Logic Pro using Ableton Live as a dedicated hardware sequencer/controller

[zevo]

 

I'm on the iMac section of my signature, using the MOTU M4. Logic and Live on the same machine.

So: The goal of my little setup experiment is to make myself use my hardware more, AND to learn Ableton Live more... since they mostly sit around and it's making me feel silly. 

So far, I have Live as a purely hardware sequencer, sync'd to Logic Pro.

I have an IAC bus for sync communications between them, which works fine. And the midi controllers are isolated between them (one on Live/another on Logic). This also works fine. I have audio in/out turned off in Live, and I'm likely to route the hardware audio out to Logic's Audio in... Live would just be a sequencer in this case. 

However, and perhaps I'm getting ahead of the initial goal of just using Live as a pure sequencer, I'm wondering if enabling audio within Live would be problematic, apart from the obvious CPU-usage bit... Live is super-light when the audio-engine is turned off, actually.

Anybody using Live as a hardware midi sequencer from Logic? Audio engine on/off suggestions? Any particular sync settings between them (I'm using MMC @ 25fps, no midi clock).

Apologies if this is the wrong place for this question... it's sort of Logic and sort of system.

Thanks, 

- zevo 

 

[Atlas007]

Out of curiosity: what does Ableton Live has that Logic cannot do MIDI-wise speaking?

[zevo]

Hahaha... no idea, as I've barely used it at all past the occasional: make some stuff in session view and play around with arrangements with the APC-40 , and then (sometimes) record one of the session-view's arrangements over to the arrangement view.

But that's not what I've been thinking about (a specific Ableton feature, or features). I've been thinking about changing up my creativity a bit, and utilizing the tools that I have, most of which (other than Logic and virtual instruments) goes unused.

I got here (this thread's question) in a rather long-winded way that is too long to type out and bore everybody with, but it's all Arturia's fault (lol, kidding, Arturia).

It's basically:

• I always to the SAME stuff with Logic, as I'm familiar with it and have a flow that I seem to settle in to, and it basically never involves the hardware
• I'm tired of having so much equipment that I never use, particularly the hardware, but also Ableton...  
• I wanted away from computers as my primary option, so I got a keystep pro and paired it with the RS7000 to control everything so I can make music without the computer on
• Unfortunately, the midi routing and flexibility of this situation always made me turn on the computer anyway, so I've given up having a computer-free option, and I'm fine with that
• Then I've realized that ableton, in many ways, 'thinks' like my RS (from what I can tell), but with a much easier to read screen and controllable with my (also mostly unused) APC-40 (I know Logic has the 'features' I need, but that gets back to bullet-point 1)
• So I figured: I'll use Ableton for the hardware then, and I set that up.
• Then remembered how I really do just always fall back to Logic, so I set Logic up to start/stop Ableton and (perhaps) grab all the audio where it's likely to end
• And here I am, wondering if it's worth enabling the audio (in Ableton) just in case I want to use some of the built-in instruments/effects and such, in a world with no rewire

And that's the short version, believe it or not.

What I really wish is the ability to have the screen of the RS7000 on a much larger viewport, and then I'd be fine with the Keystep Pro and the RS7000 sequencing everything until I need to go 'linear.'

So. First. World. Problem.

Edited October 23, 2022 by zevo

[Atlas007]

Well thanx for sharing your experience and insight!