Racks & Macros
Instrument, Audio, Drum and MIDI racks — chains, zones with fades, 16 macros with ranges, Macro Variations, randomisation, snapshots, nesting and Push control — with eight rack designs you can rebuild.
A rack is a container that turns any group of devices into one device with up to sixteen knobs. That sounds administrative; it is actually the main way Live does parallel processing, velocity layering, key splits, preset morphing and performable sound design. Everything on this page applies to the four rack types (Instrument, Audio Effect, Drum, MIDI Effect) unless stated. For the sounds themselves see the racks section; this page is the mechanics.
Architecture
A rack has three views, toggled by the buttons on its left edge: Macros (the knobs), Chains (the list, with the zone editor above it) and Devices (the selected chain's device chain). Input enters every chain in parallel; each chain has its own volume, pan, mute/solo and, for Instrument and Drum racks, its own audio output routing. Chains sum at the rack output. A chain only plays when the incoming note (Instrument/Drum/MIDI) or the chain selector value falls inside its zones.
| Rack type | Input | Zones | Specific features |
|---|---|---|---|
| Instrument Rack | MIDI | Key, Velocity, Chain selector | Per-chain audio output, MPE pass-through, hot-swap chain presets |
| Audio Effect Rack | Audio | Chain selector only | Parallel effects; per-chain Dry/Wet via chain volume |
| Drum Rack | MIDI | One pad = one note (chain), plus Chain selector | 128 pads, per-pad choke groups, return chains, Push 16-pad layout, 12.1 Drum Sampler per pad |
| MIDI Effect Rack | MIDI | Key, Velocity, Chain selector | Parallel MIDI tools (Live 12 generators and transformers are clip tools, not rack devices, so use Arpeggiator, Chord, Scale, Random, Note Echo, Pitch, Velocity, Note Length here) |
Zones and fades
Each chain gets a bar in the Key, Vel and Chain zone editors. Drag the ends to set the range, drag the small handles above the bar to set a fade: inside the fade region the chain's level ramps in or out, so two overlapping velocity zones crossfade rather than switch. The chain selector is a 0–127 ruler that belongs to the rack, not to MIDI; map a macro to it and you get a morph knob that sweeps through chains. A chain with no zone overlap at the current selector value is silent and costs nothing if its instrument is idle.
Macros: mapping, ranges, Map mode
Click Map on the rack, then click any parameter in any device inside it (including nested racks) and it appears in the mapping browser with a Min and Max. The macro travels Min→Max as it goes 0→127; set Min above Max to invert. One macro can hold any number of mappings, each with its own range, which is the whole trick: one knob that opens a filter from 200 Hz to 8 kHz, raises drive 0→40% and drops the sub chain's volume 0→−6 dB at the same time. Right-click a macro for its context menu: rename, change colour, set a value range as the knob's visible units, or edit mapping ranges. Macro count: the +/− buttons under the macro grid show 1 to 16 knobs; hidden macros still work.
Macro Variations, randomise, snapshots
| Feature | Where | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Macro Variations | Camera icon next to the macros | Stores the current macro positions as a named variation. Recall by clicking; "Launch" variation buttons can be mapped to MIDI and automated in Session (12.x). Morph between two by hand or with the chain selector trick below. |
| Randomise | Dice icon | Sets every non-excluded macro to a random value. Right-click a macro: Exclude from Randomization, so the output volume or mix knob stays put. |
| Rack snapshots | Same storage as variations plus the rack preset | Saving the rack to the User Library stores variations, macro names, colours and ranges with it; hot-swap chains keep variations if the macro map is identical. |
| Macro value display | Right-click macro → Edit value range / units | Shows "200 Hz – 8 kHz" or "0–100%" instead of 0–127. Cosmetic but Push shows it, which matters live. |
Nesting, parallel, preset vs instrument
Racks nest without limit. A nested Audio Effect Rack inside an Instrument Rack chain gives per-chain parallel processing with its own macros. Nested macros can be mapped to outer macros, so you can build a hierarchy: one outer "Intensity" knob driving five inner knobs that each drive three parameters. The practical ceiling is CPU and comprehension, not Live. Two mental models: a rack as a preset (a saved chain plus macro names you reuse on many tracks: drum bus, vocal chain) and a rack as an instrument (a layered, zoned, macro-performed sound that only makes sense as a whole). Design the macro set for the model you are building: presets want corrective knobs (HP, Drive, Mix), instruments want musical ones (Dark/Bright, Tight/Loose, Dry/Dub).
Push and CPU
Push shows the top eight macros on its encoders by default, with the second bank on a page turn; macro names and value ranges appear on screen, variations are launchable, and the Drum Rack maps to the pad grid with choke groups respected. Every chain in a rack is always processing when its instrument has active voices, so a 6-chain instrument rack is six synths. Keep chains silent through zones rather than volume at −inf (a silent zone still allocates voices for Analog and Wavetable; use Voices 1 on chains that rarely play), and freeze or Bounce in Place (12.2) heavy racks you have finished designing.
