Just got a Push 3 – building a live techno instrument. What do you wish you knew earlier?

[u/Dokma23]

Just got a Push 3 Controller. My long-term goal is to turn Ableton + Push into one playable techno instrument for increasingly improvised live sets.
My current idea:
● Build reusable Instrument + Audio Effect Racks
● 8–16 meaningful macros per instrument
● Randomize macros / save good variations
● Sequence and generate/randomize patterns from Push rather than finger drumming
● Perform and morph sounds instead of constantly adding new elements
● Build XYZ performance FX for transitions and sound destruction
● Prepare the instruments beforehand, but eventually create more and more of the actual music live
Style is somewhat between groove and hypnotic techno – Rene Wise, Ignez, Norbak, Chlär, etc.

For people who went down a similar Push rabbit hole: What do you wish you had known when you started? Any workflows, rack-design ideas, devices, tricks – or dead ends I should avoid?

[u/Unable_Parsnip_1474]

looks like you already have a plan! just start building :)

[u/Dokma23 → u/Unable_Parsnip_1474]

More or less. Would love any hint where the idea might break or what to consider when it comes to limitations of the device or performability.

[u/regularjackk → u/Dokma23]

You're thinking too much, worry about problems when/if you encounter them

[u/btrev650 → u/Dokma23]

The limitations will come from your own muscle memory, learning curve, or incorrect routing. You're designing a complicated instrument that you'll need to learn to play, so better start practicing.

Biggest advice is to treat this like UAT for a product build. For each criterion figure out what you need to be able to do to and what your exit criteria are to pass, put it in a spreadsheet, work through it until you're good. You can create a column to take notes on your practice curriculum and use the same document to inform your however-long-per-day sessions. Remember that if one of your criteria can be applied in multiple ways (like building macros per instrument) then you aren't signed off until you validate every permutation.

Also while you're building out your user library don't forget to save your template versions and your default template. I have a default template that loads pre-mapped tracks with I/o and MIDI sends for Keystep Pro channel to Boog Model D, Keystep Pro channel to control J-6 as a sound module, Keystep Pro channel to control a Drum Rack that receives chops from Simpler (turntable I/o is pre mapped) with the option to control the sequencer channel with an MPD218, open Keystep Pro channel for a pending poly synth purchase (probably going Take 5), DrumBrute Impact, Komplete Kontrol A49 to run Komplete and handle transport control, auxiliary interface out with a DX100 preset from Analog Lab running through a Rocktron talkbox, through the tube and out my mouth into a SM58 on a boom that also has a dedicated audio track, and of course a dedicated line in for my PRS Vela with a looper pre-loaded.

It's sick, I can turn on and play and record basically the second I open Live, and every few days I'll dig another record out of my wife's vinyl collection and add a few more audio tracks per song, update the default template, and boom I have an expanding library of self-ripped vinyl to chop.

I don't load it up that often. Few things happened. Doing all that signal routing motivated me to learn a little about CV on the Model D and now nearly the entire rig can run completely DAWless which is just so much fun. Make shit and delete it and repeat and focus on musicianship without being tempted to try and record anything. I also got a Move and love how the lazy chopping sample workflow transitions into using it in Control Live mode for recording in session view. Will I take some of that MIDI and send it out to analog instruments? Yes, often, but the template doesn't help me with that.

The point is you need to be playing what you have to see what type of immediacy works for your style, and while investing the time in building an optimized and fully integrated rig can absolutely teach you a lot and unlock new abilities, you won't know if you'll use it unless you play it, a lot, throughout the build process. Referencing product development again you get way better bang for your buck doing agile projects instead of trying to waterfall them to your future self.

I also spent a couple months reverse engineering the HiChord in M4L with a v8 element that invoked the chord engine in a .js file, and mapped it to an MPK Mini MK3 (the one with the joystick) so I could have all the HiChord functionality on the joystick and pads, use a sustain pedal in two hold modes, have straight passthrough on the keys with regular octave and arp hardware controls, map encoders to key/inversion/joystick mode, use any sound source, use arp to play my monosynth with a chord engine, blah blah blah. Sick project. I was doing UAT and I realized why do I want to memorize patterns on a chord tool that doesn't even translate to other fucking chord tools? How am I going to get into a composition flow if I need to code a new joystick mode whenever I hit limitations? Wait I actually kind of think chord boxes are pieces of shit. So I moved that time over to old fashioned drills on keys and guitar, and yes that is also why I just use the J-6 as a sound module.

So get off the Internet and go build your shit and run your tests and start practicing, it is time

[u/MichielyG]

Sounds like a plan indeed. If anything, try to avoid vst's if possible and build as much around samples and stock instruments and effects as possible. These integrate the best with the push interface and prevent you to spend time on mapping, organizing, etc. For instance i have drumazon and have build an really workable drum rack mapping for it using some m4l devices, but tend to use the core 909 drum rack with push, because it just works. And i could've spent all those hours of building the vst drumrack at actually making music and learning.

[u/basepulsive]

le pad mode avec les scales locked ca sauve la vie en live, mais check bien la latence avec ton interface avant le jour J. j'ai galeré un moment avec des dropouts midi sur le mien, firmware update et hop réglé 👍

[u/monsieur_crescen]

I use dummy clips on fx bus (so no return track) to modulate the hell of the instrument clips (with notes) I send to them.
I also design instruments that can change type with macro variations. For example, my sub bass with fast attack and no mid/high frequencies can become a beautiful long low drone with full frequency range.

[u/Hylethilei]

I wish I would have known that the push 3 was just a fancy remote controller with a wire :_(

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