3. Now that the Scarlett is connected properly to the computer, please navigate to Focusrite.com. Log in to your account page by navigating to the top right corner of the web page and clicking on the icon, pictured below, highlighted in red. Once logged in you will automatically be routed to your account page, from here select the My Software tab at the top.

4. When this populates, scroll down until you see “Ableton Live Lite”. Click on “Get Ableton Live Lite”, this directs you to the Ableton download page. Make note of your activation code as you will need it after Ableton has been downloaded.  Be sure the appropriate Windows version is selected and then select “Download”. After installation, the Ableton software will prompt you to Authorize your software with the activation code. Before entering your activation code you will either log into your Ableton account or create a new one, and it will direct you to the activation page.

5. Open the Ableton Live Lite DAW software and navigate to “Options > Preferences”. This is where we will confirm that the Ableton software is ready to communicate with the Scarlett 2nd Generation. On the left side of this tab, please select “Audio” and two tabs should populate on the right. Select “ASIO” under “Driver Type” and “Focusrite USB ASIO” under “Audio Device”. This will now populate the rest of this window, where you can select your Sample Rate and Buffer Size, which will likely default to 44.1kHz and 256 samples prospectively. If you are unsure what to set your Sample Rate and Buffer Size to, we suggest matching these default settings. Once this is set, we are now ready to test Ableton!

6. Enable the I/O button on the bottom right and select “External Input 1” or “External Input 2” under “Audio From” which will reflect the inputs from the Scarlett 2nd Generation. From here click the square with the circle in it under the channel number which will light up in red and show that you are record enabled. Now, when you play your instrument or talk into your microphone through the Scarlett, the Ableton channel will display the audio meter volume of the sound coming in. 

7. Once you have verified your audio signal within the Ableton channel, you are ready to record. For a more familiar recording view, hit the “Tab” key or select the arrangement/session view icons to the right of the Master fader. The channels will then align horizontally, and you will see your record-enabled channel on the right. From here, hit the “Stop” (black square) button at the top of the page to bring your marker to the beginning of the session and then hit the “Record” (black circle) button. Your channel will be highlighted in red and the waveform of your recording will appear on your screen. 

You are now set to enjoy your new Scarlett 2nd Generation with Ableton Live Lite, enjoy!

*For further information on using the Ableton software, please view the following tutorial videos: Ableton | Learn Live