The Best Ableton 11 Beginner Guide (in 17 Minutes)

[@madveggie]

I'm nearly 60 and never really attempted making music since my teens but I had this compulsion so I bought myself a Novation Controller recently which comes with Ableton Live and after just ten minutes of your video I've been able to start making the music I have in my head. Thanks so much for breaking it down.

[@TommyTheGoofy]

wow

[@gambittomusic]

👏

[@annexgroup6878]

That is so AWESOME!!🎉

[@robgoodburn6178]

Thats fantastic. What Novation thing did you buy?

[@madveggie]

@@robgoodburn6178 The LaunchKey 49. It's designed to work with Ableton and makes it so much fun to work with.

[@McMoony]

Absolutely insanely good tutorial. The true measure of understanding something is how well you can teach it simply to anyone, and this guy gets it for sure

[@tritanbarackle]

what int da bomblcoat the badmane

[@MegaBuster27]

One of the best tutorials I have watched. "Stop making excuses and start making music" . Excellent advice

[@CompleteProducer]

thank you!!

[@Tiarettee]

I rarely ever comment, however, I had to for this video. I had just woken up from an overwhelmed stress nap after binging Ableton tutorials all day. From frustration, to confusion, to anger, to annoyance I have finally stumbled upon you. A true teacher. Something about your voice, the dimly lit setting with you in your white relaxed button down shirt. From the way you explain and display. You are a life force and savior. Thank you. Truly an Abelton Shaman.

[@CompleteProducer]

awe yay! happy to help!!

[@ethedrummer1555]

Been using ableton for about 10 years now. Still found a lot of value here 🙏

[@themelancholia]

But are you Able to use Ableton for ton years? That's the important question.

[@wilsondv3]

Thank you Ethan. I've had Ableton Live 11 and have been staring at it for a long time with utter confusion, My next step was buying a book but my ADHD got in the way. Your video was 17 minutes, I learned so much that I can now get started. Much appreciated!! By the way, I watched it again and took notes.

[@christopherwhite5316]

This was very helpful. I just started using Ableton and I have been confused, but this clarified a good portion of my confusion. Now I can start creatively flowing.

[@CompleteProducer]

yay i love yo hear that!

[@LisaWaterhouse-t8q]

You're an awesome teacher

[@CompleteProducer]

thank you!!

[@kxngbasic8833]

You're Amazing. Just Made The Switch From FL Studio To Ableton Live. I've Tried Different DAWS And FL Studio Was Always Easier For Me Until I Got Ableton. Now I'm Just Learning The Ins And Outs And This Video Was EXTREMELY Informative

[@xxirion]

Having only just started in Ableton after a 15 year break of writing music, this has been an absolute god send of information, especially the CMD-J consolidate feature. Great work Ethan!!

[@choo-chooakadela6309]

I’m 51 And I’ve been DJing since I was 12. I took a 17 year hiatus from 1999-2016 and the year prior, my D1 RB son, decided to quit football and became an Emcee. His music is Incredible, so don’t get me wrong, but he’s supposed to be in the NFL. Not GOD’s Plan🤷🏽‍♂️ Anyway, I e produced tracks in the past for friends using my verbiage and sounds by mouth and they’ve been used for major artists. Here’s the problem, I Never knew how to put my ideas into song structure by myself, nor be able to use the beat machines, software Etc. I even attended Full Sail University, Online though, and I learned certain things, but nothing for me to get myself started with production. This Tutorial that you just gave us is So Far Beyond what I’ve ever been taught. I Thank You, and I’m Hoping to attend a school in New York to further educate myself within the production world. I learn better hands on than online. Thats just ME though. My End Goal with DJing is to DJ on Tomorrowland’s Main Stage, and my goal with production, is to First produce a Solid track that my son will Rhyme on and have my daughter sing the hook. He’ll be long established before that and he already has hits, but I’ll be his tour DJ, which I’m already a turntablist, but It’ll give me Other avenues to explore. With that all being said, I Thank You Again for taking the time out to educate us Thoroughly and I Hope you have other content that I can follow. Man..If you ever had time to Directly instruct me, I welcome that as well. Peace & Blessings!!! 🤲🏽❤️🔥🔥🔥

[@slimprinz]

God bless you more for this great content I've been an FL studio user for 11yrs and hoping to start using Ableton live fully. This tutorial is an eye opener for a first time user... Happy creating

[@MattBigos]

Been trying to learn Ableton for years since Live 9 and you just taught me more in one video than anyone else! Thanks!

