6 things you don’t need expensive plugins for (use Ableton instead)

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In this video, despite the all plugin company’s endless quest to convince you otherwise, I show how Ableton Live has great solutions built right into the software itself, no extra plugins required. Its really good to stay in the know when it comes to the tools you already own. While plugins are glamorous and shiny and it seems like everyone on planet earth is always buying the next latest and greatest plugins. You can laugh all the way to the bank with all the money you saved simply learning the tools you already have!
00:00 - Intro
0:54 - Bus Compression
3:58 - Clippers
9:51 - Side Chain Ducking
13:42 - Amp Modelers
19:57 - Reverbs
24:00 - Trump's Brickwall Limiter

[@KMcirca82]

the more you learn your daw the less you need outside tools. it's a matter of people investing the time vs paying for short cuts. i appreciate your time as always.

[@wwlittlejOfficial]

Its the idea that they use what DJ X uses, their track will be a banget like him, also its the cray cray marketing of the vst makers tryna sell their product. A wise man oince told me long ago that there are no bad *sounding* vsts, just different. its like saying whats the best color of red. Theres a billion billionb shades of red, just which one fits the usage u want. none are worse than another, just different. I wont tell people that they shouldnt buy another plugin, just dont think its going to be better. Its just different.

[@wesprog9809]

Maybe in a few cases but you have to learn new plugins too so it depends what you want to do with it. If you're also buying presets and samples to not have to learn your plugins than it's definitely a shortcut at first but it won't help if you look at the bigger picture because you don't learn enough using presets. So you'll either realize that you need to learn or you'll get frustrated and stop producing eventually.

[@terryriley6410]

​@@wwlittlejOfficial Sure but plugins aren't colors, they are designed and programmed by humans and as such they can have bad workflows, bugs and artifacts that go against the purpose of the plugin. For example if you want a clean oscillator without digital aliasing artifacts a plugin where the devs didn't work on antialiasing will be bad. Sure you can call it "different" because they do something different than what you want but that's just playing with words, obviously anything that you'd call "bad" could be called "different from your expectation". So yeah, some plugins will be better than others for the individual.

[@wesprog9809]

@@terryriley6410 I agree it totally depends on what you want to achieve. You can probably get close to the same with different plugins or a different Workflow but it will not be the exact same in the end. I don't think it matters how you got it done if it sounds great. It's definitely not like vsts make your track just by installing them you need to learn them too.

[@valdir7426]

it's not about time but people want the bells and whistles of the shiny skeumorphic vst interface. I think that's why live effects are underrated.

[@1andahalfmen268]

Anyone watching this, its really worth checking out the seed to stage courses. I’ve learnt so much, although this was after I’d spend sooo much on plug-ins that “look pretty”, because let’s face it, that’s why I bought them! I play solo gigs with a laptop that is by no means powerful and a MIDI controller in session view. by using stock plugins (that I now know how to use), I have no cpu OR latency issues. Seriously, use your cash on learning, you won’t regret it. 3rd party plugins have their place, but the marketing is disgraceful. Too many KZbinrs advocating them, and inexperienced users ie ME, believe they will dramatically improve your skill. The thing is, you need the SKILLS to make them work, by which time, you realise you’ve wasted your cash, because the stock ones do the same thing!

[@oscwildle1]

Thanks again for showing us the benefit of learning to use what’s right in front of our faces.

[@djGreenALERT]

Thank you for confirming suspicions I've had for quite a while now. I'm 20 minutes in and can sum it up in just one word. 'Marketing'

[@slakraze6288]

I’m watching this on my phone and somehow the audio for this video is just super clear and sounds great. Whatever you’re doing for your own audio production is impressive.

[@scottbussler4041]

Under rated comment

[@samuri4483]

He’s a true professional

[@samuri4483]

And/or wizard

[@mattwhit02]

Seed to stage, I love how you are straight to the point no BS even with your mini promo for your lessons! This knowledge is so so incredible and you are offering it to us for free. Keep it up I am so stoked i came across your channel! Plus I didn't know about Digital clip vs Analog so I got to learn something new!!

