5 Ableton Tips Every Producer Should Know In 2023

Free 1-hour premium video training: www.completeproducerpro.com/r...
My active artist projects
JOHN BALAYA (EDM): open.spotify.com/artist/789ip...
Ethan C. Davis (Christian): open.spotify.com/artist/34vEp...
Earth 2 Ethan (Indie Pop/Alt): open.spotify.com/artist/77H5U...
Candyland (EDM Duo): open.spotify.com/artist/3wzxa...
Hopefully some of that inspires you! Don’t forget to take action and apply what you learn so you can actually GROW!
Thanks so much for watching and comment any questions or feedback as I read all the comments.
Cheers
00:00 These tips got me 100,000,000 streams
00:35 1.The secret to the best vocal take (plus vocal recording tips)
03:29 2. How I went from intermediate to professional producer
05:59 3. Optimum speaker setup for home studios
07:24 4. The secret to HUGE masters
11:15 5. How to keep growing no matter what as a producer
14:16 How to learn more beyond this video...

[@jespertill]

When it comes to vocal comping u can press "T" in each Take Lane so u don't have to click the little speaker button all the time! ☺

[@CompleteProducer]

i KNEW there was a shortcut I was missing haha, thank you for this!

[@treyhudson73]

Word. I totally had forgotten this shortcut

[@vlk9931]

@@CompleteProducer also for automation just click ''A'' to open the automation view if you didn't know it yet🙂

[@LoganMartin921]

Goated comment

[@THEREALOGDUCK]

actually THE most underrated youtuber ever, i'm still a beginner in ableton but your tips are absolutely goated, simple yet impactful, love your stuff and keep up the youtube grind ethan, your content is truly underappreciated by the masses

[@bobbywasabi7856]

As a new producer your videos are hands down the most clear and concise tutorials I found. Thank you for making everything simple and not only explaining that you need to do something but why you need to do it.

[@CompleteProducer]

thanks so much!!

[@CarlJames10]

loving the tutorials brother.... ive binged a few of these videos already as well as taking some notes (literally busted out my pen and notebook)... instant subscriber! ive been making music for around 5 years or so and ive found my biggest issue still is the mastering process.. but honestly i just have fun doing this and its been fun since i started and didnt know anything about making music. this is like my "gaming" just to relax after a long day, put together some sounds and jam out ... cheers my dude and keep the quality content coming

[@upbeatfailure]

you have some of the easiest to digest and useful tips ive seen personally, thx for what you do man 🤙

[@CompleteProducer]

i love to hear that!

[@dpjohnjones432]

Man your videos are always legit. When you give tips they are always hard hitting.

[@mihajictouch]

Love all your videos Ethan! Thanks for helping us newbies!

[@SuperRangerstillidie]

Thanks for the videos, I only came across this channel and both videos I have watched are very helpful, am gonna work my way through them all now

[@gnarmarmounts]

The last tip *chefs kiss

[@GPK033]

G thank you for your energy. Much appreciated vibezzz.

[@heavyhittaz8938]

Thank you for everything you do bro. Super helpful.

[@djramo-g879]

Your videos are great, thank you for sharing your knowledge.

[@Jopey_Meow]

Second video I've seen of yours, thanks to the algorithm, and I'm sold, man! You're so great at this teaching stuff. I'm going to check out that course, man, but it's going to have to be after I stop experimenting and make a few loops. ✨ Thanks for the tips, man.

[@CompleteProducer]

happy to hear that! yes, the course is there for you are when you're ready for me to walk you through everything step by step as well as show me your songs for feedback/mentorship and so on.

[@akutosai29]

Hi I just found your channel. I used Ableton Live 8 over 10 years ago to produce a little Trance and Techno and I've not done anything since, until I recently purchased some hardware and Ableton Live 11 Suite. Your videos are such an inspiration for me to learn, experiment and produce again. Thank you so much.

[@akutosai29]

I didnt comment that why is that there

[@coldspacemusic]

Thanks a lot for your tips! I just found you today and I really like the way you make your videos!

[@fluffymarta]

I love your videos 😎💪😍 thanks man it's awesome, really well explained and simple to implement. Will for sure do it tonight! Looking forward for the next video🔥

[@CompleteProducer]

i love to hear that! keep it up!

[@PaPawGOT]

For a newb such as myself, your tutorials are super helpful. Thanks for the great videos.

