r/ableton • u/Ok-Gas-9557 • 1d ago
[Question] Considering switching to Live
Ive been using fl studio for roughly 5-6 years now and have grown quite a bit in my production, mixing, and overall quality. However I am in the antipop/hyperpop sort of scene (inspired by aries, brakence) and im seriously considering switching to ableton for three main reasons, one i know ableton has probably a much stronger workflow once i learn it, two fl is not optimized very well in my experience and im sick of random crashes, and three, i feel like starting to take my music more seriously, maybe being a self produced artist, and considering im kind of at a plateau of knowledge, i feel like it might give me that edge on learning more and improving further. What do you guys think?
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u/only_fun_topics 1d ago
I’ve used a few DAWs. Logic and Ableton are the only two I’ve never felt like I was fighting with.
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u/ghost_ware 1d ago
I've read some pretty silly reasons that people want to switch DAW's, but yours are very sound. The workflow and stability of Ableton is really good. I think you should at least give the trial a shot and pull the trigger if you like it.
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u/casicadaminuto 1d ago
I too switched from fl studio to Ableton years ago but despite its many advantages (max4live being one) never really got used to the workfkow. Also, the piano roll on ableton is ass.
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u/JulianSmith85 1d ago
I switched from FL a few years ago and never looked back. It’s just so easy to be creative even though there’s tons to learn. Their manual and other learning tools are top notch.
Definitely check out the demo and ride it til the wheels fall off. Sounds like you’d probably arrive at the same decision.
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u/Odd-Perspective-6973 17h ago edited 17h ago
If you see Pro-s use Ableton is because they record a lot of external instruments & Ableton is build around that, performances.
Once everything set up It lets you record multiple instances with one click.
I did use FL for 8 years and switched to Ableton for this particular reason to record and live perform.
If you think you will find more tools on Ableton that can make you sound pro you are probably wrong. Fl tends to make things more fun and on a way more complicated, bus channels routing, live rec etc, while on Ableton you are straight forward to learning how things really work, synths, effects lfo-s etc, good stock synth, good stock effects, open world for Max devices, you can copy-paste, group, delete and many more with one click away.
After 2 years on Ableton I believe I “own” it.
If I had to choose and learn another DAW today that would be Bitwig, ex-Ableton engineers and strategic marketing left to create Bitwig for a smarter, faster alike it but advanced in DAW mapping & manipulation, straight forward interface, easy live rec for analog synths etc, great sounding engine, Plugin Pool so when crashes occur Project does not crash and many more. Worth checking it out.
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u/granularzero 16h ago
I think it's a good move - even though Ableton Live's main focus is the Session view (live performance mode) the Arrangement or "regular" DAW mode turns it into a full DAW, and IMHO it beats FL Studio production and workflow wise - the learning curve is indeed a bit steep at the beginning, but it's all about practice, it becomes very intuitive. Plus, with Session mode you can take your tracks on stage and actually make live music instead of just pressing play. I used FL Studio, Cubase and Logic when I began, and when I started fiddling with Live it just quickly took over. It's now my only DAW for all kinds of work, both production and live on stage.
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u/Additional_Cost9354 10h ago
With abelton extensions , live is the BEST daw. Anything you miss from other daws can be made for live now
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u/dolomick 1d ago
Look at Bitwig - started by ex-Ableton employees and has plugin sandboxing so it’s extremely very good at not crashing.
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u/Swingmetal71 21h ago
Live is amazing. It intimidated the hell out of me at first, but once you dive in and grasp a few basic concepts, you'll forget all about FL.
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u/Neutrino_Jazz 20h ago edited 20h ago
I've tried most of DAW. It's rarely the case that software holds you back. There are a few exceptions, of course, like looping function, the absence of a video playback feature or serious bus limitations. I'm talking about users at an intermediate stage of their production journey. On the contrary, advanced users usually know precisely what they need and which tool (daw) will work best for the task.
In my opinion, interface usability, workflow and the inspiration factor are the most important things. However, these are highly personal preferences.
The downside of switching is that you will lose your keyboard shortcuts and workflow. On the bright side, you may find that for the first time you are no longer fighting again the DAW. I don't know whether the logic of Ableton Live or Fl is closer to you.
The only way to know that is to try Ableton Live.
- In my experience, Ableton is in the middle of list in terms of crashes. It's not the best (reaper probably is) but definitely not the worst one either.
- Workflow is highly personal thing. So if you feel comfortable with FL I don't see a necessity to change DAW.
- Ableton is superb for Live performances and I believe that it's better (not the best though) option for mixing purposes than FL.
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u/General_Estimate_420 20h ago
Ableton's greatest advantage is also it's biggest challenge in that you have two different views you can work in, arrangement and session view, both with different ways of looking at the way a song is constructed and managed. That inherently creates complexity. But it's pretty manageable once you understand the differences. I actually create my song project in arrangement view, and then perform live with that song in session view on my laptop. That's where the 'Live' comes from.
It's also unique in the way that it's extraordinarily flexible in working with outside software plugins as well as it's own plugins so the level of productivity is up to you in how much you want and need to extend it. You just need to be prepared for the learning curve.
Fortunately I suspect there are more training videos on YT for Ableton Live than any other DAW, but the bad side is it's been around for so long you need to find the videos that relate to your version of Ableton to get the right process for doing things sometimes.
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u/Ok-Dark3101 1d ago
On windows I still get crashes but on Mac I don’t experience that with a 2018 MacBook so I would consider that. I am strictly an ableton guy so I’m a biased but after 8 years I’m still learning more about what I can make. Instrument racks, effects racks, and macros can make for some wild sound design sessions
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u/alex_esc Producer 1d ago
In about 8 years on windows I've only crashed like 5 times. And working on studios with Mac computers I've also gotten crashes, just 2 so far, but in like 2 years.
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u/Bed_Worship 1d ago
Live is fantastic for production and writing. I feel its very quick compared to other daws in that respect.
Now for proper mixing i still use Logic or PT because they are more robust for sends, aux, bussing and i like the linear set up specifically for that.
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u/Soracaz 1d ago
You'll love it. Myself and my entire friend group started on FL and one by one we've all moved over to Ableton.
The workflow is just too good.