[@kennan10101]

This would make an amazing series. Hard to find really good tutorials on recreating plugins. Thanks for the high quality content as always.

[@officialjrduncanpage]

Definitely need a part 2 for this 💯

[@JamesRamboPearce]

This is perfect please continue this as a series!!!

[@HisRoyalSelf]

I think after years of dabbling in and out of different youtube instructors, I've come to the decision that I like you the most. The concise and quick past the bs method in which you describe things is nice. The tone and mood is easy to settle into. Well done.

[@joshhanson9321]

Thank you for not being another KZbin plugin shill. I'm always learning something from your videos. I will point out something seeing as I just read the Blackhole user guide yesterday. You can add more to the "freeze" soundscape by using "infinite" instead of freeze. There is no button, just turn the feedback knob almost all the way up until it reads "infinite" and make sure mod rate or depth is at 0.

[@Shane-zo4mg]

Thank you for being the one KZbinr who actually knows how to do a proper A/B test

[@Ruairi.rollins]

Would love more of these videos. Especially impressed with the amp modelling

[@Markybeeski]

Best vid on Compressor I’ve seen. Great work (as always)!

[@hjvarfjell]

Thank you so much. I really needed this. I have been a sucker for getting new and shiny plugins. Ableton suite contains so much that it’s easy to become overwhelmed and just buy a third party plugin that does what you need. Instead of learning what you already have. Lately I’ve been trying to not buy plugins and want to learn the tools in live suite instead. You seem to have heard my wishes. Trying to muddle through on my own is harder and less fun than having you show me. 😃👍

[@pistachiojud]

Loving this stuff man. Thank you!

[@SuperMonibuvy]

Make sure you turn off the "Color" button on saturator when using it as a clipper. It adds a full spectrum noise floor that colors the sound. When you are using saturator for clipping across multiple tracks going into further processing downstream, the color really adds up and muddles the sound. Try throwing saturator on a pure sine wave, then checking a spectrum analyzer and turning color on and off.

[@purplism4857]

dude you have been able to pursue engineering all the way forwards and then all the way backwards again so that you could make this video and i really really appreciate that

[@joaooqueiroz]

so glad that I found your channel. tnx and congrats for your great content

[@russiansteve]

Speaking as someone who has purchased Arturia's FX Collection I can only agree with this. I often create two mastering chains, 1 with 3rd party, 1 with Live's stock plugins and when A/B listening there is no noticeable difference. I think the off-the-wall FX (Arturia's Fragments, Output's Thermal) can be worth a look but even some of these can be replicated within Live with a little work.

[@keithroberts9869]

Totally agree. I think the stock plugins and the Arturia FX Collection is a one-two punch you probably don't need much else.

[@ghostplayermusic]

I find that some of the compressors in the Arturia collection give a very different mastering experience - it’s more about injecting analog characteristics than functionality

[@danno94]

def would love that next video in this series!

[@HarryLoveTV]

Seed To Stage has probably THE best Ableton vids I’ve found and I that’s saying a lot since spend most of every day with KZbin playing in the back or foreground

[@rileyk4119]

The Key function is the real pro tip people should take from this video. Awesome as always, thank you!

[@kerdum]

I'm 2:45 in to this and I'm very impressed!! Thank god for this dude!!!

[@Steve-br7wt]

I needed this today

[@rotten77]

That`s one of the things why I love Ableton. There is almost everything for music production. You can make any synth sound with internal instruments, there are Sampler and Drum Rack as well. The only thing I am missing is a good pitch corrector for vocals but a few months ago I bought Nectar and Melodyne during Black Friday so now I have everything :-)

[@magneticmonopole7824]

One plugin I use all the time and haven't been able to replicate with any other plugin, Abelton or 3rd party, is Acustica Audio Lemon delay. The repeats just sound so good. Other than that tho I've learned alot here, great video. I will be using more Abelton plugs.

[@jolieuke]

The content of your videos are always off the charts!

[@WINOLAofficial]

I found your "Ableton is a modular synth" video, and damn, I really love these kind of videos! I would love to see more videos like the ableton is a modular synth one!!

