What’s Coming in Ableton Live 9
It’s been a loooong time since Ableton Live 8 was released – 2 years, 4 months and 9 days to be exact. There was a lot of speculation that Live 9 would be released at this year’s NAMM show, featuring 64 bit support and a range of other new features. Still, there’s been no whisper from Ableton as of yet. So: when is Live 9 really coming, and what can you expect from Live 9?
Bear in mind that the following is purely speculation – although, as a software developer myself, I’m prepared to say that it’s fairly confident speculation.
What We Know
- Before Live 8, Ableton was reasonably efficient at updating Live, almost on a yearly basis. Now it’s getting closer to 3 years without an announcement from Ableton.
- Ableton 8.2 was released however, and while it was a great update, it probably wasn’t the update a lot of people were hoping for. Aside from this, Ableton is only updating Live on a regular basis for bug fixes and small feature additions.
- Ableton Live is missing some great features that it would really benefit from – 64 bit support is the main contender here.
- Ableton’s software team isn’t getting any smaller. While updates and bug fixes do take a massive amount of development time, a couple of updates over 3 years doesn’t match up. Unless the developers are all busy shooting bubbles, that is.
- Ableton said that they’re working on Ableton Live 9.
What Does this Indicate?
Looking at the facts above, I’d say they conform pretty well to the idea that Ableton Live 9 is not just an update – rather, it’s being completely rewritten. Re-writes most definitely take longer than an upgrade does to develop – hence the long wait until Live 9, and continued support/updates for Live 8.
Why would Ableton re-write Live? For a start, additional features may require re-writing large portions of Live anyway. Live 8 also has a bad reputation for crashing at times – something that only a major software restructure may fix. Finally, a re-write would give Ableton the chance to re-imagine what Live could be: how it works, what platforms it’s made for, a complete interface overhaul etc. This isn’t too dissimilar to what’s been done by Apple with the new Final Cut Pro X – a complete retake on how video editing software should work.
Ableton wouldn’t be the only company of late to re-write software from scratch. As mentioned before, Apple just released Final Cut Pro X – a re-write of Final Cut Pro. They’re also rumored to be working on a re-write of Logic Pro and iWork. Looking at Final Cut Pro X, we can speculate on what may be in Ableton Live 9. Unfortunately, complete re-writes don’t always mean perfect software, especially at first. Take Final Cut Pro X for example:
What can we Expect?
- A complete re-write of Live, or at least a re-write of many major components.
- Any major, currently lacking features such as 64 bit support will be included.
- Live wouldn’t be re-written without the future in mind. Whether that means cloud storage/sharing support, a touch interface, Windows 8 or iOS support, we don’t know.
- Final Cut Pro X was not received very well by many critics, mainly due to bugs, speed and lack of support for old features. This may be the case with Ableton Live 9 – hopefully not – however, a complete re-write is not likely to be perfect straight of the bag.
So: a complete re-write of Live, with at least some big changes is on the table. How drastic these changes are is yet to be seen. Personally, I’m hoping for a complete redesign of how audio software should work – even if this makes for a buggy and feature lacking initial release, as per Final Cut Pro X.
Of course, all the above is pure speculation – so if you don’t agree, then say so! That’s what the comments below are for.
Great write-up. Always love speculating about the next release of Live.
The one thing I’m really hoping for is multi-screen support. I’d love to be able to drag the mixer onto another screen while arranging in another. Tabbing between the Session and Arrangement isn’t so horribly bad, but it would make for easier mixing sessions.
Definitely – multi-screen support is one of the things I’m hoping will be a priority on the feature list. At the moment the only use I’ve really got from my second screen is plugin windows, helpful at times but the addition of a mixer would be great!
On a related note, proper fullscreen mode support for OSX Lion would also be a great feature IMO. The current implementation isn’t too bad, but it’s not as nice as native support would be.
Why do you need to tab between the two windows in live? You can do everything from the arrange window without the need to even see the mixer. On the right of the tracks you get, volume, pan etc, I never feel the need to go to the mixer window anymore.
live’s session view is what sets it apart from linear DAW’s. the ability to be able to reference ideas is what makes it so valuable not only as a daw but also as a songwriting tool….if i get your idea right you’re of the opine that you you only want to use the linear view…the arrangement view…..working both with live and nuendo i find it so liberating to have this in ableton and would hope they continue to have in expanded format and perhaps better gui in the future.
