American Audio Radius 3000 Ableton tutorial - connect, setup & midi map

American Audio's Radius 3000 is a fantastically adaptable midi DJ controller that is extremely useful when coupled with Ableton Live. This device has a great range of features, making it ideal as an Ableton Live controller.

This tutorial will teach you everything needed in order to use the American Audio Radius 3000 with Ableton Live, including the processes of linking, setting up and midi mapping the Radius 3000.

Article Contents

Does the American Audio Radius 3000 work with Ableton Live?
Does the American Audio Radius 3000 come with ableton Live included?
How to connect the Radius 3000 to ableton
How to midi map the American Audio Radius 3000 in Ableton Live
The Limitations of midi mapping the Radius 3000
Why can’t I hear my Push in Ableton Live?

Does the American Audio Radius 3000 work with Ableton Live?

To put it briefly, the American Audio Radius 3000 is compatible with Ableton Live.

Although Ableton Live does not come with a MIDI remote script, the Radius 3000 can still be mapped to many of the software's functions.

Any edition of Ableton Live, from Intro to Suite, will be compatible with any device that transmits MIDI data. This works for all editions of Live, for instance 9, 10, and 11. As the Radius 3000 is a MIDI enabled device, it will work with Ableton Live.

You can create your own Ableton midi mappings with ease, giving you the power to control many of the features of Ableton Live with your Radius 3000.

Does the American Audio Radius 3000 come with ableton Live included?

The Radius 3000 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. Although Intro and Standard are both powerful, Suite offers extra features, such as 70GB of library sounds, in contrast 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 Radius 3000 to ableton

Linking the American Audio Radius 3000 to Ableton Live is a simple process, and when you have them connected you can control the software's parameters from your midi DJ controller.

1. Connect the Radius 3000 to your computer via USB.
First, connect the USB cable to both the Radius 3000 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 Radius 3000 from the list of available devices.
Click the the MIDI Sync tab, make sure that Input and Output for the Radius 3000 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 Radius 3000 (Sync can also be optionally checked).

Set up of the Radius 3000 with Ableton Live is now complete.

How to midi map the akai mpk mini in Ableton Live

After linking up the American Audio Radius 3000 to Ableton Live using the steps provided, you can now assign the physical buttons, pads, keys etc on the device to specific functions within Ableton Live via MIDI mapping as follows:

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 Radius 3000, such as a knob or fader.
4. The parameter you selected is now mapped to the physical control which you moved on the Radius 3000.
5. Moving the physical control on your Radius 3000 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 Radius 3000

Ableton’s midi mapping system provides a great way to quickly map your Radius 3000, there are however, some limitations to be aware of...

Saving your Radius 3000 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

Through a one-to-one MIDI mapping, each control on your Radius 3000 can only be assigned to 1 parameter in Ableton Live.

Limited Ableton parameter options to map to

Unfortunately, Ableton's internal midi mapping mode does not provide every control option, so options such as controlling the selected track or selected device aren't possible. A full list of Ableton midi mapping options can be found here.

We have a great solution to these problems

If you're looking to get the most out of your Radius 3000, 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 Radius 3000's mappings across all of your Ableton Live sessions,
- map multiple Ableton parameters to a single control on your Radius 3000,
- access many more Ableton parameter controls for your Radius 3000, 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 Radius 3000 in Ableton Live?

There are several possible causes:
1. Make sure that the Radius 3000 is connected properly to your computer via USB and that the cable is not damaged.
2. Make sure that the Radius 3000 is selected as your audio input and output device in your audio settings.
3. Make sure that the correct driver is installed for the Radius 3000.
4. Make sure that the Radius 3000 is selected as the input device in Ableton's MIDI Preferences.