[@neilelkins2009]

The transient shaper in Drum Buss works on other stuff like rhythm guitar type parts (although it does introduce a bit of colour even with all the other settings turned right down).

[@weedyliver]

Incredibly good presentation. Thanks again!

[@infinity-1834]

Excellent points here. Really good info.

[@kennethvalbjoern]

Hi there. I'm new to this channel, but is already impressed with what I've seen of Ableton-videos. Thanks for the great videos, they are very helpful!

[@extendedblundering]

I am very grateful for your recording visual of "Look ahead time". I have been incorrectly using that feature and this explanation was very useful. thanks!

[@michaelduff2382]

Yeah, same. I thought it just introduced latency to make sure that it was matching up with the sidechain signal instead of there being a processing delay. I didn't realize it was actually responding earlier as a result.

[@lawinter1949]

The difference that I use Kclip for is that you can actually keep the oversampling on in Kclip. There are actually 2 hardclippers in it with one that lives after the oversampling. I use the ceiling knob for this output clipper instead of the one next to the input.

[@allanckny]

Another wonderful video!! I have been learning from your courses for months. One of the best investment in my life!

[@Tomijee]

Thank you for sharing your knowledge, nice video and tips!

[@robbiep742]

As always, Anthony is releasing the best content about Ableton and production on KZbin

[@AlkibiadesKleiniou]

I've just discovered your videos. The amp one really blew me away.

[@unused0011]

Wow ... You have cleared up loads for me. Thanks buddy 👍

[@Frbrdt]

This video is so much gold! The part with the Amps killed me totally :D

[@WhatsAHandleMyNameIsJoe]

Really appreciate your videos, learning Ableton is daunting, but you explain well.

[@pubdigitalix]

This video is a gem. One problem with plugin''s developers is the complexity outside of the DAW itself and the computational resources they needed to interface correctly. Steinberg VST interface is not helping a lot. Good work.

[@hpnascimento95]

Great video, as always! A lot of useful tips in there. Regarding side chain ducking, Ableton's LFO tool also works pretty well. And you can map it to whichever knob you want, such as volume and filter cutoff frequency. I would also mention Ableton's delay/echo effects, which sound great and have all the features I need. I see people spending 100+ dollars on delay plugins when the stock versions work perfectly -- and you can always add EQ, saturation etc. to give it that "tape" feel.

[@hshx1n]

I’m trying to echo my piano and guitar skank and I have the trial for SoundToys echoboy, it immediately gives me what I want and I’ve fiddled with the Ableton Echo with the same settings but Echoboy is giving me a way nicer skank. Any advice?

[@dabboq]

great vid as always!

[@0711RC]

Awesome advice!! Thanks, love Abelton.

[@valdir7426]

ableton stock plugins are always underrated. people find them boring looking as they don't have a crazy skeumorphic interface but they got impressive stuff here; specially when comparing to earlier versions of live. Also the made by AAS stuff is really worth checking out. I bought a few vst's, specially synths; but a lot of the times I fall back on the classics; they'll be lighter on CPU too. with the new drift you'll be able to go a long way without a single vst.

[@kineticwayss]

ableton instruments and sounds are not good they're terrible

[@PeterPepper93]

​@@kineticwayssmore likely you're too bad at sound design to make something out of it, Robert Henke does his entire live with stock sound and plugins and it's absolutely élite top of the game. You are not mature enough yet.

[@kineticwayss]

@@PeterPepper93 forgive my amateur ass lol now im a lot better and Ableton stocks are pretty nice especially "analog"

[@PeterPepper93]

@kineticwayss I guess you are mature enough now. Congratulations on your progress!

[@Veraj_Kriela]

Ahahha this lovely discussion, love u guys.

[@spooqs]

If I were trapped on a desert island with only one Ableton stock plugin, I'd have a hard time deciding between the Glue Compressor and Saturator, both of them are HUGE workhorses for me.

[@aemythjensen]

That's fine, when we drop you off at the deserted island we'll let you have 2 stock plugins. 😉

[@tholos6630]

Yeah ... those two and then my other two would probably be: EQ8 and Utility. I use Utility all the time.

