Add-ons for FL Studio
March 21, 2015 4:51 PM Subscribe
What are the most useful, versatile add-ons for FL Studio? Are they perhaps free, or cheap? Which ones are worth spending a heftier chunk of change on?
I just bought FL Studio two weeks ago, and am an absolute beginner in the land of FL Studio, DAWs, recording and mixing, and really making music at all. I find that, now I have FL Studio, there are still add-ons I need, and it is apparent to me that I could easily spend all the money buying them. (I have a shaky grasp of what the different add-ons for FL Studio do -- what synths and effects and patches and samples and plug-ins and presets and whatnot are.)
This is the version of FL Studio I have, which came with some add-ons. I want to make music in the filmi, house, hip-hop, big-room EDM, dub genres. I mostly want to isolate out the parts from existing songs and assemble them into something new, but also to make my own parts as well. I won't be recording anything.
It's really a blank slate at this point. I guess I'm asking, if I were learning how to fix cars, what would my garage need to have in it? What free or cheap resources are out there? What more expensive add-ons are really necessary and worth the money? (Synths for example are expensive! But which one?) What have you found most useful in making your own electronic music?
Thanks for any suggestions you can offer!
I just bought FL Studio two weeks ago, and am an absolute beginner in the land of FL Studio, DAWs, recording and mixing, and really making music at all. I find that, now I have FL Studio, there are still add-ons I need, and it is apparent to me that I could easily spend all the money buying them. (I have a shaky grasp of what the different add-ons for FL Studio do -- what synths and effects and patches and samples and plug-ins and presets and whatnot are.)
This is the version of FL Studio I have, which came with some add-ons. I want to make music in the filmi, house, hip-hop, big-room EDM, dub genres. I mostly want to isolate out the parts from existing songs and assemble them into something new, but also to make my own parts as well. I won't be recording anything.
It's really a blank slate at this point. I guess I'm asking, if I were learning how to fix cars, what would my garage need to have in it? What free or cheap resources are out there? What more expensive add-ons are really necessary and worth the money? (Synths for example are expensive! But which one?) What have you found most useful in making your own electronic music?
Thanks for any suggestions you can offer!
Best answer: Most of my work in FL over the past, geez, 16 years (!?!) has been made with various free VSTs. It can be clunky (sometimes buggy) to do things this way, since you frequently have to really pad things out via effects, blending and layering, etc. if you want a more "pro" sound. But there are lots of great, trustworthy sources. I haven't gone on a downloading spree in a while, but here are just a few of the many I've found useful:
- GTG synths (the Unit 1 is dead simple, great for 80s-style sounds, and something I end up using on virtually every tune; I also like the weirder Sputnik)
- FX/filters from BetaBugs. Particularly the Crayon filter.
- Krakli synths, which tend towards the strange (see Cygnus, Vurt/Mini-Vurt). They also do some units that can make more classic dance-y sounds (FL3A, Lizard, and S3K), but still with a unique feel.
- Interruptor, for your dubby needs. A range of old-school tape delays, etc.
- The included reverbs in FL are pretty useful, but for something a bit more interesting, try ariesverb, or glaceverb.
Sure, you can't exactly just use these sorts of things and expect lush, complex results out of the box, but doing the extra work to build good sounds out of some quirky piece of freeware can really help build your skills. I've been pretty stubborn on this point, for many years.
... Until recently, when I finally started buying some of the paid software that FL sells alongside the DAW. And, y'know what? Some of these are pretty sick, and it's nice to sit back and let the software do some of the work. I'd suggest that if you want to go the paid route, just try out some demo versions of whatever and see what excites you. And don't forget that, just as there's a mess of freeware out there, there's also a niche that sits between the free VSTs and the super-expensive stuff. Some of those might be worth checking out, too (e.g. the Audjoo Helix, the early free version of which I've loved for years, and which eventually grew up into a slick paid version. Hmmm... Maybe I should grab that, actually...)
posted by credible hulk at 11:32 PM on March 21, 2015 [1 favorite]
- GTG synths (the Unit 1 is dead simple, great for 80s-style sounds, and something I end up using on virtually every tune; I also like the weirder Sputnik)
- FX/filters from BetaBugs. Particularly the Crayon filter.
- Krakli synths, which tend towards the strange (see Cygnus, Vurt/Mini-Vurt). They also do some units that can make more classic dance-y sounds (FL3A, Lizard, and S3K), but still with a unique feel.
