Diào
User Manual

Introduction

Diào is an Ableton Live extension that polyphonically retunes audio clips to a Camelot wheel target — including mode changes (major ↔ minor) that a simple transpose cannot do. It renders new audio on a new track (or Session row on the track to your right); it is not a live warp or Key device.

Requirements: Ableton Live 12 Suite 12.4.5 or newer with Extensions enabled. Install the free .ablx package from dian-nao-software.com/diao. Developer Mode should stay off for normal use.

Pricing: 10 free retunes, then a $9.99 lifetime license on the website. See Trial & license.

Install & update

1. Download the current .ablx from /diao#download.
2. With Live closed or open, install via Settings → Extensions (drag the file onto Live or use the Extensions UI). macOS may not open .ablx from Downloads on double-click — use Live’s Extensions tab.
3. Leave Developer Mode off unless you are developing extensions yourself.
4. When a newer version is on the site, the retune dialog shows an update link. Download the new .ablx and install it the same way. Your license is stored in Live’s Extensions Data area and stays valid across reinstalls.

Retune workflow

1. Select an audio clip in Arrangement or Session View.
2. Right-click the clip → Extensions → Diào — Retune to key… (or similar menu label).
3. Wait for key detection (progress in the dialog).
4. Confirm or adjust input and target on the Camelot wheels.
5. Click Retune. A new retuned clip appears — see Arrangement output or Session View output.

Not supported: MIDI clips, take lanes, empty Session slots, and some protected factory samples (Live may refuse analysis — you’ll see a message in the log, not a crash).

Retune dialog

The dialog shows input and target wheels, a confidence readout, Cancel / Retune, and (if applicable) trial or update banners.

Keyboard (while the dialog is focused — not global Live shortcuts):

Use the Manual link in the footer for the same URL as ?.

What Diào analyzes

Diào does not read the raw file from disk alone. It asks Live to render pre-FX audio — what would reach the first insert slot on the track, after clip playback rules (warp, loop region, fades, etc.) are applied.

Arrangement clips

For Arrangement clips, rendering uses the real clip on the timeline. What you hear from that clip (including clip transpose and gain as Live plays it) is what gets analyzed — still before EQ, compressors, and other track insert devices.

Session View clips

For Session View clips, Diào uses a short-lived temporary track and rebuilds a clip from the file path, warp on/off, warp mode, and loop/marker region only. The extension cannot read clip transpose, clip gain, or per-clip fades from the SDK today. If you transposed a Session clip in Live, detection may follow the file’s pitch, not what you hear — set the input key manually on the wheel if needed.

Not analyzed: Audio after the first insert on the track (reverb, saturator, etc.). Not analyzed: The raw file without Live’s clip engine.

Arrangement output

After retune, Diào adds a new audio track with a timeline clip at the same time range as the source. The new clip is imported unwarped (warp off). It does not follow project tempo changes the way a warped clip would.

The new track is created relative to which track is selected in Live — usually the source track if you retuned from it. Avoid overlapping another clip on that track in the same time range.

Session View output

Session retune places the result on the track immediately to the right of the source track, on the same scene row (same slot index). Your original clip is unchanged.

The retuned clip is a one-shot, unwarped clip. If the source was looping, the output is still a single unwarped clip (not a looping Session clip).

The duplicate track copies the source track’s device chain (insert FX). The output track is never muted by Diào — if the source track was muted, unmute the new track to hear the retune.

Not supported (v1)

Trial & license

• Trial: 10 retunes without a license.
• License: Purchase on the website, then Enter license key in the dialog. Trial state and license are stored under Live’s Extensions Data for Diào (managed by Live — not something you edit by hand).
• Retrieve a key: /diao/your-purchase

Tips & troubleshooting

In-app shortcuts