[@tintintinintintin]

That thing about the last tip (ending up using the same tools that we end up halting your growth) is legittt...experiment. 👌

[@zachdraper1653]

Easy on the eyes and easy on the ears. Excellent content is a bonus. ❤❤❤🤤

[@eliztaylore]

Love your videos!! Thank you so much!! 🙏

[@jerolddcunha.]

Appreciate your efforts , keep it up thanks bro

[@BraVia96]

I just want to thank you one more time for the effort you put in your high quality educational videos. It helped me so much to get started with abelton 😊 greetings from Germany

[@avnerbitton1410]

love the energy😘

[@mwachner]

Thanks for the tips, awesome!

[@luccianoliechocki]

Thank you for the tips 🙌

[@mostafadarwish9585]

I truly appreciate The honesty of some of thousands youtubers with click batey videos , If I would name a list of 5 youtubers with that quality your name would be on the list for sure , I rarely comment here but after I watched a video of someone saying stop watching only youtube and start producing I've got great results so I have to appreciate the effort , honesty and content value you guys put in.

[@4smanneh77]

Thanks master Ethan. Am a baby producer using Ableton live 11 lite. Am doing great with it at the moment even though Ableton would not let me buy the upgrades. Keep teaching as i am learning 😊

[@TheIVJackal]

Keep it up Ethan, great stuff!

[@kapilatoeran]

Nice vid man! 😎💙

[@FL-be3sb]

very good tips, thanks for sharing your knowledge master!

[@thisisillusive]

Thanks for the great video!!

[@vidark.6301]

Total banger you have there! Great content 👌✊!

[@arturasb]

thank you for this. I really like your videos! :)

[@post-man23]

Totally agree with point #5. Ableton Live is very powerful. Just really need to invest the time to learn all the tools to make the workflow much faster and more productive.

[@CompleteProducer]

yeah, i think there's 20% of Ableton knowledge that will get you 80% of the results that you want. But when you want more, experiment to keep growing!

[@KookEllington]

Good stuff man. This has a ton of value, as a Live producer. Appreciate it.

[@ejshood]

Fantastic beginner tips! Cheers

[@lorenzomicheletto4088]

Dude, you are awesome!

[@ryanrobinson1025]

👏👏👏 you have earned my like and sub thanks so much for the help and clarity!

[@pretend7076]

amazing work Ethan! I am really addicted to your videos, keep doing it!! i really loved that inspiration video, and the video that u tell your story, we need more content like this in youtube, somedays i dont want to watch people talk about specific tricks for mixing, i just want to see someone who makes music talk about making music, the process and feelings, not mixing tips (i love your mixing tips, keep doing it, but make more vlogs about music/art, thats really chill and somehow makes me want create music more than when i watch some mixing tip )

[@CompleteProducer]

Im happy to hear you've been enjoying the content! yes I like watching/making the more motivational stuff as well! but the tips bring more subscribers and more people to motivate. So im doing both and trying to find a balance. stay tuned!

[@pretend7076]

@@CompleteProducer gonna follow your youtube journey 4 sure my friend, really good content

[@MegaJacob04]

thank u for what you do!

[@nateflohr6219]

the content ive been looking for, thanks!

[@CompleteProducer]

happy to hear that!

[@cezaryabramczuk7240]

You are the Boss, thank You for a lot of good advices.

[@MickSkarr]

So very Inspirational 🙌

[@xnottmusic]

You are such an awesome person with full of knowledge. I watched your almost all video loved it. Very informative and engaging. Love from Nepal.

[@CompleteProducer]

Thanks so much!

[@alessandrosanna1191]

Please man continue to make videos. You’re so helpful🙏🏼

[@CompleteProducer]

i will! thanks Alessandro

[@Zaalogg]

Man i did watch tons of videos with good hints and tutorials with lots of dudes talkin lots of stuff but saying too much or not realy much at all without making my sympathy grow to most of them. But finally i found you. The way you explain and the non ego driven presentation makes it realy enjoying to learn. Subscribed!

[@CompleteProducer]

awe thank you!

[@TRISEKT]

I absolutely love your videos man! thank you so much

[@CompleteProducer]

thank you!!

