Recommendations to an FL Studio Newbie?

[Sabre2552]

Hello, I recently got a copy of FL Studio, and I'm definitely overwhelmed with all the options and different features of the program. I dissected some of the included sample songs and got a general idea of how the program works, but beyond that I am quite lost, and all the terminology used on this board flies directly over my head.

What are some resources you guys would recommend to get me started with this monster program? Are there any online or book sources that you consider vital for a beginner?

Also, do you have any tips that you wish someone had told you at the beginning of your electronic-composition journey?

I am really solid in music theory, so it's not the music that is overwhelming, simply the software used to make it.

Thank you for your help!

[eilios]

Number one thing to ask yourself: what do you want to do with FL Studio? Answer this first, because if you think of FL Studio as a program instead of a canvas, you're going to be limited. Think about what you want to do with it, not about what you can do. Music is an artform, and electronic music's still music!

That said though, until we know what genre you're going for, it's hard to make recommendations in particular. That said, though, I recommend looking up ste1438's "fl studio beginner to pro" series, zircon's video tutorials, and just generally experiment. There's a lot of work to get to the point where you'll sound great, but in the end it's definitely worth it.

[Sabre2552]

Number one thing to ask yourself: what do you want to do with FL Studio? Answer this first, because if you think of FL Studio as a program instead of a canvas, you're going to be limited. Think about what you want to do with it, not about what you can do. Music is an artform, and electronic music's still music!

That said though, until we know what genre you're going for, it's hard to make recommendations in particular. That said, though, I recommend looking up ste1438's "fl studio beginner to pro" series, zircon's video tutorials, and just generally experiment. There's a lot of work to get to the point where you'll sound great, but in the end it's definitely worth it.

I'd like to touch on quite a few different styles, though classically-styled rearrangements of video game music is probably where I'd dabble in most. I'd like to be able to realize the beauty in the music I grew up with, adding modern elements to the richness of classical and jazz theory to really explore what made me love these pieces in the first place.

Thanks for the video recommendations, I'll check them out for sure.

[eilios]

I'd like to touch on quite a few different styles, though classically-styled rearrangements of video game music is probably where I'd dabble in most. I'd like to be able to realize the beauty in the music I grew up with, adding modern elements to the richness of classical and jazz theory to really explore what made me love these pieces in the first place.

Thanks for the video recommendations, I'll check them out for sure.

Alright. I do like classically-styled rearrangements, but you have to be careful when doing things with real instruments. If you don't have the best quality samples, it can sound really off, and people will complain. And if you don't have good recordings, the same problem will happen. Not to put you off, though. With the right samples, you can make some wonderful stuff that way. Just a word of warning.

[Nabeel Ansari]

Sabre, SELF TEACH.

I've been doing that since I was 10 and can say I'm fairly skilled with the software. If you want general tips or explanations of stuff, skype me at "neblixsaber" (no quotes) and I'll give you the grand tour.

Also, eilios, zircon doesn't have "how to FL" vids.

[PROTO·DOME]

Sabre, SELF TEACH.

This. Find a basic tutorial to guide you around the main program windows and get familiar with how it all works. As soon as, begin experimenting, loading up the preview files and making stuff you think is good at the time.

Trust me, you'll feel like a music genius at first then you'll hit a point where you start to realise just how terrible you really are, despite whatever musical experience you've had previously.

[DDRKirby(ISQ)]

learn yourself around the basic program ui and workflow. make a few basic songs (even if they suck) just to get used to things. look at the example songs and see how they did things.

once you're past the initial "how do i make notes" phase, it's all about improving your ever-expanding "toolbox" of techniques...by experimenting, by looking at other people's projects, by looking for new VSTs, etc etc.

[eilios]

Sabre, SELF TEACH.

I've been doing that since I was 10 and can say I'm fairly skilled with the software. If you want general tips or explanations of stuff, skype me at "neblixsaber" (no quotes) and I'll give you the grand tour.

Also, eilios, zircon doesn't have "how to FL" vids.

Sure he does.

(Zebra 2 programming series below)

But you are right about learning to self-teach. Walkthrough videos can only get you so far. Everyone has their own style of doing things, and if all you know how to do is copy examples you're not going to get anywhere at all.

[Nabeel Ansari]

Just because they're IN FL Studio doesn't mean they teach how to use FL Studio. Zebra 2 isn't even a native plug-in.

Those videos are production technique explanations, not an introduction to using FL Studio.

[eilios]

Just because they're IN FL Studio doesn't mean they teach how to use FL Studio. Zebra 2 isn't even a native plug-in.

Those videos are production technique explanations, not an introduction to using FL Studio.

Ah, well, I guess I misunderstood your post, then. Either way, though, it is helpful to learn these techniques regardless, so they're still worth checking out.

[Nabeel Ansari]

Ah, well, I guess I misunderstood your post, then. Either way, though, it is helpful to learn these techniques regardless, so they're still worth checking out.

None of these techniques apply to what Sabre wants to compose, save for maybe the Phat Beats 101 vid.

