Ableton External Instrument - How to Set it Up (Example with the Vermona Perfourmer Mk2)

[@djacks666]

Just came across this looking for Perfourmer/Ableton content. Thanks so much. Clear and concise.

[@JannisLeWolff]

Thank you, really glad it was helpful 😊

[@dangerbird64]

Great tutorial, thanks! There’s not a lot of PerFourmer content out there. More would be appreciated.

[@JannisLeWolff]

Thank you! I’ll actually make some videos in the future!

[@arjenarend7755]

Super video , this will help me a lot to setup my Perfourmer... I have in combination with the MOD DUO X... will use your video's to learn :) , thanks a lot

[@JannisLeWolff]

Great to hear! Also just be invited to drop some questions if they come up along the way, I’m always happy to speak about the Perfourmer 😊

[@arjenarend7755]

@@JannisLeWolff That is good news , I am planning to purchase a Push 2 to control the Perfourmer... I. love sequences and I think the Perfourmer has great sound for that purpose

[@JannisLeWolff]

Could work nicely! I had a push 2 in the past, but didn’t connect to it so much. It’s purely personal though, because I like to have one knob doing one thing instead of those Hybrid do everything controllers. Maybe I’m too old already for that stuff 😄 but it’s a Great concept nevertheless 😊

[@arjenarend7755]

@@JannisLeWolff to old? I am just 60 and starting 😀 i just love Berlin school style and am figuring out the Perfourmer in this style and my setup. Any video to help make dreamy patches are very welcome

[@JannisLeWolff]

​@@arjenarend7755 That's just amazing 😊 I think many of the Perfourmer sounds tend to have a dreamy note by nature, and I'll see where I'll end up at at the next Perfourmer video! Wishing you lots of fun for your first sessions with it!

[@qwerwerterytrtyutyuiyuiouiop]

Great video, Jannis. I appreciated this even though I don't have (yet?) a Perfourmer (going to check out you video specifically on this). I do have a Vermona DRM1 MKIV, though. I wanted to give it a shot and ask: I can't figure out how to sequence the DRM1 with Ableton - is it a problem that I only have Ableton Live Lite? There is no 'External Instrument' in this version of the software it seems. Is there possibly some other way to sequence the drum synth? I'm connected by USB so I figure that should be good enough. Anyway, keep up the nice video making! Thanks

[@JannisLeWolff]

Thank you for the nice comment! Unfortunately you’re right- the external instrument is not available in the Lite version. You need at least “Standard”. For sequencing outboard gear I don’t think there is another option in Ableton 😔

[@qwerwerterytrtyutyuiyuiouiop]

@@JannisLeWolff Thanksfor the reply :) Last night I stumbled onto something workable! I went to my MIDI track and set MIDI From to Computer Keyboard. Then all of a sudden I was able to MIDI map the synth. Last night I could also mouse click a piano roll key and sound the synth, but today that function has vanished... might be something to do with having turned off the drum machine, probably just have to map the trigs again. But the thing I don't get is the beats from last night are playing back through the drum synth without having had to map the triggers again.

[@chillo964]

Thanks for the great video. i’ve got a push 2 and actually i’d like to use the four tracks independently of my perfourmer directly from the push. can you show me how to do please ? I would very much appreciate . Thks again for the great content

[@JannisLeWolff]

Hey, thanks for your comment! You should create 4 MIDI tracks and put an external instrument effect on all of them. Then you use different MIDI channels for every single channel external instrument effect, e.g. 1, 2, 3 and 4. You set the channels accordingly on the Perfourmer (with the menu on the right side). Then you you just need to set the audio inputs correctly, depending on with how many cables the Perfourmer is connected, and then you should be good to go :)

[@chillo964]

@@JannisLeWolff ok ! thank’s a lot and keep going 😉👌🏻

[@JannisLeWolff]

Sure :) have fun with the Perfourmer!

