Updated May 2026 · 4 min read · Works with Live 8 through Live 12
Why Ableton and Reaper don't play nicely
Ableton Live stores everything — tempo automation, time signature changes, locators, markers — inside a proprietary .als binary file. Reaper can't read that format. There's no "Export Tempo" button in Ableton, no native path to transfer the data.
Reaper is a flexible, multi-format DAW that reads standard MIDI files perfectly. But a standard MIDI file with an embedded tempo map isn't something Ableton generates. That's the gap.
The result: producers who work in Ableton and need to hand off to Reaper (or vice versa) spend hours rebuilding tempo maps by hand. A session with 40 tempo changes takes half a day to reconstruct. Locators are almost always lost entirely.
The catch: Ableton's tempo automation is stored as a continuous curve — including gradual ramps, sudden jumps, and everything in between. A manual rebuild means choosing between which points to keep and which to approximate. The result is never exact.
The manual workaround
If you need to move an Ableton session to Reaper without automation tools, here's what people do:
manual process — approximate, time-consuming
Open your Ableton session and find every tempo automation point. Write down the BPM and bar/beat position of each one — this becomes your reference spreadsheet.
Do the same for time signature changes. Find where the meter shifts and what it changes to.
In Reaper, create a new project with the same tempo as your Ableton session's starting BPM.
Enter each tempo change manually in Reaper's tempo envelope — one at a time, for every automation point you documented.
Repeat for time signatures in Reaper's meter panel.
Locators are gone. Reaper uses a completely different marker system — there's no export path, you recreate from notes or skip them.
Spot-check against an audio reference. Fix what's off. Repeat.
For a session with 3 tempo changes and no markers, this is manageable. For a 90-minute film score with 200 tempo changes, it's not a reasonable task.
The fix: Unableton
Unableton reads your .als file and outputs a standard MIDI file containing your complete tempo map — all tempo changes, time signature changes, and locators. Reaper reads standard MIDI files with embedded tempo maps natively.
ReaperPro ToolsLogic ProCubaseStudio One
1
Upload your .als file — drag it onto the converter. No account, no signup. It runs locally in your browser — the file never leaves your device.
2
Get the MIDI file — Unableton parses the Ableton session and builds a MIDI file with every tempo change, time signature, and locator encoded as proper MIDI meta-events.
3
Import into Reaper — drag the MIDI file into Reaper's arrange window. Check "Apply embedded tempo map to project" when prompted. The tempo map lands exactly as it was in Ableton.
What used to take 2–4 hours takes 30 seconds. And your locators come through as Reaper markers, labeled and positioned correctly.
Reaper Import: Step by Step
Reaper-specific import instructions
Open your Reaper project.
Drag the .mid file from your file explorer into the Reaper arrange window.
Reaper will prompt you with the MIDI file import dialog. Check "Apply embedded tempo map to project" — this is the key option that applies the tempo events from the MIDI file to Reaper's tempo envelope.
Click OK. Reaper reads the tempo events and time signature events and applies them.
For markers: Reaper handles markers as part of the MIDI import. Open View > Markers > Show Markers to see your Ableton locators listed as named markers at their original positions.
Convert your .als file now
Free during beta. Runs locally in your browser — files never leave your device.
Does Unableton preserve Ableton locators when exporting to Reaper?
Yes. Every locator in your Ableton session is encoded as a named MIDI marker in the output file. When imported into Reaper, the markers appear in the Markers window with their original names and positions intact.
What Ableton Live versions are supported?
Unableton supports .als files from Ableton Live 8 through Live 12. The .als format has been stable for over a decade — older projects work just fine.
Are time signature changes preserved?
Yes. All time signature changes in your Ableton session — whether 4/4 to 3/4 or anything more complex — are written as proper MIDI time signature meta-events. Reaper reads them and applies them when you import the MIDI file with "Apply embedded tempo map to project" checked.
What about gradual tempo ramps (not just sudden changes)?
Both. Unableton handles abrupt tempo jumps and gradual tempo ramps. Ableton stores tempo automation as a series of automation points, and Unableton interpolates between them — at quarter-beat resolution — to produce a complete, accurate MIDI tempo map. The ramp lands in Reaper correctly.