Push 3 Users Thread

The Lounge Other Gear
#1

Feedback from users of Ableton’s Push 3 device.

Hopefully distinct from the announcement thread – actual user feedback here please as opposed to speculation.

FAQ

Note: The official Ableton Push 3 Technical FAQ is a great place to start.

  • Q: Does the Push 3 have the same TPE rubber coating that the Push 1 / 2 had, that eventually becomes sticky and messy?

    • A: No.

  • Q: Does Push 3 have an arranger view?

    • A: No. There is no arranger view as of Push OS 1.1

  • Q: Does the Push 3 support audio interfaces on the USB port?

    • A: Audio interfaces are not supported but there is precedent for audio interface support being added at a later time in devices like the Analog 4, OP-1, and the Akai Force.

  • Q: Does it support USB hubs?

    • A: Yes, USB hubs are supported to expand the number of MIDI over USB devices that you can access simultaneously.

  • Q: Does the Push 3 support third party VSTs?

    • A: No.

  • Q: Does the Push 3 support Max4Live devices?

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New PUSH 3 MPE, Standalone option...out now!
Push 3 warping help
New PUSH 3 MPE, Standalone option...out now!
#2

Collecting my feedback from the release thread…

Initial impressions and observations

Got my Push 3 standalone. Just starting to put it to the test. Really well built!

Minor annoyance – I’m in the US but received a european style power plug. Not a big deal as I’ve got endless 2 prong adapters around, but kinda annoying.

Some additional tidbits:

  • FW 1.0.65 and Push 1.0.1 at first launch. Immediate update to Push 1.1 available. Not quite sure what the difference is. I’m guessing Push 1.0.1 refers to OS, while FW 1.0.65 refers to Bios, etc?
  • Updating seems very slow.
  • 208 GB of the 256 SSD available at first launch.
  • The fourway knob can’t be used to move vertically or horizontally during text entry (e.g. WiFi setup). Hopefully addressed soon in OS update.

Initial hiccups

My first update seemed to stall / fail.

After shutdown I was worried it wasn’t going to reboot as it didn’t come back on. But removed power plug and plugged it back in and then it rebooted.

After reboot I got a message that machine had used a fall-back version of the OS, and this time the update went much faster and reboot was relatively quick as expected and went into FW update mode. FW update mode seems to go through several cycles to complete.

Does the Authorize button stay blue for anyone else, even after you authorize?

MPE and pads

The pads and MPE are AWESOME! Sensitivity, response curves, etc are SPOT ON!

I’m a long time Linnstrument user (since 2015) but my Linnstrument has never felt as good and expressive and as easy to control as these pads!

The scales and root notes page is also really well designed and fast to do on the fly and arranged in Circle of Fifths/Fourths fashion. A lot of thought went into this!

Noodling on the couch report

  • Instrument is heavy and solid but sits comfortably in my lap (6+ ft tall, long legged) but might be too big for a smaller person

  • Bottom of device does not get uncomfortably warm

  • In about 25 mins of playing, battery life went from 78% to 63%. That was playing a single instrument and with screen and pad LEDs at 100% brightness and WiFi on. So ~2 hrs with moderate/light loads seems within reason.

  • The device is definitely portable but it’s heavy and big enough that personally I wouldn’t want to casually haul it to the park or on holidays. I can see myself taking it to the living room or maybe occasionally sitting out on my back porch with it but it’s no OP-1 or M8 when it comes to throwing it in a backpack. But if I was a gigging musician I wouldn’t worry about the weight/size compared to other comparable gear (Force, MPC live).

Annoyances

  • There is a large heat sink on the bottom where you can access the user-replacable motherboard, battery, etc. This is well designed from the perspective of heat dissipation but it means that the device won’t sit flat unless the surface it’s on is at least as wide as the horizontal distance between the left and right feet. As a consequence, the device will sit in a lopsided manner on many laptop stands that would otherwise be sufficiently robust to hold it. TLDR: you’ll probably need a custom stand if you want it angle on your work surface.
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New PUSH 3 MPE, Standalone option...out now!
#3

Surprised you needed an adapter but thanks for letting us know. I just grabbed a EU to USA adapter to have around.

I remember push 2 came with the adapters so that is surprising but good to know.

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#4

This is similar to my findings from receiving mine today.

I was confused as to where all my Suite instruments where on the Push 3 after I’d linked/connected it to Ableton Live on my laptop (it asks you to enter the code from your Push 3)… then I went into the system menu on the Push 3 and found the info that says you have to go to the Ableton site to authorise the Push 3, this then gives you your corresponding current license of Live.

Otherwise, all good.

Tomorrow, I’m going to get some packs in and hopefully get my 65GB sample library on the internal P3 drive.
I’m also going to get some instruments (gtr, bass, external synths) plugged in and start doing some recording.

3 Likes
#5

I am in the US and go the US plug.

Not having luck charging from USB C but will try a better charger cable.

#6

I can’t change the volume of my headphones. Pressing the volume encoder doesn’t work. Hopefully my device is broken. Anyone else seeing the same?

#7

My headphone volume adjustment works. The volume press rotates through several different volumes, including Main, headphones, master track, and cue. Do you see any of these when you press the volume encoder?

#8

Nope. I think my hardware is busted. I did a factory reset and same. Nuts.

#9

:slightly_frowning_face:
So sorry to hear this. That must be really frustrating.

#10

So if you buy standalone and you don’t own Suite, you only get access to the instruments from Lite when using it Standalone? That seems kind of crazy at the price hence my checking

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#11

Weird, had that problem too initially yesterday, HP volume was way low. No problem today. Did you really finish the update?

#12

I too had volume problems last night but then I decided to RTFM and realised I was to use that encoder which, embarrassingly, I had been oblivious to :joy: was like a proper “where did that encoders come from” moment

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#13

C’est la vie.
There’s more than enough to keep you occupied if you don’t own Suite, it is fully featured, so it’s dependent on your needs.

I’d advise someone in that position to get the Push 3 and get familiar with it as is… then, when up to speed, get the 90 day trial of Suite and see how you like it.
I know it’s not cheap, but when you factor in what you get with the instruments, M4L, packs and all the other extras, it is worth it.

I thought Push 3 got you a cheaper upgrade to Suite too…

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#14

Had that when looking for the master track, until RTFM and realized it has a dedicated button :sweat_smile:

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#15

Is anyone here using a push 3 controller on a Mac with another interface. Does combining the internal interface to a agregate Audio Interface work fine?

I would use it as controller and would combine it with a connected babyface if possible.

#16

Haven’t tried that yet. Currently feeding the analog outs into my babyface, and will try ADAT next.
With these options I can already use digicheck to monitor the push signal.
Not a fan of aggregating audio devices, as it tends to make my computer unstable, but will have a go.

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#17

Before I have to RTM, does anyone know how to set the default buffer size each time it opens?
It defaults to 128 and I want 256…

#18

Yeah I’m a suite owner so it was just out of curiosity and I’m sure it makes business sense. I’d just be a bit gutted if I spent all that and didn’t even get all the effects haha

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#19

I sort of tried it last night. I was showing my mate a proof in concept of using Live and Logic simultaneously via Link and getting audio from Logic into Live so he could use Drummer.

Much more elegant ways to do it but I basically had audio out of Logic via headphones and in to Push 3s inputs. Then listened ton it all via Push’s headphone jack. All via an aggregate device.

All seamless. I couldn’t wrap my head around Blackhole so went with the cable approach.

1 Like
#20

If you have a 90 days demo of ALive, can you use that demo on push?