LEAVING Ableton for BITWIG.. AFTER 1 DAY!!!! 

The best part about Bitwig is the tools they give you to create. It’s single-handedly the most creative software I have ever used

Welcome to the enlightened path! I switched to Bitwig after using FL/Ableton for 15 years, after only using it for around 2 hours. This was over a year ago, I still keep finding amazing new tricks and quirks that makes this DAW so frickin' amazing. In the beginning I found a few frustration points, but all that needed to be adressed was my creative workflow to work around it, and now it's even faster than before. I have never been happier with any DAW.

I really appreciate you showing the workflow for both. I’m a visual person, so even if I know something, sometimes it won’t click until I see it. I’ve seen a lot of bigwig videos over the last few years, but yours is the first one that’s made me give it a shot.

Bitwig Studio Opens not only Ablethon projects, but also FL STUDIO. They've also implemented export to dawproject.

Another thing is that the midi controller integration is just amazing out of the box. I have a launchkey mini and launchkey 49 and when you plug them in the buttons and sliders get assigned in a useful and reasonable way to specific things for each instrument or fx. These things are made for Ableton and while navigation works okay there, you kinda have to map everything by hand for each instrument or fx. In bitwig you even have a dedicated controller menu bar to tinker with your specific controller. That’s what did it for me!

Excellent presentation! Bitwig looks amazing. I'm blown away by the browser and the keyboard shortcuts

For creative work, Bitwig ist massive. For straight linear mixing-work, I export stuff to Cubase. Having two DAWs for two different tasks helps me a lot. Live and Bitwig are inspiring ways to jam with myself. Cubase is the hub where I can go very deep at the mixing stage. Stop the DAW wars. :)

Welcome bro! Like how you focused on the user experience in the review but are so many more amazing features like the plug-in crash protection and the modulation system and so many more! Really feels like bitwig is ahead of the curve and are really innovating and pushing forward where ableton seems to be stagnating. They are constantly working on major updates too and are always improving! We just got v5 and they already just released another major update today! Love bitwig so much

the modulation in bitwig, including track level and project level modulation / remotes is where ableton should have been at ten years ago. They really seriously dropped the ball and I think a lot of electronic producers will move to bitwig over the coming years as it becomes more widely known.

Nice first impression. Thank you! Bitwig is really great. I stumbled upon it while using Ableton with windows but was searching for a DAW for Linux. Had nearly the same experience, tried it for some hours and bought it right away and am happy since that day. Sure there are as well downsides, like in every other DAW , but overall it fits my workflow needs a lot and my wish to work under Linux. And for the nice tricks and little magic things, me and others creating videos to help others too.

Very interesting, I like the hybrid track! Thanks for sharing

For the clip volume thing at the end you mention, if you hold down the number 2 key it will temporarily switch to the time selection tool so you can make a selection without having to worry about where you are on the clip. Then when you release the 2 key it’ll snap back to whatever tool was previously selected. That functionality works with the other tools as well, normally I always keep the pointer tool active and temporarily switch to other tools like that. It’s a nice workflow I think.

Hybrid midi/audio channels is an absolute gamechanger! That feature alone kinda makes me want to move from reason 12 to bitwig

Bitwig is the best! As far as I know, you can transfer your project from Ableton to Bitwig. I recently started creating music and of all the DAW I chose this one. At first it seems difficult, but in principle not difficult. But the best part is that you can create a whole melody from a single note by applying modules. Everybody have a great day.

I’m a multi-DAW advocate actually. I enjoy mixing elements from various tools together for unique results. If starting out from scratch I’d agree with pick one until you master it.

It is possible to work in multiple Ableton sessions at the same time! I use it all the time. Check "allow multiple instances" in the look/feel preferences🎉 (windows)

I used ableton for 5 years maybe more. Learnt everything in that daw, bought the push 2. Basically all in on ableton. Then I buy the linnstrument one day and get bitwig 16 track free with it and discovered poly grid and boom. Never looked back, bought the full version and have been on bitwig for the past 3 years. Their approach is unmatched and by the time they incorporate all the features that people think are lacking in bitwig, they’ll do it so much better than almost every other daw if not every other daw in the market. The true DAW from the future.

Bitwig5.1 is goin wild. I am switching as well. Thank you for your video. Love and blessings!

