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FL Studio Online Reference Manual
FL STUDIO BASICS
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FL Studio 20 Reference Manual Title Page
How to use FL Studio - Making music
O
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This section covers the FL Studio desktop and basic workflow. FL Studio allows you to load instruments and samples, play these live or manually enter the note data, record external sounds (from a
What is FL Studio?
microphone for example) and play the whole mix back through the mixer (adding effects). The
What's New in FL Studio 20?
completed project can be saved to a .flp or .zip and/or exported (rendered) to .wav, .mp3 or .ogg
Product Information
audio. This section covers:
Purchasing & Registration Introduction to FL Studio
The main windows.
What's New?
Adding instruments to a project.
The user interface
Composing & sequencing.
Video tutorials
Arranging & editing songs.
Making music Hardware controllers Software controllers Touch Controllers IL Remote App Keyboard & Mouse shortcuts Useful web-links Getting Started Main Windows Setup Wizard Soundcard Setup
Mixing & levels. Exporting audio & saving. We also recommend you watch the
FL Studio | Getting Started
YouTube playlist.
Main Windows The FL Studio desktop is based on a number of windows, most of these are movable (with overlap), resizable, zoomable and switchable so if a window isn't visible open it using the Shortcut toolbar (or the function keys as noted in brackets). The main windows involved in FL Studio music creation are Channel Rack (
F6), Piano roll (
F7). Mixer (
F9) and Playlist (
F5). The Browser (
Alt+F8)
is used to access audio files, plugins & presets (see the File setting options for adding folders elsewhere on your computer to the Browser). NOTE: If you ever need to reset the position of all windows to their default use (
Ctrl+Shift+H) or see the View menu options.
ASIO Driver Setup Primary Sound Driver Setup MIDI Setup File Settings Setup Next Steps Options & Settings System Settings MIDI Settings Audio Settings Audio ASIO4ALL Settings General Settings File Settings Debugging Information Project Settings Project Information Project General Settings Main Menu, Panels & Tool Bars Main Menu Bar File Menu
Workflow Once you have mastered the FL Studio interface, the next step is to learn the procedure for creating music - the FL Studio 'workflow'. The typical steps making a track are outlined below:
Edit Menu Add Menu
1. Instruments
Patterns Menu
The Channel Rack holds instruments (plugins) that create sound and internal generators that control
View Menu
automation. Every pattern has access to all instruments in the rack. So, all patterns have access to all instruments in the Channel Rack. Patterns are not limited to a single instrument as they are in most
Options Menu
other sequencers. Music data can come in the form of Step sequences and Piano roll scores. The height
Tools Menu
of the Channel Rack will change dynamically as you add and remove plugins. The Step Sequencer, (
Help Menu
Video Here
) is a pattern-based grid sequencer ideal for creating drum loops when Channels are
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FL Studio Online Reference Manual loaded with the native Sampler, that holds a single percussion sample per Channel.
Toolbar Editing the Toolbar Main Menu Title & Hint Panel Transport Panel CPU & Memory Panel Global Snap Panel Output Panel Online Panel Pattern Panel Shortcut Icons Time Panel
Instruments - Instrument plugins make the sounds used in a song and are loaded in the Channel Rack. In the screen-shot above, the instrument interfaces are minimized and can be accessed by Left-clicking on the Channel buttons. Instruments generally fall into two types,
Multilink Controllers Icon
software synthesizers that create audio using an internal 'synthesis engine' or sample
Main Volume & Pitch Panel
players that play back 'audio recordings' such as drum loops, percussion samples or
Window Controls File Browser Plugin Database
instrument samples. There are several ways to load a new instrument, the first two below will auto-name and auto-route the instrument to the Mixer track: Load plugins from the plugin picker - Open the Plugin Picker (
Project Browser
F8) then
drag-and-drop a plugin on the desired Mixer track. The Mixer track will be
Advanced folder stuff
auto-named and plugin routed to that Mixer track. You can also double-click an
Channel Rack & Step
instrument plugin in the Picker OR drag it to the Channel Rack and the
Sequencer
instrument will be routed to the Master Mixer track.
