How To Record Audio From Mac To Ableton

Posted : admin | On 01-05-2021

The M-Audio M-Track MKII is a powerful 2 channel interface that gives you access to instant plug & play recording on your computer. This guide walks through how to make sure that your M-Track MKII is set up properly on your system as well as how to get started recording audio tracks with the included Ableton Live Lite software.

Connecting the M-Track MKII and Confirming the Driver Installation

Connect the M-Track MKII to your computer via USB. The M-Track MKII is a class compliant device, which means it requires no download or installation of special drivers that are not already found on your computer. On a Windows PC, a dialog will open in the bottom right hand corner of your screen indicating that the driver is automatically installing. When it is done it will indicate that your device is installed and ready to use. You will not see this on a Mac, however the drivers are still installed automatically.

Although the M-Track MKII is a class-compliant device, there are is a low-latency driver available for Windows that may improve the performance of the unit. The driver is available for download from the Drivers & Updates page on the M-Audio webiste.

Recording audio. I personally would find a lot of inspiration in sampling spoken word from podcasts, but I was always fairly de-motivated to record when I heard an inspiring soundbite; having to set up unwieldy, dongle-y cables and external devices (or even being near enough to them) didn't offer the speedy capture I wanted when the iron was hot.
May 08, 2018 In Ableton Live, change your input to soundflower 2ch, but keep your output in ableton still set to your soundcard or interface output. If you arm an audio track with the audio from on Ext In and change the input to 1/2, you should now be able to hear and record your computer’s audio from videos and other sources running through Ableton.
Background Our video on recording vinyl into Live (above) shows how to record audio from vinyl using an audio interface and Push 2. This tutorial will show you the additional steps necessary to connect your turntable and set the recording level.

You can record the sound coming from your PC in numerous ways, and we’re going to show you the three best we’ve found. The first two options use only software, and the third relies on an old trick that connects your computer’s audio output to its audio input with an audio cable. Enabling Audio over USB in iOS devices. Live Versions: All Operating System: Mac 10.11.1 and later; iOS 9 and later As of Mac OS 10.11.1 'El Capitan', it is possible to stream audio from your iOS device to your Mac via the lightning cable.

M-Audio - Drivers & Updates

Properly Adjusting your System's Sound Settings

Windows

The M-Track MKII should now be ready to use on your computer, but in some cases it may be necessary to tweak your system's sound settings. While this will more than likely not be required, it is a good idea to familiarize yourself with how the device is setup with your PC or Mac.

On a PC, click on the Start Menu, and choose Control Panel. From the Control Panel, choose Hardware and Sound and/or Sound. You should now see your playback devices.
As pictured above, the M-Track MKII should be set as your default playback device. If not, right click it and choose Set as Default Device. This should be reflected under the Recording tab as well.
With the M-Track MKII highlighted in the recording devices tab, click on the Properties button. This will bring up a new set of options. Click the Levels tab. In Windows 7 you will need to adjust the recording level. It will default to 100 but you will need to drag the slider down until it is set at 4. You will not have to make this adjustment in Windows Vista.
Click OK and you should be all set.

Mac

On a Mac you can access your sound settings from the System Preferences. You should not have to change any settings. Your input and output should look as pictured below.

Getting Started With Ableton Live Lite by Recording an Audio Track

Open up Ableton Live Lite. If you need help installing or authorizing your software, please refer to Ableton's handy guide.

Once Ableton is open go to Options > Preferences. On a Mac this will be Live > Preferences.
In the Preferences window, click on the Audio tab. For the Driver Type, select MME/Direct X and then the M-Track MKII as your Audio Input and Audio Output devices. On a Mac you will choose CoreAudio instead of MME/Direct X.
Alternatively, if you have chosen to use the additional M-Track ASIO driver for windows, select ASIO for Driver Type and select M-Track ASIO as your Audio Device.
You can now exit out of this window.
Go to View and select In/Out. This will bring up the input and output options of any audio tracks you've created.
On your audio track, set your Audio From to Ext. In and set the input to be either input 1, 2, or 1 & 2 (if you have a stereo signal plugged into both inputs of the M-Track II). Clicking on the Record Ready button will arm the track and enable you to monitor your incoming audio.
At the top of the screen, pressing Record and then Play will begin your recording!
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When you're finished you can press stop to end the recording.

Further Technical Support

Whether you are a customer or dealer, if you already own an M-Audio product, or if you just have pre-sales questions, the M-Audio technical support team is available to help!