01 — What it is

## Two parts, one conversation

Speak2me lives in your menu bar and listens only when you ask it to. It turns what you say into Live commands and sends them to a small control surface script — AbletonStudioControl — running inside Live. The installer set up both.

The pill

Every command is confirmed by a small pill at the top of the screen: what was heard, what ran, how fast. Nothing happens silently.

02 — Setup

## Three steps, once

1

#### Open Speak2me

It's in Applications. The first launch may need a right-click → Open (macOS asks once about apps from outside the App Store). Grant microphone access when asked — without it the app hears nothing.

2

#### Point Live at the control surface

In Live: Settings → Link, Tempo & MIDI, then pick AbletonStudioControl in a free Control Surface slot. Restart Live once after selecting it.

3

#### Check the pill

Look for S2 in the menu bar. Hold `⌃⌥⌘V`, say `play`, release. If the pill turns green, you're done. Pick your mic under S2 → Input if you use an audio interface.

03 — Talking to it

## Three ways in

#### Push-to-talk — `⌃⌥⌘V`

Hold, speak, release. The reliable default, works even with music blasting. S2 → Mode switches it to press-once / press-again.

#### Wake word — “ableton”

Turn on S2 → Wake word. Say `ableton, double the loop` — or just `ableton`, then the command within 10 seconds.

#### Sustain pedal

Turn on S2 → Pedal Push-to-Talk. Hold the pedal, talk, let go. Live doesn't hear the sustain while the mode is on.

### Reading the pill

White — listening or working Green — done, with the time it took Amber — a question, or something degraded Red — failed, with the reason
The ≈ mark

A green pill starting with `≈` means the speech engine garbled you and Speak2me matched the closest real command — say “add a MIDI track” and it runs even when it was heard as “Adam Midditrack”. Risky commands like delete are never guessed.

04 — Commands

## What you can say

Canonical phrasings below; natural variations work too. ⟨n⟩ is a number — spoken digits or words, both fine. Trailing “ums”, punctuation, and casing don't matter. The app's Commands tab has the exhaustive list.

### Transport

Say | Does
--- | ---
`play` · `stop` | Start / stop playback
`record` · `stop recording` | Arrangement record
`from the top` | Stop, bar 1, play again
`jump to bar ⟨n⟩` · `go to the top` | Move the playhead
`undo` · `redo` | Live's undo / redo
`new take` · `capture midi` | Fresh take · rescue what you just played

### Tempo, click & loop

Say | Does
--- | ---
`set tempo to ⟨n⟩` · `⟨n⟩ bpm` | Set the tempo
`increase tempo by ⟨n⟩` | Nudge it (or `decrease`)
`metronome on` · `turn off the click` · `click` | Click on / off / toggle
`count in on` · `punch in on` | Count-in and punch points (`…off` too)
`loop` · `stop looping` | Loop on / off
`loop 8 bars` · `double the loop` · `halve the loop` | Resize the loop from where it starts

### Tracks

Say | Does
--- | ---
`arm track ⟨n⟩` · `disarm` | Record-arm; bare `disarm` = selected track
`mute track ⟨n⟩` · `solo track ⟨n⟩` | And `unmute` / `unsolo`
`mute the bass` · `arm vocals` · `solo the drums` | By track name — your actual names. Several matches → the pill asks which
`select track ⟨n⟩` · `select the hook` | Select a track
`mute all tracks` · `unmute everything` · `disarm all tracks` | Whole-set sweeps; also `unsolo all`
`mute tracks 1 and 3` · `arm tracks 1 through 3` | Lists and ranges — keep it plural (“tracks”)
`arm track 2 only` — or `exclusive arm on` | `only` un-arms the rest once; `exclusive arm on` makes that the standing mode (same for solo)