Channel Button Menu
Load plugins from the Browser - Drag a plugin preset or samples/loops from the Browser to a Mixer track. The Mixer track will be auto-named and
Channel Settings
plugin routed to that Mixer track. You can also drop it on the Channel Rack and
Main Control
the instrument will be routed to the Master Mixer track.
Sampler Setting
+ - Use the Add channel button at the bottom of the Channel Rack. The
Instrument Setting
instrument will be routed to the Master Mixer track.
Miscellaneous Setting
Add menu - Use the Add menu.
Automation Clip Setting
Replace an existing instrument channel - Right-Click on a Channel button
Layer Setting
and select 'Replace >' from the pop-up context menu.
Plugin Window Setting Piano Roll Piano Roll Arpeggiator Piano Roll Articulator Piano Roll Chopper Piano Roll Claw Machine Piano Roll Flam Tool Piano Roll Flip Tool Piano Roll LFO Tool
In the case of samples & loops you can also drag these from the Browser to the Playlist (see below). When you drag a sample to the Playlist an Audio Clip instrument is automatically added to the Channel window. Alternatively you can Right-Click the sample in the Browser and 'send' it to one of the instruments in the pop-up list. Add your own folders to the Browser with the F10 > File settings dialog. To open an instrument interface Left-click on the Channel button. Think of the Channel window as a rack of synthesizer/sampler modules that can be routed to any one of the 99 Mixer Tracks using the Channel settings FX (Mixer Track Selector).
Piano Roll Key Limiter Tool Piano Roll Menu
2. Composing & sequencing
Import MIDI Data Dialog Piano Roll Quantizer Piano Roll Randomizer Riff Machine Piano Roll Scale Level Tool Piano Roll Strum Tool Playlist Patterns Audio Clips Automation Clips
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Performance Mode Instrument / Generator Plugins Plugin Wrapper Wrapper: Menu Wrapper: Additional
Composing - Musical notes and chords can be played live via a controller keyboard or entered manually in the Piano roll (Right-Click the Channel buttons to open the Piano roll) OR use the default Step Sequencer to trigger percussion samples. There is a Step Recording option on the Shortcut icons too.
Settings Wrapper: Plugin Processing 3x Osc Audio Clips
When editing patterns, make sure you are in Pattern Mode so that when you press play the currently selected pattern is played. To the right of each instrument button in the Channel window is either a stepsequencer display (rows of squares) or a mini-preview of a Piano roll (green lines).
Autogun
Step Sequencers and Piano rolls are interchangeable for each Channel.
Automation Clips
New instruments start with an empty Step Sequencer pattern by default. Step
BassDrum
Sequencers and Piano rolls hold the note data only for the instrument channel they are
BeepMap BooBass Channel Sampler
associated with. Step-sequencer 'steps' are activated by by Left-clicking the squares to turn them on, or Right-Clicking to turn them off (great for percussion programming).
Control Surface
To open an existing Piano roll, Left-click directly on the mini-preview window.
Dashboard
Changing patterns - Left-click hold and slide up/down on the Pattern Selector (shown
DirectWave Sampler
above) to change the pattern number and work on a new pattern.
FL Keys
Up to 999 unique patterns can be created. The complete stack of channel instruments
FL Slayer
and their Step sequence/Piano roll data is a single pattern. In the example above,
FL Studio Mobile
Pattern '1' consists of a Harmor Channel being played by a Piano roll and a Step Sequence Hat Channel. In the example below Pattern 2 consists only of step-sequence
Home panel
data playing the Kick & Hat channels.
Playlist
As you step through the patterns with the Pattern Selector, the appearance of the
Rack
channel window will change to reflect the note data associated with each pattern.
Instruments
The length of each pattern can vary and is determined by the number of bars spanned
Drum Sampler
by the longest data in any one of the channels.
DirectWave
Piano rolls may be of any length. The 'LCD' window showing '--' in the top left corner of
MiniSynth
the Channel window changes the number of Steps in the pattern (4 to 64 are possible).
