What Would Ableton Think?
I haven’t cracked open Ableton for the past maybe month and a half. And I noticed that somewhere in my immediate local subconscious, I feel a little bad about it.
It’s either feelings of betrayal or, like, what would Ableton think? Obviously, Ableton doesn’t care. Neither is Akai MPC happy to have me. They don’t care.
So what’s going on?
I guess, really, you have to abandon any attachment to the sunk cost fallacy. And if you’re not familiar, it’s the idea that you need to keep doing something, or investing in something, or living with something because you’ve sunk so many hours and dollars into it.
I’m hyper-conscious of that, actually, so that’s not it.
But I do feel some kind of obligation to Ableton because it’s brought me so much. I can remember long ago trying to decide between Ableton and MPC. Maybe if I had to do it over again, I’d go MPC the whole time.
Would I sell my Push 3 now? I don’t honestly have the answer to that. But I may be back next month. I just don’t know. But right now, for what I’m doing, the MPC really works.
And I think the fact that it is a bit of a jank DAW is really helping. I may not need a full DAW after all.
I haven’t cracked open my computer in my office space, where I do all my music stuff, for a long time. If I’m working from home, it’s typically at the kitchen table. Downstairs is for music. And now downstairs is an environment where the computer isn’t.
Maybe the iPad is, with YouTube in the background, or that’s where my computer would come into play.
So that is all actually wonderful.
Yes, the computer is a legitimate instrument, but I don’t have the cash or time to have two separate computers, one for music and one for work, etc. Although I’m starting to think that with DJay / Algoriddim, I will need a computer dedicated to that. But that’s another post.
It’s probably like anything else. I’ve made a lot of feelings through music with these programs, and there’s real attachment there.
Maybe.
Maybe not.
I don’t know.
But there is a sense of obligation, just like selling instruments. I sold something today because I bought a very inexpensive used MPC Live I. And I’m totally resolute in that, so there’s no feelings to letting that one go.
But I picked up my old P-Bass today, and all this stuff came rushing back.
I know brain-wise that feelings don’t live within these instruments. But it sure feels that way sometimes.