Parameters that matter
| Parameter | Starting point | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Chain volume per layer | Sub 0 dB, body −6, attack −9, air −12 | The ear needs the bottom layer loudest; level before timbre |
| Velocity zone fades | 15–25 velocity wide | Switching at a hard edge sounds like two instruments; a fade sounds like dynamics |
| Chain selector width per chain | Overlap 10–20 selector steps | Overlap is where morphing happens; no overlap is a switch |
| Macro range on filter freq | Min 150 Hz, Max 6 kHz | Full 20 Hz–20 kHz range wastes half the knob on inaudible extremes |
| Macro range on drive/amount | Max 40–60%, not 100 | Keeps the loud end of the knob musical |
| Exclude from randomisation | Output volume, Dry/Wet, HP | Randomise should change character, not break the mix |
| Macro count shown | 4 for presets, 8 for instruments, 16 only for performance racks | What you do not show, you will not reach for |
Techniques
Three-layer velocity instrument with fades
Soft, medium and hard chains that crossfade by velocity instead of switching. The basis of any realistic sampled or synthesised hit.
- Group a Drum Sampler into a rack, duplicate the chain twice, load three velocity variants of the sample (or the same sample with different Punch/filter settings).
- Vel zones 1–70, 50–110, 95–127 with 15–20-step fades at every overlap.
- Map one macro to the same parameter in all three chains so a knob moves the whole instrument.
Key-split bass: sub below, growl above
Two instruments across one keyboard, with a shared octave where both play.
- Key zone Sub C-1 to C2, Growl G1 to C5; the G1–C2 overlap is where both sound. Small fades of 5 keys.
- Put the Roar on the Growl chain only so the sub never touches a shaper.
- Map chain volumes to macros: a "Sub Level" knob is more useful than a mixer fader in a performance.
Chain selector as a morph knob
Four pad timbres along the chain selector with overlapping fades; one macro sweeps through them. This is the closest Live gets to preset morphing with stock devices.
- Build four chains with the chain selector zones above; keep every overlap the same width with equal fades.
- Map the chain selector to macro 1 (click the selector ruler while in Map mode).
- Save Macro Variations at Morph 0, 42, 85, 127 and launch them from Session clips with Follow Actions for a slowly evolving pad.
Parallel audio effect rack: clean, crushed, low
The standard parallel-distortion build. Three chains, each hearing the same input; chain volumes are the blend.
- Three chains; the Clean chain holds only a Utility so nothing changes the phase.
- Crush chain: HP before Roar so the lows do not intermodulate; Align Delay after if oversampling adds latency.
- Map chain volumes, not Dry/Wet knobs: a chain volume at −inf is a true bypass.
Drum Rack with return chains and choke groups
Drum Racks have their own internal return chains (the arrow button at the left shows them). A reverb on an internal return belongs to the kit and travels with it as a preset.
- Load Drum Sampler (12.1) on each pad; set choke group 1 on both hats.
- Show return chains, drop Hybrid Reverb on Return A, raise the clap pad's send A.
- Macro the return volume: "Room" becomes a one-knob dry/wet for the whole kit.
- Route the kick pad to its own audio output (chain output routing) when you need a separate sidechain source.
Nested racks: one Intensity knob over three sub-racks
Each chain owns a nested effect rack with its own macros; the outer macro drives the inner ones so a single move changes everything coherently.
- Build each chain's effect chain, then Group its effects (Cmd+G) into a nested Audio Effect Rack and give it two or three musical macros with carefully set ranges.
- At the outer rack, Map mode, click each inner macro: they appear like any parameter.
- Set the outer macro to a single 0–127 range on every inner mapping; tune the feel inside the inner racks, never at the top level.
Macro Variations as a performance scene system
Eight variations of a master-bus performance rack, one per section of the set, launched from Session clips or Push.
- Build the chain, set six macros with musical ranges, exclude Out from randomisation.
- Store variations: Intro (Filter 40, Verb 60), Build (Filter rising, Echo 70), Drop (all flat), Break (Dirt 0, Echo 90), Dub Out (Echo 100, Verb 80, Width 120).
- MIDI-map the variation launch buttons to a row of Push pads; for timed changes, automate the macros in Arrangement or use Follow Actions.
- Hit the dice between sections for a surprise you can recover from: the variation buttons restore order instantly.
MIDI Effect Rack: parallel arpeggiator and chord chains
One held note feeds two chains: an arpeggiated line and a chord with randomised voicing, both keyed by velocity so hard notes trigger the chord.
- Group the Arpeggiator into a MIDI Effect Rack; add a second chain with Chord, Random, Note Length, Scale.
- Velocity zones Arp 1–100, Chord 90–127: accents become chords.
- Place the instrument after the rack; for a per-chain instrument instead, use an Instrument Rack with the MIDI devices inside each chain.
Presets to build first
- Parallel Crush audio rack: Clean / Crush / Low, three macros. Default for drums and bass.
- Channel strip audio rack: EQ Eight, Compressor, Saturator, Utility with HP, Comp, Drive, Width, Out as macros. Save as the default audio effect rack.
- Split Bass instrument rack with Sub Level and Dirt macros.
- Morph Pad with four chains on the chain selector and variations at the four stops.
- Perf FX with five variations, mapped to Push.
- Kit template Drum Rack with return chains and Room / Punch / Hat Decay / Drive macros, saved with Drum Sampler on every pad.
Related
- Performance rack, Drum bus rack, Sub bass rack, Pad rack, MIDI generator rack.
- Parallel processing, Automation & modulation, Performance & live.
- Modulation & Max for Live for driving macros from LFO and Envelope Follower devices.
- Effects overview and MIDI tools.