GMS Transistor Bass Effects
3. Arranging & editing The Playlist sequences all the elements of the project that play to make the final song. The Playlist window is a stack of multi-purpose 'Clip Tracks' that can host Patterns Clips, Audio Clips and
Autoduck
Automation Clips. Unlike most other sequencers, the Playlist tracks are not bound to any one
Chorus
instrument, audio recording or even Clip type. You can put any Clip type anywhere and even
Compressor
overlay Clips. Think of Clips as a little like notes in the Piano roll. When the play-head reaches a Clip, FL Studio plays whatever the Clip instructs it to do.
Distortion Equalizer (Para) Filter Flanger Graphic EQ Leveller Limiter Multi FX Phaser Reverb Stereoizer Tape Delay Trance Delay Mixer
Arranging - A handy tool to use when arranging is the Picker Panel (shown above). Use this to select, or drag and drop, Patterns, Audio and Automation Clips into the Playlist. It's also great for managing content, allowing you to group rename and color Clips. Arranging with 'Producer edition' - Use the Playlist to hold three types of data, use the Clip source selector (shown below) to select:
Editors Controllers
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Pattern Clips (notes) - Patterns generally hold note data for sequencing Plugin instruments, although they can also contain Automation Event data.
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Audio Clips (audio/loops/samples) - If an Audio Clip already exists, it can be
FPC
selected from the 'Clip source selector', otherwise you can drag
Fruit Kick
sample/loop/audio files from the Browser directly into the Playlist. Add your
Fruity Dance
own folders to the Browser with the F10 > File settings dialog.
Drumaxx
Automation Clips (control movements) - Automation Clips move knobs and
Drumpad
controls on the FL Studio interface and plugins. To create an Automation
Fruity DrumSynth Live
Clip Right-Click on an interface control and select 'Create automation clip'. Arranging with 'Fruity Edition' - that only has access to the Pattern Clip type that
Fruity DX10
holds note data from Stepsequences or Piano rolls & Event Automation. The length of a
Fruity Envelope Controller
Pattern Clip will be determined by the length of the data in it, you are not restricted.
Fruity Granulizer
Audio - Since Audio Clips are not available in Fruity Edition, to insert track-
Fruity Keyboard Controller
length audio you can trigger a Sampler Channel from a Pattern using the
Fruity Layer
Piano roll to control the duration of the sample. The note C5 will play the audio
Fruity Slicer
at the original pitch.
Fruity Soundfont Player
An alternative Clip selection method is to Right-Click a tab of the Playlist Clip Focus
Fruity Vibrator
selector to show Clips of the desired category.
Fruity Video Player
Once a Clip is selected, select Draw (Pencil) or Paint (Brush) mode Left-click on a
Groove Machine
blank area of the Playlist. Dragging in Brush mode will repeat the Clip as you drag horizontally.
Groove Machine Synth
Once placed, Pattern Clips can be clicked + dragged around (horizontally or
Harmless
vertically) by the name-bar that runs along the top of the clip. The way the clip moves
Harmless Tutorials
will depend on the Playlist snap settings and zoom level.
Harmless Credits
The Playlist Clip Tracks can be named, colored, moved up/down or muted. These
Harmor
functions are accessed by Right-Clicking on the Name area at the start of each
IL Remote
track.
MIDI Out
You can place any Pattern Clip in any Clip Track, or any number of different clips in
MiniSynth
the same track. Clip tracks are just universal holding lanes for any and all data types.
Morphine Morphine: General
Playback - Make sure you are in Song Mode so that the patterns are played from the
Settings & Controls
Playlist. Otherwise, you will play only the selected pattern. There are Play buttons on the top of the Channel window and Playlist, so you can also initiate a Pattern or Playlist
Morphine: Generator
play-back that way.
Page
FL Studio is not limited to pattern-based sequencing, you can also enter an
Morphine: Resynthesis
unused Pattern Clip into the Playlist and play song-length data (patterns). Thus, FL
Morphine: Morph-Mix
Studio has the flexibility of being either a 'track-based' sequencer, a 'pattern-based'
Page
sequencer, or a combination of the two.
