Aha, so there’s always going to be a sync issue.
I could definitely live with a bar or two or drift before it syncs up, no problem. Like, I don’t wish to perform with live, I just wanted to sync it up with my three Elektron boxes for composition purposes.
Thanks for the multi clock recommendation and the tips, TheDiePie:)
Much obliged.
well, I have the same purpose with the Elektron boxes and therefore sync is a most essential requirement. Imho these boxes were primarily not made for ‘classic composing’ so Overbridge points in the right direction to come a bit closer to straight planned results.
On the other hand, I really lke these ‘accidential’ results! 
What expensive equipment are we talking about? Just curious.
Expert Sleepers makes a handful of MIDI sync devices, at least one of which is specifically for improving DAW stability.
http://www.expert-sleepers.co.uk/
their site doesn’t seem to be loading for me right now though…
Expert Sleepers makes a handful of MIDI sync devices, at least one of which is specifically for improving DAW stability.
http://www.expert-sleepers.co.uk/
their site doesn’t seem to be loading for me right now though…[/quote]
Yeah, their site is down for me also.
It’s taken a while to get it right, but I’ve now got a “set and forget” sync between OT and Live. The way I work is to do all the composition on the OT, and just keep feeding it material from Live. OT is master, Live is slaved, the OT midi sync offset in Live is about -12.8ms in my case. (128k buffer). That’s while monitoring on the OT, with Live coming in through a Thru machine. Yes- it takes a couple bars for Live to sync up, when starting up. However, once it’s locked I don’t have any drift, just some barely perceptible jitter (and I mean barely). Don’t even think about tempo changes with this setup though. Terrible. Audio back to the OT is captured perfectly, but audio from the OT to Live needs the start point adjusted a bit. I use a different amount of midi sync offset to record perfectly synced clips INTO Live.
I’ve done a ton of experiments to get to the numbers I use, but now it works the same way all the time, every time, without an external clock sync device. One thing I’ve noticed though, is that Live’s response to a sync input is non-linear. Meaning, the -12.8ms offset that sounds rock-solid at 120bpm introduces a slight offset between OT and Live at 85bpm. We’re talking really minor here (like an additional -2ms, which some folks might not even care about. I’m OCD for solid sync though.
The non-linearity thing is actually a huge revelation for me, and answers so many baffling Live sync questions I’ve had in the past. I’ll probably put together a list of all the midi sync offsets needed for all my most used tempos, dial 'em in when needed, and be done.
I’m not clear whether there are any external clock options out there that do not require a computer in the equation, but I’d be interested to know!
The interface is an iConnectivity iCA4+, by the way.
Hi guys,
Not a VS thread.
I know lots of you use both the almighty OT and Live with Push, so I was wondering, how do you integrate them and how well do they work?
Is there much overlapping between the two?
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I just want to play my ableton live tracks live and mangle them with the OT…after reading some posts it seems like OT cannot play long samples, right? deal breaker here?
OT can play long tracks no problem, up to about 2 hours, the max size of a wav file…
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Some folks buy, declare false info, and sell the OT before they have any idea what it can do. Sometimes folks read it can’t play long samples, never look into it, and think it’s true even though they’ve owned one for several years… 
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Can anyone help me out with the correct setting to use the OT in ABL10 as a controller ?
I cant seem to find the right setting that I can use the OT sequencer to sequence a Drum Rack or any other instrument.
If I trigger a sample trig by hand (for eaxmple the KICK on nr 9), I can see a midi note being triggered into a drumrack in ableton (its not the correct note, but this is easily fixed), But once I start the sequencer on the OT and program that kick into the sequencer, it will not trigger the drumrack. So manually it works, but not when using that exact same kick in the sequencer itself.
I’m probably overlooking a routing somwhere, but cant seem to find it.
Any help would be fab.
Any use?
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Sounds like your expecting the audio tracks to send out midi data for their sequences. The OT’s trig keys can send out data when manually pressed such as in live record, but the recorded sequences do not send midi data. To sequence Ableton vsts or any other midi gear/software, you use OT’s midi tracks, described in the link above…
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Reviving this old topic, with some (hopefully) handy info.
I’ve been trying to record the Octatrack into Ableton, but the sync is always off. I get a little gap at the beginning of the recorded loop no matter how I tweak my MIDI start offset (I’m aware that I’m probably missing something ).
I figured I’d try Overbridge.
I connected the Octatrack’s CUE outs to my Digitone’s inputs, and connected them via MIDI too.
Then I hooked up the Digitone to my Mac via USB, dropped the Overbridge plugin onto a track in Ableton, and went from there.
The DN is set to control the Octatrack’s start-stop and clock. I have an audio track in Ableton that records the Digitone’s audio inputs. That’s about it.
I’m now able to record clean loops from the the Octa into Session Clips. It’s pretty easy so far. I’m also going to try recording the Octatrack’s audio direct at the same time to see what that looks like.
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I’m having a lot of success with the E-RM multiclock. Keeps everything very tight in my setup. Also being able to quickly adjust timing and swing with the knobs is mint.
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nice 
but it’s price 
though it seems to be worth it.
i have an iConnectMIDI4+ that is got damn amazing, IMO…
like the OT it has a bit of a learning curve.
I have TR8S, Octatrack, TD-3 and MC707 all hooked up via midi to the 4+
I ALSO have a LCXL and Keystep thru a USB hub routed thru usb-midi
I can also sync an iPad/mac or windows computer with ableton or bitwig from MC707 via iConnect and there’s a teeny bit of latency, but sync seems pretty dead on, consistently.
I’m experimenting with hooking up my ipad to both the MC707 and the iConnect at the same time. I can use generic midi over usb to control an FM synth on the iPad. and if i can figure out how to route midi, i could also have another midi control program running as well.
it’s a decent amount of work/routing to setup an iConnect, but worth it, IMO
i would post a video of ableton playing in time, but the computer is out of screen, LoL
Hi there, I have jammed out a few tracks wiith DN/DT/OT and effects pedals that I now want to record in Ableton in several steps. Thought I would pick your minds about potential issues and to see whether other people are also using this method.
The idea is to set up songs in DN and DT, then record them on dedicated tracks while tweaking on the machines.
I would then like to route these recorded Ableton tracks from outputs 1/2 and 3/4 into OT inputs A/B and C/D. I would then apply some OT fader action and also send the tracks into effects pedals via cue out from time to time. I will record this again.
Basically the idea is to do some kind of live recording, but split it into several steps/takes so that I don’t have to do everything in one take. By sending pre-recorded audio tracks into OT via inputs A/B and C/D, I can send longer recordings that I would be too long to export to OT.
Only potential shortcoming to this approach that I can see right now is syncing. I guess I should slave OT/DT/DN to Ableton already when I make the first recording, so that these devices will start playing as soon as I hit record in Ableton. This will make it easier to have perfect start and end of the tracks I will later send back into OT. Will this work by sending MIDI via Ableton from my audio interface (Focusrite 18i8) into OT, which is sending transport to DN/DT?