[@spooqs]

@@aemythjensen now to figure out how to open coconuts and catch fish with the Glue Compressor 🤔

[@aemythjensen]

@@spooqs 😄😄

[@esahm373]

Well, Glue has a (soft) clipper built in, so I take Glue over Saturator any day. Also, Live's saturator aliases like hell, even with oversampling on.

[@maximrueegger]

great input, can't wait for your next vid!

[@Elias-st1vm]

Best video about Ableton ive ever seen

[@jefgirdler7232]

I want like six parts of this going over every possible effect and why Ableton's stock stuff will do it better

[@angeloandrewmusic]

Such an awesome video! Thanks for sharing!😎

[@FastCarsLoudMusic]

I'm currently putting together a template for a new project and one of the limitations I've been toying with is "use stock ableton for everything". I think you just sold me.

[@PolarTrance]

Often when I see or hear about a new plugin, I get inspired to go back to FL, and see if I can do the thing with what I already have. Usually the answer is yes I can, because FL be filled with good stuff, but also the few things I have bought in my years tend to be powerful tools.

[@MikeJohnson-jv9bc]

Great video. So many gems.

[@tugaryev]

Thanks for making great videos !

[@Simbosan]

I have to say the lovely air on Blackhole was so very nice, mmm. A worthwhile exercise to get that out of the stock plugins. Great video

[@SeedtoStage]

I know ha it’s a sweet lol beast. Idk if it’s worth 200 though if you have hybrid reverb.

[@Disisions]

This series can go on forever 👏

[@gaspardguilbert728]

Very good point of view. Very true. Thank you ! This UAD compressor comparison...🙃

[@cameroncox6254]

The end made me laugh out loud hard. I love it hahaha. That Reverb comparison was amazing. I kept debating about buying one of those Big Sky reverb pedals to pair with my Prophet Rev 2. But after watching this, I think I'll save myself $400! Thank you! 🙌

[@rayderrich]

I love Blackhole and it is almost always on sale, I think I paid 29 bucks for it, but I do see the points you are making, this video is very educational and possibly money saving.

[@regojozsa]

This video reminds me of Boz Digital Labs. They make VST plugins of things that are literally right there in the Ableton Utility effect, but their target audience is Pro Tools users who either can't access those effects as easily in their DAW or not at all. For those people, investing in Boz plugins is worth it. And remembering this makes me appreciate switching to Ableton all over again. Pro Tools might be the industry standard in big studios, but it's also completely invalidated by Ableton

[@adammercysystem6450]

I noticed a Boz advert for exactly what the utility plugin does inside Ableton the other day. Had to click on it to see who their target audience was haha! Couldn't belive they were advertising something like that for 20 dollars!

[@richardsherwood9530]

Excellent- thank you!

[@kittycloudz813]

Thanks for making the point about the Saturator , I never even opened it lol , it’s crucial for my live looping performance to have a latency free ish clipper / limiter with a low cpu hit …Saturator is perfect actually.. wow 👌🎶

[@SeedtoStage]

Yeah i used it on my live master track as well

[@kianhendrick3794]

AMAZING TOPIC !

[@benchiki6352]

Bro, fuqin amazing video. Thank you.

[@musicbyjon5447]

Always learn something new after watching your videos

[@osazzeh]

Another one: Ableton's Redux (Live 11) can get the same "low-pass filter" type effect you can get a quality third-party bitcrusher like Decimort 2. How it's done: On Redux engage the post-filter, turn down the sample rate knob to taste, then slowly decrease to the post-filter octave to clean up the harsh artifacts... I found this out cause I updated to Ableton 11 and played around with the new Redux literally the day after I bought Decimort 2, which I bought solely for that effect alone

[@soundchaser3969]

Thanks for reminder. I have to stop buying effect plugins, at least until I've further explored what stock plugins can do.

[@bm-sp8cv]

Thank you!!!

[@josipvulic5471]

absolutely love making new guitar tones using just the stock switchable amp and cabs within Ableton and the CPU usage is so low with M1 Macs as well. thanks for the heads up on the other comparisons!

