthly awesome stuff delivered to your face. If you are interested in steadily building up your ableton library full of production and performance assets to be able to more quickly dive in to making your own bizarre unique sounds and developing your own twisted techniques, this is one of the most practical possible methods you can consider, especially if you’re a fan of the more odd and innovative side of things (which, if you’re reading this here now, i’m guessing you probably are).

Free LANDR “Tone Sculptors” Ableton Live pack + other nifty stuff

I recently helped tweak and finalize a set of free audio effect racks in collaboration with online mastering serviceĀ LANDR.
These are three effect racks suited for quick and easy “tone sculpting” of parts which are centered on low, mid, or high frequency ranges.

Check out the story about it and find download links here:Ā www.ableton.com/en/blog/free-landr-tone-sculptors/
tone sculptors ableton

If you’ve never used LANDR, i highly recommend it as a way to test your mixes. Finish a mix and send it off to LANDR… listen to the master they send back to you, hear problems more clearly, and then go back to your mix and fix. It’s also a great way to get a new track ready for live performance before it has been sent off for professional mastering or officially released.

Also, check out the newĀ ARCHIPEL ELEMENTSĀ live pack, with drumĀ racks featuring juicy recordedĀ samples ranging in the 4 elements – earth, water, air and fire. Great materialĀ for sound design and experimental composition.

archipel elements

Enjoy!