A fast and effective Slicing and Sampling workflow with any MIDI-Controller or the mouse

The probably most significant improvement in Live 9.5 has been the complete overhaul of Live’s  Simpler introducing Warping and Slicing features that allow for one of the most fun and creative ways for sampling, especially if you are using it together with the new Push. For those, who are not fortunate enough to own a Push 2, “Slice Control” allows you to realize a fast and effective Slicing and Sampling workflow with any kind of MIDI-Controller and even with the mouse:

Key Features

• A separate uncluterred interface that has been solely optimized for effective Slicing
• Additional Slicing Features that are not even available natively in Simpler:
  • Nudging the start and end of a slice via (mappable) encoders
  • Selecting and previewing the current, previous and next Slice from within the interface
  • Slicing in real-time or via the Insert Marker
• Works out-of-the-box for Push 1 and all other supported control-surfaces that give access to device’s parameter banks
• Key- and MIDI-Mapping of the most relevant Slicing parameters for manual mappings

Minimum System Requirements

• Live 9.6 (!) or higher
• Ableton Suite or separate Max-for-Live license
• Max 7.0.4 or higher

1.1.0 Release Notes

• Feature: Support for new Slicing modes introduced in Live 9.7b1: Beat, Region & Manual
• Bugfix: Slices were not properly positioned if the sample had a different sample rate than what had been set in Live’s preferences
• Bugfix: Slicing sensitivity would go crazy for large samples when Midi-Mapped
• Bugfix: Using Slice Control while recording a clip would record Automation for this device, which would create issues, once the Automation is played back.

FAQ

How can I get more fine-grained control when turning the Slice Start/End encoders with the mouse?

Holding CTRL (PC) / CMD (Mac) while turning the Slice Start/End (and the Insert Marker) encoder allows you to nudge and add slices with high precision.

Will nudging slices work even if my MIDI-Controller only has absolute encoders (as opposed to Push’s endless encoders)?
Yes, and it works exceptionally well. Just make sure you enable “Value Scaling” as “Takeover Mode” in Live’s MIDI-preferences

Will it work with Push 1?
Yes! It basically will give you the missing graphical interface that Push 2 has. Also, all parameters are accessible directly from the Device Mode on Push 1, so there’s even no need for Midi-Mapping.

Why is [paramater X] not part of the “Slice Control” interface?

We tried to avoid making just a copy of the Simpler-Interface, but rather keep the “Slice Control” interface as uncluttered as possible. However, based on user feedback we are happy to consider adding additional parameters from Simpler in the future.

How is “Slice Control”‘s slicing feature different from the Push 2 Pad Slicing mode?
If you have already used our free “Simpler-Tools: Pad Slicing Mode” that just enables Push 2’s Pad Slicing Mode, you might have experienced quite a lot of workflow issues (like having to hit an “empty” note to add a new slice, which is very confusing on a computer keyboard). We have been listening to all the feedback we got from the free “Pad Slicing Mode” device and redesigned “Slice Control”‘s slicing feature so that it works well with the mouse/computer keyboard and any MIDI-Controller:

• A dedicated “Slice” button that can be triggered by a mouse-click or can be Key- and MIDI-mapped to set slice points
• An insert marker (also MIDI-mappable) that allows for setting new slices fast and with high accuracy