[@arjenarend7755]

Finally got time for my Vermona, been busy with my new Subsequent 37. Question... can i make several midi tracks in Ableton for every midi channel of the Vermona? I am not a DAW user but need the Vermona to run sequences from Ableton... thanks for your reply

[@JannisLeWolff]

Hey Arjen! You absolutely can 😊, it's what I'm doing in every single one of my performance videos. You just need to pick different midi channels for every midi track and make sure the sound only comes on one of them, unless you're working with the individual outputs. Sometimes its also fun though to send 2 or more different sequences to the same midi channel and have them "fight" for space. Quite glitchy but unique things possible here 😉

[@arjenarend7755]

@@JannisLeWolff ok thanks a lot for your fast reply, i will set it up like you wrote 👍

[@goodnoyz]

Great LFO tip. Can you set the randomiser to work within the parameter of specific scales?

[@JannisLeWolff]

What kind of randomizer do you mean? The LFO waveform or some random midi effect?

[@goodnoyz]

@@JannisLeWolff the waveform

[@JannisLeWolff]

@@goodnoyz Hmm - you can map it to the arpeggiator scale tonality, so it would change the mode (G in C major would be mixolydian etc), but I don't know if it works in some good way. I guess you can set something up with a MIDI rack, too, but I haven't gotten too deep into that yet. Working with scales is possible with the "scale" effect, too, and if you are working with clips in the session view you could assign a different scale to any clip. It wouldn't be controlled by the LFO though.

[@johnhorrobin8560]

I have the vermona, I would like to know whether it is compatible with the Keystep as it has those stupid minijack midi connectors. I have a beatstep pro , ndlr and korg sq1 , polyend seq also , so lots of choice of sequencers. You have awoken my interest in the vermona as it was in its box cast aside as I have modular gear also. I like making experimental music in asort ofambientstyle and am also fascinatedby composers such as Eno and Steve Reich and Terry Riley. There is a lack of videos about this synth so your channel is of great interest to me. I am in the uk,in a county with very few cities and hardly anybody doing electronic music especially modular. I hope you can do more tutorial videos on the vermona as I would be most interested in them.

[@JannisLeWolff]

Hey John, thanks for your comment! I don't see any issue with the Keystep and the Vermona once you use the right connection cable. And there will definitely be more Vermona Videos in the future :)

[@kallebresich6772]

Schade kein deutscher Untertitel

[@JannisLeWolff]

Ist leider zu aufwendig, eine komplette Übersetzung noch hinzuzufügen. Wenn Du eine bestimmte Frage hast, kann ich sie Dir auch hier beantworten 🙂

[@kallebresich6772]

@@JannisLeWolff mich interessiert zum einen der Vermona und zum anderen wie ich überhaupt irgend ein Instrument über Ableton ansteuern kann.

[@JannisLeWolff]

@@kallebresich6772 Vermona ist ein bisschen zu ausführlich um es alles in eine Nachricht zu packen ;) du kannst mir aber auch gern spezifische Fragen zu dem Synth stellen. Zu dem Ansteuern von Instrumenten über Ableton: Du brauchst ein MIDI Interface. Das gibt es entweder als USB/MIDI Kombi- Kabel oder dein Audiointerface hat bereits einen MIDI Ausgang. Der MIDI Ausgang muss dann mit dem MIDI IN von dem Gerät, das Du ansteuern willst, verbunden werden. Danach kannst du in Ableton das "External Instrument" Instrument auf einen MIDI track laden. Dort wählst du dein Interface unter "Midi To". Evtl musst du dann noch checken, auf welchem MIDI Kanal dein Instrument MIDI empfängt, und diesen Kanal kannst Du dann dort einstellen. Da der Perfourmer 4 unabhängige Oszillatoren hat kann man mit 4 seperaten External Instruments 4 Oszillatoren gleichzeitig und unabhängig steuern, was ziemlich genial ist. Je nachdem wie du den Ton von Deinem Instrument hören willst, kannst du dann noch unter "Audio From" die Eingänge auswählen oder einen separaten Channel erstellen für das Audiosignal.

[@kallebresich6772]

@@JannisLeWolff ich werde mal beim Hersteller vorbei fahren und mir das Gerät mal in natur ansehen. Aber ich komm dann gerne auf dein Angebot zurück 😀

[@JannisLeWolff]

@@kallebresich6772 OK- Viel Spaß!