Morphine: Modulation Page Morphine: Technical Information Morphine: Credits Ogun Ogun Master
4. Mixing The Channel Rack shows a Channel button for each instrument. The audio from each Channel is sent to one of the Mixer Tracks for effects processing and level mixing. Set the destination Mixer track from the selector to the left side of the Channel Button. The same selector is also available from the Instrument Channel Settings under the Channel Settings icon. Playlist Clip Tracks are not bound to Mixer tracks, rather Channel Rack to Mixer routing decides the Mixer track/s that are used. So Instrument Channels are bound to Mixer tracks, not Playlist tracks. For example, a single
Ogun Synthesis
Pattern Clip on a single Playlist track, could trigger every Channel Rack instrument, and so all Mixer
Ogun Effects
tracks if they were routed accordingly. If you want to simulate 'traditional' sequencer workflow: Route
Ogun Tutorial
each Instrument to a separate Mixer track. Use one Instrument Channel per Pattern Clip and use one song-length Pattern Clip per Playlist track.
Ogun Pad Harmonics Tool Patcher VFX Color Mapper VFX Key Mapper VFX Keyboard Splitter VFX Level Scaler Plucked! Poizone Poizone: Master
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Mixing - Sound from the instrument channels is routed to the Mixer using the Channel settings
Poizone: Envelope
Mixer TRACK send (as shown above). Use the Mixer to set levels and add Effects (FX) such as
Generator
reverberation (reverb), chorus and delay.
Poizone: ADSR (Amplifier) Poizone: Oscillators Poizone: Filter Poizone: Arpeggiator Poizone: Effects Poizone: Trance Gate ReWire
See the page Levels, Mixing & Clipping for more detailed Mixing advice, and in particular the section Making tracks louder! (and good) for some tips on getting a great 'commercial' sound. Almost all aspects of mixing are automatable, so fader movements and knob changes become part of the overall performance. The Mixer is also the place where external audio from a microphone, guitar or synthesizer can be recorded along with the internal instruments. The recorded sound is displayed in the Playlist as an Audio Clip.
Sakura Sawer Sawer: General Settings Sawer: Master Controls Sawer: Oscillators Sawer: Filter Sawer: Modulation
NOTE: Routing Instrument Channels to Mixer tracks - The most efficient way to route one or more Channels to Mixer tracks is to: 1. Left or Right-Click the Channel Selector LED's to the right side of each Instrument Channel you want to route (Right-Clicking allows multiple selections). 2. Right-Click the target Mixer track and select 'Link selected channels > to this track' from the pop-up menu. OR use 'Link selected channels > starting from this track' to assign multiple Channels to multiple Mixer tracks.
Sawer: Effects (Delay, Chorus)
5. Exporting audio
Sawer: Arpeggiator Sawer: MIDI Modulator Sawer: Credits & Information SimSynth Live Slicex Slicex: Master Panel Slicex: Articulation Panel Slicex: Wave Editor Slicex: Keyboard & Piano roll Speech Synthesizer FL SynthMaker Sytrus Toxic Biohazard Toxic Bio: Master Toxic Bio: Oscillators Toxic Bio: Filter Toxic Bio: LFO Toxic Bio: FM Matrix Toxic Bio: MIDI CC Toxic Bio: Sequencer Toxic Bio: Effects
Exporting/Rendering - The final mix is exported from FL Studio to a .wav, .mp3 or .ogg file
Transistor Bass
format by selecting the export option from the file menu in a non-real time process called
Wasp
rendering.
Wasp XT
CD? If you want to make an Audio CD you need to render to 16-Bit, 44.1 kHz .wav
Wave Traveller
files. FL Studio does not burn audio CDs so you will need to use a 3rd party Audio CD
Mixer & Mixing Mixer Functions
burning application.
That's it, go make some organized noise!
