Human Freefall VCA Pro · Max for Live · Ableton Live 12
VCA groups for Ableton Live.
Ride a whole group of tracks with one fader, without summing their audio. Then watch every member's waveform, beat-locked, in its own track color.
Everything that moves on this page is the device's own interface code running in your browser with a sample beat. Click it: tabs, zoom, faders and mutes all work. Double-click a fader to reset it.
How it works
One fader moves the whole group.
Put a Link last on each track and give it a letter. Add a Master with the same letter. The Master sends level only, so nothing is summed or rerouted, your volume automation stays exactly as written, and sends on each track follow the group.
Scope view
See the whole group, beat-locked.
Every linked track draws its waveform in its own track color, locked to Live's tempo. Stack them on one grid, split them into lanes, or sum them to see what the group really adds up to.
Zoom to a 1/4 note
Line up kick and bass by eye.
At 1/4 note the Scope shows the real waveform, not an outline. Drag across it to read the gap between two points in milliseconds at the song tempo. The sub here changes note every bar, and you can watch it settle in under the kick.
Bank view
Eight VCAs, hardware style.
All eight groups sit side by side with their name strips in group colors, mute and solo, an audio-taper fader and an LED loudest-member meter with peak hold. Click a name strip to spill that group's channels, each with its shadow level lane and trim.
Pro · Solo and snapshots
Solo a group. Recall a whole mix.
Solo any VCA and every track in it is soloed in Live, so you hear the group in context with your returns. Snapshots store the level and mute of all eight VCAs in one click and bring them back with each group's own fade, so a verse-to-chorus move is a single click.
The demo steps through snapshots 1 to 3 and solos KEYS. In the console: click a slot to recall it (an empty slot stores), ⌥-click to overwrite, ⇧-click to clear.
In your device chain
Two small devices. One big button.
The Master keeps Live's device view clean: one big button opens the console, and VCA Level and Mute stay on the strip for MIDI mapping, Push and automation. Each Link shows its channel's real post-VCA level, Peak or RMS.
Master · Scribble strip
Group color, name and a big Open Console button. Try the slider and Mute.
Master · Mini scope
The button becomes a live waveform of the whole group.
Link · Lane face
Shadow fader with post-VCA dB, trim and L/R meters. Switch Peak and RMS.
Link · Scope face
That one track's waveform, so you know the Link sees audio.
Make it yours
Your colors. Your layout.
Every Master keeps its own look, saved with your Live Set.
Pricing
Start free. Go Pro when you need it.
Lite and Pro use separate devices, so both can sit in the same Live Set without talking to each other.
Human Freefall VCA Lite
Free
- 8 VCA groups, any number of tracks
- Bank view with spill
- Beat-synced Scope: Overlay, Lanes, Sum
- Shadow faders, Peak or RMS
- Customize panel
Human Freefall VCA Pro
$19 one-time
- Everything in Lite, plus:
- VCA solo, using Live's own track solo
- 8 mix snapshots per Master, saved with the set
- LED meters with peak hold and smooth ballistics
- High-resolution scopes with glow and phosphor trail
- Twice the detail at the 1/4-note zoom
- Warning when a Link isn't last on its track
- Update notifications in the console
- New in 1.1: snapshot morph, jump to track, VCA offset readout
- Remote device: 8 assignable knobs; Push hardware testing pending
Specs
| Format | Max for Live · Master, Link and Remote devices |
| Groups | 8 (A to H), any number of tracks each |
| Pro extras | Solo, 8 snapshots, LED meters, update notifications |
| Fader | −∞ to +6 dB, audio taper, 0 dB at about 72% of travel |
| Glide | Every move and mute fades over 1 ms to 10 s |
| Scope | Overlay, Lanes, Sum · 1/4 note, 1 bar, 4 bars · drag to measure |
| Meters | Peak or RMS per Link, loudest member per group |
| Automatable | VCA Level, Mute, Group, Fade · Link Group, Trim, Meter, View |
| Requires | Ableton Live 12 with Max for Live |
| Tested on | macOS |
| Price | Pro $19 one-time · Lite free |
Set up in a minute
- Add Human Freefall VCA Pro Link last on each trackAfter all other devices. Pick a letter, A to H.
- Add Human Freefall VCA Pro Master anywhereMain is fine. Set the same letter in the gear panel.
- Click Open ConsoleRide the group, watch the Scope, spill the Bank.
Questions
Does it sum my tracks into a bus?
No. Each track keeps its own routing. Human Freefall VCA only changes level.
Will it overwrite my volume automation?
No. Live's mixer faders and their automation are untouched. The VCA works on top of them.
Can I map it to my controller or Push?
Yes. VCA Level and Mute are standard Live parameters, so MIDI Map, Push and automation all work.
What's the difference between Lite and Pro?
Lite is the full VCA workflow for free. Pro adds solo, snapshots, LED metering, sharper scopes, the "Link not last" warning and update notifications.
Can Lite and Pro run in the same set?
Yes. They use separate devices and don't control each other. Pro Masters control Pro Links only.
Windows?
Not tested yet. It's built and tested on macOS with Live 12.
Human Freefall VCA Pro · $19