trove

How It Works

Chapter 01

Getting Started

  1. On the web

    Create an account

    Sign up for Trove. The VST uses your account to sync and share your projects.

    Your Trove account

    Private projects, sync, and collaborators all live here.

    Sign Up

    Already have one? Log in

  2. On the web

    Download the VST

    Download the installer and run it. In Ableton, rescan the plugin folder.

    Trove for Apple Silicon Mac

    • Apple Silicon Mac
    • Ableton Live VST3 support
    • macOS 13 or newer
    Download VST

  3. In the VST

    Connect the VST to your account

    Add Trove to your project and click Login in the VST. Your browser opens; approve the connection and you're set.

    The Trove VST before it is connected, with the Login button in the top right
    The browser page asking to connect Trove to this device, with a Connect device button

Chapter 02

Saving Snapshots

A snapshot saves the whole project folder as it is right now: the set, samples, recordings, and presets. Save one whenever the track is somewhere you'd want to get back to.

  1. In the VST

    Save your first snapshot

    1. Save your Ableton project. Trove snapshots what's on disk, so anything you haven't saved in Ableton isn't included.
    2. Add Trove to any track. The Main track is a good home for it.
    3. Open the plugin window.
    4. Write a snapshot message and click Save snapshot.
    The Trove plugin listing five changed files above a snapshot note

  2. In the VST

    Write notes you'll understand later

    1. Say what changed, not everything you did. One line is plenty.
    2. Plain words work best: “before vocal comp,” “new drums,” “client mix pass.”
    3. Your notes become the project's history, so write them for your future self.
    The Trove VST's Snapshot message box reading "New drums, vocal comp cleaned up" above the Save snapshot button

  3. In the VST

    Save before a risky change

    A snapshot costs nothing, so take one before anything you might regret.

    1. Save a snapshot before you rework the drop, replace the drums, record vocals, or try a new mix.
    2. Use the note to say what you're about to try.
    3. Carry on. If the experiment doesn't work out, the snapshot is waiting in History.

Chapter 03

Cloud Sync

A cloud project backs your snapshots up off your computer, and it's where collaborators, comments, and audio previews live. It stays private until you change it.

  1. In the VST

    Create a cloud project

    Link this Ableton project to a private project on Trove.

    1. Click the project button at the top of Trove. Until you pick one, it will say No remote project.
    2. Choose Create new remote project.
    3. Name it and click Create. Trove creates a private project and links this Ableton project to it.
    The Trove VST's Create remote project dialog, with the project name filled in and Cancel and Create buttons

  2. VST to cloud

    Sync your snapshots

    Sync your snapshots so they're not stuck on one computer.

    1. Save a snapshot.
    2. Click the sync button at the top of Trove, the cloud with an arrow pointing up.
    3. The first sync uploads the whole project. After that, only new snapshots go up.
    The Trove plugin uploading 322.4 MB of 1.7 GB

  3. On the web

    View your project on the dashboard

    Every synced snapshot shows up on your project's page.

    A Trove project page with the artwork, title, project stats, and snapshot history

Chapter 04

Seeing What Changed

Trove reads your Ableton set, so it can tell you what changed in musical terms. The plugin shows it as you work, and the website shows it across the whole arrangement.

  1. In the VST

    Check your changes before saving

    1. Save in Ableton. Trove refreshes its list each time you do.
    2. Open Trove. The Changes list shows everything that's different since your last snapshot.
    3. Click a change to see the details.
    A MIDI note diff for the Bass track: unchanged notes in grey, two changed notes shown before and after, two added notes in green, and one removed note in red

  2. On the web

    Compare snapshots on the web

    Watch the arrangement change between two snapshots.

    1. Open your project on the Trove website and go to the Arrangement tab.
    2. Your synced snapshots run along the top. Click one to see its arrangement.
    3. Click the arrow between two snapshots to see what changed: green was added, red was removed, and amber moved or changed.
    4. Click Play to watch the edit happen.
    The Arrangement tab comparing two snapshots, with the change summary, the Added, Removed, and Moved or changed legend, and changed clips outlined

  3. On the web

    Play and download samples

    Every sample in a snapshot, playable in the browser.

    1. Open the Samples tab on your project page.
    2. Samples are grouped by snapshot. Press play on one to hear it in the browser.
    3. Click the download button next to a sample to save it, if the project allows sample downloads.
    The Samples tab listing each snapshot's samples, each with a play button, size, folder, and download button

Chapter 05

Collaborating

Bring in the people you make music with. Everyone works from the same history, and feedback stays attached to the version it's about.

  1. You · On the web

    Invite them

    Give the people you work with writer access to the project.

    1. Open the project on the Trove website and click Project settings, the gear.
    2. Under Add collaborator, search for their Trove username and pick them.
    Project settings with Add collaborator searching for "ja" and two matching users, next to the existing collaborator mira

  2. Them · Their computer

    They install Trove and log in

    They install Trove, add it to a track in Ableton, and log in with their own Trove account.

    The Trove VST before it is connected, with the Login button in the top right

  3. Them · In the VST

    They open the project

    They click the project button and pick your project. Trove will then download and open it.