I had to smile when I read your video title.. As a person who grew up with the birth of most all DAWs From Pro-Tools to Reason etc.. I at once fell for Ableton from its creation.. That was until Bitwig one came along.. As it was founded from some of the best coders from Ableton, I tried it out.. But like all Daws, it needed time to mature, and come into its own..So as I was with Ableton and knew it like the back of my hand, It was my go to.. On the 1st of January, a friend called ranting about Bitwig 5.1 After 2 days on the free trial, I was sold.. What a magical place Bitwig has become.. Just the sound quality out of the box is mind blowing.! Want a synth that only exists in your head.. Just build it in Bitwig ! Like you, I have to run multiple DAWs for clients that rent our Recording facility.. But anytime I play them a reference track I wrote in Bitwig, and they see “The Grid” no time is lost in downloading the trial for themselves.. With constant free updates, and open source code.. The sky is literally the limit.. Cheers, from Ireland/Germany 🔉🎶🎵🎵🎶

Claes Johansson & other ones now developing Bitwig worked for Ableton for years shaping Live. Bitwig Pro is the natural evolution of Ableton Live.

I studied Electronic Music Production at a Technical College and one of the Teachers put me onto BitWig Studio 5 for sound design which I love. I am back studying after a break and I have a student license and am looking forward to getting into BitWig

Omg as a programmer this looks like my dream daw. Contextual UIs, global pooup smart navigators, and deep keyboard control is essential in software you use daily

Though this won't be of use for your work with clients, for your own personal use, one of the more compelling aspects of Bitwig for me was the fact that I can open my Ableton projects in Bitwig which, depending on various factors, will be between 98-100% ready to go once opened. Of course, any further saving of the project from that point on can only be as a Bitwig project (which won't work in Ableton for obvious reasons) but the fact that I can continue work on my Ableton stuff with nary an interruption was a big part of the reasoning behind the choice of Bitwig as a new DAW.

The automatic tool switching (and lack of gridlines behind clips) is my number one complaint about Bitwig. I never got used to it, even after 1.5 years of daily usage. I still use Ableton and Cubase from time to time, and the muscle memory just tells you "you can click ANYWHERE in the arranger, to select clips". In Bitwig, you have to hit a specific spot in each track lane in order to have the right tool. Also, often times you accidentally hit the time range handle instead of the note range handle in the piano roll. This should be deactivate-able ASAP. You might soon find additional things which you miss from Ableton. For me it's Being able to scroll horizontally via Shift+Mousewheel. Being able to doubleclick in the piano roll to create notes based on Gridlength (instead of ALT+doubleclick) Being able to adjust automation points vertically without having the feeling you’re moving the mouse through pudding! Being able to quickly insert shapes in the automation lanes, and quickly create automation segments via selection + moving ONE point. Being able to play from the cursor in Detail View with CTRL+space. Having a one button audio quantization via warping. . In Bitwig, when you press record in the launcher while a long sustained note is already playing, the beginning of the clip will have a clearly audible ClickNoise. In Ableton, this never happens by default, due to the automatic Fade being active. Bitwigs AutoFade ONLY affects audio EDITS. No groove pool (only workarounds). No scale highlighting Playhead disappears when playback is paused. There’s no Looper / i ve made a feature request for turning the Cliplauncher into a Loopstation, which would be even better than a Looperplugin, it’s on Bitwish All in all, i prefer Bitwig, but it comes with downsides. I hope they will alleviate those. I made a 30min video about "5 reasons why i would love to switch to Bitwig, but still cant" - but i actually switched, since the downsides of Ableton are bigger 😅

downloading the demo now..this is an awesome introduction

I left Ableton after one hour. The colorful UI is fantastic, the software is much more intuitive, easy to understand and the DAW is more cost effective. The Push 2 works perfectly with Bitwig with the DrivenbyMoss driver, so this is no reason to be locked into an antiqued design.

Been using bitwig for a couple of months after cubase and years of ableton.. bitwig is head and shoulders above the rest for work flow

Super video - made the switch about 3 years ago, and for the most part absolutely loving Bitwig, nevertheless I've still a tonne to learn as bitwig goes deep, very deep, and it would be awesome to watch your journey into using bitwig and the transition from Ableton. Interesting to try the ALS ableton import, and also the implementation of the DAWproject file import/export as time goes by, will make it super easy to switch between DAWs like bitwig and Studio One, as for me I prefer Studio One for final mixing and Bitwig for the creative/composing side.. Amazing times for music production, looking forward to your series on Bitwig, I'm sure I'll learn lots of new tricks, Awesome !

