American Audio 10 Mxr Ableton tutorial - connect, setup & midi map

American Audio's 10 Mxr is an exceptionally flexible midi DJ controller and is a powerful tool when is used with Ableton Live. This midi DJ controller has a plethora of features, making it perfect for Ableton Live.

This tutorial will explain all you need to know on using the American Audio 10 Mxr with Ableton Live. This includes connecting, setting up and midi mapping the 10 Mxr.

Article Contents

1. Does the American Audio 10 Mxr work with Ableton Live?
2. Does the American Audio 10 Mxr come with ableton Live included?
3. How to connect the 10 Mxr to ableton
4. How to midi map the American Audio 10 Mxr in Ableton Live
5. The Limitations of midi mapping the 10 Mxr
   1. Saving your 10 Mxr Midi Mappings is cumbersome
   2. Ableton MIDI mappings are one-to-one
   3. Limited Ableton parameter options to map to
   4. A great solution to these problems
6. Why can’t I hear my Push in Ableton Live?

Does the American Audio 10 Mxr work with Ableton Live?

To put it briefly, the American Audio 10 Mxr is compatible with Ableton Live.

The lack of a MIDI remote script in Ableton Live does not restrict users from midi mapping the 10 Mxr to multiple functions inside the program.

All forms of Ableton Live, Intro, Lite, Standard and Suite, can work with practically any instrument that sends out MIDI data, and it will be compatible with all versions of Live such as 9, 10 and 11. Due to this, the 10 Mxr will be usable with Ableton Live.

You can easily create midi mappings for Ableton, allowing you to access many functions of Ableton Live with your 10 Mxr.

Does the American Audio 10 Mxr come with ableton Live included?

The 10 Mxr doesn’t come with a copy of Ableton Live Lite, so this would need to be purchased separately.

There are three main versions of Ableton Live: Intro, Standard and Suite. Even though Intro and Standard are both effective, Suite offers a lot more, including 70GB of library sounds, compared to Standard's 10GB.

If you prefer to have all the Audio and MIDI effects, we recommend getting Ableton Live Suite, because it comes with much more of them than the Standard edition.

How to connect the 10 Mxr to ableton

Connecting the American Audio 10 Mxr with Ableton Live is pretty simple, and when the two are linked you'll be able to adjust the software's parameters from your midi DJ controller.

1. Connect the 10 Mxr to your computer via USB.
First, connect the USB cable to both the 10 Mxr and your computer.
2. Launch Ableton Live and open the MIDI preferences.
Double click the Ableton Live icon to launch the software. Then, in the top menu of Ableton, go to the Preferences menu by opening the ‘Live’ menu and clicking ‘Preferences’.
3. Select the 10 Mxr from the list of available devices.
Click the the MIDI Sync tab, make sure that Input and Output for the 10 Mxr are checked.
4. Ensure that the ‘Track’, ‘Remote’ and ‘Sync’ boxes are all checked.
In the ‘MIDI’ section of this tab, make sure the ‘Track’ and ‘Remote’ boxes are checked for both the Input and Output of the 10 Mxr (Sync can also be optionally checked).

The 10 Mxr will now be setup and ready to use with Ableton Live.

How to midi map the akai mpk mini in Ableton Live

After successfully connecting the American Audio 10 Mxr to Ableton live following the steps above, you can now MIDI map the physical knobs, pads, keys etc on the device to functionality within Ableton Live by doing the following:

1. Select the MIDI Map Mode button in the top right corner of the Live window. The button should turn orange, indicating that the MIDI Map Mode is enabled.
2. Select the parameter you wish to control in Ableton by clicking it with the cursor, the parameter will become highlighted.
3. Move a control on the 10 Mxr, such as a knob or fader.
4. The parameter you selected is now mapped to the physical control which you moved on the 10 Mxr.
5. Moving the physical control on your 10 Mxr will now move the position of the corresponding parameter in Ableton.
6. Repeat steps 2 - 4 for any other parameters you wish to map.
7. When you’re finished mapping, press the MIDI Map Mode button again to disable it.

The Limitations of midi mapping the 10 Mxr

Ableton’s midi mapping system provides a great way to quickly map your 10 Mxr, there are however, some limitations to be aware of...

Saving your 10 Mxr Midi Mappings is cumbersome

Be aware that when saving your mappings, they will be stored with the Ableton session. Therefore, starting a new session will require you to re-map your controls.

Ableton MIDI mappings are one-to-one

With a one-to-one MIDI mapping, each control on your 10 Mxr can only be assigned to a single parameter in Ableton Live.

Limited Ableton parameter options to map to

Unfortunately, Ableton's internal midi mapping mode does not include every control options, options such as selected track control and selected device control unfortunately aren't possible. You can view a comprehensive list of all Ableton midi mapping options here.

We have a great solution to these problems

If you're looking to get the most out of your 10 Mxr, our Ableton Midi Script Creator tool 'Control Surface Studio' is exactly what you need!
With it, you'll be able to:
- save and re-use your 10 Mxr's mappings across all of your Ableton Live sessions,
- map multiple Ableton parameters to a single control on your 10 Mxr,
- access many more Ableton parameter controls for your 10 Mxr, than Live's internal midi mapping mode allows.

Learn more about Control Surface Studio and see how it can help you by clicking here!

FAQ / Troubleshooting

Why can't I hear my 10 Mxr in Ableton Live?

There are several possible causes:
1. Make sure that the 10 Mxr is connected properly to your computer via USB and that the cable is not damaged.
2. Make sure that the 10 Mxr is selected as your audio input and output device in your audio settings.
3. Make sure that the correct driver is installed for the 10 Mxr.
4. Make sure that the 10 Mxr is selected as the input device in Ableton's MIDI Preferences.