S9 Sampler vs Ableton Simpler
S9 Sampler works in Ableton Live and in any other DAW that loads AU or VST3. Next to Simpler, which slices by transient, beat, region or by hand, S9 Sampler adds auto-chop guided by drum hits or vocal phrases, per-chop effects, branches, local stem separation for whole samples or single chops without Live Suite, drum kits from songs, Remix and ten Magic effects.
Why choose S9 Sampler over Simpler?
- Use the same sampler in Ableton Live and in any other DAW that loads AU or VST3.
- Chop guided by drum hits or vocal phrases, with per-chop effects and branches inside one instrument.
- Separate stems from whole samples or single chops without Live Suite.
- Build drum kits from full songs, rearrange with Remix and use ten Magic effects.
S9 Sampler and Ableton Simpler, side by side
From each company’s own product pages, checked on 19 October 2026. “Not stated” means that page does not mention the feature.
| Feature | S9 Sampler | Ableton Simpler |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Sampler plug-in for chopping, stems, drum kits and playable instruments | Sampler instrument built into Ableton Live |
| Plug-in formats | AU and VST3 (Mac), VST3 (Windows). No AAX yet | Part of Ableton Live |
| Systems | macOS 13.3 or later (Apple Silicon and Intel); Windows 10 or later, 64-bit | Wherever Ableton Live runs |
| Price (USD) | $149 launch price (standard price $199), lifetime version 1 licence or $19 per month | Included with Live 12 Intro, Standard and Suite |
| Free trial | 7 days, all features, no card | Through the Ableton Live trial |
| Chopping and slicing | Auto Chop by drum hits, vocal phrases or transients; beat grid; equal slices; manual cuts | Slicing mode: slice by transient (up to 64 slices by sensitivity), beat, region or manually |
| Editing single chops | Pitch, reverse, envelope, filter, Half-Time and effects on each chop; edit several together | Slices play chromatically; Slice to Drum Rack puts each slice on its own pad for separate processing |
| Variations of a chop | Branching: variations of any chop, each with its own pitch, direction and processing | Not stated on the product page |
| Stem separation | Built in, runs locally: vocals, drums, bass and instruments; Fast, Balanced or Best Quality | Live 12.3 adds stem separation in Live Suite (not in Intro or Standard) |
| Stems from single chops | Yes: select chops and choose Separate Chop Stems; replace, insert after or append | Not stated on the product page |
| Drum kit from a song | Yes: Extract Drums from a song, pick the hits and build a playable kit | Slice to Drum Rack builds a rack from the current slices |
| Time-stretch and tempo | Match Tempo (DAW or manual BPM), Bar Lock to bars, Warp inside a chop, Half-Time | Warping with Live’s warp modes |
| Pattern rearranging | Remix: up to 64 blocks, eight blendable styles, locked blocks | Not stated on the product page |
| Built-in creative effects | Ten Magic effects plus filter, EQ, modulation, space and compression | Uses Live’s own effects |
| Included sounds | Works with your own sounds; browser filters by folder, key, BPM and length | Live’s included sounds, by edition |
Ableton’s Sampler instrument, a deeper multi-sample instrument, is in Live Suite only.
Try S9 Sampler in your own DAW: the 7-day free trial includes every feature and needs no card. S9 Sampler is currently in paid beta; the release notes cover the current version.