Input / Output: MXGPU
Input / Output is a periodic series where artists show how they make music using Ableton Live, Push, Move, or Note, and share easy-to-follow tips and a free download.
Portuguese producers Moullinex and GPU Panic work together as MXGPU to fuse electronic music, cinematic visuals and performance into an emotive and immersive 360° experience. On their 2025 debut album Sudden Light, the duo ride the tension between light and dark, chaos and control. Here, they give us insights into how they use Ableton Live to combine analogue grit with digital precision, both in the studio and on stage.
Inspiration
“We’re obsessed with the tension between opposites - harsh textures against soft tones or digital precision against organic chaos. A big part of our process is sampling and resampling: rain, cars, conversations, laughter – even our own voices! We build entire tracks from these fragments, bending familiar sounds until they feel alien or synthetic to relay a sense of place and imperfection. The contrast between the real and unreal is where our sound lives, and when that’s framed within the structure of a 3-minute song it creates a pressure that we love to work against.”
Workflow
“Ableton is at the centre of everything - both in the studio and on stage. In the studio, we usually begin in Session View where we can arrange ideas quickly without worrying too much about structure. Vocals often start as loose melodies or fragments, and we only dive into the lyrics and phrasing after moving to Arrangement View where things get more focused and intentional.”
Ableton at the heart of MXGPU’s live set-up
“For the live shows, Ableton runs the entire rig. We use a multi-track session with stems, MIDI sequences and live instruments routed and processed in real-time. Each input and output is mapped one-to-one with our mixer, which allows Ableton to act like a digital insert for synths, modular voices, vocals and whatever else we’re playing. We’ve fine-tuned it to run at ultra-low latency, and also send MIDI OUT to sync our lighting desk and laser show. It’s become a live system that we really trust and has powered over 100 shows so far.”
Software
“We gravitate toward tools that add movement and imperfection. If something feels too stable, we try to break it and love tools that add instability or texture. Ableton’s Drum Sampler has been a game changer for us because a lot of the noise layers and bit reduction drum fx that we used to patch together manually are now built-in. Roar is probably our go-to for saturation - it sounds great, but also behaves in unexpected ways.”
“Ableton’s Echo delay is on almost every channel, but not just for delay - we use it for wobble, noise, saturation and even lo-fi reverb. In Max for Live, we use the DS drum synths granulator and utilities like GMaudio’s ducker and clipper. We’ve also built a few custom racks that introduce randomness, such as MIDI filters, octave jumps and deviation controls. A little chaos goes a long way!”
“Embrace unpredictability and build systems that surprise you. If a sound feels too polished, distort it; if it feels too distant, bring it closer with noise. Even field recordings have melodies — you just have to bring them into focus.”
What are you sharing with us today?
“This is an Ableton Live Project called Peripheral Systems comprising 30 textures built from field recordings captured across Lisbon and its surrounding areas, resampled and warped into playable instruments using Max for Live to create unstable behaviours. The project file includes an exclusive track, and notes on the sound design, chaos generators and custom racks.”