### Volume, pan & monitoring

Say | Does
--- | ---
`turn up track ⟨n⟩` · `turn up the bass by 6` | ±3 dB by default, or say the amount
`make it louder` · `quieter` | Selected track, hands-free nudges
`set track ⟨n⟩ volume to ⟨dB⟩` | Absolute level, e.g. `-12`
`pan track ⟨n⟩ left` | Or `right` / `center`
`set track ⟨n⟩ to auto` · `set it to auto` | Monitoring in / auto / off
`set track ⟨n⟩ to input ⟨n⟩` · `input 35` | External input channel; `set the input to resampling` too

### Making & managing tracks

Say | Does
--- | ---
`create midi track` · `create audio track called drums` | New track, named if you like
`add three midi tracks` | Counted, up to 12
`new track` | Asks “MIDI or audio?” — answer with the word
`duplicate track ⟨n⟩` · `rename track ⟨n⟩ to bass` | Copy or rename
`clear track ⟨n⟩` · `delete track ⟨n⟩` | Destructive — always asks first. `yes` confirms, `cancel` backs out

### Clips, scenes, plugins & the session

Say | Does
--- | ---
`fire clip ⟨n⟩` · `stop all clips` · `launch scene ⟨n⟩` | Clip and scene control
`load serum` · `load compressor on track 1` | Any plugin or device by name — stock or third-party. Several matches → numbered list, answer with the number
`save` · `save increment` | Save, or save a numbered copy
`what's the tempo` | Asks Live
`again` | Repeats the last command
`help` | Opens the reference

Chaining

`mute track 1 and solo track 2` · `set tempo to 120 then play`. Contradictions (`play and stop`) refuse to run at all; if a middle step fails, the chain stops and the pill says where.

05 — When it asks

## Answering the app

Some commands raise a question on the pill. Answer by voice — no hotkey, no wake word needed while a question is open.

### Choices

Two tracks called “Vox”? Five plugins matching “comp”? The pill lists them numbered — say `2`, or `cancel`.

### Confirmations

`delete track 3` answers back with the track's actual name. Say `yes` to proceed or `cancel` — the question expires on its own after 20 seconds.

### Dialing in numbers

After `input 35`, `set tempo to 120`, or a volume set, you have a few seconds where a bare number re-runs the same command — `input 35`… `36`… `37` until it's right.

06 — Macros

## One phrase, several commands

Macros are custom phrases that run a sequence of ordinary commands. Four ship built in:

Say | Runs
--- | ---
`fresh start` | stop · back to bar 1
`checkpoint` | save
`mixdown prep` | stop · bar 1 · save
`take again` · `run it back` | stop · bar 1 · record

Make your own in S2 → Settings & Macros… — steps are the same commands you'd say out loud, validated as you save. A macro can never override a real command.

07 — When it mishears

## Built for messy rooms

- The ≈ rescue. A close mishearing of a real command runs anyway, marked `≈` on the pill. Delete and clear are exempt — those only run when heard exactly.
- Did-you-mean. If nothing matches, the pill shows the nearest real phrasing. Say it again — that's always the fastest fix.
- Negation guard. `don't stop` runs nothing, loudly. Refusals always win over commands.
- Music is ignored. Playback bleed transcribed as “[Music]” is treated as silence — it can't answer an open question or spend your wake window.

08 — Troubleshooting

## The four things that go wrong

Symptom | Fix
--- | ---
Amber pill: “Ableton unreachable” | Open Live. If it stays amber, check the Control Surface slot (setup step 2) — it heals on its own once Live answers.
AbletonStudioControl missing from Live's list | Restart Live. Control-surface scripts only load fresh on a full restart.
It never hears anything | System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone → allow Speak2me. Then check S2 → Input points at the mic you actually talk into.
macOS refuses to open the app | Right-click the app → Open, once. Or System Settings → Privacy & Security → Open Anyway.

Wake word under loud monitoring

Speakers up, mic hot — the wake word can get buried. The hotkey and the pedal always cut through; use them when the room is loud.