[@cammosesSH]

I've used Logic for the past ~10 years so I'm familiar with DAWs, but not Ableton. This was a perfect "foot in the door" tutorial. Appreciate it

[@Rendell05]

This really helped me transition from my previous DAW to Ableton. There aren't many differences so far, makes me feel like my hard work has actually been worth something. Thanks for the intro!

[@glenntaylor6749]

Incredibly well done. Your teaching skills are better than any other tutorials Ive seen. Thank you for inspiring me to continue.

[@one1zero0eight8]

I am 16:51 in the market to purchase a new DAW. This is the best overview video I have watched on this program. You have absolutely sold this to me from it’s usability to its depth of functions. What an awesome video, thank you!

[@CompleteProducer]

thanks for watching!!

[@sophiemars8093]

ahh finally a true beginner tutorial, clear, concise, slow and I love the subtitle/topic highlights. thank you so much!

[@emmasutphen2521]

You are such an amazing teacher! Thank you for making all of these complex concepts much easier to digest!

[@morganbojie1227]

That was so awesome. It definitely made me feel more comfortable about getting this software to start this journey and I couldn’t be more excited! Also the “I pay rent, I deserve to be here”… iconic🤣😭😭😭

[@maeve_sinead]

‘stop making excuses and start making music’ excellent advice and motivation. Exactly what I needed to hear. Thank you!

[@hanZoul8]

I love Ableton so much. I started producing 3 years ago and when you first start, it is VERY intimidating and seems like learning a new language but once you become fluent, there's no better DAW out there. Objectively so.

[@Genolexis]

Sponsor break was hilarious. Great tutorial as well, subscribed.

[@JustMe_Melodies]

I just found your account and this is the first video of yours I’ve watched. I found all of it extremely helpful but really sincerely appreciated when you said to stop making excuses, and start making music. I’ve been trying to learn for a year now, I’d had Ableton and my MIDI keyboard for months and just haven’t started learning how to use them until this past week. I’ll be watching so many more of your videos. I applied for another producers 6 week course and they’re going to call me tomorrow but now I’m not even sure I need that anymore. Thanks for breaking it all down so easy, as far as how to zoom in and out. I found it all to be extremely useful!! Thank you!

[@viviyep]

So glad I found this after watching several tutorials that were all way too complexe and technical for a true beginner. Thanks pal

[@MagicTouchAudio]

I have looked at a lot of tutorials with no joy. You are a good teacher

[@ros-t]

Great video mate, I've been a Logic Pro producer for 14 years and I'm about to do a mixdown masterclass for the next 8 weeks. I didn't realise it was all going to be done in Ableton. So, I have 6 days to get to the basics and this has been a great help! If you ever need any logic info let me know and maybe I can help to give something back haha. Take it easy and thanks for helping people!

[@carriesolomonmusic]

I’ve been clunkily using Ableton for months but learned a lot from this vid and am so glad I watched it! Thank you

[@Itsweet5533]

really nice video thanks. this is one of the only ones that genuinely gets you going, and in a way that kicks tedium at the gate, so you actually get some momentum. sharing some stuff from the beginner's perspective: - 5:58 would be ideal to see how to get the snare track on the track first b/c i wanted to go along w/ you. - it would be dope in the beginning to show how to trigger the sound like when you are toggling dry/wet so we can do that with you too

[@Planetugm]

I have been using Ableton for around 5 years now and love it and even though I’m learning everyday I have to say… you make the best tutorials! 🙌🏼

[@marcerasmus3745]

Man, this has to be the best approach to learning ableton that i have ever seen...thanks Ethan, very very helpfull tutorial...you inspire me dude😁🙏

[@schqrr]

facts

[@Cyclopath.7]

This is such an amazing intro - SO much clearer than the native Abelton tutorials. Thank you!

[@Deathbringerrrrrrrrr]

Ive watched countless tutorials on DAWS for years and this is the best tutorial I've ever watched! Clear, to the point, and very informative! Thank you!!

