one file, one folder.
stepgrid.amxd goes into Live's User Library. no installer, no license manager, no account.
unzip the download and copy stepgrid.amxd here
~/Music/Ableton/User Library/Presets/MIDI Effects/Max MIDI Effect/C:\Users\<you>\Documents\Ableton\User Library\Presets\MIDI Effects\Max MIDI Effect\the README in the zip has the same paths.
can't see it in Live's browser?
open Live's Preferences, Library tab, and read Location of User Library. put the file inside that folder's Presets › MIDI Effects › Max MIDI Effect. on some Windows machines Documents lives inside OneDrive, and that is the folder Live is actually reading.
find it under User Library › Presets › MIDI Effects › Max MIDI Effect
drag it onto a MIDI track like any Live device. that's the whole install.
a beat in sixty seconds.
the rows are your Drum Rack's pads. the steps are notes in a clip. Live plays the clip, so there is nothing to sync and nothing to bounce.
stepgrid never plays anything. it writes notes into a real MIDI clip and Live plays the clip, so there is no timing of its own to add. measured against the same beat drawn by hand, every note landed within 0.015 ms, the same as a plain clip (measured on 0.9, tools/measure, notes.md. the note path is unchanged in 1.0). remove the device and the clip stays. undo is Live's undo (Cmd-Z). duplicate the clip, drag it to the arrangement, export it, all normal.
paint, shape, nudge.
everything on the small device: the top bar, the rows, the feel bar.
paint
click or drag across steps to light them. right-click clears one, right-drag clears every step you cross. start the drag on a row, not on empty space beside it. the Draw | Select switch in the top bar picks between painting and dragging a box around steps.
velocity
drag up or down on a lit step. brighter is louder. the Vel knob in the bar under the grid scales every row at once.
row rate ‹ 1/16 ›
each row runs its own rate, 1/4 to 1/64, with the arrows either side of the value. hats in 1/32 under a quarter-note kick is the classic move. rows on 1/64 show a b1 to b4 tab to pick which bar you are looking at.
length 1 2 4
pattern length in bars is the 1 2 4 switch at the left of the top bar. the Steps pop-up beside it sets an odd count: pick a number or drag it. /2 and x2 halve and double.
swing
the Swing knob in the bar under the grid, with its percentage beside it. shift-drag moves in 0.1 % steps. the grid reads swing back from the clip's own notes, so a swung clip you link shows its swing on the knob.
gen, shift, flip
one Gen button that repeats the last action. the small arrow opens the menu: Gen makes a new beat, Shift nudges the one you have, Flip flips it. the Amount and Spread bars in the menu set how much and how far.
mute, pan, volume, nudge
the dot at the left of a row mutes it. on rows that belong to a Drum Rack, two small knobs set pan and volume: drag them, double-click resets. click a row's name to hear the pad. the nudge field (big window only) shifts a drum up to 100 ms early or late.
copy, paste, duplicate, delete, clear
the icon row in the middle of the top bar. hover an icon for its tooltip: Clear (the X), Copy, Paste, Duplicate, Delete. copy, duplicate and delete work on the steps you selected in Select mode and grey out until you have a selection. Clear turns every step off and keeps your rates and mutes. one Cmd-Z brings the beat back.
new, arrange
New adds a Drum Rack after stepgrid. Arrange sends the clip to the arrangement.
the feel bar
the strip under the grid. left: row navigation, ^ v to scroll the rows, + - to add or remove one. right after them, the status line that says where the grid is and what stepgrid just did or why it didn't. middle: the Swing and Vel knobs. right end, on the device: Link and the pop-out glyph. in the pop-out the right end shows the version, stepgrid 1.0.2 (hash), and there is no Link.
pop-out ⬈
the square-with-arrow glyph at the right of the feel bar opens the big window. drag its corner and the grid fills it. in the grid view a Grid | Roll switch sits at the top left and changes the view. in the roll view that switch moves: Grid | Roll, Undo, Redo and Play all sit at the bottom right. in the grid view Undo, Redo and Play sit at the top right, and the feel bar runs along the bottom. keyboard shortcuts only work in the big window: click in it first, the keys go to the window you clicked last.
which clip?
the first click goes to the clip playing on this track, else the clip you have selected on this track, else a new clip in the first empty slot. in Arrangement view it makes an arrangement clip. the status line always says where the grid is: linked @ bar 9 or linked @ slot 3, with the clip name after the colon if the clip has one (linked: beat @ bar 9). with nothing bound it says not linked. to switch, select another clip on this track and press Link. nothing is written, the grid just reads the new clip. drag a clip somewhere else and the grid follows it. two stepgrids on one track: the second one refuses, on purpose.
a folder of samples to a kit in six seconds.
the sounds panel. needs Live 12.4 or later. on 12.3 the panel tells you so and the rest of stepgrid works as normal.
open + Sounds and drop a drum folder on it
drag the folder from Finder or Explorer, or press Choose folder... and pick it. a line beside it, N files read, tells you what stepgrid found. Live's own browser won't let you drag a folder out, so from the browser drag one sound in and press Use its folder.
