The company announced the start of sales of the Upgrade Kit for the Ableton Push 3 controller on the official website. The kit will allow you to turn the device into an independent controller, not tied to a computer.
The Ableton Push 3 controller went on sale in May 2023 in two versions – basic, which does not work without a computer, and advanced, suitable for use in dawless format. The versions differed not only in functions, but also in cost, while the manufacturer noted that the more affordable basic version could be upgraded to an advanced version in the future through the Upgrade Kit.
Six months after the announcement of the kits, the company began selling the Ableton Push 3 Upgrade Kit for upgrading the controller yourself. The set consists of an 11th generation Intel Core i3-1115G4 processor with 8 GB of RAM, a 256 GB NVMe solid-state drive (M2280), a lithium iron phosphate battery and a radiator for cooling components. The kit also includes a set of screws, a screwdriver, a “lifting mechanism” for the board, and a protective mat.
The company notes that the kit is built on the Intel NUC Compute Element system, combining all the necessary components on one board. The system combines a processor, RAM and a Wi-Fi module. The processor used was the first Intel chip officially adapted to work with Ableton Push.
Upgrading Push 3 takes no more than 30 minutes and does not require any special training. If you follow the instructions exactly, the update process is quite simple, and after the upgrade, users will have access to an extended three-year warranty for the device.
At the same time, the company noted that Push 3 can only be updated using Upgrade Kit components – installing components that are not certified by Ableton to work with the controller will void the warranty. The manufacturer expects that users will listen to the advice and will not experiment with installing other components, but understand that the release of the Upgrade Kit opens up wide scope for independent modification of the controller.
Ableton also plans to sell additional parts for the controller separately, so users can buy a more powerful processor or new batteries for their devices, for example. It is not specified when sales of individual components for the update will begin.
The Ableton Push 3 Upgrade Kit costs $1,049. Taking into account the basic version of the controller, which sells for $999, the total cost of the device will be $2048. However, the advanced version of the controller, which does not require updating, costs $49 less – $1999.
The manufacturer assumes that musicians understand the difference between the basic and advanced versions of Push 3, and make an informed choice when purchasing a controller. The kit is positioned as a narrowly targeted addition to the main controller, which will be in limited demand: the Upgrade Kit is a relatively affordable solution that will allow users who decide to “get rid of the computer” not to buy a new controller.
You can get more details about the upgrade kit and learn about the Push 3 upgrade process on the official Ableton website .
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