Livestream setup [Mar 2023]
Original setup [Jan 2022]: https://medium.com/@ScruffyFox/livestream-setup-26f39b13d8f0
Setup Update [May 2022]: https://medium.com/@ScruffyFox/livestream-setup-may-1b3b7be8be16
Setup Update [Oct 2022]: https://medium.com/@ScruffyFox/livestream-setup-oct-17df724fa809
Setup Update [Jun 2023]: https://medium.com/@ScruffyFox/livestream-setup-jun-2023-eb15d7fc6b4f
Setup Update [Sept 2023]: https://medium.com/@ScruffyFox/livestream-setup-sept-2023-38cf8053c2db
Latest Update [Jun 2024]: https://medium.com/@ScruffyFox/livestream-setup-jun-2024-e5d7285ed527
My radio: https://scruffyfox.fm
Watch me live: https://twitch.tv/scruffyfox
Welcome to another update on my live stream setup. You can read the previous iterations in the links above. The core workflow of producing the music has largely unchanged, but since the October setup, a few things have changed with the core project and midi mappings.
The first big change was within the project file. Since purchasing the Push2, using the interface can be sometimes overwhelming, especially when you have lots of devices on your chain, or groups of groups of groups. I massively simplified the overall effects chains and spent a lot of time re-mapping and re-labelling each macro to make them work nicer with the Push’s display and be quicker to access.
I now have 5 different track groups. From left to right: Synths, Guitar, Drums, Sequencers, Utilities
The core concept of these tracks are the same as before, but now I only have 6 tracks instead of 8. This was reduced mainly to help with CPU, but to also better ensure that i’m easily able to navigate the groups and tracks via the push. Having 6 tracks + 1 slot for the group means there’s 1 more slot (for a total of 8) available to navigate to.
All of these synth tracks are the same except the plugin being used. Ext track powers the 2 hardware synths, and 6 - GREEN uses Live’s Wavetable synth. All the other tracks are still using Komplete Kontrol.
Every track has an assigned colour to help with memory during a live-stream. Much easier to remember “green track 6” than “synth4 6”
All synth tracks have the same device chain as above except for [INSTRUMENT] which varies depending on the track. For track 1, this is reserved for my 2 hardware synths.
The output of the Juno is a 3.5mm whereas the output of the Neutron is 1/4" currently plugged directly into my SSL 2 audio interface. Thankfully I was able to sub-patch in the Juno into the Neutron via the patch bay. This simple patch has the overdrive bypass patch I normally use, but with the addition of using the attenuators as mix knobs for each of the audio signals. The Juno is patched directly into ATT1 IN and from the output into SUM1 [A], then from VCA into ATT2 IN and the output patched into SUM1 [B]. From there, SUM1 is patched into DELAY IN which then internally routes to the synth output.
VCF1 > VCA IN
VCA > ATT2 IN
ATT1 > SUM1 [A]
ATT2 > SUM1 [B]
Juno > ATT1 IN
SUM1 > DELAY IN
This is my Midi FX chain. Before I had a few different devices handling various things, but because of the push, I designed my own midi utility patch to utilise the live banks parameters in max4live. I have 2 of these either side of the chain. Util2 download
ArpKrafter is a very cool arp that allows you to program which held notes are played in the sequence. I modified this for better Push2 support.
Then I have a standard Live ARP, and then my up to date midi GATE sequencer designed for the push2. Push2MuteSequencer download
This is the main audio FX chain and is the same on every midi track. From left to right;
FILTER
This device is a basic 2 auto filter group with the macros mapped to the frequency. This is basically a duplicate of the TRACK FILTER device, except it also has the RES and SLOPE of the filters mapped. This was originally a 1 KNOB FILTER that I would use with the Launch Control, but I opted to increase the resolution of the filter and re-build the device as I would only modulate it via the Push anyway.
REPEAT
This device holds 3 separate beat repeats that repeat at different intervals
CHORUS
A simple 2 frequency band chorus device using TAL-Chorus. The chorus sits on the high frequency band.
DELAY & REVERB
These have not changed much except for upgrading from Replika to Replika-XT. The WET parameter for these devices are mapped to the Sends parameters of each track so I am able to modify them via the MIX settings on the push. I use a max4live device to map the track sends macros to the device chain wet parameter. These devices also have a sidechain EQ mapped to the kick.
SIDECHAIN
Simple 1/4 bar pumping sidechain using an LFO and and EQ-8
PAN
Simple autopan
EQ
EQ 3 device with some small compression to the kick
Track FX devices include the standard TRACK FILTER device, mapped to the faderfox PC4, a GROUP FILTER device that are all mapped to the same knob (allows me to filter the entire group at once), and then the max4live device to map the track sends parameters.
Next is the guitar group. In this group I currently have 2 tracks, an A and B guitar track.
Track A uses Guitar Rig 5 as the main amp sim. FX chain is largely the same as the midi tracks
Track B uses stock Live devices for the tone
My new Fender Strat Squier to complete the desired tone. 40th anniversary edition blue and gold.