Thanks for the video. It had some approaches to some of Bitwig's features that I hadn't considered. I would like to add at 12:10 that you can insert effects into the individual drum slots in the drum machine as well as after the drum machine device itself. Useful for creating treated percussion or "bit kit" samples.

Great video showing some of the differences. Been using BW for over two years - really is a great DAW and becomes its own creative instrument. Never used a DAW with so many modulation/note FX/MSEG options and the real-time help feature is next level (no other program has anything like that). The only things I really dislike are the piano roll and sampler (Ableton's is better). Ableton also has the glue compressor -- BW really needs a good one.

Haven't even watched one second of this video mate... but that THUMBNAIL! WOW! Who could resist that click!?!? Please take note... thumbnail masterpiece, pat yourself on the back here.

Whenever I see videos like this I realize how much I take Bitwig's features for granted

the waveform blocks are transparent in the automation lanes, click the hamburger menu of the track to fold it open in the arranger and see the transparent waveforms with the master track time division clearly visible

The #1 reason why I'm using Bitwig is because it can do plugin sandboxing. Be sure to turn that on in the plugin section of settings! I use the "By plug-in" mode. The #2 reason is because (unlike Ableton) it can put third-party MIDI-to-MIDI plugins (such as Cthulhu) inline rather than having to devote an entire track to each such plugin. The #3 reason is because it starts up much much faster than Ableton.

I have found my past year in BW very pleasant. The overall engine, performance, tools, etc are all top notch. My ONLY issue is that it is very clearly built with a HEAVY emphasis on the modulators, which are entirely up to the user to build and understand in order to maximize the daws capabilities. It can be very overwhelming and even after a full year I only feel like I grasp 10% of what is possible. Obviously that’s a me issue, ymmv.

Same here. Bought it after a few days of using the demo! It changed my life 😅❤️🍀🌹

I made that move since they released Bitwig, and I don't regret it at all! Love the daw!

Right now Abeltons R&D team is studying your video LoL. Awesome vid. I have dabbled with Abelton and probably still will as most use it as a daw of choice. However I am not completely commited and find Bitwig, which I have heard of before very interesting. Great stuff! 👊🧡👍

I'm sticking with LIVE Cheers 🥂

been using since 1.0 after many years of Live. Would never go back. Soooooo much better.

The moment i first installed bitwig in 2016, i knew it was the future. I cannot stress enough on how much i have argued with people and educated them about bitwig and how it pushes ableton to the grave.

Awesome video!

I've always had a love/hate relationship with Ableton and have always preferred to work in Reason (and yes: Reason). But Bitwig looks like a happy medium between the two, and has some very convenient features above the two. People may defend their DAW of choice, but it's good to be informed that there may be other options out there with features that we didn't have before. Plus, it may not crash all the time, LOL.

Welcome to the BW community, there are a few things I miss about Ableton but I find myself opening it up less and less. Looking forward to some interesting content on Bitwig. My omg was the hybrid session and arrangement view, so useful for generating clip variations in timeline then just plonking in session view.

im trialing different DAW's since i cant afford any of them right now, and let me say that Bitwig is going to be the one i buy. I went from messing with FL, to messing with FL and Ableton and comparing them, to now Bitwig. I installed it 3 hours ago... This is one of the best Software Experiences that ive had... EVER. not only DAW's

The only thing that really caught my attention was that you can open multiple projects at the same time. Now that is a game changer when it comes to creativity. So many times I do not not know where my project is heading. Having all my ideas open parallel and the possibility of exchanging those ideas would be such a good thing for Ableton. Yeah, some will say you can use the session view for that but I'm an arrangement guy. And this is what I'm really missing.

really tempting! thanks for the video. After the last ableton money grabbing "upgrade" I'm starting to consider switching some time. That audio/midi clip on the same track thing is really cool. I hate having to create separate tracks for that in Ableton especially in big projects that already have lots of tracks. What would you say is missing on Bitwig's piano roll that Ableton has?