[DDRKirby(ISQ)]

Yeah--even though it is -possible- to get someone to teach you the basic "how to use FL" (there's this thing called the playlist...and here's the mixer...and here's the channel settings dialog, here's what everything does in this tab), i wouldn't recommend it. It's mundane and tedious for the explainer and not as helpful to the student.

I find that getting other people's advice only helps you once you're past that phase, and again, looking to expand your "toolbox". Once you're there then people can share their "tools" with you and show you how to use yours better.

[Nabeel Ansari]

Yeah--even though it is -possible- to get someone to teach you the basic "how to use FL" (there's this thing called the playlist...and here's the mixer...and here's the channel settings dialog, here's what everything does in this tab), i wouldn't recommend it. It's mundane and tedious for the explainer and not as helpful to the student.

I find that getting other people's advice only helps you once you're past that phase, and again, looking to expand your "toolbox". Once you're there then people can share their "tools" with you and show you how to use yours better.

Well if you think that's all there is to FL, I don't think your advice is worth much. Being taught something is ALWAYS better than being self taught, especially something like FL Studio. I said self teach before, but you should self teach with at least a little bit of guidance.

[PROTO·DOME]

learn yourself around the basic program ui and workflow. make a few basic songs (even if they suck) just to get used to things. look at the example songs and see how they did things.

once you're past the initial "how do i make notes" phase, it's all about improving your ever-expanding "toolbox" of techniques...by experimenting, by looking at other people's projects, by looking for new VSTs, etc etc.

That is EXACTLY what I posted before. EXACTLY.

Great addition to the conversation.

[DDRKirby(ISQ)]

Well if you think that's all there is to FL, I don't think your advice is worth much. Being taught something is ALWAYS better than being self taught, especially something like FL Studio. I said self teach before, but you should self teach with at least a little bit of guidance.

I do believe we might have similar views but are just speaking on different wavelengths. ^^;

I might be misunderstanding the OP's familiarity with the basic UI but since they said that they "recently got a copy of FL" i assume they're still learning the very basics, like "what is this piano roll thing and what are these green bars everywhere". At that point I don't think it's -necessary- to have someone explain things to you, since you can either learn just by looking and playing around with it, or you can just quickly look at the manual which will basically tell you.

Well if you think that's all there is to FL

That's definitely....not all there is to FL. xD hence, toolbox (it's abstract, i know).

Being taught something is ALWAYS better than being self taught, especially something like FL Studio. I said self teach before, but you should self teach with at least a little bit of guidance.

-Having someone there to help you- is always better than being self-taught. But if you've never used FL before, you'd probably learn more just by going through the process of making a simple song (and maybe DURING the process, asking "hey, i want an echo effect, can you tell me how to do that?"), rather than me giving you a 20-minute lecture on what the playlist and mixer are, which could just go in one ear and out the other. Then again, maybe different people learn differently.

Again, I don't think I'm actually meaning to disagree here. I think what I basically meant to say is, it's good to ask people for help, after you know what to ask.

@Protodome: is this my cue to ashamedly admit that i didn't actually read through your post before writing that? >_<

[Nabeel Ansari]

There are lots of fancy shortcuts and stuff you can almost never figure out by just "playing around" that are EXTREMELY useful.

[PROTO·DOME]

@Protodome: is this my cue to ashamedly admit that i didn't actually read through your post before writing that? >_<

Most 100% completely definitely yes, of course, affirmative.

S'cool.

[DDRKirby(ISQ)]

There are lots of fancy shortcuts and stuff you can almost never figure out by just "playing around" that are EXTREMELY useful.

seconded. (i told you, we agree!)

[Sabre2552]

Alright. I do like classically-styled rearrangements, but you have to be careful when doing things with real instruments. If you don't have the best quality samples, it can sound really off, and people will complain. And if you don't have good recordings, the same problem will happen. Not to put you off, though. With the right samples, you can make some wonderful stuff that way. Just a word of warning.

Yeah, that's something I'm afraid of. That's one thing that I have no idea how to start going out and searching for. Where can I find samples people consider high quality? I play piano, so for a start I can arrange around and record this instrument, but as I progress I'd definitely like to branch out.

As far as the whole "self-teach vs. tutoring" argument, I find you guys have made some great points. I do like to self-teach, and have already started dabbling with the software on a very rudimentary level (the basic features of the main utilities like the playlist and piano roll, and the simple actions like plotting notes in time and making patterns, I understand), and I agree that experience is the most powerful and lasting education. However, at the same time do like the steering of a master to amplify this process; oftentimes we spend more time flailing around trying to do something than actually getting to the core of the problem and learning, and this is where an expert's advice can help a lot.

I think there is merit in both teaching yourself the UI and having someone teach it to you. The Help files contain so much information, which is great but also overwhelming and confusing. The Help files do their job the best if the user wants an idea of what a specific utility in the program does, but not if he's trying to simply learn the program; this is where tutoring comes in. I tried to read the help front-to-back, and trust me, it's pretty dry! Some of you said that personal help is most useful for specific concepts; my question is, where should I turn to when I have a specific but elementary question?

