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raphaelquast / beatstep

A Midi Remote Script for Ableton Live 10 & 11 and the Arturia Beatstep controller
https://raphaelquast.github.io/beatstep/
GNU General Public License v3.0
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ableton-live beatstep midi midi-remote-script

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Beatstep_Q

Beatstep_Q is a MIDI Remote Script for Ableton Live 9, 10 & 11 and the Arturia BeatStep controller.
It turns your BeatStep into a fully-fledged control-surface for Ableton Live !

Comments / suggestions / bugs?

Just drop an Issue or start a Discussion and I'll see what I can do!

... and as you might imagine...
developing and maintaining all of this is quite some work, so if you like what I did, how about buying me a coffee?

Buy Me A Coffee

Installation

No real installation required... just copy the files, and you are ready to go!

1) copy all files of the latest release into a folder named "Beatstep_Q"
inside the MIDI Remote scripts folder of Ableton Live
(located at ..install-dir..\Resources\MIDI Remote Scripts) 2) start Ableton and select Beatstep_Q as control-surface in the MIDI-tab of the preferences.
(make sure to activate both track and remote for this device!)

❗BeatStep's storage bank 9 is used during runtime. Any configuration stored to this slot will be overwritten❗

Overlay

The overlay-design provides indications for all assignments (including secondary-functions)
(I got mine printed here: Taktility)

Summary of Assignments

assignments-image

More detailed explanations on the assignments:

The script will set all encoders and buttons to send messages on the Midi-channel 10. To indicate a successful setup, the top-row will light up red and blue (about 2 seconds after plugin).

After initialization, you can recall any saved MIDI configuration and the control-layers will still work!

General (click to expand)

:black_square_button: BUTTONS The buttons `recall`, `store`,`chan` and `shift` are used to activate the control-layers. - to maintain the initial functionality of the buttons, the layers are activated when the buttons are **released** ! - all layers (except the *"shift-layer"*) remain activated until the corresponding button is pressed again - holding `shift` and pressing `chan` will activate the *"mix-layer"* - holding `shift` and pressing `recall` will activate the *"browser-layer"* - **double-tapping** `shift` will activate the *"shift-layer"* permanently (until shift is pressed again) - the *"if shift pressed"* features are only available if the corresponding layer is activated permanently **and** `shift` is pressed The `stop` button works the same (on all layers) as follows: - if the selected clip is currently recording: only recording is stopped (but playback is continued) - if the selected clip is playing: stop is triggered - *"if shift pressed"* : stop **ALL** tracks > While no layer is active, all buttons can be used to play midi-notes! > (>> use the `transpose-encoder` to change the assigned range of midi-notes)
:white_circle: ENCODERS The `transpose-encoder` can be used to transpose the note-assignments of the buttons. (a red button-color indicates that the lower-left button is at the note C-2, C-1, C0, C1, etc.) > The info-message also tells you the current assignment of the lower-left button (e.g. `button 9`) - `encoder 1-4` and `9-12` : control the first 8 parameters of the selected device - `encoder 5, 6, 13, 14` : send A, B, C, D of selected track - `encoder 7` : volume of selected track - *"if shift pressed"*: volume of master-track - `encoder 15` : pan of selected track - *"if shift pressed"*: pan of master-track - `encoder 8` : track-selection (left-right) [💡 this is the same for all layers!] - *"if shift pressed"* **and** a *"drum-rack"* is selected: select drum-pad slot of the viewed 16 slots - `encoder 16` : scene selection (up-down) [💡 this is the same for all layers!] - *"if shift pressed"* **and** a *"drum-rack"* is selected: select row of viewed drum-pads

Layers (click to expand)

