Ableton Link (aka The Sync Shizzle)

Ableton Link keeps OnSong's tempo & beat in lockstep with Ableton Live & other Link-enabled apps & devices on the same Wi-Fi network. Zero pairing nonsense, zero cables: apps on the network find each other & join a shared session automatically. Once you're vibin' together, everything in the OnSong^® app that follows the beat clock — the metronome, the drum machine, tempo-synced delays, arpeggios — is countin' the same beat as everyone else in the room. ZOMG, y'all are finally in sync!

Turn This Thing On

Ableton Link lives in The Goods ▸ MIDI ▸ Ableton Link. The screen has three parts that'll blow your mind (or bore you to tears):

• Ableton Link — the switch itself, chillin' on Ableton's own panel. It shows how many apps are party crashin' the session once you're connected.
• Sync Mode — how OnSong's tempo relates to everyone else's whole vibe. Scroll down & peep the deets.
• Status — the current connection drama, such as Connected when there's at least one other app, Searchin'… while Ableton Link is on but you're all alone, & Off when it ain't runnin'.

You can also snag it from the AuxDock by togglein' Beat Sync on any panel & the chip that pops up offers Ableton Link… as a shortcut. Lazy? We got u.

Sync Mode (aka "Who's the Boss?")

Ableton Link itself is leaderless — there is no master, & any participant can be a tempo rebel. Sync Mode is OnSong's own take on that drama:

• Both — shares the tempo like you're actually listenin' to each other. Changin' tempo in the OnSong^® app changes it for everyone, & a change made elsewhere gets adopted here too. The default, & totes true peer-to-peer vibes.
• Lead — OnSong^® app pushes its tempo to everyone else, & if some wise guy tries to nudge the session, OnSong's like "nah fam, I got this" & re-asserts control. Use it when the OnSong^® app is the definitive beat drivin' the band because y'all agreed.
• Follow — OnSong^® app never bosses anyone around, just acceptin' whatever the session decides. Use this when someone else owns the tempo & OnSong is just along for the ride. Humble vibes.

The mode is remembered across disconnects, so a rig set to Follow stays that way next week. No take-backsies.

What Gets Weird While You're Connected

• The shared timeline runs the whole clock show. A Link session keeps OnSong's beat clock alive even when nothin' local is playin', which is why beat-sync LEDs pulse the second you connect. It's like they know somethin' you don't.
• Tempo changes are basically gossip. In Both or Lead, changin' OnSong's tempo — by tappin' it, loadin' a song with its own tempo, or a section's {tempo:} — moves the whole dang session. Everyone finds out immediately. No secrets.
• In Follow, the song's tempo gets ghosted in favor of the session's. That's literally the whole point of the mode, but it's worth knowin' if you open a chart & the metronome doesn't play at the tempo written on it. Plot twist: it won't.

The Fine Print

• Every device has to be on the same Wi-Fi network, & the network has to let devices see each other. Guest networks & many venue networks block that on purpose, which is why your session never finds a peer. Plot twist: it's probably not us, it's your venue WiFi bein' rude.
• No internet connection needed — Link works on a local network with zero router uplink at all, which makes an isolated travel router a freakin' lifesaver for a stage.
• Link is peer-to-peer, so there's no "host" device to start first like some kind of despotic overlord. Any order works. Anarchist vibes.

If Status gets stuck on Searchin'… with another Link app clearly runnin' somewhere, the network is nearly always the culprit rather than either app. Put both devices on the same access point — or an ad-hoc one you control — before you blame us. Srsly.