ANNOUNCING LIVE 4

[seraph]

Today, Ableton proudly presents Live 4, Ableton´s most significant
release to date. Live 4 extends Live´s real-time music-making approach
to the complete range of today´s music-production techniques.

In Live 4, you will find a complete and inspiring approach to MIDI
sequencing, pattern recording, drag-and-drop sampling, virtual
instruments and MIDI hardware support. Ableton has also made
substantial extensions and enhancements to existing functionality,
including such features as swing/groove for audio and MIDI clips, a
powerful new channel-routing scheme, simplified recording, sample
reverse, and several exciting new creative options for the Session View.

In creating Live 4, we faced the challenge of adding our most requested
features, while keeping Live simple, solid and inspiring to use. The
new functionality simultaneously widens Live´s scope and strengthens the
qualities that make the program stand out. We would like to express our
deep gratitude to you, the Live users who urged us to make this happen,
and to make it happen in the right way.


New Live 4 Features include:
----------------------------

MIDI Tracks, Effects and Instruments.

MIDI sequencing in Live has been designed to get the user started within
seconds. Software instruments appear in Live's built-in Browser.
Dragging an instrument from the Browser into the mixer creates a MIDI
track containing that instrument, ready to play and record. MIDI
effects and audio effects can instantly be inserted into the same track
by dragging, with no need for menus or abstract routing concepts. The
signal flow within the track is intuitively set up by drag and drop.
The Track View provides instant access to all instrument and effects
controls.

Live 4 also includes the 'Simpler' sampling instrument, which allows for
instant sampling, polyphonic playback and creative exploration of any
sound dragged into its display. 'Impulse' is a polyphonic percussion
sampler with drag-and-drop sample import and powerful and innovative
sound-shaping controls. In addition, Live hosts any VST or Audio Units
(Mac OS X only) plug-in instruments. MIDI tracks with no software
instrument can deliver MIDI to external hardware synthesizers, ReWire
client programs or other MIDI tracks in Live. Live 4 also includes 5
MIDI effects. The `Scale' effect, for instance, forces incoming notes
onto a chosen musical scale and fits well with 'Random,' which creates
random deviations in note pitch.


MIDI Clips

MIDI clips are created by recording or by dragging in Standard MIDI
files from Live's Browser. Notes can be viewed, created and edited in
the Clip View's Note Editor. When Draw Mode is engaged, the Note Editor
behaves like a drum-pattern interface, where a pattern step is set or
cleared by a single click, and flams are created by dragging across
multiple steps. Unlike a static drum grid or step sequencer, Live's
flexible grid allows the user to change the step resolution at any time.

MIDI clips, like audio clips, have their own loop settings.
MIDI-controller movements are represented as clip envelopes, which can
be unlocked from the notes to create independent movements. The same
real-time options apply to MIDI clips as they do to audio clips: MIDI
clips can be launched at any time, with real-time quantization
preventing rhythmical error. MIDI clips can be assigned to computer
keys or MIDI-note ranges for jamming with musical phrases. MIDI clips
can also be exported from Live as Standard MIDI files.


MIDI Recording and Patterns

Patterns can be built up on the fly by overdubbing MIDI onto clips while
they play in a loop. In conjunction with the new 'Impulse'
percussion-sampling instrument, Live offers the options for spontaneous
creation that are normally associated with hardware groove boxes. You
can also One can also use the computer keyboard to play Impulse´s drum
samples and create grooves from the laptop alone. Standard linear MIDI
recording and overdubbing are available in the Arrangement View.


Flexible Routing

New monitoring, track routing and view navigation allow non-disruptive
track setup and recording. Any track can feed and tap other tracks for
submixes or layering, or be routed to eight auxiliary sends per Live Set.


Other new Features

Swing and Groove: Audio and MIDI clips support variable real-time swing
and individual groove parameters.
Automatic Jamming: Audio and MIDI clips can be set to produce customized
or even random sequences of loops or samples in Live´s Session View.
This is great for generating new ideas, making beats or preparing a DJ
performance.
Sample Reverse: A single button can reverse any audio clip in real time.
Session View scenes can change the project tempo.
Session View scenes can be set to advance automatically.
Audio performance has been optimized for Macintosh computers.


Live 4 Pricing and Availability
-------------------------------

Live 4 for Mac OS 9, OS X and Windows will be available at music stores
worldwide and from www.ableton.com by the end of July, 2004. Live 4´s
suggested retail price is 499 EUR/US$. Upgrades from any full version of
Live (Live 1, 2 or 3) to Live 4 will cost 119 EUR/US$ (download) or 149
EUR/US$ (boxed version). A public beta test will be announced in the
next newsletter later this month.


Special Offer for Recent Purchasers

Customers who purchased Live 3 or an upgrade to Live 3 after May 15th,
2004 will be eligible for a discounted upgrade to Live 4 for only
EUR/USD 49 (download version) or EUR/USD 79 (boxed version).


Get Live Now and Save 50 EUR/USD

If you order Live 3 for EUR/USD 399 or any Live bundle right now, you
can upgrade to Live 4 for only EUR/USD 49 (download version). This saves
you at least EUR/USD 50, considering Live 4's MSRP of EUR/USD 499.


Please check our website at www.ableton.com for new Live 4 screenshots,
info, and a fully updated tour.

[Anig Browl]

Yikes - this is really the end. Live is my favorite software already, in combination with a G2 and maybe some VSTis (how can we resist...), this will be just outrageous. Sine me up!

[seraph]

[elektro80]

Oh... ehh.. that kinda kills the investment in a way.. This probably means they have seen that there are a lot of older licenses out there and they want the lot upped to version 4. I have that bundled thingie that came with my 410. Any chance for upgrading that one?

[seraph]

[zynthetix]

[elektro80]

I am pretty sure it did.. so I guess I have that somewhere.. but I am a registered owner of the 410 so that should not be any problem anyway??

[seraph]

Live 4 Public Beta available now for all registered Users!

For those of you who just can´t wait to check out Live 4, you are
invited to participate in the public beta test* now available at
http://www.ableton.com/forums.html?main=live4beta. The Live 4 beta is
limited to registered Live users only. A public beta for all users (even
non-registered) will be coming soon. We will keep you up-to-date.

New in Live 4
In Live 4, you will find a complete and inspiring approach to MIDI
sequencing, pattern recording, drag-and-drop sampling, virtual
instruments and MIDI hardware support. Ableton has also made
substantial extensions and enhancements to existing functionality,
including such features as swing/groove for audio and MIDI clips, a
powerful new channel-routing scheme, simplified recording, sample
reverse, and several exciting new creative options for the Session View.

Have a look at more new features on our website at www.ableton.com.

To test Live 4 Beta, go to http://www.ableton.com/forums.html?main=live4beta.


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[mosc]

I must say, this is a very tempting piece of software. With the new MIDI features, it is almost irresistable.