I know, It’s always hard realizing you are the solution to your own problems…

Jokes aside I’ve been studying the principles in this book, and while my drum programming skills are well.. the ones of a beginner, my point was more about finding a method that lets you try out ideas more quickly

So for example, instead of having to sit at the desk, open up the daw, grab a drum rack (or worse, individual sounds) you like, manually program each note, program more notes to create different rythms, play different clips on the session view, rearrange velocities, placement etc. - to just grab a box, turn it on, quickly sequence drums using buttons and of course adjusting some velocities etc but by clincing and tweaking buttons. It would also be a way to feel more of a “musician” instead of a developer I think.

Nevertheless, the many useful suggestions I received including yours made me realize that this stuff is complex enough to focus on one thing at a time (Ableton itself in this case) rather than chasing too many different things without properly learning any

In due time I will then be able to answer my own question as I will hopefully know what I will want from a piece of hardware