The Hidden Superpower of Ableton Live: Simpler

If you have just started producing with Ableton Live or you want to improve your workflow, you will have realised that the software offers lots of tools. But the truth is you don't need to know everything right away. There are some devices that, more than others, become reference points in the creative processtools that you learn to use and will always come back to in your productions.

I'm talking about those devices that help you shaping sound and giving identity to your trackswithout getting lost in a thousand technicalities.

Essential Tools

Simpler → Perfect for working with samples in a creative and customised way.
Drum Rack → To build a customised drum kit and programme dynamic grooves.
Operator and Wavetable → To create uncomplicated synthetic sounds.
Audio effects (EQ, compressors, delays, reverbs) → To give character and balance to the mix.

These instruments are the basis for creating and developing your tracksand the good thing is that complement each other in an incredible way.

Let's start with Simplerwhich allows you to take any sound and turn it into a playable instrumentgiving you full control over rhythm, texture and groove.

Why Start with Simpler?

If you started producing with Ableton Live, you probably spent hours on scrolling loop librarieslooking for sounds that fit together well. It's something I've done myself: find an interesting groove, layer it with other drum loops, maybe add some melodic samples... and then what?

Then you realise that the trace has no real direction.

The more you add elements, the more you lose the thread. You feel that the draft is not evolvingso you try to layer even more, to change loops, to fill every possible space. But the result is that the track ends up having too many ideas and no story.

A music track, just like a good story, needs a beginning, a development and a conclusion. Serve a well-constructed sound narrativewith well-dosed twists and turns and moments of tension.

This is where Simpler comes in

Unlike the audio loopwhich are often inflexible, Simpler gives you full control of the sound: you can modify it, transform it, adapt it to your creative idea instead of letting the sample impose its direction on the track.

With Simpler, a single sound can become a dynamic element evolving with the song, rather than a static part that risks weighing down the mix.

The key point?

Instead of relying on loops to fill your track, learn to sculpt soundsjust as a writer works on words to construct a story coherent and engaging.

Now let's see how best to use it in its three main modes.

One-Shot Mode: Percussive Sounds and Creativity in Long Samples

The mode One-Shot of Simpler is designed for percussive and short soundsas a kick, a clap or a hi-hat. It is perfect for champions who have to play always the same waywithout depending on the duration of the MIDI note activating them.

Think of a live context, where you must not pay too much attention to the duration of the MIDI notebut it is enough for you press a button on the controller to trigger the sample without sudden truncation, e.g. for the execution of vocal chop, risers o transition effects

Exercise: Creating a Custom Kick without Cash Samples

What if we wanted to create a kick without using a drum sample? No problem! We can make a bass sound in a kick with Simpler in One-Shot.

1️⃣ Upload a bass sample (choose one with few modulations and an almost immediate attack).
2️⃣ Select One-Shot mode and sets Trigger.
3️⃣ Understand the difference between Trigger and Gate:
– Trigger: The sample is played to the end, regardless of the duration of the MIDI note.
– Gate: The sample stops when the MIDI note ends, so you can control its duration directly in the MIDI clip.
- Having chosen Trigger we will set the length of our sample by acting on the end-of-reading markers - if instead we choose to try with Gate, the duration of our kick will depend on the length of the midi note that triggers it)
4️⃣ Write a MIDI pattern with the notes that will define the rhythmic pattern of the kick.
- By default, the original sample, as you pre-listened to it (without pitch variations), is assigned on the Central C3.

NB: If you experience unwanted clicks on playback

🔍 Zoom in on the waveform and regulates the start and end reading markers.
Ensure that the beginning/end of the sound coincides with a point at which the waveform intersects the horizontal axis (zero-crossing point).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

⚠️ Whether the start/end point is in the middle of an ascending or descending curve, you might get an annoying "click".

Solution: Just move the marker until zero crossing point to eliminate the unwanted effect.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

● In these two screenshots we have manually moved the end-of-reading marker, but there is also a dedicated key to the automatic identification of the Zero-Crossing.

Where is it? It is positioned at the right of the Trigger/Gate buttons and is called Snap.

Note how, in the figure below, following its activation, the point of Zero-Crossingwhich is the point at which the waveform change from a Yellow to a Grey colouring.

 

Adding Pitch Modulation for a More Impactful Kick

If you are proceeding with these steps, you will probably not be satisfied at all now. Do you keep hearing a bass sound with an attack that sounds flat and unimpressive? Don't give up, it's normal if you use a bass sample to create a kick drum!

The solution? Modulate the pitch!

A well-built kick is not only a powerful low frequency, it also has a well-defined transient. This principle applies to all percussive sounds.

Steps for Adding Pitch Modulation to the Kick

1️⃣ Go to the Controls section of Simpler (by clicking on the tab at the top left).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2️⃣ Activate Pitch Envelope and increases theAmount at about 24-48 semitones (depending on the desired effect).

This further ADSR envelope manages theincrease or decrease of pitch over timethus making it possible to control the accelerations and decelerations of the pitch of your sample.

3️⃣ Regulates Decay to control the speed of the pitch descent.

- In this example, I used a value of 113 msbut the right value varies depending on the sample and personal preference.
- In general, a value between 10-50 ms is ideal for a techno bass drum.

4️⃣ Listen to the resultYou will notice that the kick has a much more defined attack and greater impact in the mix.