As far as my original point, does anyone have any other beginner resources that would be invaluable in giving a beginner his footing in FL Studio? How did you guys start out with the program?

Also, most importantly, how does what you do now differ from what you did when you first started using FL Studio and first tried your hand at electronic composition?

[Nabeel Ansari]

Yeah, that's something I'm afraid of. That's one thing that I have no idea how to start going out and searching for. Where can I find samples people consider high quality? I play piano, so for a start I can arrange around and record this instrument, but as I progress I'd definitely like to branch out.

As far as the whole "self-teach vs. tutoring" argument, I find you guys have made some great points. I do like to self-teach, and have already started dabbling with the software on a very rudimentary level (the basic features of the main utilities like the playlist and piano roll, and the simple actions like plotting notes in time and making patterns, I understand), and I agree that experience is the most powerful and lasting education. However, at the same time do like the steering of a master to amplify this process; oftentimes we spend more time flailing around trying to do something than actually getting to the core of the problem and learning, and this is where an expert's advice can help a lot.

I think there is merit in both teaching yourself the UI and having someone teach it to you. The Help files contain so much information, which is great but also overwhelming and confusing. The Help files do their job the best if the user wants an idea of what a specific utility in the program does, but not if he's trying to simply learn the program; this is where tutoring comes in. I tried to read the help front-to-back, and trust me, it's pretty dry! Some of you said that personal help is most useful for specific concepts; my question is, where should I turn to when I have a specific but elementary question?

As far as my original point, does anyone have any other beginner resources that would be invaluable in giving a beginner his footing in FL Studio? How did you guys start out with the program?

Also, most importantly, how does what you do now differ from what you did when you first started using FL Studio and first tried your hand at electronic composition?

When I started using FL Studio, I didn't know what a chord was.

Now I'm a (soon to be) posted remixer. Just a few more months and it'll be on the front page. I was taught FL studio a little bit by my brother, and when he got sick of me asking stuff, I just had to open up tabs and see what they did. Having an understanding of DAW functions is key.

If you have specific questions about FL Studio, you can post them here... I will usually answer all of them, I'm the speediest poster in this sub forum.

Like I said, I'm not exactly an "expert", but I've been using this thing for a LONG TIME. Skype me at "neblixsaber" and I can explain to you the cool stuff I've learned throughout the years and of course, give mini song examples.

[Chernabogue]

Make tests in FL Studio. That's how I learned and now I know how to make average tracks! (I was a total newbie when I started)

Try making few covers to learn how to use effects or instruments/samples. Take a MIDI file and try to change instruments, using various samples and effects, and you'll learn how to use the basic functions of the software.

I did dozens of covers to learn chords and stuff, and see how each effect worked. Patience is needed, but you'll thank yourself to take your time learning basic things.

EDIT: Also, take a look to guides like zircon's or Rozovian's (you can find the latter in the Recruit subforum)

[eilios]

EDIT: Also, take a look to guides like zircon's or Rozovian's (you can find the latter in the Recruit subforum)

I can vouch for Rozovian's guide. I saw a very early release of it and it was pretty solid stuff. Eagerly awaiting official release. Just FYI, though, if you actually want to read Rozovian's guide you absolutely must comment on the quality of it. Not even joking here. It's a requirement to getting it.

The best way to learn music is to make music. Lots of it. All beginning music is pretty terrible, so don't feel bad if your first 50 or so pieces are awful. Just keep at it, it gets better .

[alfredofreak]

From one fellow FL n00b to another, I think just diving into SOMETHING is the best way to get rolling. I have yet to get any of the many project files I have on my hard drive into even a halfway finished state yet, but I've tried to push my boundaries by doing something new (no matter how little) in each project. I'm about to shove my boundaries a great deal when I enter the Grand Robot Master Remix Battle, but win or lose I'll still walk away with more experience.

As for a resource, an oldie but a goodie: Google. It is particularly useful when you're trying to figure out what something does in FL and either you don't know where it is in the manual or the manual is quite useless in assisting you (as it sounds to be).

Come up with an idea, fire up FL, stumble through the project while getting better with the program, and repeat!

EDIT: Any repetition of ideas within this post is because they are good ideas, not because I didn't see them posted earlier

[warfighter67]

Just going to add my $0.02 here, but the way I started off (I'm in a similar genre to you (orchestral heavy metal/classical/scores)) is by going on youtube and looking up NFX Tutorials. His music is mainly R&B/Hip Hop and stuff, but the techniques and things about FL studio he teaches you are invaluable.

[Sabre2552]

I just gotta say, the response to this thread has been absolutely incredible. Especially thanks to Chernabogue for the recommendation of Rozovian's guide (that thing is great! And yes, I'll respond haha), to neblix for his offer to help live, and all of you that pointed to the multiple video sources.

I'll try not to bother you guys for a while, haha, I just wanted some initial direction so I know where in the world to start. Your recommendation pretty much was in line with what I assumed would be (just jump right in), but the sources for help you gave are right in line with what I wanted. Now, instead of flailing around randomly, I can flail around in moderately the right direction.