[@remopacker3707]

Seriously, this is the best, most comprehensive tutorial in plain language I've seen. Thank you for everything you're sharing. Much respect!

[@sof7012]

i literally love you. i watched your "how to mix" vid and fell in love with this daw. its so easy and complete for me (i just do vocal covers so this is enough). tysm for your help!!!

[@ThaMosthated718]

Thank you for the advice, finally someone breaking down how to use this DAW.

[@Drvik_]

I have been using Ableton for a bit now made 2 songs, I really love your videos and your energy I stayed and listened to the end you have really helped me a lot! Please don't stop making these videos 💙

[@CompleteProducer]

wow i love to hear that! thanks for sharing (:

[@MOPWOBS]

Transitioning from Fl to Ableton has never been easier thanks to this video helping me 💜

[@fb1051]

After reading through nearly 300pages of a 800+page manual I was still confused but this vid just opened up a new ball game for me.. simple, clear and informative.. guess my learning style is not reading but seeing it in action. Thank you for this video

[@TrustingTruth04]

This was SO great bro! Like wow, I really was so barely even interested in giving Ableton a shot because it seemed to hard, but now this video has given me hope!

[@Veg4]

I just hopped over from Reason to Ableton and your beginners guide for getting used to the UI and Hotkeys is gold. Thank you!

[@jota3219]

Teaching is a skill you can add to you repertoire for sure. This was 10/10 thank you!

[@Auzzin11]

Hey man, hundreds of great comments already, but I just wanted to say how much I appreciate your teaching style. It sounds silly to use words like Intuitive and Organic, but as someone who used to teach air traffic for a living I really appreciate you and what you do here in so many ways.

[@CompleteProducer]

wow thanks so much!

[@MaddieDream]

Really liked your tutorial! Thank you, maybe I'll finally stop messing around and start producing my music :) The effects were the scary part for me

[@emreugurlu8229]

I'm switching to Ableton and this was the only tutorial that I was able to finish. Thank you for the great content! Subscribed

[@travelwithtoniann]

After searching endlessly trying to find tutorials on how to use this! I am glad I found your video very helpful

[@nicknamenotavailable]

great video, comming from other daw to ableton and starting to understanding pretty quickly thanks to this

[@BennyZuko]

You have created the best tutorial ive seen. I actually feel like i understand ableton!!! Thank you for your time and effort in making this. Ive just shelled out 10k on three CDJ3000s and an A9, i now need my own tunes to play so i can take over the DJing world!!!!!!!!!

[@CompleteProducer]

i love that!! you got this!

[@89s304]

I saved this video as the bible. You're an amazing teacher. It's noticable that you explain to make others understand, and not to brag about how much you know. Thank u so much for sharing your knowledge

[@LionHeart-g6m]

Incredible tutorial! All my anxiety about learning how to use ableton live has literally melted away thanks to you!

[@CompleteProducer]

wow I'm honored!

[@JeffreyErnst]

a very clear and complete tutorial for someone who is absolutely baffled by the 100's of options in these types of software. I got myself a launchpad but was stunned by the software so kind of stuck to that demo software thats on there besides ableton

[@eastsidelight]

One of the best and beginner friendly tutorials of any DAW's i have ever watched; thanks man. Thanks alot

[@NightTower-Topic]

Man, I was looking for someone to teach me how to make music in a good and simple way like you. Thank you very much, from Egypt

[@debbieliu-atopladyboss]

Getting into music production and this video tutorial is super simple to learn the basics. Thank you Ethan!!

[@DJ-Morlock]

I'm just getting back into producing after being out of it for 20 years. I had some experience with Fruity Loops, but was referred to Ableton by a friend. I have tried to get into it several times, but only met frustration. This video helped me so much. Thank you.

[@BadViola]

This was super helpful and definitely the best 17 minute beginner guide. :)

[@jennyyoung2637]

This was sooo straightforward compared to the other tutorials!! Thank youu x

[@richiehall4832]

how has this guy not hit 100k yet, I'm new to ableton but learning so much from him

[@Jacques.krause]

I know there are plenty such comments but just had to say so myself that this is an absolutely golden tutorial. Fantastic teaching skills.

[@CompleteProducer]

thank you!

