TaoEntropy

When you click on parameter in a plugin VST that is loaded in on a Ableton Live midi track such as Native Instruments' Massive, when the blue hand is active on that Live device and no parameters of the VST have been MIDI mapped, you get control of that parameter on any midi controller with remote scripts such as Ableton push. This allows you to click on parameters in the VST at will and control them with a single knob like a speed dial on Novation products. The last parameter you clicked is always the one that Live allows the MIDI controller to move.

So we can infer that Ableton Live receives the name of this parameter and possibly assigns it an id. Ableton Live would also get this parameter name or id when it sets up MIDI mapping. So if Live can get this parameter name, is there a way for us to get it and use it in a Max for Live device?

I would like to have or create an Ableton Live device with a MIDI mapable knob that controls the last parameter clicked in both Live or a VST. Various people have created them to control parameters withing Ableton live's chrome only, but I'm not aware of anyone that has created one that will do the last clicked VST plugin parameter as well.

1) Has anyone created a VST and Ableton parameter speed dial?

2) How do you get the last clicked VST parameter to use in a Max for Live device?

When you click on parameter in a plugin VST that is loaded in on a Ableton Live midi track such as Native Instruments' Massive, when the blue hand is active on that Live device and no parameters of the VST have been MIDI mapped, you get control of that parameter on any midi controller with remote scripts such as Ableton push.  This allows you to click on parameters in the VST at will and control them with a single knob like a speed dial on Novation products.  The last parameter you clicked is always the one that Live allows the MIDI controller to move.

So we can infer that Ableton Live receives the name of this parameter and possibly assigns it an id.  Ableton Live would also get this parameter name or id when it sets up MIDI mapping.  So if Live can get this parameter name, is there a way for us to get it and use it in a Max for Live device?

I would like to have or create an Ableton Live device with a MIDI mapable knob that controls the last parameter clicked in both Live or a VST.  Various people have created them to control parameters withing Ableton live's chrome only, but I'm not aware of anyone that has created one that will do the last clicked VST plugin parameter as well.

So my questions are:
1) Has anyone created a VST and Ableton parameter speed dial?
2) How do you get the last clicked VST parameter to use in a Max for Live device?

get-last-selected-parameter-lives-vst

try the attached .amxd-File… hope I got your point alright.

btw: the remote control of the last selected parameter in Live cannot be controlled by a latency-free live.remote~ object as for otherwise it would immediately be deactivated by live.remote~ and thereby no longer 'selected'. Hence, the only option is to set its value via live.object, which isn't realtime but nonetheless good enough ;)

Thanks @SHOGUN for sharing this with us! for me it works like a charm for ableton controls, but not for 3rd party vsts. to be honest I'm new to m4l so i don't know if its just me, or if your patch generally doesn't support 3rd party vsts. Sorry for my poor english! Thanks very much!

it works here and I wouldn't know why it shouldn't to be honest…… sorry that I can't help you any further!

PS: incase you find that the destination parameter value varies from the actual dial on the .amxd-file… this is only because live.dial maximum/minimum ranges cannot be changed but have to be set permanently and saved with the patch. They are thus inaccessible through the API.

PPS: you're English is fine, needn't worry mate!

Hey @BOBBIE S.,
it works here and I wouldn't know why it shouldn't to be honest…… sorry that I can't help you any further!
check the pic ::

PS: incase you find that the destination parameter value varies from the actual dial on the .amxd-file… this is only because live.dial maximum/minimum ranges cannot be changed but have to be set permanently and saved with the patch. They are thus inaccessible through the API.
PPS: you're English is fine, needn't worry mate!


I think he may be trying to click in the VSTs GUI and not in the device shell? In that case, a different solution might be needed.

yo, in that case it won't work because the Live API can only access those parameters which are listed in the device shell. The will have to be added by unfolding the device (top-loeftmost arrow in its title) and clicking the 'Configure' button, then any automatable parameter within the VST can be added by clicking on it in the VST GUI (which should then automatically open)… subsequently the Live API can and will access it. It is the same with automating VST parameters from within session/arrangement clips, they have to be available in the device shell first, else they're basically non-existant.

Do these help? Was pointed out to me other posts here and in ableton forum on enabling a parameter in Options.txt (for Ableton) which autopopulates the device from plugins's params

https://forum.ableton.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=219540&p=1687364&hilit=options.txt#p1687364

https://www.ableton.com/en/help/article/optionstxt-file-live/

https://forum.ableton.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=219540&p=1687364&hilit=options.txt#p1687364
https://www.ableton.com/en/help/article/optionstxt-file-live/


Couldn't easily get last selected vst control using the plugin in ableton without hitting the configure mode, but had more success with vst~. The reference (esp. examples under M4L abstractions) shows how you get what user clicked and any new value if changed out of which outlets. All scriptable or patchable. Weirdly keyboard midi doesn't reach it so more reading for me but once it does, I try create dials I invisibly map using my list of nth control maps to these params and min and max values - macro mapping without clicking configure or macro-map. AND can automate live.dials in ableton easily enough.

Hey Keith, did you haver get something working with this?

I'm looking for a similar solution, the parameters exist within the device shell but I want to select and move them from the VST or via remote control.

So basically I want to know what the last moved parameter is in ableton without clicking on the actual parameter.

Get last selected parameter of live's VST