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FRUITY LOOPS 101 - PLEASE direct -ALL- FL questions here


starla
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MIDI channels don't produce sound on their own. Channels that seemingly become red usually mean a sample is missing.

If you export something to MIDI, you'll need plain MIDI Out channels. If you're going to export actual audio, you'll need things that generate sound and not just instructions for something else to generate sound (like a midi out channel.)

If I were you, I'd read up on MIDI. Here are some quick links:

http://www.dict.org/bin/Dict?Form=Dict2&Database=*&Query=Musical+Instrument+Digital+Interface

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIDI

and of course, http://www.midi.org/about-midi/aboutmidi3.shtml

Edit: But basically, MIDI data is just instructions. Things that will generate sounds are things like samplers, synthesizers, or soundbanks. But regardless, everything in FL use MIDI to communicate. MID out channels just don't make renderable sound unless you use something like the Fruity LSD (effect.)

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Im having some problems with my samples, its like this..

I know that FL searches for the patch in all of the folders selected in file-options when opening a sample into a channel. And if it doesnt find it, the channel goes red. Well, thats what happened today when i started the computer.. All the patches are still there, i tried to relink to the folders and even duplicate all samples and linking to the new folder as well, still not good. As i click on the samples from the list, some of them doesnt sound, but they all did before. Anybody got any suggestions ?

I had a similar problem, when moving up from FL 3 to 4, but i solved it by adding all my old samples to my new computer with FL4 and linking to the folder and all was good again, so... this time i cant find whats the problem...

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Im having some problems with my samples, its like this..

I know that FL searches for the patch in all of the folders selected in file-options when opening a sample into a channel. And if it doesnt find it, the channel goes red. Well, thats what happened today when i started the computer.. All the patches are still there, i tried to relink to the folders and even duplicate all samples and linking to the new folder as well, still not good. As i click on the samples from the list, some of them doesnt sound, but they all did before. Anybody got any suggestions ?

I had a similar problem, when moving up from FL 3 to 4, but i solved it by adding all my old samples to my new computer with FL4 and linking to the folder and all was good again, so... this time i cant find whats the problem...

It's a problem with Arctic crack. Buy the real thing (i.e. but FruityLoops instead of downloading).

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This might have been asked before. sorry.

Well i bought FL a while back and it irks me that i still can't save with Soundfonts. It is very annoying to have to replace all the soundfonts with "sample" just to save, and then have to put all the soundfonts BACK when i reopen it. Is this normal? Is there a way around this?

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You'll have to buy the soundfont player. Right now you have the demo. I know, it sucks and is stupid.

Thanks, Xel. That makes me mad. I paid a nice chunk of my meager paycheck to actually purchase the program, and it's like buying Windows but then having to pay to use the Start menu (bad analogy). Do i buy it from the FL site? My fruityloops is installed on my non internet PC. Do i have to Download something to get it to work? How much does this cost?

(Barrage of Questions. Sorry)

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Okay. I'm new to FL, and tweaking around a bit I created something... odd out of the blue. Now I'd like to save it. I found how to "export" the arrangement, but it's not working too well. As a .mp3, I get seemingly nothing when I try to save it. It recognizes the length, but there's no sound at all. As a .mid, it plays, but the sounds are a bit off. How do I save it correctly?

Also, in the Browser on the left, I choose some sounds... but when I go add notes to the loop bar and play it, the sounds don't... well, sound. Some work, but many do not. And, when I create a new file, only the Clap actually plays, while the others (Kick and some such) are highlighted in red and do not play. What's the problem?

reinstall fruity. red means it can't find the sounds.

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Fruity Sound Font Player (Fruity only)

US$ 35

Fruity Sound Font Player - Download version

Fruity Soundfont Player is a FruityLoops add-on that gives you the power to load, play and render soundfonts (.sf2 files). Will only work under FL Studio.

This from the site.....

35 more dollars???

And what does it mean when it says will only work UNDER FL Studio. Does that mean it will work on all versions under it (i run 3.56) or only on FL Studio, cause that sucks. I dont want to have to upgrade and then buy it...thats much more money spent.