:trumpet: SHIFT If NO other layer is activated, pressing "shift" temporarily activates the `shift` layer It serves as a *quick-access* layer for frequently used functions. The layer is deactivated as soon as `shift` is released! **double-tap** `shift` to activate the layer permanently. The lights in the first indicate the currently activated clip. (`red` for midi, `blue` for audio and `magenta` for return tracks) The lights in the second row indicate the track-arm status: - `red` if the track is **armed** and **not muted** - `magenta` if the track is armed but muted - `blue` if the track represents a **track-group** - `off` if the track is muted and **not** armed #### The assignments are as follows: - `button 1-7`: select track 1-7 of the currently focussed slots (red box) - double tap an already selected track to arm/unarm it - if the selected track is a track-group, instead fold/unfold the group - `button 8`: select previous scene (e.g. go 1 scene up) - if the control-layer is activated permanently, holding `shift` will switch to track-selection - `button 9` : undo last step - `button 10`: delete selected clip - `button 12`: duplicate the currently selected clip and set the focus to the duplicate - `button 13`: duplicate the currently selected loop - `button 15`: start recording - if the currently selected slot is empty, start recording a new clip - if a clip is already present, toggle overdubbing the clip - `button 16` : select next scene (if at the end, create a new scene) - if the control-layer is activated permanently, holding `shift` will switch to track-selection All encoders are assigned as described above except for the `transpose-encoder`, which is now used to **select devices** in the device-chain of the selected track. (turning the `transpose-encoder` will automatically focus the view to the device-chain!)
:open_file_folder: BROWSE The browser works ONLY in the info-bar... it is not connected to Ableton's browser-window! (I know this would be nice... but the Ableton python-API does not allow it) The status-bar symbols indicate the following: - :red_circle: : the selected item can be loaded - :fire: ... :fire: : hotswap is active - :arrows_counterclockwise: : the item can be hotswapped - :black_circle: : the item can not be loaded directly (it's a collection of sub-items) - :file_folder: : the item is a folder (and can not be loaded directly) - :small_blue_diamond: a loadable item that is not selected Most button-lights are simply there to help remember the button-assignments. - `button 13` indicates if **hotswap** is on or off (`red` for on) - `button 14` indicates if **prelisten** is on or off (`blue` for on) #### The assignments are as follows: - `button 1` : open **sounds** - `button 2` : open **drums** - `button 3` : open **instruments** - `button 4` : open **audio-effects** - `button 5` : open **MIDI-effects** - `button 6` : open **samples** - `button 7` : open **collections** - `button 8` : select previous track - "if shift pressed" : select previous device - `button 9` : go 1 item left - `button 10` : go 1 item right - `button 11` : go 1 folder-level down (if possible) - `button 12` : go 1 folder-level up (if possible) - `button 13` : toggle hotswapping the currently selected instrument/device - `button 14` : toggle item-preview - `button 15` : load the selected item (on the currently selected track if possible) - "if shift pressed" : load the selected item on a new track - `button 16` : select next track - "if shift pressed" : select next device All encoders are assigned similar to the *"shift-layer"*.
:violin: CONTROL Most lights are simply there to help remember the button-assignments. The lights of `button 13` and `button 14` indicate the status of their corresponding parameter in Live. - `button 13` indicates the status of the metronome (`red` for on) - `button 14` indicates the status of "automation arm" (`red` for active) - "if shift pressed" and an automation has been overridden, the button will turn `blue` - `button 3`, `10` and `11` will turn red if shift is pressed to highlight the alternative functionality #### The assignments are as follows: - `button 1` : redo last step - `button 2` : fold / unfold selected device - `button 3` : activate / deactivate selected device - *"if shift pressed"* : delete selected device - `button 6` : cycle through the *"launch-quantization"* times (e.g. 1 bar, 1/2 bar, 1/8 bar etc.) - *"if shift pressed"* : turn *"launch-quantization"* off - `button 7` : toggle between showing the selected *"clip-details"* or the *"device-chain"* of the selected track - *"if shift pressed"* : toggle between Ableton's session-view and arrangement-view - `button 8` : select previous scene (e.g. go 1 scene up) - - *"if shift pressed"* : select previous track - `button 9` : undo last step - `button 10` : duplicate selected track - "if shift pressed" : delete selected track - `button 11` : duplicate selected scene - *"if shift pressed"* : delete selected scene - `button 12` : tap tempo - `button 13` : toggle metronome - `button 14` : toggle *"session automation record"* - *"if shift-pressed"* and an automation has been overridden: *"re-enable automation"* - `button 15` : change the assigned "pad velocity curve" (e.g. the midi velocity response of the pad) - `blue` for linear, `magenta` for logarithmic, `red` for exponential and `off` for "always max. velocity" - `button 16` : select next scene (if at the end, create a new scene) - *"if shift-pressed"*: select next track All encoders are assigned similar to the *"shift-layer"*.
