# Build Pewter Mesa in Ableton Live

Pewter Mesa is a mallet keyboard sound made with Collision, Reverb and Utility.

Signal flow: **Collision → Reverb → Utility**. Use stock devices in **Ableton Live 12 Suite**.

Res 1 Type: Marimba; Res 1 Decay: 700 ms; Mallet Stiffness: 65 %.

[Complete device settings](ALL_PARAMETERS.md) · [Instrument settings](STARTING_STATE.md)

<audio controls preload="none" aria-label="Finished Pewter Mesa"><source src="audio/pewter-mesa.webm" type="audio/webm"></audio>

[Finished sound — WebM/Opus](audio/pewter-mesa.webm)

## Step 1 — Excite the first resonator

Set the mallet’s stiffness, noise and level, then choose the first resonator model. Its decay, material and brightness shape the main ringing tone. Hit and listening positions change which resonances are emphasized.

Use **Collision** with the [complete starting settings](STARTING_STATE.md). Set the source and amplitude controls below; sections marked Off stay bypassed at this stage.

Signal flow: **Collision → Reverb → Utility**. Begin with the instrument, then add each effect in its numbered step.

| Control | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Voices | 8 |
| PB Range | +2 st |
| Volume | -9.0 dB |
| Mallet On/Off | On |
| Mallet Volume | -12 dB |
| Mallet Volume &lt; Vel | 60 % |
| Mallet Stiffness | 65 % |
| Mallet Stiffness &lt; Vel | 20 % |
| Mallet Noise Amount | 15 % |
| Mallet Noise Color | 40 % |
| Res 1 On/Off | On |
| Res 1 Type | Marimba |
| Res 1 Quality | High |
| Res 1 Decay | 700 ms |
| Res 1 Off Decay | 40 % |
| Res 1 Material | -0.15 |
| Res 1 Brightness | -12 % |
| Res 1 Hit | 28 % |
| Res 1 Listening L | 35 % |
| Res 1 Listening R | 65 % |
| Res 1 Volume | -6.0 dB |
| MW Dest A | Mallet Stiffness |
| MW Amt A | 15 % |
| Res 2 On/Off | Off |
| Noise On/Off | Off |

![Pewter Mesa — Collision — step 1](screenshots/step-01.png)

<audio controls preload="none" aria-label="Pewter Mesa after step 1"><source src="audio/steps/step-01.webm" type="audio/webm"></audio>

[Sound after step 1 — WebM/Opus](audio/steps/step-01.webm)

## Step 2 — Blend the second resonator

Enable resonator 2 using the states below, then choose its model, tuning, decay and level. Keep the listed Structure setting: it determines how the two resonators interact. A quiet second resonator adds a contrasting overtone without obscuring the primary pitch.

Keep the first stage’s source and amplitude settings while making these changes. The [complete instrument settings](ALL_PARAMETERS.md#collision) show the resulting tone before effects.

| Control | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Structure | 1 + 2 |
| Noise On/Off | Off |
| Res 2 On/Off | On |
| Res 2 Type | Beam |
| Res 2 Quality | High |
| Res 2 Tune | +12 st |
| Res 2 Decay | 450 ms |
| Res 2 Off Decay | 35 % |
| Res 2 Material | 0.10 |
| Res 2 Brightness | -20 % |
| Res 2 Inharmonics | 8.0 % |
| Res 2 Volume | -30 dB |

![Pewter Mesa — Collision — step 2](screenshots/step-02.png)

<audio controls preload="none" aria-label="Pewter Mesa after step 2"><source src="audio/steps/step-02.webm" type="audio/webm"></audio>

[Sound after step 2 — WebM/Opus](audio/steps/step-02.webm)

## Step 3 — Apply Reverb

Set decay, room size and Dry/Wet for the surrounding space. Predelay separates the direct attack from the room. Input filtering shapes what excites the reverb, while diffusion and high-frequency damping change the density and brightness of its tail.

| Control | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Predelay | 12.0 ms |
| In Lo Cut On | Off |
| In Hi Cut On | Off |
| Diff. Hi Freq | 4.50 kHz |
| HiShelf Gain | 0.60 |
| Density | High |
| Freeze On | Off |
| Decay Time | 1.20 s |
| Room Size | 58.00 |
| Dry/Wet | 18 % |

Place Reverb after **Collision**. The [complete settings](ALL_PARAMETERS.md#reverb) include its remaining controls.

![Pewter Mesa — Reverb — step 3](screenshots/step-03.png)

<audio controls preload="none" aria-label="Pewter Mesa after step 3"><source src="audio/steps/step-03.webm" type="audio/webm"></audio>

[Sound after step 3 — WebM/Opus](audio/steps/step-03.webm)

## Step 4 — Apply Utility

Set gain and width at the end of the chain. Set Utility’s **Gain** knob to the **Output** value in the table. Width changes the balance between center and side information; Mono combines the channels. Bass Mono narrows only the low frequencies below its cutoff. Keep DC Filter and phase-inversion switches at the listed values.

| Control | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Output | -9.13 dB |
| DC Filter | On |
| Bass Mono | On |
| Bass Freq | 160 Hz |

Place Utility after **Reverb**. The [complete settings](ALL_PARAMETERS.md#utility) include its remaining controls.

![Pewter Mesa — Utility — step 4](screenshots/step-04.png)

<audio controls preload="none" aria-label="Pewter Mesa after step 4"><source src="audio/steps/step-04.webm" type="audio/webm"></audio>

[Sound after step 4 — WebM/Opus](audio/steps/step-04.webm)

## Downloads and settings

- [Complete settings](ALL_PARAMETERS.md)
- [Starting settings](STARTING_STATE.md)
- [Finished sound — WebM/Opus](audio/pewter-mesa.webm)

[Read this guide on playgrid.cc](https://playgrid.cc/tutorials/pewter-mesa/)