The drum tracks have mostly stayed the same. The main differences is the organisation of the racks and the FX in them — for quicker access on the Push. The main drum kit (powered by the BeatStep Pro) sum to the group track and output onto a single tape track, whilst the XO track outputs directly to its own tape track.
The Beatstep pro powers 2 separate kits on 1 track, each row is one track and from left to right are the pads; Kick, Snare, HiHat cl, HiHat op, Clap, Flex, Ride, Crash.
The 2 sequencers power the 2 hardware synths (seq1 powers the neutron and seq2 powers the juno)
With some Ableton trickery, I was able to create midi routings that also allowed me to record clips into ableton for the drums, and play at the same time as the beatstep pro. I achieved this by setting the tracks to receive input from the Push, but then I have an additional midi IN track that forwards midi from the BSP into the drum rack directly (not the track IN)
Here we have the BSP routings (blue) and the Push routings (black). Because all the midi tracks require channel 1 input, and the push outputting on all channels, I got around this by creating routing tracks that would take all channel outputs from the push and forward them directly to the track in for each track.
I have an additional midi routing track that takes input from channel 2 on the Komplete Kontrol and forwards to the Juno track chain on Ext1
XO track largely unchanged except I was able to map the cutoff filters for each pad into single macros using the DualDial max4live device.
Now having mostly optimised the set for the Push2, I was able to strip back the launch control into very minimal mappings. These days I use only 1 template which controls the filters for all 3 drum tracks (using the knobs, 1 row for each drum rack) and the volume for the master drum track using the faders. The bottom 2 row buttons are hotkeys for each pad to quick select for the push.
Every pad chain is the same. Contains a Midi Util device, a filter, a utility, and an EQ.
The sidechain for the reverb and delay devices on the tracks that have a reverb and delay, are controlled using these re-envelope devices.
The last audio/midi group is the sequencer group. Here are just a few tracks that hold various different sequencer plugins I can use as and when I want a bit of randomness or modulation with a particular rhythm.
The PongDeluxe is a great collision based sequencer that can generate some interesting patterns, but also has push2 support which is just neat.
Each of these sequencer tracks can be routed to any of my midi tracks by using the midi out parameter on the track.
The last group is the utility group. This holds any track that does something non musical like midi routing, CC mapping for REAPER, and now holds a Click track.
One of the biggest issues I was finding when editing the resulting audio in REAPER was that sometimes the clock was just not stable. I use the Beatstep pro as my master clock and so the instability was causing me to spend a lot of time re-adjusting all the audio stems after each cut. To help with this, I decided to implement a click track that would be slaved to the master clock because it’s basically a midi clip playing a short noise to create a transient on grid. This allowed me to edit based on the actual recorded clock ticks rather than edit by the REAPER grid.
The REAPER template is mostly the same as before, but now with a click track, I can use the “calculate transients” feature and tab through that to each bar and cut based on that. This means that every cut I do will always be quantised. No more manual adjusting!
To get the audio from Ableton to OBS, i’m still using Reastream, but now I also have a very quick and dirty mastering chain that is similar to the master chain I use in the main radio project meaning that my live improvs should sound somewhat close to what it will sound like once it’s added to the radio.
Each live set is edited and mixed into the end of this project
The launchpad mini has been re-worked to be more performative based, the drums template allow me to quickly mute any pad on the drum tracks, the keys template is used for anything utility based such as resetting all the parameters on the track, or quick EQ cut (high/mid/low -12 db toggles), and a CUE button (C Send 0/100%). The user template has quick buttons for things like muting the midi on that track, locking the current midi note or toggling between 1/8 and 1/16 on the arp. It is also now velco’d to the keyboard instead of duct-taped.
The faderfox still powers all my track filters, but due to the reduction of the number of tracks I have in the project, I ended up with a few free slots. So now I have LPF and HPF for all midi tracks 1–6, a single LPF and HPF for both the guitar tracks, plus 1 knob for the volume for each (I find mixing guitar using volume is much easier/nicer than mixing with filters).
Still 2 separate filter knobs for the 3 drum tracks (drum track 1&2 and XO respectively)
Lastly on the bottom row I have “group filters” which will filter their respective group entirely.
And lastly in the corner is the face camera and laptop screen I use for chat, along with some additional fill lights and space for guitar pedals. Currently I have my Catalinbread SFT in the chain.
I have also updated the radio website to be a bit more user-friendly. Now has chat window that can be used even when the stream is offline (the radio is always streaming!) and when I am live on Twitch, a video player shows above.
The radio is powered by Azuracast software hosted on a Digital Ocean droplet and plays on an endless loop. I am also able to stream directly to the radio audio-only using Butt.
My visuals are still powered by Zwobot, but I have opted to use pre-renders instead of live visuals as the plugin is a bit too unstable for live performance as if Ableton crashes, the project cant easily be recovered.
