docs/commands/Devices & effects

devices & effects:
add, read, dial in.

Add any Ableton native device or installed plugin by name, read the full parameter list, and set values in plain language. All parameter changes are reversible.

01 /Adding devices

tonee searches your browser by name and loads the best match. All device additions are reversible: one undo removes the device.

type

example

note

Audio effect

"add a glue compressor to the drum bus"

Appends to the end of the chain.

Instrument

"load Wavetable on the synth lead"

Replaces the instrument slot at position 0.

MIDI effect

"add an arpeggiator before the instrument on ACID LN"

Auto-inserts before the instrument.

Return track device

"add a reverb to Return A"

Audio effects only on return tracks.

VST / AU plugin

"add FabFilter Pro-Q 4 to the vocal"

Searched by name. All installed plugins are available.

Loading a specific preset. Include the preset name when adding: "add Analog Dreams Wavetable preset". tonee searches your browser and loads the matching preset directly.

02 /Reading device chains

tonee always reads the full device chain before modifying anything. Each device exposes:

Name

The device's display name (e.g. "Glue Compressor", "Pro-Q 4").

Class name

Internal Ableton class (e.g. "GlueCompressor", "PluginDevice").

Type

"instrument", "audio_effect", or "midi_effect".

Index

Position in the chain. Used when targeting a specific device.

You can ask "what's on the vocal chain?" or "list the devices on the drum bus" at any time. The chain is always read fresh, so you'll see any changes you made in Live since your last message.

03 /Parameters

Every exposed parameter on every device, native or plugin, is readable and writable. Read them all with "what params does the EQ have?", or set them directly in your message.

Names are fuzzy-matched

"filter freq" will resolve to "Filter Frequency". Case-insensitive. Exact match is tried first, then close match.

Values are floats

Ableton parameters use a 0.0-1.0 internal scale for most controls. tonee handles the conversion: you speak in dB, Hz, ms, or plain language.

Batch writes are one commit

Setting 5 parameters at once is one [#N] entry. One undo reverts all 5.

Reading is free

Parameter reads don't create undo entries and don't affect playback.

single param

"set the threshold to -18 dB"
"filter freq to 2 kHz"
"cut the reverb wet to 20%"

batch params

"threshold -12, ratio 4, attack 5ms"
All named in one message → one commit → one undo.

04 /Removing devices

tonee can remove devices by name or position. Removals are DESTRUCTIVE_HEAVY: device internal state (presets, rack contents) can't be captured via Ableton's Python API, so auto-undo isn't possible.

If you delete a device and need it back, press ⌘Z in Live immediately. tonee's undo will tell you to do this; it can't reconstruct the device state on its own.

05 /Limits

These operations aren't supported, either because Ableton's Python API doesn't expose them, or they haven't been implemented yet.

Device on/off

No enable/disable or bypass toggle. Devices are always active once added.

Rack macros

Macro knobs on Instrument Racks, Audio Effect Racks, and Drum Racks are not accessible.

Rack chains

Individual chains inside racks can't be read or modified. Only the top-level device is visible.

Presets

Loading presets within a device isn't supported. Load from a specific preset name at add time instead.

Reorder (move)

Moving a device to a different chain position is supported but isn't tracked in the undo journal yet.

Drum Rack pads

Pad names are readable. Pad chains and pad device parameters are not accessible.

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devices & effects:add, read, dial in.