[@LorenzoPanico]

Really good Tips!Thanks a lot!You are very Good ♥️💎👏

[@psb322]

as a professional drummer who’s finally jumping into production/recording with a DAW, i have a feeling i’m gonna be coming back to your channel ALL the time lol

[@CompleteProducer]

wow i would LOVE that! i started playing drums too. it helps a loooooot with production

[@jackc8120]

I am binge watching all of your videos today for the whole day instead of Ozark on Netflix. I only discovered your channel this morning and I absolutely love it, I am so addicted to you LOL. I can't wait for more!!!

[@CompleteProducer]

thank you Jack!

[@alejandrobarrero6031]

Youre too legendary thanks a bunch bro

[@soundremedymusic]

Fantastic stuff man!!!! Great videos. Just starting to get back to music and this inspired me :)

[@CompleteProducer]

i love to hear that, keep going!

[@alexzehnmusic]

Thanks man I learnt two tips from this video

[@nawdres]

thanks for sharing this, you are really helpful 🥹

[@CompleteProducer]

thank you Naw!

[@lostinart]

What great content! Keep it up!

[@CompleteProducer]

thank you Keith!

[@JamesStMichael]

Awesome stuff bro!! Keep up the awesome work! The growth is there!!! How did create a midi clip just by dragging?!?

[@CompleteProducer]

Thank you! I just used command shift T to make a new midi track. then highlighted where i wanted the midi clip to be, and used command shift M to make a new midi clip. maybe the way i edited the video confused you, sorry!

[@bixotti]

Good video! Id love to learn more about phase & correlation. Id like to know if there are more ways to fix phase correlation other than just lowering the width of the sound.

[@BxnerJam]

love the tips thank you !

[@CompleteProducer]

thank you!

[@CharliePuma]

You're awesome dude!

[@CompleteProducer]

thank you!

[@digivinylproductions7166]

Had no idea about the Legato button.. appreciate you!

[@potterb39]

thanks again for the great content.

[@CompleteProducer]

thank you!

[@progrocks4110]

This man is good 💫

[@leroybrown5922]

Absolute 🔥 man, I didn’t know the legato thing either (I didn’t even know what it meant I had to look up the definition) and I’m 27 😅 you should make a part 3 pl0x

[@hleet]

Nice tips, thank you ! I like the one with the Ext OUT to reference track in ableton. I would add another crucial tip : Learn your shortcuts ! :D definitly time saving ^^

[@acoyajademusic]

Oh my gosh Ethan THANK YOU. I’m going to be a regular viewer from Now on.

[@gerardodeltoro6219]

Thank you man

[@CompleteProducer]

no problem (:

[@RabbitdogCN]

nicejob bro

[@samprock]

Yes, yes I subbed already! :)

[@adrianwolf1275]

You should have way more subscribers. Awesome tips!❤ I just started getting into it.

[@CompleteProducer]

thank you! and keep it up

[@Gregoriobart]

Your channel is freaking awesomeeeeeee!!! Big fan 😍 I have two questions, if anyone could help me: - When giving the extra Dbs in the limiter, do you ever take them off? Or you just leave it like that for the rest of the song? - You just use a limiter in the master? What about an EQ to remove subfrequencies lower than 30hz?

[@xdestinyloveex]

what headphones do you use? youre a great teacher!

[@by_antony]

Dude! Again, explained succinctly.

[@CompleteProducer]

thank you!

[@mavrikyos]

Legato ! Damn man thanks for that 🙏🏽🥳

[@ex_animo]

Sooo good

[@treyhudson73]

Glad I stumbled upon your channel, man! One thing I'd add is to be careful with your reference track since it has been mastered. I'd drop the volume on it or you might mix too loud! As well, the ideal height of your monitors puts the tweeter at your ear height. Just a little fun tip! On that automation trick, the vocal kicks in a second before the drop. That volume didn't sound affected. ?

[@CompleteProducer]

If you watch my video 10 tips after 10 year in Ableton, you'll see that I don't usually "master" tracks, but focus more on mixing with a limiter on the master and getting it as loud as you need that way. That's why I drag references in and use them the way I do. But if you were to send your song out for mixing/mastering that's a good idea to make sure you aren't going between a super loud reference and your song haha. Yeah, i didn't notice it messed with the vocal too much to have itcoming it with the kick instead of before with the vocal, so i kept it! very observant!

[@treyhudson73]

@@CompleteProducer Funny enough I noted that sentiment when you mention only having a limiter. You "master" as you go by properly mixing from the start if I understood correctly.

