Mapping Follower 1.0 by MaxForLove is a significant evolution over the standard Envelope Follower, allowing Ableton Live users to explore new realms of sonic modulation and artistry. Instead of simply following an audio signal like its counterpart, this potent Max4Live device follows any signal that it's mapped to, broadening the scope for creative sound manipulation.
The functionality of Mapping Follower 1.0 is rooted in the original 'Mapping Follower' device by user Sanders. However, this innovative version incorporates the brand-new 'Mod' mode for mapping. Notably, all modulation parameters are fully automatable, not to mention mappable. This feature results in a far more fluid music creation workflow where sound design intricacies can be flirted with unreservedly.
One significant advantage of using Mapping Follower 1.0 over conventional modulation and automation tools lies in its flexible application range. You can map this device to anything — be it your preferred MIDI CC, synth parameter, filter cutoff, or any other controllable parameter in Ableton Live. The 'follow' feature tracks the mapped parameter in real-time, enabling you to create dynamic modulations instead of relying on static ones.
What distinguishes Mapping Follower 1.0, even more, is the 'Mod' mode. This mode, primarily designed for mapping, takes automation to another level by adding a much-needed layer of customization. Use it to define modulation amounts and ranges, tailoring every nuance of your sound to fit your unique music production needs.
Moreover, as the modulation amounts and ranges are all automatable, you can have Mapping Follower 1.0 adapt to the evolving needs of your track within a specific timeline. Program intricate shifts and changes without breaking a sweat, and watch your music come alive with movement and character.
Although Mapping Follower 1.0 is a relatively recent release, its impressive functionality has started attracting attention within the Ableton Live community, evidencing from its 61 downloads since its addition on March 12, 2024. Despite the lack of a user rating, the device holds great promise in significantly enhancing the sound design capabilities in Ableton Live.
If you're interested in expanding your sound manipulation toolkit and exploring uncharted territories of modulation, give Mapping Follower 1.0 a try. You can download it from this location: https://maxforlive.com/library/device/10166/mapping-follower.
Mapping Follower 1.0 signifies an exciting step forward in the realm of parameter automation. With its promising set of features and adaptability, you can enrich your music production in Ableton Live with dynamic, professional-grade modulations while ensuring your workflow remains fluid and expressive.
Example Usage
Imagine you're crafting a slow-moving ambient soundscape, and you want to introduce subtle changes to a reverb tail without consistent manual intervention. You can achieve this hands-free modulation with the Mapping Follower 1.0 device.
First, load Mapping Follower 1.0 onto a new MIDI track in your Ableton Live set. Next, select the track that contains your reverb effect. On the Mapping Follower, click on the 'Map' button and then click on the 'Dry/Wet' parameter of your reverb effect to create a connection between the two.
Now, imagine you want the 'Dry/Wet' parameter of the reverb to vary based on the velocity information of each note you play on a separate instrument track. To set this up, route the MIDI from your instrument track to the Mapping Follower track. Ensure that the 'MIDI From' of the Mapping Follower track is set to receive from your instrument track. Select 'Velocity' from the drop-down menu in the Mapping Follower device.
With the mapping in place, play a note with a higher velocity to notice the reverb becoming more wet in response, and a softer velocity note making the reverb drier. Adjust the 'Response' knob in Mapping Follower 1.0 to control how quickly the 'Dry/Wet' parameter responds to the velocity changes. Use the 'Min' and 'Max' parameters to define the range of the reverb's 'Dry/Wet' control that you want the velocity to affect.
By capturing the expression of your performance through MIDI velocity, you seamlessly meld reverb dynamics into your ambient canvas, breathing life into the static sound without ever needing to manually tweak a parameter. The Mapping Follower 1.0 serves as your hands-off modulator, an invisible hand that draws depth and detail into your sonic landscape.
