Fruityloops beginner's help

[the_Predator]

Right, so I decided to take up fruity loops a few days ago and see how far I can get with it. I've been playing guitar for almost 3 years now, but I have never arranged anything or worked with any similar programs... Most of the terms were alien to me but thanks to a lot of help from the IRC channel and several of zirocon's tutorials, I got the basic grasp on how stuff works now. But there are several things that baffle me and even though I am pretty sure that these are a matter of practice, some suggestions would help me a great deal.

First of all - Guitar sound. Is it possible to get a decent guitar sound without actually recording? And if I do record something with clean sound, is it possible to get a good sounding distortion on it? I have checked the thread in the tutorial forum dealing with guitar sound and downloaded those plugins but avail, I have no real clue how to use them efficiently.

Furthermore, is it possible to simulate hammerons, pullofffs and bends without recording?

Secondly - Drums and the rest of the instruments. As for now I use soundfonts for everything else but I am not exactly sure whether or not that is a good method. What other ways are tehre to simulate instruments? Perhaps plugins? Sytrus?

Is it possible to change values like attack and decay for specific notes in one channel? For example I want to start the arrangement with one guitar tone which slowly fades in with long attack time, but the rest of them shouldn't have that. I suppose I need 2 channels for this but in case it is possible it would be an immense help

The last thing might be a bit tricky to explain and I know that there is no defined rule here so I'll just ask for suggestions regarding the matter... Assuming that I learn to use Fruity Loops technically, as in, all the commands etc. I'd still have no practical way of making anything.I simply got no idea how to approach making an arrangement. Let's say for example's sake I want to remix the main Metroid Prime theme. I know how to play it, I got the midi if it's needed, and I got a filler riff in my head. What do I start with? Basically some general arrangement tips would be extremely useful, even more than the technical stuff. Thanks in advance. ^^

[Yoozer]

First of all - Guitar sound. Is it possible to get a decent guitar sound without actually recording?

This question is unrelated to FL Studio as it is a problem with all synthetic guitars.

I have no real clue how to use them efficiently.

They're just stompboxes in software form, there's nothing 'efficient' about it. If they aren't according to your wishes, try other plugins.

Furthermore, is it possible to simulate hammerons, pullofffs and bends without recording?

Same as your first question - not related to FL Studio, but more to the plugin you're using. Expensive but nice: Prominy LPC.

Secondly - Drums and the rest of the instruments. As for now I use soundfonts for everything else but I am not exactly sure whether or not that is a good method. What other ways are tehre to simulate instruments? Perhaps plugins? Sytrus?

A drum sampling plugin (such as EZDrummer, DFH, Battery 3) is a collection of samples in a matrix. A detailed pack of samples will have a different drum sample per key, and per key, several velocities as the sound of a drum changes when you strike it harder - so you can't just increase volume and be done with it. A soundfont allows for such a structure - however, since most soundfonts aren't made by professionals, you may have only a single drum sample per key instead of 4 or 5 or so.

Is it possible to change values like attack and decay for specific notes in one channel?

Consult the manual for automation.

Assuming that I learn to use Fruity Loops technically, as in, all the commands etc. I'd still have no practical way of making anything.I simply got no idea how to approach making an arrangement.

You're afraid of climbing a mountain. That's it, really.

You don't have to get your remix accepted rightaway. It'd be nice if that'd happen, but I imagine quite a number of composers on this site have heard "JUDGES SAY NO". It's a good thing that they add constructive criticism, too - so learn from that, and retry. You'll eventually find out that if you do not know what a particular piece of criticism means, you end up at a technical point. It's good to make mistakes, so make them - it means you're actually doing something.

Let's say for example's sake I want to remix the main Metroid Prime theme. I know how to play it, I got the midi if it's needed, and I got a filler riff in my head. What do I start with? Basically some general arrangement tips would be extremely useful, even more than the technical stuff. Thanks in advance. ^^

This is personal and related to how you work. The problem is - you have to start with something. Anything. So, what do you start with?

In pop songs, what's usually done the first is the drums and the bass. This is an anchor for all the other musicians - it defines tempo and root note melody. It'll instruct the keyboard and guitar players when to play, the singer won't drift from the tempo and won't be distracted by all other sounds and chords when singing. So, make a simple structure with that and build the rest on top of it.

In classical, it's trickier - you could start with the simplified chords and then split these up and reharmonize them further, assigning the roles of certain notes to different instruments. Lots of classical pieces have been composed on piano first, so it's quite common.