Grooves in Ableton Live 8

Grooves can be a good way to add that extra bit of movement and feel to your productions. In this tutorial we show you how to use Ableton Live 8's groove pool, apply grooves to audio and MIDI clips, as well as extracting your own grooves from clips.

Mixing Techniques - Reverb

Reverb typically sits in two categories within audio productions, and either tends to be done well, or it tends to sound like someone has just thrown a reverb on a sound and selected a preset. To help you get it to sound as if it has been well done we provide you with a few handy hints and tips to help your reverbs sound better than ever!

Mixing Techniques - Gates

Gates can be a very helpful effect, from removing spill or noise from a recording, to adding more punch to drums, or adding a more rhythmic feel to a melody line, they are very versatile. Unfortunately they can also be a little confusing, so in this tutorial we show you a few different techniques to help you out.

Mixing Techniques - EQ

Equalisers are potentially one of the most powerful and useful effects in an engineers or producers arsenal, and as a result they are able to destroy a sound just as quickly as the can improve it. To help you get a better feel for the use of EQ this tutorial provides you with some handy hints, as well as a couple of different techniques to enable you to get the sound you are looking for.

Mixing Techniques - Compressors

In the first of our series of free mixing techniques tutorial we take a look at the humble compressor, one of the most useful and also one of the most misunderstood of all of the audio effects. We provide some simple tips and a couple of different techniques to help you to get the sound you are after.

Warping in Ableton Live 8

In this tutorial we look at various different methods for straightening up and quantizing audio in Ableton Live 8, including using Live's quantization features and quantization grooves, as well as manually warping difficult audio that you might have trouble with when using the automatic methods. This tutorial also features some snippets from a recent recording of the upcoming Sydney band Teknofear.

Free Plug-ins #1

Free stuff is always good, especially when you can use it to make music! The first in a series of tutorials where we take a look at some freely available plug-ins and what they can offer. In this tutorial we look a few different plug-ins including SSL LMC-1 Compressor, Togu Audio Line Bassline Synth and PSP Vintage Meter, all of which are available as free VSTs from the respective websites.

Preparing A Track For Mastering

Getting a track ready for mastering can sometimes be a difficult process, especially if you are unsure of what a mastering engineer needs. In this tutorial we look at a few common mistakes, as well as how to fix them, as well as covering a few tips that will help you to get the best quality possible from your productions.

Music Theory - Chords 1

In this tutorial we take a simple look at chords, including what major and minor chords are, as well as chord inversion and chord expansion. We use the simplicity of a piano roll for our examples, so even those of you that find music notation difficult will find this stuff really easy!

Sampling with Native Instruments Absynth

In this tutorial we take Native Instruments renowned Absynth soft synth and see how it works when used as a makeshift sampler, utilising Absynth's filters, waveshaping and effects. If you are after a different type of sound and tone than you normally get from a sampler then this technique is for you!

Ableton Live 8 Tips n Tricks

In this tutorial we look at a whole pile of handy hints, tips and tricks to help make your Ableton Live experience flow better. We cover a whole range of things from being able to solo and record-arm multiple channels at once, to using racks to their full potential. There is sure to be something for everyone!

Simple Stereo Techniques

In this tutorial we look at some simple techniques to help add that extra bit of dimension and stereo width to your mixes. This includes the use of the Haas techniques, double tracking and also the use of reverbs and delays to help make your productions truly shine. The effective use of the stereo field also allows you to get a bigger, fuller and more expansive sound without clipping or pushing the levels too far.

Ableton Live 8's Beat Repeat Effect

In this tutorial we look at some of the cool sounds and effects that can be created with Ableton Live 8's Beat Repeat effect. We look at how it works and it's different control and parameters, including it's filter, as well as how it can be used in conjunction with an effects rack and other effects to get an even more interesting sound.

Recording Intro: Acoustic Guitar

Do you want to record some acoustic guitar, but not sure what equipment to use or where to start? To give you a guide and show you what you will need to get a good sound we have develped the following tutorial. This tutorial also shows various microphone techniques and lets you hear the different results that each technique provides.

Camel Audio - CamelPhat 3

There are many different plugins out there, but some are just that little bit special. CamelPhat 3 from Camel Audio is no exception. To give you some insigt into this awesome plug-in we have prepared a video tutorial, showing you what CamelPhat 3 can do and how it works.

Introduction to iZotope Ozone 4

Have you been wanting a more commercial sound from your final productions? Do you want your productions to have that extra bit of shine, depth and sparkle. Chances are iZotope Ozone 4 is the plug-in you are looking for. We have developed the following tutorial to introduce you to Ozone's many different features that can bring your productions to life.

Camel Audio - CamelSpace

If you are looking to add that extra bit of space, depth and movement to your sound then CamelSpace is the plugin you need. To give you a look at the plethora of different features offered by this quite powerful plugin we have developed the following tutorial.

Introduction to Ableton Live 8

Approaching a new piece of software can sometimes be a little daunting, especially when you are talking about a digital audio workstation. To help make life a bit easier for you we have prepared a simple tutorial on Ableton Live 8 to give you the basics of how to navigate your way around Ableton Live 8's interface.

Ableton Live 8's Simpler Device

In this tutorial we take an in depth look at Ableton Live 8's Simpler Device, an extremely handy device for sample playback with some powerful features for manipulating and adding a bit of life to your sounds. We look at everything from looping sections of samples, making use of MIDI velocity information, using the volume, filter and pitch envelopes, using the Simplers filter and LFO, and more...

Audio Clips in Ableton Live 8

In this tutorial we look at some of the features avaliable in Ableton Live 8 for working with and manipulating audio clips and audio loops, including looping, warp modes, clip triggering and follow actions as well as clip based envelopes for that extra bit of automation goodness.