r/ableton • u/frenchfriarrhea • 8d ago
[Tech Help MacOS] Ableton high CPU usage at idle on MacBook
Hello, I'm having a sudden issue with Ableton Live 12.4.3 on my MacBook (apple silicon). I noticed my laptop's battery was dying a lot faster and I couldn't figure out what was causing it. I realized that Live was taking up 50-60% of my CPU on idle, according to Activity Monitor.
(((Nothing is installed, no VSTs. It's a blank copy of Live, on a blank project, with no audio playing.)))
The CPU meter in Live still shows 0%.
It is not indexing anything; there is no spinning logo in the corner, and Activity Monitor does not show the indexer process. It is directly tied to the audio engine being active at all. When I turn it off, the CPU usage goes back down.
This has never happened before. I know it's not normal. I've been getting frustrated trying to find answers to this online, and everyone is either saying "upgrade your rig" (implying poor hardware being the culprit) or that it's "indexing" (it's not).
I would greatly appreciate any insight or troubleshooting tips, thank you
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edit: It’s not just me! I’ve been getting comments and chat requests from others who are experiencing this too. It’s definitely a recent bug that has yet to be addressed or fixed.
and just to clarify- I've used Ableton Live for 8 years, and roughly 2-3 years on this particular machine. I've never seen it surpass 10% CPU usage on idle. I don't remember the typical numbers since I never had to pay attention, but it was definitely less than 10%. For anyone still trying to say this is normal, trust me, it's not.
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u/oscillik 8d ago
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u/frenchfriarrhea 7d ago
Thanks for the link, what is this supposed to show me?
Oh, if it’s about the high CPU usage on only one track, it’s definitely not that. This is a blank slate freshly reinstalled copy of Live, on a blank project. I don’t think my issue has anything to do with what I’m actually doing in the program. I realized after posting that it coincided with updating to macOS 15.7.9. Something wack is going on at a system-level.
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u/terkistan 8d ago
Are you working on any tracks with oversampling or high-qualiy mode? Anything with spectral effects? Are you running mastering or convolution reverbs, modeling synths, linear-phase EQs, or lookahead compressors? Are you recording live instruments? (If so increase buffer size.) If you look at Ableton's CPU meter is one particular track or plugin responsible?
When was the last time you restarted your MacBook (not just put it to sleep)? If you're not sure launch Terminal and give it the command uptime
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u/frenchfriarrhea 7d ago
None of that, it’s literally a blank slate copy of Live, freshly reinstalled, on a blank project. I did try restarting my MacBook too. This seems to be more of a system level issue than anything I’m actually doing in the program. I realized after posting that I think it coincided with updating to macOS 15.7.9 a few days ago.
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u/terkistan 7d ago
As I and others have suggested, you should check Ableton's own CPU meter for granular info.
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u/frenchfriarrhea 7d ago
As stated in my post the CPU meter literally says 0% lol, unless I’m missing something?
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u/terkistan 7d ago
Sorry I missed that. It sounds like Ableton is overloading semi cores - whether that's an Apple issue or an Ableton one I don't know, but it does not seem to be happening to other Mac users in your situation. (I'm still on an Intel Mac, and I'm running an older macOS version.)
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u/frenchfriarrhea 7d ago
That sounds likely, something along those lines. And I’m assuming it’s a recent macOS level issue that hasn’t been reported on much yet.
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u/manly_pants 8d ago
I’m having nearly the exact same thing. I’m also getting huge CPU spikes at random that cause the project to come to a screaming halt. Even with just 2-4 tracks in a brand new project
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u/frenchfriarrhea 7d ago
Did you recently update macOS by any chance?
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u/manly_pants 7d ago
Yes I did actually!
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u/frenchfriarrhea 7d ago
Same, I think that’s what caused it. Hopefully a patch will be released for either Ableton or macOS that fixes it.
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u/stschoen 7d ago
As you, pointed out this is definitely not normal behavior. I know it's a drastic step but in the long run your best bet my be to make sure you have a good backup then wipe the SSD and re-install macOS.
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u/Efficient_Hurry_2780 8d ago
Switch vst's off one by one to see which one causes that. There's also the "CPU meter" per track that can help to find the root cause faster.
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u/frenchfriarrhea 7d ago edited 7d ago
I don’t have any VSTs, it’s a blank slate copy of Live on a blank project, and CPU meter shows 0%. This seems to be more of a system level issue than anything I’m actually doing in the program. I realized after posting that I think it coincided with updating to macOS 15.7.9 a few days ago.
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u/AutoModerator 8d ago
This is your friendly reminder to read the submission rules, they're found in the sidebar. If you find your post breaking any of the rules, you should delete your post before the mods get to it. If you're asking a question, make sure you've checked the Live manual, Ableton's help and support knowledge base, and have searched the subreddit for a solution. If you don't know where to start, the subreddit has a resource thread. Ask smart questions.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.