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Stem Separation in Ableton Live 12.3

Ableton Live’s Stem Separation lets you break tracks into parts and rework them in one intuitive space – making sampling, remixing, and reimagining effortless. 

Image of the interface showing Stem Separation In Live 12.3

What is Stem Separation?

Ableton Live 12.3’s Stem Separation lets you split any audio file into four sections: vocals, bass, drums, and others.

Whether you’re refining individual parts or rebuilding a track from the ground up, Stem Separation lets you isolate, remix, and reinterpret each stem.

Get creative with Stem Separation – try it free for 30 days, with the Ableton Live Suite trial.

Why try Ableton Live’s Stem Separation feature?

With Ableton Live, you have everything you need in a digital audio workstation to create a track you love. And the new Stem Separation feature unlocks new ways of working with audio files and samples.

 

Experiment with every element

By separating your sample into different stems, you can tweak, remix, or listen to each element. With a couple of clicks, you can split your file into:

  • Vocals
  • Bass
  • Drums 
  • Others

 

Powered by Music AI

Stem Separation is powered by algorithms from Music AI, the creators of Moises. It identifies four layers and splits them into different tracks with clarity and precision. Expect your sounds to be crisp, clean, and easy to manage.

 

No need for third-party tools

Because Stem Separation is part of Ableton Live, you don’t need to interrupt your flow and switch to third-party tools. There’s no need to worry about other software changing your bit rate or sample rate – and since everything runs locally, your creative process isn’t dependent on an internet connection.

By having it all in one place, you can ensure an accurate and seamless workflow. You can then save your samples to your Ableton library for easy access at any time.

How to use Stem Separation in Live 12.3?

To use the Stem Separation feature, all you need to do is:

  • Open up your audio file in Live’s Session or Arrangement View, or in Live’s browser
  • Right-click and select “Separate Stems to New Audio Tracks”
  • Choose which stems you want separated
  • Choose between High Speed or High Quality mode
  • Click “Separate”
  • You’ll see your separated stems as new tracks, ready to reshape and refine
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See Live's Stem Separation in action

Ableton Live 12.3 Stem Separation FAQs

Stem Separation in Ableton Live 12.3 is a feature that allows you to split a mixed track into Vocals, Bass, Drums, and Other. By separating these elements, you can have complete creative control over each sound.

Ableton’s Stem Separation feature is powered by algorithms from Music AI. Open up and separate an audio file in Session or Arrangement View (or even Live’s browser), and explore the possibilities.

Stem Separation is a feature included in Ableton Live Suite, from version 12.3 onwards. Don’t forget, you can sign up for a free trial.

Once you have your separated stems, you can treat them just like any other audio file, giving you complete creative freedom. There are many ways to edit and reshape your stems in Live, including:

  • Remixing a track
  • Creating backing tracks for practice
  • Chopping samples to rework the beat or bassline
  • Preparing custom DJ edits, transitions, or mashups
  • Extracting percussion parts to build a new drum pattern
  • Creating and rearranging acapella tracks

However you decide to reinvent your stems, you can save them to your Ableton sample library so that anything you create can be reused and reworked again and again.

Stem Separation works with most audio file formats. See here which audio file formats are supported in Ableton Live.