← Part of: How to open an AAF in Ableton Live
Pro Tools → Ableton

How to open a Pro Tools session in Ableton Live.

Pro Tools and Live don’t open each other’s sessions. The exchange format both understand is AAF — here’s how to move the edit across cleanly.

Short answer: Export an AAF from Pro Tools, then convert it with AAF Bridge into a native Live Set. Clip placement stays sample-accurate, with handles, fades and clip gain intact. AAF is audio-only, so plugins and routing stay behind — the report says what.

Why AAF is the bridge

Neither app opens the other’s session file. AAF is the common ground — Pro Tools writes one, and AAF Bridge turns it into a native Live Set with the clips where they belong.

Because AAF carries audio and its edit, not the mixer, anything that lives in plugins or routing won’t travel. Commit or print those before exporting if they need to be heard.

Pro Tools to Ableton, step by step

  1. Export an AAF from Pro Tools

    File → Export → Selected Tracks as New AAF/OMF. Choose AAF, consolidate the audio, and add handles if you want trim room. Commit any real-time / elastic-audio processing first.

  2. Open AAF Bridge and choose AAF / XML → Ableton

    The free demo converts the first 120 seconds of any session, enough to check the result.

  3. Drop in the AAF, set tempo & time signature

    Set the project tempo and time signature — AAF doesn’t carry them, even from a tempo-mapped Pro Tools session.

  4. Click Create Live Set

    A complete Live project folder and a plain-text report are written next to the AAF.

  5. Open the .als in Ableton Live

    Clips land sample-accurately with their handles, fades and clip gain; track names carry over.

Both directions. When you’re done, AAF Bridge exports the Live Set straight back out — see the export guide.

FAQ

AAF or OMF from Pro Tools?

Prefer AAF — it’s the modern, richer format and the one AAF Bridge tests hardest. OMF is older and more limited; if you only have OMF, ask for an AAF instead.

Will my plugins and sends come across?

No — AAF is an audio-only exchange format; no DAW carries plugin chains or bus routing through it. Print or commit anything that must be heard, and recreate routing in Live.

What about elastic-audio / time-stretched clips?

Neutral clips convert perfectly. Truly stretched clips are flagged before conversion so you can commit them in Pro Tools first — AAF Bridge never renders the stretch behind your back.

Try it on your own file first.

The free demo is the full app — it converts the first 120 seconds of any timeline, so you can open the result in Live before spending anything. $49 one-time, no subscription, runs offline. macOS.

Download the free demo Back to the overview