It’s good, definitely a compromise vs. Push 3 but also preferable to lugging Push 3 through airport security. The biggest thing is that it still relies heavily on your computer screen for visual feedback on devices, which puts it more in line with Novation controllers than Push IMO.
At a high level:
- Session View lets you launch clips for seven tracks and four scenes, with the last column dedicated to Scene Launch. You use the bottom sequencer steps for track selection and can scroll through your project with the arrow keys. It feels very much like Push or any other grid controller.
- Note Mode uses the left hand buttons for track selection and the step selection buttons for sequencing, so you can only jump between four tracks at once. The vertical track arrangement initially feels different if you’re used to basically any other Ableton controller, but I stopped thinking about it in a matter of seconds. Compared to Push, i immediately missed 16 Velocities on Drum Racks. Live also doesn’t support 16 Pitches or Capture for automation; otherwise Note Mode feels identical to using Move in Standalone.
- The step sequencer works really nicely. Automation recording works really nicely. Nothing to report there. The Loop Select function lets you create clips up to 40,960 bars and you can scroll through with the arrow keys.
- You can fold and unfold groups from the controller, then use the arrow keys to switch your device focus. The “one parameter” screen means you’ll spend a lot of time tapping knobs to find out what you’re controlling, but once you find the parameter you want, recording automation is a snap.
- They’ve integrated Undo History in Controller mode as well, so you can actually read what you’re undoing. I like this a lot.
- The Shift function menu works exactly like you’d expect. Workflow Settings is limited but remembers your settings, which is nice. Groove affects Global Groove Amount instead of being locked to 16th note swing. Scale selection is immediately reflected in Live. Note Repeat works, but Arpeggiator doesn’t — Live’s device is way more powerful anyways.
- It works as a 2-in / 2-out audio interface. I only have Live installed right now so I can’t test my theory, but I’m pretty sure it’s class-compliant on MacOS so you could use the mic/line in and headphone outs with a different application provided you don’t need any visual feedback.
Hopefully this helps! I’ve been meaning to make a video on this — there are lots of questions and very few answers available. But I don’t particularly enjoy making videos and I’ve been too busy anyways…
The TLDR is, in my opinion it’s a perfectly competent Live controller with a lot of great features. But it’s no Push. If someone is considering the Move to replace their Push 2, it can work in some very specific cases but you should be ready to make compromises. And given the price difference vs the new Launchkeys (which also have tons of features that are absent in Move), I would only recommend buying it if you’re also interested in Standalone mode.