Wow, I really don’t agree. I never use the arranger view, I write ALL my music in the session view :)
In my opinion the session view and the insert chain pane are the two main strong points compared to other DAW:s.
How can it be possible to write well structured tracks in teh session view?
That’s just silly. And completely near-sighted. You are missing out on a whole different and complementing side of Live.
I bet it feels good to not be starving like some child somewhere.
I also would have to disagree. Without the session view I would have no use for ableton live as whole. Or my APC40 for that matter! The only thing I would really hope for out of live 9 would be an expansion to the preset live instruments (not because the existing aren’t good enough but because I miss being surprised by a sound that i hadn’t yet heard) and an improved interface and graphics. A whole new approach to sound engineering would defeat all my hard spend time getting to know this amazing program. Thats just my two cents.
Good stuff mate. I think everything you’re saying is very reasonable, so much so that I’ve reconsidered buying 8 or not. Do you think a student discount for 8 would be worthwhile right before 9 or is it better to wait?
That’s pretty hard to say – and once again, I’m going to refer to Final Cut Pro X.
I mentioned the rough start FCPX has had, and there’s definitely a lot of things that need ironing out. However: I actually changed over to FCPX, and I think it’s great. Don’t get me wrong, everything the critics have said about it is true.
But, even for all of its rough edges, it suits me better – for the small amount of semi-proffesional editing that I do, it’s a lot more intuitive and supports some great features that make some things – e.g. editing with proxy video – a breeze. The lower price point is a bonus too.
For some people, the rough edges are show stopping – while for others, the new features and ease of use more than make up for it. Look at the ratings on the App Store for FCPX – there are a whole lot of one star reviews, but also a whole lot of 5 star reviews.
So, it really depends on whether new features in Live 9 are perfect for what you want, and enough so for you to forgive any rough edges. Hard to say until Live 9 is actually announced/released – until then, it makes your decision a bit of a gamble!
Now it’s getting closer to 3 years without an announcement from Ableton
Nope. Live 8 was introduced at NAMM in January 2009.
Erm, it’s Jan 2012 now Babbo, minus 3 years and you’re back in Jan 2009?
You’re maths are incorrect dude!
Hey look at me – I can’t count! ;-/
(Sorry.)
any info about release date yet<<<<<<<<<<<<<<???
2013?
Qx/2012?
or even this year :D !?
I really hope they include some sort of awesome organizational tool. Easy tagging/searching or something…
Ableton’s perfect. So powerful, so fast. There really is no need for a huge update. Just give us timestretching within Simpler, thats all. Anything else and it will start to get over-complicated and turn into Logic..
*vomits*
Why do everyone care about 64-bit?
The sequencer needs a complete overhaul in my opinion, it really lacks compared to Cubase/Logic/Reason, etc.
People want 64-bit so they can use their RAM.
You can use more RAM on 32bit DAW if you introduce readyboost on win 7. You can use a flash drive as virtual RAM that gets counted separately from the limitations of 32bit. So the limits can be lifted without the need for 64bit.
You can even wash our face with your tongue, like cats do. Why do one need a bathroom?
But how many of the Ableton users load up projects that take up more than 4 GB? Or 3 GB or whatever Windows allows you to use.
Single trillian patch can alone take 4 GB. JBridge helps, but i wish it would work more stable.
Well a 25% off all products just before NAMM is about to kick might indicate the long, long wait is over.
64-bit support must be a must, but only if that’s the reason why my top-spec iMac still has Ableton crashing every so often. Especially when you throw in big VSTs/AU’s like Maschine.
Highly unlikely that Ableton is re-writing Live from scratch. If they are, they are making the “single worst strategic mistake that any software company can make”… read here if you need convincing on that topic:
http://www.joelonsoftware.com/articles/fog0000000069.html
This is bang on. They’re hemmed in by legacy code. They haven’t done anything in the touch market and that seems like a perfect match, so they’re probably rewriting and regrouping right now.
I’ve moved to Studio One because I’m fed up of waiting for ableton to catch up. Although running both together is great, givers the best of both worlds.However, stupidly, you can only have Studio One as a master! I thought Rewire could be done in an order?!
