Options.txt file
- Live Versions: All
- Operating System: All
With the "Options.txt" file we offer a way to change some of Live's options for special circumstances. These options are mainly used for developing and internal testing but may be useful for you as well.
Note: Options.txt functions may change or may be removed in future updates without warning.
How to use Options.txt
First you have to create a text file called "Options.txt" in the same folder where Live's Preferences.cfg file is located. Here's where to find the preferences folder:
Windows
\Users\[username]\AppData\Roaming\Ableton\Live x.x.x\Preferences\
MacOS
/Users/[username]/Library/Preferences/Ableton/Live x.x.x/
Note: These folders are hidden by default. Here's how to access hidden folders on Windows and Mac OSX.
You can activate several options in the Options.txt file but use only one per line. The syntax is very simple; each option begins with a hyphen and some options also require an additional underscore (see examples below). If you use the wrong syntax you will get an error message when opening Live. You need to restart Live to activate the option. The file format of the Options.txt must be plain text.
"ReWireMasterOff"
Disables Live's ReWire Host functionality.
Example: -ReWireMasterOff
"ReWireChannels"
Number of ReWire channels appearing in the ReWire Host when Live runs as ReWire Device.
Default = 16
Min = 0
Max = 64
You must choose an even number of channels.
Example: -ReWireChannels=32
"PluginAutoPopulateThreshold"
Auto-populates the plug-in parameter list if a plug-in has a number of less or equal than X parameters
Default = 32
Min = 1
Max = 128
"-1" will always populate the list with max. 128 parameters, regardless how many parameters the plug-in has (= similar to Live 7 behaviour)
Supported since: 8.1.1
Example: -_PluginAutoPopulateThreshold=32
"ThinningAggressiveness"
When recording automation data, Live smoothes the recorded data with a pre-defined value. The default value is = 0.45
Higher value = more breakpoints eliminated.
Example: -ThinningAggressiveness=0.1
"DontCombineAPCs"
Deactivate the APC combination mode: don't align and sync the session rings of multiple APCs so they can be moved independently.
Supported since: 8.1.4
Example: -DontCombineAPCs
"AbsoluteMouseMode"
Alternative mouse mode without resetting mouse position - useful for tablets, touch screens, remote desk etc.
Supported Live versions: 8.1-9.7.6
Example: -AbsoluteMouseMode
When enabling Absolute Mouse Mode, some actions that require relative mouse movements may experience problems, eg, fine-tuning a parameter while holding CTRL / CMD. Therefore we would recommend to only enable this option if other steps do not resolve this problem.
Note: Live 10 has introduced Pen Tablet Mode to Live's Preferences. Pen Tablet Mode allows use of graphic tablets to meaningfully control Live’s UI. It replaces the "AbsoluteMouseMode" option. Users who have Live 9 running with this option in place will see an error message about this option not being detected when starting Live 10 for the first time.
"EnsureKeyMessagesForPlugins" (Windows only)
This option solves a problem with certain VST Plug-ins (such as NI's Reaktor), where keyboard data does not reach the plug-in. Please note: This entry is for Windows only!
Supported since: 7.0.2b3
Example: -_EnsureKeyMessagesForPlugins