CE SENDER & RECEIVER
Presence-based stereo bus for Ableton Live. Send from anywhere in the Set;
mix on a CE RECEIVER with strips, groups, EQ, and soft clip.
Getting started · 01
Download and install
What is in the download, where to put it, and where to find it in Live.
The download unzips to one folder, CE MIX BUS:
CE SENDER.amxd, CE RECEIVER.amxd | The two devices. See How it works. |
.js and .gendsp files, code/ | Parts the devices load while they run. |
Manual.html | This manual. Open it in any web browser. |
README.txt | The build date and where to send feedback. |
- Move the whole CE MIX BUS folder into your Live User Library. By default that is
Music/Ableton/User Library on a Mac and Documents\Ableton\User Library on Windows.
- In Live's browser, open Places → User Library → CE MIX BUS. That is where the devices live from
now on: drag a device from there onto a track.
Keep the folder together. Move the whole folder, not just the .amxd files. The devices need the other files beside them.
Not sure where your User Library is? Live shows its location under
Settings → Library.
Getting started · 02
Setup
One Sender on a source. One Receiver where you want the mix.
- Drop
CE RECEIVER.amxd on an audio track that will hold the bus mix.
- Drop
CE SENDER.amxd after an instrument or clip on a source track in the same Set.
- Close both Max editors. On the Sender, open the destination chip and pick that Receiver.
- Set Sender Mode to Both (or Send Only if the track should stay silent locally). Leave the output unmuted at 0 dB.
- Confirm a source strip appears on the Receiver and its meter moves with the source.
Same Set only. Discovery and Live device routing stay inside the current Live Set. Re-add both devices from the CE MIX BUS folder after an update so patch wiring and companion .js stay matched.
Getting started · 03
How it works
Senders announce. The Receiver opens Live routes and mixes the strips.
CE Bus is a presence-based stereo bus. A CE SENDER
(or a CE CROSSDRIVE send page) announces itself to a chosen
CE RECEIVER. The Receiver opens a Live audio input for that
source and draws a mixer strip.
| CE SENDER | Mode, Local level, up to 31 destination outs with level and mute. |
| CE RECEIVER | Per-source strips (gain, mute, solo, 3-band EQ), groups, master, soft clip. |
Both faces share the Live-Dark console look. Click the Settings tab for Help, version, and
(on the Receiver) the EQ crossover graph.
CE SENDER · 04
Mode: Through, Send Only, Both
Local track vs bus feed.
| Through | Local full. Send still active to each unmuted destination. |
| Send Only | Local muted. Send active. Use when the source should only live on the bus. |
| Both | Local scaled by Local. Send at each out Level. |
Local only appears in Both mode. The RECEIVERS badge shows how many Receivers the Sender can
see; click it to re-query if a new Receiver just loaded.
CE SENDER · 05
Outputs and destinations
One channel per destination. Stable ids keep strips attached.
Each output is a narrow console channel: destination chip, meter/fader (−70 to +6 dB), and mute.
Click + to add an out (up to 31). Click the destination chip for the Receiver menu.
Fresh Senders default the first out level to the track volume, and auto-bind that out to the only
Receiver in the Set when there is just one.
Outputs keep stable ids. Deleting an earlier out does not rename later Receiver strips; each
source key is senderUUID_outId.
Missing destination. If the chosen Receiver leaves the Set, the chip marks
missing. Pick another Receiver or bring the old one back.
CE RECEIVER · 06
Strips, master, and clip
Console mixer for every live source.
When a Sender (or CROSSDRIVE send) targets this Receiver, a strip appears in Live track order.
Collapsed strips show a meter only. Expand for Mute, Solo, and Low / Mid / High EQ dials.
The master sits pinned on the right with its own EQ. Beside it, the soft clip panel has On,
Thresh, and Amount. Strip and master names flash while clipping.
Gain range is −70 to +6 dB on strips and master. Meters share that scale so 0 dB lands on the
unity mark.
CE RECEIVER · 07
EQ and crossover
Three bands per strip. Splits live in Settings.
Each expanded strip (and the master) has Low, Mid, and High gain dials. The isolator splits are
shared: open Settings for the EQ crossover graph and drag the
Low/Mid and Mid/High handles.
Defaults are 200 Hz and 2 kHz. The curves are 3rd-order Butterworth magnitudes, the same shape
the audio path uses.
CE RECEIVER · 08
Groups
Fold sources like Live group tracks.
Select strips (Shift-click) and group them. A group column gets its own fader, mute, solo, and EQ
on top of the members. Fold the group to hide members. Up to 8 groups.
Routing · 09
How audio gets there
Live device I/O, not unsupported send~/receive~ between devices.
The production path uses Ableton’s device routing. A Sender out plays on extra plugout channels.
The Receiver asks Live to route that Sender device into the matching plugin input slot (up to 31
stereo sources).
Senders inside racks are not routable. Duplicate track or device names are ranked by order so the
Receiver can still pick the right source.
Platform note. Cycling ’74 lists inter-device send~/receive~
as unsupported in Max for Live. CE Bus uses Live routing for Sender → Receiver audio.
Routing · 10
Saved state and Undo
Levels undo. Names and destinations save with the Set.
Mixer values are hidden Live parameters (Sender outs, Receiver slots, master, clip, crossovers).
Drags commit as one Undo step. Loading and auto-connect use assign so they do not spam Undo.
UUIDs, output ids, destinations, strip map, nicks, and view state live in a blob pattr saved with
the Set. Duplicating a device re-rolls identity so two copies do not fight over the same bus name.
Use cases · 11
Drum bus from anywhere
Kick, snare, and hats land on one Receiver.
- Put a Receiver on a Drum Bus audio track.
- Put a Sender after each drum rack or sample track. Mode Both if you still want local monitoring.
- Point every Sender at that Receiver. Ride strip gains and EQ on the Receiver.
- Group the hat strips if you want one fader over the whole bed.
Use cases · 12
With CE CROSSDRIVE
Carve locally, bus the wet feed.
CROSSDRIVE’s Settings page can send into the same CE Bus. Treat it like a Sender destination:
pick the Receiver, set Through / Send Only / Both, and ride Level.
Useful when the carved Texture should hit a shared bus while Body stays on the source track.
Reference · 13
Tips
Quick fixes.
- No strip on the Receiver
- Same Set? Editors closed? Destination picked on the Sender? Click RECEIVERS on the Sender to re-query, then re-pick the destination.
- Strip appears, meter quiet
- Unmute the Sender out and Receiver strip. Try Mode Both. Confirm the source track is playing into the Sender.
- Dest says missing
- The Receiver left or renamed identity. Pick it again from the menu.
- Sender inside a rack is silent on the bus
- Move the Sender onto the track chain itself. Rack-contained devices are not Live-routable into the Receiver.
- Duplicate devices fight
- Cmd+D re-rolls uuid. Keep one Receiver identity per bus you care about.
- Device too wide
- Collapse Receiver strips, fold groups, close Settings. Sender scrolls horizontally when outs overflow.
- Push 3 Standalone
- Push 3 Standalone is not currently supported.