Proper support for the midi spec is surely a good idea? Why deny those with midi gear the famous Ableton workflow? RPN/NRPN and Sysex without embarking on the Max For Live route sounds like a no-brainer reason for me to buy that upgrade…
Rewrites are a good idea to simplify core stuff.. Code smells like crashes can be fixed without wholesale rewrites. Rewrites do not require redesigns – it is easier to rewrite something and maintain existing behaviour than it is to rewrite and introduce new behaviour at the same time, because it is easier to test. Yet, the marketing department will want something they can sell, so redesigns are to be expected. If those redesigns add bloat to the interface, then no thank you! I want at least another 12 months out of my desktop PC before I upgrade! Any rewrite should reduce system requirements!
Did we ever think that Propellerheads would produce Record, Reason 5 and Reason 6 in the lifetime of Live 8?
Whatever else, Live 9 will be interesting!
I pray they add a full fledged, normal, arranger. A good looking one :)
They are probably working alongside their ‘rewire’ partners at Avid to ensure ‘full’ 64bit compatibilty when Pro Tools 11 comes out.
I wouldn’t be surprised if those releases coincide with each other…
then that might be a while before pro tools 11 is coming out. I thought that was no until at least next year because of all the AAX and 64 bit issues
Most likely, i could be wrong though! Avid better not rush things i dont wanna have to wait until PT12 lol.
I’m still using 7 and kind of hesitate to snag 8 now if 9 is near. But how about adding a full featured sample editor that’s synched to the beats and bars? Sample editing in Sonar is so easy compared to using a 2nd party editor with Live. Or maybe I’m just missing an obvious solution?
i totally agree with you, live needs a “built in” sample editor
I still think we are a ways off from live 9. I think they are going to wait and see what bitwig has going on. If bitwig is a failure then they have less pressure to worry about.
Either way I bet we don’t see a beta for live 9 until the summer.
I promise that no matter when live 9 comes out I will be waiting at least a year before upgrading. I’m guessing that many live 8 users feel the same way (if you perform live you can’t risk problems)
Maybe it’s just my lack of experience with Ableton (going on a year now) but I have a seriously hard time MIDI mapping things. A lot of times I can actually get my controller, an Akai MPK49 to control the parameter I tell it to but a lot of times it has its own ideas and it NEVER shows up in the MIDI map section. Maybe it’s just because my controller has its own ideas and it’s not such a blank slate for Ableton to work with. I have no idea.
Assuming its Ableton’s fault, I’d like to see the channel strips as well as ability to control VSTs/AUs along with the built-in effects. It seems like its one or the other, without simultaneous control.
The only two other suggestions I had other than the ones already mentioned are a MIDI clock to work with two instances or consoles running Live. Say you’re Justice and you want perfect sync to your live show, you don’t have to rely on an external MIDI clock. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I believe Ableton’s clock is really only meant for other production software like Traktor, Serato, and Pro Tools, not another instance of Live. Other than the MIDI clock, they need to give you the ability to rename external audio inputs (guitar, mic, synth, etc) not just their tracks. Just my $0.02.
I wouldn’t be surprised if its the MPK49. I had one that suddenly started acting very strange. I’d be trying to edit a slider and it would switch itself to a knob setting etc etc. Really crazy stuff. Finally it just became completely useless except for note on note off messages.
Supposedly there was a whole year of production that had faulty chips and ic’s.
I’m beginning to wonder if Ableton is reading what the people want on pages like this one. For all we know, they’re taking ideas from the customer. Eh, all I can say is I hope you’re right, a overall GUI update would be nice as well. The current one looks like it’s’ from the 90′s. Something a little more modern like Logic would make the software overall more enjoyable to use.
I really love how Ableton looks, professionals don’t need the “Good Looking cake” it looks like its from 90s and that’s one of the best thing I like about it, a slide change is what they should look for in abletons interface
Yeah, agree! The design is one of the main reasons I use Ableton for DJing instead of Traktor that looks like a mess. BUT, I would love it if Ableton would give some attention to the peeps DJing with the software… better, more complete midi-mapping (for example, being able to scroll the master tempo in half BPMs), 2 different master tempos for switching between tempos in your set, and scrolling through non-playing audio clips are some feats that would be very, very welcome on my part.
I’ve been using Ableton since 2004 and have seen it come a long way…its safe to say that I actually love ableton as a DAW and as an instrument. However, theres always room for improvement so here is my wishlist of changes I’d like to see happen in Ableton 9.