- Interruptor, for your dubby needs. A range of old-school tape delays, etc.
- The included reverbs in FL are pretty useful, but for something a bit more interesting, try ariesverb, or glaceverb.
Sure, you can't exactly just use these sorts of things and expect lush, complex results out of the box, but doing the extra work to build good sounds out of some quirky piece of freeware can really help build your skills. I've been pretty stubborn on this point, for many years.
... Until recently, when I finally started buying some of the paid software that FL sells alongside the DAW. And, y'know what? Some of these are pretty sick, and it's nice to sit back and let the software do some of the work. I'd suggest that if you want to go the paid route, just try out some demo versions of whatever and see what excites you. And don't forget that, just as there's a mess of freeware out there, there's also a niche that sits between the free VSTs and the super-expensive stuff. Some of those might be worth checking out, too (e.g. the Audjoo Helix, the early free version of which I've loved for years, and which eventually grew up into a slick paid version. Hmmm... Maybe I should grab that, actually...)
posted by credible hulk at 11:32 PM on March 21, 2015 [1 favorite]
Best answer: There was a MeFi thread wherein several people talked about their favorite VST synths here.
As far as third party free FX go, I lurve Geometer by DestroyFX (scroll down) but it is a very specific type of distortion which may or may not be up your alley.
posted by en forme de poire at 2:13 AM on March 22, 2015 [1 favorite]
As far as third party free FX go, I lurve Geometer by DestroyFX (scroll down) but it is a very specific type of distortion which may or may not be up your alley.
posted by en forme de poire at 2:13 AM on March 22, 2015 [1 favorite]
Best answer: I mostly want to isolate out the parts from existing songs and assemble them into something new,
Do you mean remixing via MIDI or audio? Because the latter is way, way harder than you'd think (unless someone is giving you access to the stems--individual parts--of a track).
Your best bet is probably to learn FL inside and out, and how its native instruments (pun not intended sorry) work--they basically cover the gamut. Sytrus, for example, is a hell of a synth and I know from elsenet a producer who frequently challenges himself to do an entire track (trance)--including the drums--with nothing but Sytrus and plugin FX. Harmor/Harmless is pretty rad, too. My personal favourites for plugins are Spire (which is just incredible) and Sylenth. The latter is very lightweight, CPU-load-speaking, and amazingly popular; people are releasing soundbanks for it all the time, and it's very very easy to use it for generating everything from crunchy virtual-analogue leads to airy pads to whatever your ears want.
Also, KVR audio is an excellent resource for free (or not-free) plugins; you're looking for the VST standard.
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 4:44 AM on March 22, 2015 [1 favorite]
Do you mean remixing via MIDI or audio? Because the latter is way, way harder than you'd think (unless someone is giving you access to the stems--individual parts--of a track).
Your best bet is probably to learn FL inside and out, and how its native instruments (pun not intended sorry) work--they basically cover the gamut. Sytrus, for example, is a hell of a synth and I know from elsenet a producer who frequently challenges himself to do an entire track (trance)--including the drums--with nothing but Sytrus and plugin FX. Harmor/Harmless is pretty rad, too. My personal favourites for plugins are Spire (which is just incredible) and Sylenth. The latter is very lightweight, CPU-load-speaking, and amazingly popular; people are releasing soundbanks for it all the time, and it's very very easy to use it for generating everything from crunchy virtual-analogue leads to airy pads to whatever your ears want.
Also, KVR audio is an excellent resource for free (or not-free) plugins; you're looking for the VST standard.
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 4:44 AM on March 22, 2015 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Thanks all for your responses! I hadn't explored the world of VST -- I am amazed and a little daunted to see just how many free things there are for me to try. Special thanks to Credible Hulk for the Interrupter Bionic Supa Delay -- that's one of the things I was hoping to find, and have been needing already for my first project-ect-ect-ect-ect.
posted by pH Indicating Socks at 1:59 AM on March 23, 2015
posted by pH Indicating Socks at 1:59 AM on March 23, 2015
« Older A name for people who don't adhere to the... | work team excluding me from doing anything... Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.
Bedroom Producers Blog maintains a list of free VSTs by category and also does a "best free VSTs" list each year.
If you're looking for free synths, synth1, Tyrell N6, and U-NO-62 are great virtual analog synth plugins.
posted by ludwig_van at 6:16 PM on March 21, 2015 [1 favorite]