Thanks for the video. Since I prefer to work OTB I’m still searching for the right daw beside my setup. So far looked into Reaper and Logic. How is bw handling outboard gear and synths?

Bitwig is great my first foray into a daw since I was like 15-17 using Sony Acid Pro and Garage Band

I've been in Bitwig for about a year now. I'm still a raving fan. There are things I wish were different, but I'm still taken back after 12 months in it. I came from Logic and Ableton, so a familiarity with the latter really took me a long way. I'm an audio engineer by trade, so Pro Tools will always be a necessity for big mixes and tracking sessions, particularly for my contract work. But when making my own content, I'm Bitwig all the way now.

Welcome friend!! Bitwig is so much fun!

I just switched to Bitwig from FL Studio. That is because I don't like FL Studio crashes from time to time. It was way too many popups and it's not possible to set a negative offset to tracks (for slow orchestral instruments). Bitwig solves all that and more.

Thanks for sharing your experiences. I was FL user and then switched to Ableton. Then I encountered couple of Bitwig videos and people in the comments were reacting it like it's a merged power of Ableton and FL. And it's still something in my mind to check later on, but as you said, my business is going inside Ableton currently and I don't have much time. I very liked the things you shared here. Very very interesting and could be extremely useful for speeding up. Yet at last, those little frustrations are great minuses for me. I switched to Ableton for everything is in one screen, nothing continuously pops up like in FL but just to drag a clip, if I'll have to change my tool or if I'm gonna encounter that gain indicator (seriously, how often do we arrange the gain in itself, right?) so if you find a way to turn that shit off, that seems pretty appetizing. As you said no DAW is perfect. I still don't understand how in Ableton's arrangement view CTRL and SHIFT do the same thing for highlighting clips. You know what I mean, in note view/piano roll, with CTRL we can choose different notes but in arrangement view CTRL behaves like SHIFT. Unbeliavable. In that case, I find Ableton kinda otistic, it's able to do hardest tasks but these little but extremely important things were unfortunately overlooked. Or just to create a clip, hitting CTRL + SHIFT + M is still pain in the ass imo. Like what were you guys thinking when you were putting this shortcut? Ahaha. Anyway. We'll see. In the future, if I can find a peaceful time, I'd like to inspect Bitwig.

I got Bitwig and Renoise. Iam very happy. I can smell sample warping is coming soon also.

Really surprised how good this DAW is. The only things I miss are a quick freeze (BIP is not the same, needs two tracks to retain all instruments for later editing, and muting of the instrument track etc) and dynamic clip gain. Yes it HAS dynamic clip gain but you need to manually draw dots, you can't just use the range selector then grab up or down like in PT or S1 and Bitwig create automatic border nodes for you. There are so many midi plugins, so many ways to see info on your data, good performance, very clean GUI.. I have managed to learn how to use the program within 2 days without looking at a singe guide. I am comfortable enough with it already to create a song, mix it and automate it and export it. The delay compensation is just exceptional, it can keep everything in time with multiple linear phase plugins with massive delay, but the best part is, it can automate parameters of those plugins in time AND any plug in before or after the latent plugins in the same chain. You have no idea how many DAWs fail at this (hint, a lot, I have tested them all).

I use bitwig since version 1.4 I never regret it. the most stable piece of software I know. I never would go back to ableton.

Today in Bitwig I added a global control to my project to pitch shift all my instruments with a single knob so I can try different keys - with both audio and midi tracks - and I can automate that control, modulate it, whatever. So cool.

Well done! Good move....

Great video, thanks! And maaaan.... that audio editing in session view is so clean. I LOVE the session view in Ableton because it has encouraged some of the most fluid development and arrangements I've experienced yet. I use Push 2 with it and it's great. But it always baffled me that you can't edit the audio of an audio clip like this. As much as Ableton is a huge improvement from my experience with Logic, which I really DO NOT like for writing music, there are some features in Ableton that make me scratch my head haha. Overall, I'll still really happy with Ableton and have started using strictly stock plugins and love it. But I might have to try Bitwig. I only got Ableton Intro to give myself some serious time with the flow of Ableton, so I might do a similar thing with Bitwig.

you should do a follow-up video covering the new changes in Ableton 12, specifically how some of those changes appear to be responding to features present in Bitwig.