:guitar: LAUNCH In this control-layer, both button-rows (e.g. `1-7` and `9-15`) represent clip-slots. NOTICE: the `stop` button has a special feature in this layer (see below). There are 2 possible ways to activate this layer: - tap `store` to control **2 clip-slots of 7 tracks** - only the `store` button LED will be on - tap `shift + store` to control **14 clip-slots of 1 track** - the LED's of `store`, `chan` and `recall` will be on The button-lights indicate the status of the clip-slots, e.g.: - `blue` indicates a slot with a clip - a `blue blinking` slot indicates a clip that is triggered to **stop** - `red` indicates a clip that is playing - a `red blinking` slot indicates a clip that is triggered to **play** - `magenta` indicates a group-track (it will turn `red` if a clip of the group is playing) [or indicate a triggered clip in `shift + store` mode] - the `shift` button indicates if *"re-trigger clips"* or *"stop clips"* mode is active #### The assignments are as follows: - the `stop-button` toggles the behavior of the buttons (indicated by the `shift` button LED) - *"re-trigger clips"* mode (`shift` LED OFF) : tapping on an already playing clip will **re-trigger** the clip - *"stop clips"* mode (`shift` LED ON) : tapping on an already playing clip will **stop** the clip (... the *"if shift-pressed"* behavior is still similar to the other layers, e.g. *"stop all clips"*) - `button 1-7` : launch the clips present in the top-row of the selection. - *"if shift-pressed"* : select the track to which the clip-slot belongs to - if the slot is a "group-slot": fold/unfold the corresponding group - `button 8` : select previous scene (e.g. go 1 scene up) - *"if shift-pressed"*: select previous track - `button 9-15` : same as `1-7` but for the bottom row of the selection. - `button 16` : select next scene (if at the end, add a new scene) - *"if shift-pressed"*: select next track All encoders are assigned similar to the *"shift-layer"*.
:headphones: MIX The lights in the top-row indicate the mute / solo status of the corresponding track. - `blue` for a track that is set to solo - `magenta` for an unmuted track - `red` if the track is both solo and muted - `off` if the track is muted and not solo The lights in the bottom-row indicate the arm status of the corresponding track. - `red` if the track is armed - `blue` if the track represents a track-group - `off` if the track is unarmed (and no track-group) #### The assignments are as follows: - `button 1-7` : set the **mute** status of the first 6 tracks in the red box - *"if shift pressed"*: **solo** the corresponding track - `button 9-15` : set the **arm** status of the first 7 tracks in the red box - if the track represents a group, fold / unfold the corresponding group - `button 8` : select previous scene (e.g. go 1 scene up) - *"if shift pressed"*: select previous track - `button 16` : select next scene (if at the end, create a new scene) - "if shift pressed" : select next track - `encoder 1-7` : *"track volume"* of corresponding track - *"if shift pressed"* : *"send A"* of corresponding track - `encoder 9-15` : *"track pan"* of corresponding track - *"if shift pressed"* : *"send B"* of corresponding track - `encoder 8` : track-selection (left-right) - `encoder 16` : scene selection (up-down) - `transpose encoder` : set volume of master-track
:musical_score: SEQUENCER The `sequencer`-layer is only available in **Ableton 11** or newer! The `sequencer` layer has 2 different functionalities: - If `shift` is pressed, you can use all button-functions from the `shift`-layer! NOTE: The first 6 characters of a clip-name are used to parse the tempo of the midi sequence! > E.g. a clip-name starting with `1/32_Q` will be identified as having a tempo of 1/32. > Any characters after the first 6 are ignored. (e.g. a name of `1/32_Q what a nice clip` is fine!)
:ant: SEQUENCE EDITOR (active if a MIDI clip is selected) In the sequence-editor mode you can edit the first 16 notes of the selected MIDI clip. - the colors of `buttons 1-16` are - `black` if there is no note or the note is muted - `blue` if there is a note, and it is unmuted - `magenta` if the note is unmuted and outside the loop - it also indicates if less than 16 notes are present - a moving `red` light indicates the playback-state of the clip - check the Ableton info-bar for info-messages! #### The assignments are as follows: - multi-touch editing mode: - touch & hold one (or more) buttons and turn the `transpose`-encoder to change the assigned property of the selected notes - use `encoder 1-6` to set which property you want to change - `button 1-16` : mute/unmute corresponding note - `shift` + `button 1-16` : use functionality of `shift`-layer - `encoder 1` : set encoders to change **note pitch** - `encoder 2` : set encoders to change **note velocity** - `encoder 3` : set encoders to change **note start-time** - `encoder 4` : set encoders to change **note duration** - `encoder 5` : set encoders to change **note velocity-deviation** - `encoder 6` : set encoders to change **note probability** - `encoder 8` : select prev/next track - `encoder 9` : change the loop start-time (coarse steps) - `encoder 10` : change the loop start-time (fine steps) - `encoder 11` : change the position of the loop (fine steps) - `encoder 12` : change the loop end-time (fine steps) - `encoder 13` : change the loop end-time (coarse steps) - `encoder 15` : transpose all notes that are inside the loop - `encoder 16` : select prev/next scene - `shift` + `encoder 1-16` : change assigned parameter of corresponding note
:hatching_chick: SEQUENCE INITIALIZER (active if the selected clip-slot is empty) In the sequence-initializer layer you can set the start-parameters for the midi-sequence that is initialized if you press `chan` again. - `buttons` 1-8 indicates the tempo of the MIDI notes as "notes/bar" [1/32, 1/16, 1/8, 1/4, 1/2, 1, 2, 4] - `buttons` 9, 10, 11, 12 indicate how the note-interval is filled - NOTE you can also use this to offset the notes! - `buttons`13, 14, 15, 16 indicate the velocity of the notes (0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1) - check the Ableton info-bar for info-messages! #### The assignments are as follows: - `buttons` 1-8: set sequence-tempo - `buttons` 9, 10, 11, 12 : set note-interval - `buttons`13, 14, 15, 16 : set velocity - **double-tap** `shift` : initialize a 16 note midi sequence with the selected parameters - `transpose-encoder` : set the note-pitch for the initialized sequence - `encoder 1` : set encoders to change **note pitch** - `encoder 2` : set encoders to change **note velocity** - `encoder 3` : set encoders to change **note start-time** - `encoder 4` : set encoders to change **note duration** - `encoder 5` : set encoders to change **note velocity-deviation** - `encoder 6` : set encoders to change **note probability** - `encoder 8` : select prev/next track - `encoder 9` : set pitch increment of notes - `encoder 10` : set number of incremented notes - `encoder 15` : transpose all notes that are inside the loop - `encoder 16` : select prev/next scene

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