Why does this work?

✔️ An initial transient higher in frequency helps the kick to punch better in the mix, especially on playback systems with less bass presence (such as cheap headphones or laptops).

✔️ The rapid descent of the pitch simulates the natural behaviour of a analogue speaker or a classical drum machine.

Indeed, if you look at the waveform of a kick, in most cases you will notice that:
- The initial part of the wave is more high in frequency (green zone)with very close oscillations.
- Subsequently, the wave lengthens, lowering in frequency (red zone) creating the classic deep body of the case.

 

 

Makeup

If you want a even more aggressive attack, try to push the Pitch Envelope until 72 semitonesbut reduce the Decay under 20 ms to avoid an unnatural effect.

Filter Phase: Cleaning or Colouring the Kick

Now that we have a kick with a well-defined transient, we must eliminate unnecessary frequencies and give it more character.

1️⃣ Activate Simpler Filter and choose a Low-Pass o High-Passdepending on the result you want to achieve.

Low-Pass vs High-Pass: Which one to choose?

Low-Pass: useful for eliminating unwanted treble noise and making the kick more rounded.
High-Pass: if the kick is too heavy on the bass and you want to avoid it 'flooding' the mix.

Adjusting the Cutoff

2️⃣ Adjust the Cutoff:
- If the kick sounds too loud or dirty, turn down the Low-Pass around 10-12kHz. (In the example, it was necessary to go down to 1.30 kHz because the Bass sample carries more mid-high frequencies than a classic Kick).
- If the kick is too cumbersome in the sub-frequencies, try cut below 30Hz with a High-Pass.

Emphasising the Kick Body with Resonance

3️⃣ Use Resonance to emphasise the body of the sound:
- A slight value (between 0.5 and 10) helps to strengthen the frequencies around 100-200Hz, where the kick has its 'kick'.

Filter Dynamically with the Filter Envelope

Nota BeneIn my setting, you will notice that the filter is not applied statically, but its action is dynamically adjusted by theFrequency Envelope - Filter Envelope.

The concept behind this is to filter the sample towards the low frequencies only after thepitch envelope completed its task, thus giving me a nice transient.

If you remember, in the pitch envelope I had chosen a Decay time of 113 ms. Only after a few milliseconds will my filter envelope come into play, with a Attack value of 135 msby 'darkening' the sample.

In fact, the filter will close towards the lows, being related to the Filter Envelope with a negative Amount value of -72. (To be clear: a positive vol of Amount would have resulted in an opening of the filter towards higher frequencies, starting from our cutoff value of 1.30 kHz).

Extra Tricks: Choosing the Right Filter in Simpler

Ableton Live offers four types of analogue emulation filters in Simpler, each with a unique sound character. In my case, as illustrated above, I decided to use the Low-Pass PRD for harmonic enrichment and to give my Kick more hardness and density.

Choosing the right filter can radically change the timbre of your kick or any other sound.

PRD (Moog Prodigy Emulation)

Features:
- He adds harmonic saturation and analogue colouring.
- With high resonance it can self-oscillate, generating a louder sound.

Ideal for:
- Vintage and aggressive kicks with analogue warmth.
- Full-bodied, enveloping basslines.
- Sounds that must have presence and character.

OSR (OSCar Synth Filter Emulation)

Features:
- More soft and musical compared to PRD, with more controlled saturation.
- It retains a warm but less aggressive sound.

Ideal for:
- Vocal chops and melodic samples.
- Soft synths and atmospheric pads.
- Percussive sounds with a rounder, less dirty character.

MS2 (Korg MS-20 emulation)

Features:
- Dirtier and more aggressive filter, famous for its acid and distorted character.
- The resonance has a very pronounced curve, creating a distinctive sound.

Ideal for:
- Distorted and brutal kicks, perfect for industrial and hard techno genres.
- Acid bassline and aggressive sounds.
- Experimental effects and distinctive sound textures.

SMP (Sallen-Key Emulation - Vintage Sampler)

Features:
- The most neutral and clean between the analogue filters, with minimal saturation.
- Perfect if you want to filter without colouring the sound.

Ideal for:
- Drums and percussion where you just want to clean up the sound.
- Orchestral instruments and kinematic samples.
- Situations where you do not want to add distortion or saturation.

Why is the filter important?

- It allows cleaning up the soundpreventing the kick from colliding with the bassline.
- It helps to bring out only the useful frequenciesimproving the overall clarity of the mix.
- You can add a slight saturation and harmonic distortion, making the kick richer.
- With high resonance, it generates analogue colouring and a slightly 'self-oscillating' effect.
- It can dirty the sound in a musical way, perfect for techno and dark electronic genres.

Conclusion: From One-Shot to the Discovery of Simpler

We have seen how the One-Shot of Simpler is a powerful tool for working with percussive and non-percussive sounds, transforming them into functional and customised rhythmic elements.

Through the pitch modulation and the strategic filteringwe were able to create a powerful and defined kick without depending on pre-packaged sample packs.

In the next article we will see:
✅ Classic Mode - To play a sample like a synth, with looping and full ADSR envelope.
✅ Slice Mode - To split a loop and play it creatively, ideal for organic grooves and unstructured rhythms.

If you are ready to push your creativity even further, I look forward to seeing you in the next article, where we will discover how to turn a simple sample into a dynamic and fully customisable tool.

Be Advanced.