Imagine you're working on a track and you want to create a pulsating panning effect that syncs with your hi-hat pattern. Let's explore how Mapping Follower 1.0 can be creatively used to achieve this dynamic modulation using the hi-hat MIDI clip velocity to control the panorama of a synth pad.
First, load a MIDI track with your favorite drum rack and program a hi-hat pattern. Next, create a new MIDI track and add a synth pad sound of your choosing. Now, this is where Mapping Follower 1.0 comes into play.
- Insert Mapping Follower 1.0 on the hi-hat MIDI track.
- Click on the 'Map' button within the Mapping Follower and then click on the velocity control of one of your hi-hat hits. Mapping Follower is now set to follow the velocity of your hi-hat hits.
- On the synth pad track, you’ll want to add a 'Utility' audio effect. This effect will be the target of our modulation.
- Head back to Mapping Follower and map its output to the 'Pan' parameter in the 'Utility' device, using the map button.
- Adjust the 'Fall' and 'Rise' sliders within Mapping Follower to shape how quickly the panning reacts to the velocity changes. For a smooth panning effect that nicely follows the dynamics of your hi-hats, find a balance between these two parameters.
- Use the min/max range sliders in Mapping Follower to define the width of the panning effect.
As your hi-hat pattern plays, the velocity of each hit will now control the panning of the synth pad, creating a dynamic movement across the stereo field which is directly influenced by the rhythmic pattern of your hi-hats.
You can take this a step further by automating the modulation range within Mapping Follower to have the panning effect increase in intensity during certain sections of your song, adding another layer of interest and movement to your mix. This example not only showcases the creative possibilities of parameter automations but also the power of Mapping Follower 1.0 when used to bridge different elements of your Ableton Live session.
Further Thoughts
Imagine you’re crafting an intricate piece of ambient music where textures evolve slowly over time. You’re aiming for automation that breathes life into parameters in a way that feels unpredictable and organic. To achieve this, let's use Mapping Follower 1.0 to its fullest potential.
First, create a lush pad sound using Ableton's Wavetable synthesizer. Let it be the canvas on which the Mapping Follower will paint its modulations. You want to modulate parameters like the position of the wavetable and filter cutoff to induce a sense of constant motion.
Next, set up an instance of Mapping Follower 1.0 on a return track and load a Max4Live LFO device before it. You're going to send the LFO's control signal to the Mapping Follower to track. Adjust the rate and shape of the LFO to be slow and gradual, mimicking the ebb and flow of a tide—this shape will be the basis of your modulations.
Map the output of the Mapping Follower to Wavetable's position and filter cutoff. The smooth LFO signal is now being followed and converted to modulation movements by our device. Within the device's interface, automate the modulation amounts over time to create a more human-like variance — perhaps the depth of modulation increases as your track progresses to a climax, and then it diminishes as you lead into a soft breakdown.
Now let's get creative with the 'Mod' mode in Mapping Follower, which allows us to repurpose MIDI information as a modulation source. Set up a MIDI track with a random note generator (like Ableton's Max4Live MIDI Effect "Random") and adjust parameters to sporadically add notes to a scale. You route the MIDI output to the Mapping Follower. Utilizing the 'Mod' mode, you make the occurrence of MIDI notes control the resonance of your pad's filter, adding a dimensional layer of modulation when notes are triggered.
You can further expand this tapestry of modulation by automating the modulation range within Mapping Follower 1.0. Sequence it to broaden as the track progresses or tighten during delicate moments, dynamically shaping the filter's response to the input signal.
Finally, to create a more complex interaction, you could duplicate the Mapping Follower and map it to other parameters like Wavetable's unison amount or an effect's dry/wet mix - these parameters can respond to different LFO shapes, making for an evolved and intertwined modulation system.
The beauty lies in the possibilities Mapping Follower 1.0 opens up by following any modulatable signal, be it LFOs, MIDI, or even another mapped parameter from a separate track. Your ambient soundscape now feels like it's breathing, moved by a web of modulations that feels as natural as the ecosystem it sonically represents.