a split kit (kicks, snares and hats in their own folders): drop one sound and use its folder, and the panel notices that folder is one drum type and reads the whole kit above it instead. the footer says Read the whole kit: Kit. Just this folder goes back to the one folder. it climbs one level, never more, and never out of your home folder or a disk.
one pad, one sound
three ways to put a sound of your own on a pad: drop the file on the pad's cell, click the pad's name line (the lower half of the chip) for a list of every sound of that type in the folder, or pick Choose a file... at the end of that list. a picked sound is pinned: it shows a thin amber line under the name, re-rolls and Re-roll all keep it, and Fill writes it. one re-roll on that pad lets it go. the upper half of the chip still plays the pad.
drag a pad onto another to swap them
the two pads trade places, sound and type. that order is this device's order from now on: your next kits land in it (a pad set to None keeps its original type for next time). after a fill, the two swapped pads are the only ones Fill writes again.
it sorts by file name
kick, snare, clap, closed hat, open hat, perc, tom, rim. a kick called loop 3.wav will not be found as a kick. every pad has a type chip with a ▾. click the arrow to open a two-column list: None first, then the 15 types (Kick, Snare, Clap, HH, OH, Rim, Tom, Perc, Shaker, Ride, Crash, Cymbal, 808, FX, Vox). pick one and that pad is re-planned from that type, every other pad stays. the footer reminds you once. a plain click on the pad still auditions it, and right-click on the chip still cycles through the types (shift-right-click goes back).
lock what you like, re-roll the rest
click a pad to hear it (once filled). lock pads you want to keep. the small arrow icon on a pad chip re-rolls just that pad. the footer has one button, Re-roll all, for every unlocked pad.
press Fill N pads
nothing is written to your rack until you press the Fill button. it reads Fill N pads, N being the pads set, and Fill 0 pads when none is. Live pauses for a moment while it loads, so leave the rack alone until the panel says Kit filled. one Cmd-Z takes the whole fill back. no Drum Rack after stepgrid? Fill adds one. pads that already hold another instrument are kept unless you tick Replace them too. a pad that already holds the right sound is left alone.
Clear pads empties the rack's 16 pads: click it, it asks Clear 16 pads?, click again within four seconds. one Cmd-Z brings every pad back. it also clears the panel, so you start from scratch.
None empties a pad in the panel, so Fill leaves that pad alone. it does not take out a sample that is already in the rack: clear that pad in Live yourself.
rest the pointer on any icon, in the panel, the top bar or the piano roll's tool bar, and a small label says what it does. greyed-out ones say it too.
that's hat choke, the switch at the top of the panel. while it's lit, a closed hat on the same step cuts the open hat, like a real hi-hat. flip it off to stack them. one Cmd-Z per flip.
one click from steps to notes.
press the pop-out glyph in the feel bar for the big window, then Roll in the Grid | Roll switch at its top left in the grid view (in the roll view the switch is at the bottom right). it edits whichever MIDI clip you select in Live, drums or keys, so it works on tracks that don't even have stepgrid on them.
modes
Draw, Paint, Select, Stamp. click to draw a note, drag to paint a run, drag a box to select. Option-drag copies notes.
grid and triplets
Auto follows the zoom down to 1/64, or pick a fixed grid. T turns on triplets. hold Cmd while dragging to move a note off the grid.
chord stamp
48 chords, 9 scales, with inversions. pick one from Stamp and click it in. the list has sections: Triads, Sevenths, Extended (11ths and 13ths), Altered (7b5, 7#9, 7b9 and the other altered dominants), Added (6/9, add11), Suspended (7sus2, 9sus4 and friends) and Scales. with Live's Scale Mode on, it offers chords in key.
scale highlight
follows Live's own Scale switch, root and scale name in the clip view. stepgrid has no scale control of its own, on purpose.
tools
Thin, Level curve, Select by, Randomize levels, Strum, Limit. select notes, pick a tool, press Apply.
velocity
Option + scroll over a note, or Cmd + drag it up or down. all selected notes change together.
zoom
Cmd + scroll zooms time. Option + scroll over empty space zooms rows. Page Up and Down, Shift-4 for the whole clip, Shift-5 for the selection. trackpad pinch doesn't reach the device on mac.
erase
right-click a note, or right-drag across several. Delete or Backspace clears the selection.
the keys you expect.
all of these need the big window in front. click in it first. on Windows read Ctrl for Cmd and Alt for Option.
| do this | press |
|---|---|
| undo, redo | Cmd-Z, Shift-Cmd-Z |
| copy, paste, duplicate (grid and roll) | Cmd-C, Cmd-V, Cmd-D. paste goes where you last clicked. |
| select steps on the grid | Shift-drag, or Cmd-drag |
| clear the selection | Delete |
| roll: zoom time, zoom rows | Cmd + scroll, Option + scroll |
| roll: scroll in time | Shift + scroll |
| roll: note velocity | Option + scroll over the note |
| roll: grid finer, coarser | Cmd-1, Cmd-2 (Live's own clip grid moves too, that's Live hearing the same key) |
| roll: triplets, grid on/off, Auto or fixed | Cmd-3, Cmd-4, Cmd-5 |
| roll: see the whole clip, see the selection | Shift-4, Shift-5 |
| roll: copy notes by dragging | Option-drag |
| roll: erase | right-click, right-drag |
on Live 12.3 the copy, paste and duplicate keys may not reach the roll. use the Copy Paste Duplicate icons in the big window instead, and Option-drag still copies.
