View any MIDI clip in Ableton Live as stringed-instrument tablature. Pick an instrument preset or dial in a custom tuning, then export PDF or ASCII tab. Built on the Ableton Live Extensions SDK (beta).
- Smart tab conversion: Renders a selected MIDI clip as monospace tablature. Fingerings are chosen by tutts, an HMM/Viterbi engine that picks the easiest playable path across the whole clip.
- Instrument presets: Standard Guitar, Drop D, DADGAD, Open G, 7-String Guitar, Bass, and Ukulele, plus a fully custom mode: 4 to 8 strings, any per-string tuning, configurable fret count.
- Quantize: Snap onsets to a 1/4 to 1/32 grid, or turn snapping off.
- Octave shift with range detection: When a part sits outside the instrument's range, an info bar offers the one-click octave shift that fits it best; or shift manually from the Tuning menu.
- Export: PDF and ASCII tab (
.txt, wrapped at a column width you choose).
Download the latest .ablx from the Releases page, then:
- In Ableton Live, open Preferences → Extensions (with Developer Mode off, so Live manages the extension).
- Drag the
.ablxonto that page. - Right-click any MIDI clip → Extensions → Show Tab.
Requires Ableton Live Suite 12.4.5 or newer with Extensions (currently in beta).
- The time signature comes from the first scene of the Set (the SDK does not expose the clip's own scene or the global signature); clips in other signatures render with the first scene's barring.
- Tab is read-only: note edits happen in Live's piano roll.
This project depends on the Ableton Extensions SDK, which is not published to npm and is not bundled here. Obtain it from Ableton, then:
cp .env.example .env # set ABLETON_SDK_PATH to your unpacked SDK
npm run setup # vendor the SDK tarballs + install
npm start # build + run in the Extensions CLI| Command | Purpose |
|---|---|
npm test |
Pure unit tests (CI-safe; no SDK needed). |
npm run test:integration |
tutts pipeline + license-notice tests. |
npm run typecheck |
Type-check the Node side + the webview. |
npm run build |
Production build → dist/extension.js. |
npm run package |
Build the installable .ablx into release/. |
Fingering algorithm is powered by tutts, a TypeScript port of tuttut.
AbleTab is my third extension. Go check out my others!
- Sheet Music: View an Ableton Live MIDI clip as sheet music
- AbleVSEP: Separate any audio clip into stems with any of MVSEP's 100+ models, right inside Ableton Live