[@CompleteProducer]

@@treyhudson73 That's correct! I have a limiter on the master from the moment i open a new project.

[@avengerengel6508]

Can you make a video where you do a song like Nikotin from scratch with just the things that are in the maximum Ableton package? It would be supper interesting to see and get a chance to maybe follow your train of though a little bit. Love you vids and keep up the good work ☺️👍

[@JuanManuel12345]

Hey man just found you today and really loving your content! I was doing the comparison method 2 days ago but realized that I was comparing a mastered song to the my (not mastered) mix in ableton. Im not sure what to think about this. What are your thoughts?

[@CompleteProducer]

I usually produce, mix, and master all in the same project. I talk more about it in my Top 10 Tips After 10 Years in Ableton video. Hope that points you more in the right direction!

[@whatsnoahschatz]

yo, this is wild but your video popped up via algortithm, and it's continued to stick out to me, i've been struggling with getting back into music (i work as a creative director in MI) and your videos have actually been very encouraging. i saw the cross on your arm and thought (does this dude know the Lord or is it just aesthetic purposes? fast forward, i went to your spotify, saw your multitude of accounts, and then isla vista's latest single popped up. all that to say - THANK YOU for pushing the creative envelope forward. isla vista has been a creative force i've looked to for a while and it's so dope to see you're a part of that as well. i've been on a journey with faith & art, and it's dope to see others on similar paths. 🙏🏼

[@CompleteProducer]

Wow happy to hear that my videos have been encouraging for you! That's so cool that you're into Isla Vista Worship. I'm actually putting out a new single with them tomorrow (: Maybe I'll make a video about my journey with faith and art one of these days, because lately I feel like I've found the sweet spot. Spoiler alert: I valued art as well as my reputation wayyyyy too much hahaha

[@whatsnoahschatz]

​@@CompleteProducer that would be super dope, there is a few resources i've stumbled upon that have really given voice to a lot of my felt experience - especially within a church context. this is one of them: Art & Faith by Makoto Fujimura. it's one of the best books i've read on this subject. def check it out! the new single is so fire by the way. love the fusion of genres.

[@mattremblay_]

Hey man i need your help because this is driving me crazy. I am trying to find out what the best export settings are on ableton for spotify as well as what the best settings are for running your session up to the point where you would export it for spotify. would you want to run your session in 48khz - 32bit, then once you have mixed & mastered your song, you export it at a downsampled 44.1khz & a dithered 16bit or 24bit file? (which bit?) & also which dither option would you want to use? triangular? I cant believe there's not one good video on youtube about proper export settings on ableton for streaming, you can be the first!

[@salgallegos200]

Hello Ethan, which distributor-aggregator do you use for your multiple projects? Great videos!!

[@CompleteProducer]

i use DIsrtrokid!

[@Tech-xm8vg]

awesome and keep the beanie....it's now part of your identity

[@KapaDeFreitas]

Ethan, I've watched a couple of your videos and there's some awesome tips there, thank you! Question unrelated to Ableton: How do you manage your side projects social media? do you have a profile for each one? do you use the same for all? thank you for your time.

[@CompleteProducer]

That’s actually something I’m still figuring out. For me, being on social media all the time kinda sucks the joy out of my life so I’m trying to figure out how to be on it less and less. I’ve made a separate page for each one but that became overwhelming to try to post regular content on every one. So I’ve resolved to just post on one personal page. Ethancdavismusic on insta. Hope that explains things!

[@KapaDeFreitas]

@@CompleteProducer that’s exactly what I thought. Posting regularly on one profile is already very draining… but don’t you worry that it might confuse your audience ?

[@williamodell9955]

Hey dood congrats on the results with nicoteen, looking foreword to more

[@CompleteProducer]

Thank you!! More on the way

[@F3RMusic]

nice tips amigo !!!

[@CompleteProducer]

thank you!

[@jrsmsc1758]

i like video befor watching because im sure anymore this man tutorials are usefulle

[@CompleteProducer]

thank you!

[@jeromeinen7912]

Does Ableton lite have comping?

[@zachary5049]

When it comes to the #4 when you change the input gain to +4dB, this changes the whole music. The threshold gets changed, and it is just sounds different. The dynamic range is just narrower. You would need to also change the treshold by -4db.. Or have another limiter - lets call it technical limiter to -1db and the end of the chain. And the other one - musical limiter, for drops and other dynamic use.