the things that trip people up.
every one of these came from our own testing. search or open the one that looks like yours.
stepgrid isn't in Live's browser
Live reads the User Library folder set in Preferences › Library, which on some Windows machines sits inside OneDrive. put stepgrid.amxd in that folder's Presets › MIDI Effects › Max MIDI Effect and press refresh in the browser (or restart Live).
my first click didn't light a step
until you click, the status line says not linked, or showing: … for a clip you have selected. the first click binds the clip and lights the step in one go. if it ever takes two clicks or two undos, tell us, that's a bug we want.
the device says it can't make or edit clips
it's inside a rack. drop stepgrid straight on the track, to the left of the Drum Rack, not inside an Instrument or Drum Rack chain.
the rows have the wrong names, or say "no sound"
rows follow whatever Drum Rack sits after stepgrid and take its pad names. rename a pad in Live and the row follows. a pad that loses its sound keeps its row, greyed. no rack at all? the status line says Add a Drum Rack after stepgrid, or press New, and that button does it.
the grid went blank after i moved my clip
a drag is followed. a cut and paste or a delete gives Live a new clip, so the grid lets go and says clip gone. select the clip in Live and it links again, nothing is written. if you already clicked and it made a new clip, select the one you want and press Link.
swing says "not written"
that swing value would land a step right on top of one of your own notes, a 1/16 triplet roll at about 62 to 72 % is the usual one. stepgrid refuses instead of deleting your note, and the clip stays as it was. pick a value either side.
i linked a clip and the notes look off the grid
off-grid ticks mean the clip's timing doesn't match the row rate or swing. the notes are safe in the clip, nothing is rewritten. the grid fits the swing from the notes themselves, which needs at least two notes that agree.
undo takes two presses
a setting change (swing, rate, nudge) takes two Cmd-Z: the notes come back first, then the setting. steps and fills are one press. undo history ends when you close the set, that's Live.
my open hat is silent
hat choke is on (the switch at the top of the + Sounds panel). a closed hat on the same step cuts the open hat. flip the switch to stack them. after an undo the switch can look stale until you reopen the panel.
keyboard shortcuts do nothing
keys only reach stepgrid in the big window, and only when it's the window you clicked last. on the small device the keys belong to Live. click inside the big window and try again, or use the on-screen buttons.
the big window disappeared
it hides whenever Live isn't the front app and comes back when it is. after reopening a saved set, press the pop-out glyph to bring it back.
pinch to zoom doesn't work on my trackpad
mac trackpad pinch never reaches Max for Live devices. use Cmd + scroll for time and Option + scroll for rows.
Cmd-1 and Cmd-2 also change Live's grid
expected. Live hears the same key and moves its own clip editor grid. nothing is broken.
i clicked empty space to deselect and it drew notes
with notes selected, the first click on empty space only deselects. the next click draws. if a click ever drew three stray notes at once, you're on a build older than 0.9.10, update.
paste doesn't move forward like Live's insert marker
paste lands where you last clicked and stays there. move the click point yourself for the next paste. pasting over an earlier note of the same pitch shortens it, same as Live.
Delete doesn't erase notes in the roll (Live 12.3)
on 12.3 the roll uses a fallback path and some keys don't arrive. right-click or right-drag erases on every version. please tell us your Live version if Delete does nothing.
on Windows, Ctrl-click erased my note
on Windows Ctrl-click erases in the roll. add to a selection with Shift-click instead. everything else: read Ctrl for Cmd, Alt for Option.
a red line in the Max window at load
"v8liveapi - set path: invalid path" on some Windows machines. harmless, nothing fails. fixed in 0.9.12 as far as we can tell, tell us if you still see it.
the top bar font looks different on Windows
Windows shows Arial where the mac shows Helvetica Neue. cosmetic. Windows is tested at 100 % display scaling, 125 % and 150 % aren't yet.
i can't drag a folder in from Live's browser
Live won't let a folder leave its browser. drag from Finder or Explorer, or drag one sound from the browser and press Use its folder.
a nudged first step sounds short
an early nudge on step one wraps to the loop end. on a pad set to Classic (gated) mode it sounds short. One-Shot, the default, is fine.
i removed stepgrid and the beat kept playing
that's the point. your beat is a normal MIDI clip. stepgrid wrote it, Live plays it. put stepgrid back any time to keep editing it on the grid.
nothing matched. email us, the address is below.
found something broken? we'll fix it.
you get every update through 1.x, and the fastest way to get a fix is to tell us what you saw.
what you did, in one line
"painted a kick, pressed play, nothing" beats "it's broken".
a screenshot
the device or the big window, with the status line visible.
the version
1.0.2, plus your Live version and mac or Windows.
one license is for one producer. install it on every computer you make music on. please don't share the file. use it in any track, commercial or not, no credit needed.