[@maggielinea]

This is so helpful. I appreciate that you get right to the point and understand the level of details we need as beginners.

[@RemnTheteth]

As you grow your channel, you should put timestamps on your videos for your tips, so they're easy to find. As an avid youtuber I find these immensely helpful. Great video though, for someone whose just getting into DAWs I really appreciate the small things that make a big difference in workflow.

[@CompleteProducer]

I put them on my other tip videos but that's a good reminder that this video needs them, thank you!

[@lunam7249]

everyone should do timestamps

[@ozellacontreras5545]

I want to be your friend! So happy, I was getting discouraged but your smile and light hearted way of teaching is everything! Great job!

[@egatx]

Dude, you have broken down ableton so neatly and clear, definitely subscribing and going to watch all your stuff! Thanks brotha!

[@incomeadda1584]

Absolutely insanely good tutorial. The true measure of understanding something is how well you can teach it simply to anyone, and this guy gets it for sure You are such an amazing teacher! Thank you for making all of these complex concepts much easier to digest! i love u to add on 😍

[@cocothefatpriest1935]

ou copied someone else's comment

[@marrallisa]

Everytime when i got overwhelmed you comforted me 🥰

[@CompleteProducer]

awe

[@TheTjBusy]

Whettt? 🤭That's it! lol Oh, I am so hype after taking 16 mins and 50 seconds of my life to watch this tutorial! 🧐 Far too often you will watch tutorials and then you're still not able to create. Ethan has done such a precise job of making this tutorial actionable. Thanks Fam!😎 I will shout you out at the Grammy's!

[@WillieKush]

Im trying out Abelton and this helped me a lot!!!!

[@nawang1738]

Loved the tutorial bro. I decided to shift from FL studio and I was so worried when I loaded up the daw as everything looked so complicated. Your tutorial helped me so much. Sending love and support brother. Thank you💯

[@CompleteProducer]

Glad I could help!

[@nawang1738]

@@CompleteProducer You Z best bruv🤌🏾🎉

[@AhmedAlaaofficial]

Man, ofcourse all your hard work is worth watching ❤ really very good video 👏👏

[@CompleteProducer]

Thank you so much 😀

[@hanzo3188]

I'd encourage anyone reading this to rewatch this a few times, at least. It's a good video and the repeated views help reinforce the ideas. I've found myself talking along with certain parts from watching it so many times lol.

[@CompleteProducer]

wow, thanks for saying that and spending so much time with me!

[@hanzo3188]

@CompleteProducer heyyyy, yeah, for sure, man, haha. I'm trying to get that flow down, definitely a beginner. I'm having some trouble with serum..(im renting to own on splice). I'll use a sound on one clip and then start a new clip with a new sound and it will convert the first tracks sound into the new one. That's probably gibberish lol, but if you know a quick fix, I'd super appreciate it. 🙂 Either way, thanks for the video.

[@LaMatta90]

Just getting into recording guitar, just barely started learning to play the guitar a year ago, this video is very helpful. Thank you so much.

[@josephthibeau7356]

You are an incredible teacher!! I just decided to switch from logic to ableton, and understanding the daw flow in general helped, but this definitely made it a whole lot easier for me to make the switch!

[@lucianaruffin4165]

This is by far the BEST ableton tutorial I have seen!!!! AWESOME JOB!!!!!

[@BeneleveN30]

got a focusrite yesterday and had no idea how to use abelton and this vid helped a ton

[@sweetpeahunnybee]

This video helped me more than any other video I've watched. Thank you!

[@ShishRon]

Awesome tutorial! I really appreciate the way you explain everything and the tutorial "scheme" (introduction, body and conclusion for each part of what you were talking about). Seams like you gave a lot of effort to make it that clear simple. Also the video editing is great btw.

[@josueperez4274]

This LADY N GENTS is how you make a tutorial the right way. you the man brother!!! you got my subscription. NIce and short very articulated and most important to the POINT.

[@youtubeforcolin]

This was an excellent intro into the software. I have been using other DAWs sporadically but this will give me a useful base of skills which I can then have the smaller nuances built on for this tool.