[@CompleteProducer]

it does affect certain qualities other than just the pure volume of the song for sure. as long as I'm not ruining dynamics and the track is loud enough this tip works great. use your ears and do what sounds best to you! if that tip isn't helpful for your process, no problem

[@zachary5049]

well the dynamics it self are getting pushed harder. What i mean is that for example the dynamic range you had was 50db and now after you added +4db on input, the resul in output dynamic range will be 46db. It is just a think to bare in mind, cuz if u would do that once or twice in a song, or album, it can judt get bigger and bigger to the point where your dynamic range is flat

[@RobbieRobero]

Is there any benefit to mixing on headphones vs good monitors or is it preference?

[@CompleteProducer]

pros and cons to each, but ultimately preference. headphones are more portable (:

[@RobbieRobero]

Thanks! Your videos pack soooo much info info. We appreciate all the knowledge you share@@CompleteProducer

[@alyssamonahan]

How did you create such a long midi track box? I always have to double click on a midi track to create a box as small as the smallest grid measurement, deselect “loop”, and then drag it out to make it longer. such a long process

[@6ixteenflow]

Awsome

[@CompleteProducer]

The limiter IS the mastering. if you do a clean mix with the limiter on the master, and it's loud enough, you can export it and it's ready for distribution!

[@wrigna1]

Ethan, I tried searching "master" on your KZbin channel but was unable to find the mastering video you talk about at 5:22. I've watched tons of tutorials and this is the first time I've ever heard anyone say to strictly only put a limiter on the master channel. I'm curious to learn more about this technique and its purpose. Can you please share a link to this video either as a reply to this comment or in the description section for this video? Thanks in advance! 🙏 Cheers! 🍻

[@CompleteProducer]

Hey, I was referring to the 2:27 mark in my video My Top 10 Tips After 10 Years In Ableton. Hope this helps! You just use a limiter on a transparent setting. In my case I use the L2 plugin by Fabfilter on the Almost Clipping preset. Hope this helps!

[@JLRPROD4YOU]

DUDE LEGATO..........😂😮WTF 😅 GREAT!! ❤❤❤❤I LOVE YOU DUDE! YOU A GREAT GUY!

[@Ya_muva]

What’s the mastering video called

[@joerikabi-pz4sx]

So I have a question regarding reference track in mixing , I’m having a difficulty choosing the right reference track, How Do I know that the reference track is choose is the right one with my own track ? I do search in the similar genre but I can’t decide that this is the track I will be using , Is there a way to know for sure? Because I’m struggling with it. Thanks

[@CompleteProducer]

There is no way to know for sure. I would try and find a similar song that a really well known artist put out because they probably had a really good mixing and mastering engineer work on the song. Try a reference out, and if you're really having a hard time with it, you can always choose a different one. I sometimes use 2.

[@speakthetruth110]

Did the thunderous crepitate you performed require comping or just reverb ?

[@CompleteProducer]

lol the fart noise? it's from Splice hahahha i put reverb on it in final cut

[@speakthetruth110]

@@CompleteProducer lol. Yes that's the one. Just stumbled upon your channel. Your levity is refreshing. I recently migrated from fl-studio to Ableton, so I am struggling a little. Thank you for sharing your knowledge, it is much appreciated. I am enjoying your channel. Thank you Ethan !

[@rezawildan]

that legato really makes me shock, why i didn't realize it sooner lol

[@CompleteProducer]

haha same!

[@sternenherz]

6: drop some Feature requests into the Ableton Forum once in a while, so those people know we want improvements, and work in the right direction. I mean, there's Bounce in place, which has been a feature request since 10+ years -and they still don't do it. And TONS of other incredibly awesome feature requests, which would bring Ableton to the next level. (including MUCH MUCH MUCH MUCH better Midi and Audio Editing. For MUCH faster workflow. Yes, much faster than now. Ableton needs more pressure from high skill producers like you

[@chiranjibbaruah9774]

👍

[@thesadwolf]

Sometimes we need to experiment and legato of what's keeping us in a box.

[@CompleteProducer]

i appreciate the effort and courage it took to share a joke like this lol

[@collintheawesome1]

Vuori pls sponsor this man

[@CompleteProducer]

plz Vuori