Les

How to use grooves in Ableton 12

A groove changes the timing and feel of a clip, and Global Amount scales how strongly every groove's Timing, Random and Velocity apply. In a new Set it starts at 0, so a swing groove dropped on a clip can seem to do nothing until you turn it up. Then the groove's own Timing sets how much of it you get.

The short answer

Global Amount turns grooves up.

Before you start

Start a new Live Set, with a MIDI drum clip playing (its notes on the grid) and the clip's Clip View open. On an audio clip a groove works only when Warp is on.

Four steps

Drag a groove from Grooves onto your clip. Nothing you hear changes yet.
0:07
Raise Global Amount in the Control Bar. It appears once a groove is on.
0:14
Click the arrow by the browser toggle. Then Groove Pool. The beat plays on.
0:21
Lower Timing to soften the groove. Each groove has its own Timing.
0:27

Drop it in. Turn it up.

Good to know

Global Amount works on every groove in the Set at once, and goes up to 130%. To write the groove into the clip itself, press Commit by the clip's Groove chooser: on a MIDI clip the notes move, and the chooser goes back to None.

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