Plus modulators, plus operators, plus the grid plus plus plus...

Another thing you may be interested in. Is the fact Bitwig can actually load up Ableton projects. And recently added support for OpenDAW format letting you open up projects in StudiOne too.... It's the future of crossplatform music making. The modular system in bitwig is completely unmatched too. I also personally LOVE the ui.... But I'm heavily biased towards Bitwig as I've been a user since version 1 :)

hahaha, exactly the same here, i think after 4 hours even :) for me (especially for playing livesets) the sandboxed plugins is a game changer as well. When a plugin crashes it doesn't crash the whole DAW.

I've been a Bitwig user for 5 years now and own Ableton and Bitwig is on another level!

Bitwig is killer cool !

I'm using bitwig for a couple of years now and I still learn new things everytime i use it. Sometimes I miss little things of ableton (have bin a user) but overall I love Bitwig and not planning to switch again

Hey man, im looking for a daw to learn. I bought FL and since then i tested myself out here and there. I always threw an eye on ableton and am close to buying it. Now I found your vid. Would you rather recommend bitwig over ableton for a person, who learns from 0?

Does Git wig or Ableton have a capture function? As a keyboard player I like that logic is always recording so I can play with engaging the DAW and then hit capture and what I played is there.

Ableton can blow me. Last time I was supporting it, it couldn't even handle a 4K screen, if that's how they treat their users then I wont spend anymore time wasting my time. Fwiw, I was forced to learn using this in class whilst doing my bachelor, my lecturer was biased and we could never ever get unbiased "education" as the whole push (pun not intended) was for w/e reason that Ableton was a product the school was promoting. Work flow is what is important to me, and Ableton seemed counter productive when I was using it.

Can you set the notes in the drum machine to open different folders? (7:50) Like if you wanted "E2" to always open the "01. KICK" folder by default.

That gain tool is what I've always wanted in Ableton Live

So have you tried Reaper? I'm asking because over the holidays I plan to woodshed on a DAW to use after starting a project on MPC. I don't care about virtual instruments -- have plenty of VSTs as well. I want something with great intuitive workflow ideally and high reliability. Less hassle, more efficiency. The less I have to stare at a laptop screen, the better. (I work in software industry during the day :) Thx.

Nice video! Just wait until you discover the modulation system and of course the mighty Grid :)

You are going to find so much to love! Welcome to the BW community! :-)

Reaper has been doing this since forever

Some cool points…that hybrid track is slick…you can edit your face off in Ableton session view by using simpler and sampler, don’t see that as a win for bitwig… Definitely not enough for me especially considering I’d have to give up M4L which I use tons of in every project, and various native Ableton instruments I love. For a person choosing new, maybe so. FYI, to your first point, you can easily bring assets from any Ableton project into an existing one at a very granular level. It might be nice to actually flip back and forth and work in two projects at once but I haven’t ever needed that as much as needing access to assets from any existing project, which Ableton has on lock. Nice run down…thanks.

Hey man. Thanks for the useful video. In my case after using Ableton for 15 years now even though I am super tempted by Bitwig i am every time turned of when I think about the learning curve in order to switch platforms. I am not one of the lucky individuals that immediately can navigate in a new environment unfortunately.... Such a hard choice

If you right click on the sample in ableton you can select find in folder. That will take you to the folder you were using in that section.

I started bitwig with version 3 , the last update is amazing , the browser but also the project modulation in the master channel, i was dreaming of it, though i find really difficult to come with amazing sounds every time, going analog external gear for me and then learn to use bitwig with external, so many things to learn and grow…the grid in bitwig is like a madular setup but again i think a lot of sounds needs external processing to sound unic and interesting….

studio one is great too

im a long time user of ableton live but i always ask myself why ableton dont make such eazy but effective changes in the updates...

I have a Macbook Air, and am very grateful I can zoom Ableton's GUI to the exact size where my aging eyes can read it, and no larger (for maximum interface real estate). *¿¿Can Bitwig's GUI also be precisely zoomed??*

Ableton allows you to have 2 sessions open. The option is in preferences menu

Q: Does BW have expression maps to support easy articulation switching like Cubase, Logic, S1, PT ? If so, if BW also supports > 1 MIDI port (for Vienna Ensemble Pro use) I might have reason to switch from Ableton too

Tervetuloa perheeseen! Youre a wighead now son, it aint no hobby , but a lifetime deal for real! 😂😂❤❤

YES!!!