Mixer Menu
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Plugin Effects Mixer Track Properties Audio Input/Output Routing Audio Recording Levels, Mixing and Clipping The dB Scale Effect Plugins Plugin Wrapper Wrapper: Menu Wrapper: Additional Settings Wrapper: Plugin Processing Control Surface Edison Wave Editor & Recorder Edison: Sample Properties Edison: Amp Tool Edison: Blur Tool Edison: Convolution / Reverb Tool Edison: Claw Machine Tool Edison: Drum Tool Edison: Equalize Tool Edison: Noise Removal Tool Edison: Script Tool Edison: Time Stretch / Pitch Shift Tool Edison: Tune Loop Tool Effector EQUO Fruity 7 Band EQ Fruity Balance Fruity Bass Boost Fruity Big Clock Fruity Blood Overdrive Fruity Center Fruity Chorus Fruity Compressor Fruity Convolver (Reverb) Fruity dB Meter Fruity Delay Fruity Delay 2 Fruity Delay 3 Fruity Delay Bank Fruity Fast Distortion Fruity Fast LP Fruity Filter Fruity Flanger Fruity Flangus
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a gus
FL Studio Online Reference Manual
Fruity Formula Controller Fruity Free Filter Gross Beat Main Options Gross Beat: Time Settings Gross Beat: Volume Settings Gross Beat: Envelope Mapping Panel Gross Beat: Envelope Sequencer Tool Gross Beat: Envelope Smoothing Tool Gross Beat: Envelope Scaling Tool Gross Beat: Information Hardcore Guitar Effects Fruity HTML Notebook Fruity Love Philter Fruity Limiter Fruity LSD Maximus Multiband Maximizer Maximus: Controls & Options Maximus: Tutorials & Tips Maximus: Credits Fruity Mute 2 Fruity Multiband Compressor Newtone Fruity NoteBook Fruity NoteBook 2 Fruity PanOMatic Patcher VFX Color Mapper VFX Keyboard Splitter VFX Note Mapper Fruity Parametric EQ Fruity Parametric EQ 2 Fruity Peak Controller Fruity Phase Inverter Fruity Phaser Pitcher Razer Chroma Fruity Reeverb Fruity Reeverb 2 Fruity Scratcher Fruity Send Fruity Soft Clipper Fruity Spectroman
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Fruity Squeeze Fruity Stereo Enhancer Fruity Stereo Shaper Fruity Vocoder Wave Candy Fruity WaveShaper Fruity X-Y Controller Fruity X-Y-Z Controller Soundgoodizer SynthMaker Transient Processor Vocodex Vocodex: Setup Inputs Vocodex: Parameters Vocodex: Carrier Synthesizer Vocodex: Tutorials ZGameEditor Visualizer Installing & Using VST / AU Plugins Installing & Using VST / AU Plugins Recording: Audio, Notes & Automation Audio Recording Audio Interfaces (USB Microphones) Note Recording Note Step Entry Automation Recording Linking USB/MIDI Controllers Preconfigured Controllers (USB/MIDI) Linking Internal Controller Plugins Mapping Formula Automation Clips Automation Event Editor LFO Tool Scale Levels Tool Import MIDI Data Tool Edison Wave Editor & Recorder Edison: Sample Properties Edison: Amp Tool Edison: Blur Tool Edison: Convolution / Reverb Tool Edison: Claw Machine Tool Edison: Drum Tool Edison: Equalize Tool Edison: Noise Removal Tool
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Edison: Script Tool Edison: Time Stretch / Pitch Shift Tool Edison: Tune Loop Tool ReWire Support Client Mode Host Mode FL Studio as a Plugin (VSTi/DXi2) FL Studio as a Plugin (VSTi/DXi2) Load & Save File Formats Open & Import File Formats Open/Import File Formats FL Studio Loop File Zipped Loop File BeatCreator/BeatSlicer Grid File MIDI File Save & Export File Formats Audio & MIDI Raw FL Studio Project (FLP) Archive FL Studio Project (ZIP) Sample File Formats DrumSynth Preset Fast Tracker's Extended Instruments MS Waveform File ReCycle Loops SimSynth Preset Speech Preset Other File Formats Other File Formats FL Studio State File FL Studio Score File Humanize Preset File MIDI File Trouble Shooting & FAQ's Offline help installation FL Studio Editions & Features Troubleshooting FAQ Optimizing CPU & Maximizing Performance Missing Plugins or Files Locate the FL Studio Installation Plugins Behaving Badly Pitch or Tempo Problems
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Updating & Upgrading Procedure Lost Registration Codes/Login Reset Settings Lifetime Free Updates Monitor Speakers Copyright Cleared Content Audio Myths & DAW Wars Glossary ACM Waveform Cutoff and Resonance Filter Envelope Gate LFO Acknowledgements
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