    The Trove VST's project menu listing three projects under Remote projects, below Create new remote project

  4. Them · In the VST

    They save and sync their changes

    They save a snapshot with a note and click the cloud with an arrow pointing up. Their snapshots join the project's history.

    The Trove plugin uploading 322.4 MB of 1.7 GB
    The project's snapshot history on the web, with the newest snapshot by mira above one by producer

  5. You · In the VST

    You get their changes

    Click the cloud with an arrow pointing down. Ableton will open the project with their changes.

    The Trove VST's pull menu offering Get latest here and Open latest in another folder

  6. Either of you · On the web

    Talk about a version

    Leave notes on the project dashboard by leaving comments on any snapshot.

    A Trove project page with snapshot history and collaborator comments on the latest snapshot

  7. Either of you · On the web

    Share a bounce

    Sync a snapshot and upload that project's bounce to the project dashboard.

    A project header with the Upload Audio button on the artwork, beside the project title

Chapter 06

History and Restoring

Every snapshot stays in history with its note, so an earlier version is always a click away. Restoring never overwrites what you have now.

  1. In the VST

    Look back through history

    Your notes turn history into a summary of every session.

    1. Click the History button at the top of Trove, the clock.
    2. Each snapshot shows its note and when it was saved. Click one to see what changed in it.
    3. Click the back arrow to return to the list.
    The Trove plugin history with four snapshots and their notes

  2. In the VST

    Restore an older version

    Bring back an earlier version without losing anything you have now.

    1. Open History and click the snapshot you want back.
    2. Click Restore and choose where to put it.
    3. Trove writes that snapshot into a new folder. Your current project and its history stay exactly as they were.
    4. Open the set in the restored folder and carry on from there.

Chapter 07

Alternate Ideas

Try a different direction without touching the main version. Each idea gets its own project folder, so you can switch back at any time.

  1. In the VST

    Start an alternate idea

    Try a different direction in its own project folder.

    1. Save a snapshot. The idea starts from there.
    2. Open the Ideas menu in Trove and choose Create alternate idea.
    3. Name it and click Create. Trove makes a separate project folder for the idea.
    4. Open that project to work on the idea. The main version stays as it was.
    Darker dropMain ideac28e70

  2. In the VST

    Switch between ideas

    Move between the main version and your ideas.

    1. Pick an idea from the Ideas menu.
    2. If you have changes you haven't saved as a snapshot, Trove asks you to save one first.
    3. Click Open idea. Trove closes this project and opens the idea's.
    The Trove VST asking to close this project and open the Half-time idea, with Stay here and Open idea buttons

  3. VST to cloud

    Radio edits, club mixes, and client versions

    Keep a version of the track for every job it's for.

    1. Start from the snapshot that has the right foundation.
    2. Name the idea for the job: “radio edit,” “club mix,” “vocal up for the client.”
    3. Sync it, and it appears as its own branch on the project page, where collaborators can hear and download it.

Chapter 08

Access and Sharing

You decide who can hear, see, and download each part of a project.

  1. On the web

    Choose who can play, view, and download

    Each part of the project has its own access setting.

    1. Open Project settings and find Project access.
    2. Each feature has its own setting, from playing audio and viewing the arrangement to downloads, uploads, and comments.
    3. Pick Anyone for everyone who can open the project, including private links, Writers for you and your collaborators, or Only me.
    Project access in project settings, with the Public and Private switch and each feature set to Anyone, Writers, or Only me

  2. On the web

    Make a project public

    Let anyone open the project page.

    1. Open Project settings.
    2. Switch the project from Private to Public. Anyone can now open the project page.
    3. Review Project access first. On a public project, Anyone means everyone.

  3. On the web

    Remix a shared project

    Start your own version of a project someone shared.

    1. On a project you're allowed to download, click Remix project.
    2. Name your remix and choose whether it's private or public.
    3. Click Create remix. It's your own project now, linked back to the original.

Chapter 09

Profile

Your page, your account, and the computers Trove is signed in on.

  1. On the web

    Your dashboard

    Your projects, plus the ones you've liked and starred, all on your page.

    A producer's page with their photo, follower counts, bio, a snapshot calendar, the Projects, Liked and Starred tabs, and a list of projects

  2. On the web

    Your activity

    A calendar of every snapshot you've synced, one square per day.

    An activity calendar shaded by snapshots per day, with totals for snapshots and active days and a year picker

  3. On the web

    Follow other producers

    Click Follow on another producer's page. Private accounts approve your request first.

    Another producer's private page with a Follow button beside their name

  4. On the web

    Approve followers

    Follow requests and your followers are listed under Followers on your page.

    The Followers list with two follow requests to approve or decline, above followers that can be removed

  5. On the web

    Your account

    Set your photo and bio, and make your account public or private. Private hides your projects and lists from anyone you haven't approved.

    The account page's Profile and Identity cards, with photo, bio, account visibility, and contact details

  6. On the web

    Membership and storage

    Pick a plan and see how much cloud storage your projects use.

    The membership card with a plan picker and checkout button, above cloud storage usage of 3.2 GB of 5.0 GB

  7. On the web

    Connected devices

    See every computer Trove is signed in on. Revoke one you don't recognize to sign it out.

    Connected devices listing two Macs and a Windows PC with when each was last seen and a Revoke button