I swapped a year ago, haven't looked back. The only thing I really miss are the DNA groove templates SP1200, MPC or Notator swing.

In the words of jack baker, “welcome to the family son”

I was never an Ableton fan but made the switch because I was moving away from a DAWless setup and thought Push was the solution… prior I was just using Logic as a recorder. I’ve gotten used to Ableton but find it phenomenally clunky, however I’ve really enjoyed the M4L aspect and a few of its FX. This past weekend I was at Superbooth and stopped by the Bitwig booth, where they gave me a great demo. I went home and downloaded the Studio 8 track version and after 1 day I was sold. This weekend they had a 10 year anniversary price to upgrade and I went for it. What an amazing DAW, somehow it’s the first time I feel inspired to use the computer. For me it’s like Ableton with the comfortable simplicity of Logic, minus the tacky skeuomorphic design. Gonna sell the Push and just live in Bitwig.

I kind of left DAWs altogether, feels like fresh air! 🌬

Please make more tutorials as you learn new tricks.. I've Made he switch too. I like your Too The Point Style.

Ableton user's take on Bitwig-- Zactly ,, what i was lookin' for-,, -- i jumped to Ableton years ago because i loved what seemed to be endless possibilities to manipulate audio-,, still ride for it but yea-,, honestly.... i've started using session view alot more than i used to-- but the holdback was always,, damn,, i need to change this loop.. or i need this particular part shorter,,- so jumping into Arrangement view is definitely counter productive,, and honestly when i explain that point to people that are thinking of using ableton ,, they're like ? .? huh? that's dumb -so then why are u in session view?..-- Anyway,, thanks for the thorough breakdown-,, Really appreciate the time taken-,, .. .

when adding effects or instruments, you can also just double click anywhere in that space, not just the plus button

1. You can easily drop down another session's tracks/clips/instruments/whatever and drag it onto your loaded session... i do this a lot actually. I also drop down samples in user library and have all my tracks/presets/favorites FROM OTHER SESSIONS. (Collect all and save puts everything piece by piece in the User Library). Ableton Live also allows dual monitoring for both session and arrangement view simultaneously. Also in Live 11 you can click "multiple instances" in the preferences and run multiple Live 11s simultaneously. [Which blew my mind] Ableton Live can also run other DAWS in Live as if they're another plugin [meaning... if you can do it in Bitwig, you can do it on a bitwig loaded in Live, destroying this concept of "theres things that can be done in this that cant be done in Ableton"] ... I'm not sure if any other daw can accomplish that. Also transients... every track has transients... you could split up any clip by transients... into a bunch of samples, grab any of these clips and add them into a new session. Thats a cool thing about Live, anything you want done could be done at least 5 different ways... you just have to put in the effort of learning how to.

Great vid. Yea I think it’s good to not become tribalistic about what DAW you use. My friend told me about Bitwig in 2009. I probably should have listened to him 😂

I’ve tried for a day or two, I’m learning bitwig at the moment after several years with Ableton. I feel naked without my max for live devices and rack presets.

Bitwig is fknnng awesome! 😎❤

Have you use fl studio?

I would like to hear more on your BW experiences onward. I was or I'm thinking about it too. But then again, the third sequencer switch in one life time kind of sucks. I also love Ableton's Push powers especially since the the third version is a standalone. A hybrid setup is still is one of my final goals. Unlike others maybe, Ableton Session View is the unique selling point, the wonder-Pony, feature set of Live. I need to take a look at BW myself, and how automation, modulation presentation in Bitwig session view, and all of that jazz is taken care off. I do hope Ableton is paying attention on the great things in BW.

I've been thinking about switching from Ableton to Bitwig for a long time. I'm still very unsure about this. I've already tested Bitwig and found it very unusual at first and didn't really get to grips with it (due to a lack of time, the trial version had expired at some point). What immediately impressed me were the hybrid tracks. But what keeps me with Ableton is ClyphX, a dream for live looping! I looked for something comparable for Bitwig but couldn't find anything. Does anyone here know of a ClyphX alternative for Bitwig?