- MP3 Rendering (this is pretty much essential)
- Slide Notes (similar to FL studios)
- Shortcut for copy time (currently only Cut and Duplicate time?)
- Shortcut for freeze/flatten track. (not a big deal really, but hey..)
- The ability to ‘group’ groups would be very useful for stemming.
- Export option to render ‘all groups’ or even simple ‘checkbox’ list.
- Macro options: Set min/max/inverted values for macros (like MIDI)
- Second monitor support for utilizing full mixer whilst arranging.
- 64bit support (already in development no doubt).
So that’s my wishlist. There is probably a few other things that I could think of but those are the ones that keep me awake at night lol. I really hope someone from Ableton reads through this page and picks up some ideas for v9 and I can sleep better at nights, knowing I can render to MP3 and make crazy sounds with customized macros!
Peace!
-Eartrash
http://youtube.com/eartrash
http://howtoableton.com
I feel ya those are some things I would really like added. I know some of the design is catered to apple but I want more cut and paste features in the windows environment. I know a can use KB shortcuts or from the top file options to do this b, I rather just right click and get it over with.
I used FL studio from 2004 to 2007. When I went to Ableton 6.0.3. I loved the Layout and stability @ the time so I never went back to FL. Fl studio would crash and I would loose a ton of work which was annoying. Live had the restore feature aw what a beauty.
I would also like to Pull the arrangement view into a separate pane from session. I thought live had this feature but I couldn’t figure it out.
“Personally, I’m hoping for a complete redesign of how audio software should work – even if this makes for a buggy and feature lacking initial release, as per Final Cut Pro X.”
WHY???
If the existing design works, what is the point of redesigning it with something that doesn’t work and is broken and has fewer features?
The author of this article is clearly a moron.
I hear what your’e saying. But I’m sticking to what I said:
Just because something works fine doesn’t mean there isn’t a better way to do it. Even if the first iteration of the ‘newer’ product might be buggy and lacking (…or may not be depending on development time etc) – several iterations later with improvements added, it may stand head and shoulders over the rest of the competition.
Cellphones worked fine, and then Apple invented the iPhone. This might be a bad example, because pretty much from day one it was better than everything else. But the gist of what I’m trying to say is that I’d prefer a radical innovation in audio software as opposed to an incremental innovation.
Ya hopefully Ableton live 9 is coming out soon and also, hope it includes the basic features such as automation curve, reverse polarity.
Completely agree!! If they’re going to re-write the code then Automation Curves HAVE to be in there!
Plus split window support so you can have Mixer on one screen and Arrangement view on the other, or at least side by side on the same screen.
just give me 64bit. still on live 7 and will be until then
I hope that we get some mastering tools that Logic has. IE; When we red line in Ableton its not just red,I hope its a acutal volume reading. This way I dont have to send everything to Logic or Ozone/Isotope… Getting excited!!!
Thanks for the article and hopefully we all get a little bit of what we’re expecting. Just a re-write is going to be great.
I hope there will be some of the similar features that Bitwig are coming with in their “live replica”.
Multi-track notation layers with switches to manage what layers are active.
Multi project support and network projecting…
There are so many things that could be added in Live. Not all that’s too necessary, but some would be pretty sweet.
Yeah, this is well written. It makes sense. Here’s the thing, this was written in 2011! It is halfway through 2012 and STILL no news on the Live 9 release. I am calling shenanagins. I’m getting pissed and about to go to Logic 9 and learn a new DAW all together. :(
ableton live 9 is coming the early months of 2013 trustme
I hope they add the ability to generate MTC not only read. Also would be good to have more grouping features, like editing groups as in pro tools. Customizable quick keys would be nice. and the ability to cascade i/o’s with a keystroke…
Well, now you know what’s coming.
Ableton 8 is already very complete,powerfull and stable. ok maybe 64bit would make a difference, i dont know. Im using an older quadcore Q9550 processor and working at 88 khz with a 6ms latency. Im using very demanding Plugins, simultaniusly. No latency problems at all. i got everything i need. The one thing that is most important is the creativity of a human being. And as far as i can say, in this massive digital world it is an challenge to keep it simple. Why always ask for more, or better or faster??? It wont give you better music. I can understand Ableton for not rushing anything.
It’d be great to have a true export feature to open files in Logic or PT
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