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Umm...dude, when you buy FL, you get free updates for the main software for life.

You're legally entitled to download 4.12 if you bought 3.56. Go and DOWNLOAD it. You're using outdated software when you're legally entitled to use the most recent version!

As for the SFPlayer, it works with the most recent version of FL. You can't buy the SFPlayer without buying FL, and if you bought FL, you automatically have the most recent version.

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I think you missed the point. MIDI is not audio. MIDI triggers things that create audio. Sometimes that'll be the synthesizer included with Windows or it'll be a GM soundfont bank you have. Or it might be an external device sending midi data to something on your computer or vice versa. MIDI is just a language for sending musical information.

What you're probably using to generate sound from the MIDI out channels is a general midi synthesizer/soundbank. If you want to have a GM equivalent of what you have in a sampler, you'll have to find a patch/instrument that sounds like it. That's all you can do.

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1. A patch is just a setting. A sampler obviously plays audio files.

2. FL comes with FL Keys and BooBass, but you could go find soundfonts or something of the desired sounds if those do not suit you.

3. The MIDI out channel just sends midi data to other devices. You don't just use them for GM MIDI stuff for you synthesizer or soundbank. You can use them to control multiple sound channels in a vst or control things in Reason with ReWire.

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New Question

Im confused on how to Loop. I've been trying to loop a drumbeat called 'OverandOut' and I haven't been able to make it work. I tried layering it, but there is always some skipping in the last bar of the piano roll. It's almost like the loop requires an uneven amount of bars.

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Try changing the time signature. Go to Options in the menu bar and go to song settings. There should be dials that should change that value for you. This will create a different time signature.

Also, what I do, is I use several patterns to make one drum loop. So I have pattern A which is bar 1 pattern 2 for bar 2, etc. etc. This is really helpful as you learn to organise your drum loops together. It also allows to get more of a drum machine feel you get in a lot of electronica (mostly trance, house and techno).

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Just to let anyone know... FL 4.5 is out (along with some new plugins and stuff.)

http://www.flstudio.com/help/html/basics_new.htm

Thanks for that information. Funny, on my FL Studios box, it says that you are legally entited to only ONE free upgrade - haha.

Has anyone ever tried 4.5 yet? If so, in your personal opinion, is it worth upgrading from V4.12 to it? Geez, just when I thought I had everything... :)

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2. FL comes with FL Keys and BooBass, but you could go find soundfonts or something of the desired sounds if those do not suit you.

and FL slayer

Correct, but that doesn't answer the question of "Where can I find good bass and electric piano samples?"

:roll:

With a lot of tweaking you can make slayer sound like something you could use as bass. :roll:
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Just to let anyone know... FL 4.5 is out (along with some new plugins and stuff.)

http://www.flstudio.com/help/html/basics_new.htm

Thanks for that information. Funny, on my FL Studios box, it says that you are legally entited to only ONE free upgrade - haha.

Has anyone ever tried 4.5 yet? If so, in your personal opinion, is it worth upgrading from V4.12 to it? Geez, just when I thought I had everything... :)

:?

You should have bought it online. You get free updates for life with the online version. Boxed users have to pay $29 extra for the free-updates-for-life option.

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However, can WAV and MP3 files used patches, too? Just to throw that out there...

If you're saying can you make a MIDI with custom sounds... you could make a non-GM soundfont that would be for your midi file only. GM just means General Midi, which is a standard bank of sounds and controls. But then having a midi+soundfont is pointless as you could've just made an audio file.

Now, I have some more questions. In FL, is there a way(s) to change the volume and/or panning of a channel throughout the song? Like, say, I wanted to start a channel quiet, and gradually bring it louder and louder. If so, how do I do it? If I can't literally do it, how do I create that sort of effect, since I know that others have done things that at least SOUND like that?

You can edit almost any knob in FL over time. As in, you can state what position it is in at what time. This is called automation or event editing. You just right click a knob and click Edit events. If you have something that can't be right clicked like an external VST or whatnot, there's a menu for editing all of the knobs in the wrapper.

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