[@sagnier]

I have Cory Wong- so disappointing just how much it gobbles the processor. And it’s nothing special really. So glad I bought it on sale because it doesn’t get much use, especially since I acquired both fender collections for amplitube. Now THAT is a brilliant emulation - so much distinctive character in those amps.

[@franciscominaca3239]

u are the best coach

[@static-san]

The Hybrid Reverb is amazing, but when you only have Standard, then the normal Reverb just doesn't always cut it. Fortunately buying some necessary hardware comes with plugins and that's where I got NI's Raum which I love. And as other commenters have pointed out, many plugins have sales. I don't think I've ever paid full price for an effect plugin and almost all were in a bundle making them even cheaper.

[@jeramym9506]

You really are the GOAT

[@viktoronopko1853]

Funny that this video was accompanied with a Waves ovox ad. 😁 Amazing content, Thank you! 🔥

[@SHLDMusic]

I really like Ableton's glue compressor, but recently I was thinking 'what if I bought the SSL compressor' maybe it would sound better? Your demonstration is amazing, thanks for saving me $300! 😍

[@OscarSlapp]

More please!

[@leemortimer80]

Another excellent video

[@erndog64]

I started out with my Casio keyboard and my guitar pedal. Then I record on my computer to mess with it more. Now I'm learning DAW. I love it.

[@MarcDJulien]

Awesome video!

[@psychoilvkusnoi5664]

This guy rocks. Solid education program for free. Big like!

[@danibee535]

oh my gosh, yeah, i shocked myself a little while at how good the stock ableton amp modeller (and pedal and cabinet) was. i dialled in a very pleasant super-reverb-reminiscent tone very easily!

[@GeorgeMichaelTribute]

Thank you very much un hypnotising me. great video and subbed :) Ableton is Boss!!

[@iaroslavyakoff3822]

Thank you for this video. I already knew that the Glue Compressor is a beast, but the saturator is a clipper... after this video, I dive into the study of clippers. If you have time and inspiration, review MeldaProduction mSaturator. I find his presets "Drums will love this" or "Nasty Drums" to work very similar (if not better) to the Decapitator. In any case, MeldaProd is an incredible addition to Ableton's stock plugins and there is so many hidden gems.

[@emreuludogann]

i totally agree with you!

[@MrRexBaron]

Great vid!

[@schermanism]

I love this channel

[@MrWhite2277]

Doh. Wish I'd seen this before I bought kclip a week ago. Good video. 👍

[@revelationbeats_]

Awesome video, everydays a school day

[@bloopbleepnothinghere]

Soundtoys Echoboy is hard to beat with stock plugins. It's so good.

[@StanAllDay]

Hi Friend! I like this series already.

[@Jazzguitar00]

This is a good idea for a video. I will say though, that the expensive plugins sound *slightly* better but if you have a lot of gear and plugins to buy...spending 300 on a glue bus compressor is not the best use of your resources! I don't understand why you would be attached to putting a mic on an amp- there are some IR packs that sound incredible and you probably won't beat unless you have access to a world class studio.

[@conor557]

Great vid

[@chonkypixel1006]

Funny, I bought KClip and ABd it against Glue (no compression, soft-sat switched on) and it was identical. :) That was for an earlier version of KClip though. It's got a lot more going on now.

[@thelostboymusic]

thank you

[@thepatzer]

Another alternative to Black Hole (in particular) for atmospheric reverb is Valhalla's excellent and free Supermassive. Shimmer is also great, but costs (a reasonable) $50.

[@DOMusicOfficial]

Great Video

[@wandajames143]

You’re right in a way, but you’ve really got to have a good place to record an amp, and a good setup. These archetypes are the best amp sims I’ve heard, they sound wayyyy better than when I mic my Princeton. Also a lot of FabfiLter and soundtoys etc… plug-ins just smash ableton especially for vocals

[@franciscoojeda11]

Yes and we are not even talking bout Ableton Live Suite Enhancement, Max4Live devices and so on. also Echo is a really powerful delay, although sometimes I still prefer EchoBoy, echo it's almost on every project

[@sandwich-breath]

Echo is perfect, and the magnetic tape from M4L is amazing too

[@leondenengelsen1157]

Love this! Also love Ableton so I'm biased. Still love this.