[@eiheih_joeson]

My first Ableton tutorial 😁. And I love it already 😍🍻

[@DAR0.V]

Thank you! Just got ableton live 11 lit! Gonna help me a lot for making remixes as a dj and writing my own music :D

[@brunomorgades]

Excelent video! ive been looking for a video like this for years but all i found was ether too long or too complicated, now im looking forward in recording a lot of songs with my guitar, youve been a blast!

[@bradward8211]

Absolutely the best tutorial I've seen for Ableton.

[@kerimal-lami7231]

This was probably the best Ableton KZbin video I've ever seen. Do you think you will be putting out more Ableton videos for beginners like this one?

[@itsmarcofr5935]

check out TAETRO! extremely helpful for when you first start

[@nickprinsloo5648]

Dude! I've been trying to figure out Ableton since the first releases and I give up every time. I finally get it. Shot!

[@Nekomusica.]

Bro I am all the way from Barcelona I am about begin study music production on January and just wanted to be prepared for what’s about to go down hit your video and I want to say it’s very good thank you. ❤

[@rageonyx]

Thank you! Coming from Mixcraft, I couldn't even figure out how to get the MIDI window to open in this thing, nevermind start dropping notes. Super helpful and detailed. ❤😘

[@yovelx432]

Bro thats super understood and easy thank you for letting me get into it because I tought it's pretty complicatete but i know its about time. Thank you

[@Adrian-zx4xt]

This program is so confusing, you’re a real one for this man 🙏

[@LWCmusic]

I switched from Fl Studio and this Tutorial is amazing! Helped with a lot of questions I had.

[@djalexdunne]

What a truly fantastic video. Simple but thorough, encouraging and chilled. With a nice little message at the end. Thank you 🙏

[@zxninjax]

By far one of the BEST video for Ableton that explains everything along with tip and tricks.. Keep up the good work dood!

[@CompleteProducer]

thank you!!

[@thomasjohnlynch]

THANKS Ethan.... only have 4 or 5 Subscribed channels and you are one of them!!! I have about 5 of your videos saved on my desktop for future OR rewatching!!! I have become a very SLOW learner it seems as I aged. Long time since I used Cakewalk on MS-DOS and Windows 3.1 with the Roland JX-8P I am looking at that my wife still uses daily for practice..... I have an AKAI Pro MPKmini for "funzies" since I am the bass player and cant play keyboards yet. Got a bit of a finger cramp clicking back and forth and pause!!! LOTS of stuff flying by, and trying to watch the video and trying stuff is like going from a biplane to an F-16!!! But A few watchings and its getting clearer. I need a lot of work on the keyboard roll to make chords and notes.... (PS running 11 LIVE Intro ) Downloaded the ZIP files on the samples yo posted but not really sure where to put them or how to organize things in Folders or locations. (I have twin 12 terabyte NAS boxes that I mirror, so I am storing the Ableton stuff on the primary. Just don't have a good folder hierarchy figured out. I would like my samples, midi clips, recordings and the projects all off on NAS and not in the Windows C:/ hierarchy. If disaster strikes, all I want to do is RE-install Live and go look for the files off on the network. ~ Thomas ~ [e-mail]

[@catherinecard2648]

Great tutorial! I was lost and needed to get familiar with Live 11 for a class I am taking. Thanks for decoding it for me!!!

[@EricHeinrichs]

Dude thanks so much, you explained it so well

[@tcripper]

Thank you for making this video. Finally a tutorial that lays it out in a simple fashion. I appreciate this very much and can know utilize abelton in a much more complete way. This video is the absolute best for beginners. Love and Gratitude!!

[@CompleteProducer]

thanks so muuch!!

[@Liihdeoz]

I'm just starting with Ableton. This is the best tutorial I've seen so far! Thank you! ❤

[@iambramsy]

Bro you too smooth with this. I've never learned anything this quick ,no sweat🎉

[@thedj5914]

Just got a slot in Glasgow to learn Ableton with Simon in January 🙌 cannot wait. So excited 😊

[@tomgray2372]

Awesome tutorial! I really appreciate how simple you make it. Thanks.

[@Meansmotiveandopportunity]

Are you the most helpful Abletoner/ producer so far? Who simplefies the blip out of this whole thing ? Yes, you certainly are , and your self plug is a gentle reminder we should be grateful for good teachers just a click away 🙏🏼