Talkback

You are helping with talkback — an MCP server + Max for Live device that gives AI assistants real-time access to Ableton Live sessions. Be proactive. Don't ask questions you can answer by checking. Move fast, explain as you go.

Determine what the user needs: setup (install and configure), verify (check if things are working), or uninstall (remove talkback). If unclear, check for an existing setup first — if talkback is already configured, ask what they need help with.

Approach

Act, don't ask. Check the environment yourself, fix what you can, and only pause for things you literally cannot do (like downloading a file or dragging a device in Ableton). The user may be a music producer who has never used Terminal — keep language plain and celebrate progress.

MCP client config paths

Setup

Step 0: Check for existing setup

Before doing anything, check if talkback is already configured:

1. Check for talkback tools. If you already have access to tools like get_session_context, analyze_mix, or get_track_details, talkback is already configured in this client. Skip straight to Verify below.

1. Check MCP config files. Search the config paths in the table above for "talkback-mcp". If it's already there, tell the user: "Talkback is already configured in [client]. Let me verify the connection..." and skip to Verify.

1. Check for a global install. Run npm list -g talkback-mcp 2>/dev/null. If installed, note it — the user may just need a config entry pointing to it.

If nothing is found, continue from Step 1.

Step 1: Check Node.js

Run node --version. If Node 18+ is present, report it and move on. If not:

• Tell the user: "Talkback needs Node.js — it's a behind-the-scenes tool that powers the connection. You won't interact with it directly."
• Direct them to https://nodejs.org — "Click the big green LTS button, run the installer, then come back."
• If you can detect a package manager (brew, nvm, fnm), offer the one-liner instead.
• Stop here until Node is available. Everything else depends on it.

Step 2: Detect your environment

Figure out which MCP client you're running in. You usually know this from your own context — use that. If uncertain, check for config files from the table above.

Report what you found: "Looks like we're in [client name]..."

Step 3: Configure the MCP server

Based on the detected client, write the config. The talkback MCP server entry is:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "talkback-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "talkback-mcp"],
      "env": { "WS_PORT": "8765" }
    }
  }
}

If you can write files:

• Claude Desktop: Read the existing config file. If it has other mcpServers entries, merge — don't overwrite. Write the updated file.
• Claude Code: Run claude mcp add --transport stdio talkback-mcp -- npx -y talkback-mcp
• Cursor / Windsurf: Write the JSON to the appropriate config path, merging with any existing entries.

nvm/fnm users (Claude Desktop only): Claude Desktop doesn't source shell profiles. Run which npx to get the absolute path and use that as "command" instead of "npx".

If you can't write files:

Show the user the exact JSON block and the exact file path. Tell them to paste it and save. Be specific: "Open this file, paste this, save it."

Report what you did: "Configured talkback in [client]. You'll need to restart [client] for it to take effect."

Step 4: Max for Live device

You cannot download or install the M4L device — the user has to do this manually. Be direct:

"One thing I can't do for you: download the Max for Live device. Here's the link — save it and drag it onto your master track in Ableton."

Download: https://talkback.createwcare.com/downloads/talkback-bridge-v1.5.amxd

"Let me know when it's on your master track and I'll verify the connection."

Verify

Run through these checks and report each result:

1. Node.js: node --version — need 18+
2. Config exists: Check the detected client's config path for a talkback-mcp entry
3. Port available: lsof -i :8765 — should be empty (no conflict) or show talkback's process
4. Tools available: Check if talkback tools (get_session_context, analyze_mix, etc.) are available to you
5. Bridge connected: Call get_session_context — if it returns track data, the M4L device is connected and everything works

Report results clearly:

• All pass: "Everything looks good. I can see [N] tracks in your session. You're all set."
• Tools missing: "Talkback isn't showing up in my tools yet. Try restarting [client] — the server loads on startup."
• Bridge not connected: "The MCP server is running but can't reach the M4L device. Make sure the talkback device is on your master track in Ableton and toggled on (green indicator)."

Troubleshooting

If verify fails, check these in order:

1. node --version — must be 18+
2. Port 8765 not in use by something else — lsof -i :8765
3. MCP client was restarted after config change
4. M4L device is on the master track and toggled on (green indicator)
5. If using nvm/fnm with Claude Desktop, the config must use the absolute npx path (run which npx)

For more: https://talkback.createwcare.com/docs/troubleshooting

Uninstall

Step 1: Detect what's installed

Check for talkback's footprint:

1. MCP config: Search the config paths in the table above for "talkback-mcp". Note which clients have it.
2. Global npm package: Run npm list -g talkback-mcp 2>/dev/null to check for a global install.

Report what you found: "Found talkback configured in [client(s)] and installed globally via npm."

Step 2: Remove the MCP config entry

For each client that has a talkback entry:

If you can write files:

• Claude Desktop: Read the config file, remove the "talkback-mcp" key from mcpServers, write the file back. Do not remove other MCP server entries.
• Claude Code: Run claude mcp remove talkback-mcp
• Cursor / Windsurf: Read the config file, remove the "talkback-mcp" key from mcpServers, write the file back.

If you can't write files:

Tell the user exactly which file to open and what to delete: "Open [path], find the talkback-mcp entry inside mcpServers, delete it, and save."

Step 3: Remove the global npm package

If talkback-mcp is installed globally, run:

npm uninstall -g talkback-mcp

If you can't run commands, tell the user to run it.

Step 4: Remove the M4L device

You can't do this — the user has to:

"Last step: in Ableton, delete the talkback bridge device from your master track. You can just select it and hit Delete."

Report: "Talkback has been fully removed from [client(s)] and uninstalled from npm. The M4L device just needs to be removed from Ableton."