In need of tips for making music

[CaptainPink 13]

I recently obtained FL Studio 11.0 but have next to no clue on what to do, I'm slowly figuring it out (need some sample packs) so if any pony can give me some tips that'd be great.

[Lisa 5,553]

Experiment like there's no tomorrow. Mess around with synthesizers and different plugins and see what they do. If you want more synthesizers than the standard ones like Harmor and 3xOsc (which are still great, especially 3xOsc. As basic as it is, I find it really useful), I recommend getting Sylenth1, an analog synthesizer which takes some getting-used-to and has a slight learning curve. But when you do learn it, you'll not only be able to create great leads, basses, HOV's and pads, but also you'll pretty much know how to use any other VST plugin.

 

But if you don't want to experiment with trial and error, simply look up some tutorials on YouTube.

Edited January 25, 2015 by Kyo

[Stallionslaughter 394]

Experimentation is the only thing that helped me learn FL. I tried reading, but it never really did anything.

 

Additionally, get VSTs and turn nobs and move sliders. As you make cool sounds, save the preset and arrange it into a song.

 

Hope that helps. I don't do electronic music much, but I master tracks with FL.

[Luna the Great of all the Russias 3,120]

Experiment like there's no tomorrow. Mess around with synthesizers and different plugins and see what they do. If you want more synthesizers than the standard ones like Harmor and 3xOsc (which are still great, especially 3xOsc. As basic as it is, I find it really useful), I recommend getting Sylenth1, an analog synthesizer which takes some getting-used-to and has a slight learning curve. But when you do learn it, you'll not only be able to create great leads, basses, HOV's and pads, but also you'll pretty much know how to use any other VST plugin.

 

But if you don't want to experiment with trial and error, simply look up some tutorials on YouTube.

This is how I got much of my knowledge on how to use FL Studio. That being said, my earlier pieces sound quite terrible because I was unaware of much of the features the program had to offer. Songs did get progressively better as I understood more of the program.

[kanashimi purinsesu 244]

Wall of text INBOUND

 

Goof around with it but don't stress it too much. The only way I can make music is when i'm having fun doing it really. And every plugin you have, get it and mess around with it. Get your creative juices flowing, even if it sounds like shrieking kittens. I still do that sometimes to see if i can make a song really annoying for a laugh but it also lets you know what sounds proper and pleasing to your ears and is a good thing to learn from.

 

Also the keyboard and using the piano roll to get some sort of melody going is a really great way to start on each part of your song. It's a very handy tool that lets you reshape and move the lines to let a specific sound play for as long or as short as you need and also lets you mix accordingly. That and using the playlist which is the big part on the right side of the screen with all the lines like a graph to adjust multiple piano rolls is great too. I usually take about 3 and put them on top of each other once i've found sounds I enjoy and mix from there.

 

The last and final tip I can give is make music for yourself and a song that you would like to, and enjoy listening to.

Seriously, don't get into it for fame or fans or money, if you like what you make and enjoy it then maybe that stuff will come but when I make something it's because It's what I want to hear, not to please somepony else.

 

Although it is nice when they like it, and seeing that quite a few ponies actually downloaded my stuff on pony.fm makes me feel amazing everytime, that is not why I make music. Quite simply, I do it for fun and that is what motivates me the most. Getting better and better the more I goof off til I realized that im good. Then you'll get to a point where you hear a song and you'll think "Holy smokes, I actually know how to do that" and get inspired then BAM you'll have your own kickin tune.

 

Well ok the very last tip I can give is DOOOOONT RUUUSH IIIIIIT! XD a bit dramatic but rushing your music or messing on a track when you don't feel like it is a recipe for disaster. You gotta let it brew in the creative pot for a while cause you never know when you may get another boost of inspiration and add to your piece, or you'll redo a part of a song or edit it so it sounds better than before you went to sleep.

 

Those are my tips c:

Edited January 28, 2015 by oPinkeroo4Uo

[Stallionslaughter 394]

I like this. Very good, sir.

[Luna the Great of all the Russias 3,120]

The last and final tip I can give is make music for yourself and a song that you would like to, and enjoy listening to.

Seriously, don't get into it for fame or fans or money, if you like what you make and enjoy it then maybe that stuff will come but when I make something it's because It's what I want to hear, not to please somepony else.

 

Although it is nice when they like it, and seeing that quite a few ponies actually downloaded my stuff on pony.fm makes me feel amazing everytime, that is not why I make music. Quite simply, I do it for fun and that is what motivates me the most. Getting better and better the more I goof off til I realized that im good. Then you'll get to a point where you hear a song and you'll think "Holy smokes, I actually know how to do that" and get inspired then BAM you'll have your own kickin tune.

 

Well ok the very last tip I can give is DOOOOONT RUUUSH IIIIIIT! XD a bit dramatic but rushing your music or messing on a track when you don't feel like it is a recipe for disaster. You gotta let it brew in the creative pot for a while cause you never know when you may get another boost of inspiration and add to your piece, or you'll redo a part of a song or edit it so it sounds better than before you went to sleep.

 

Those are my tips c:

It's actually quite a privilege to be able to make songs that you like to listen to; I often listen to my own songs.

 

I will also have to agree on the second point made because sometime back I uploaded a song which I didn't consider to be polished yet I was too impatient to do so; I'm not satisfied with the state of the song. I have several songs I have started over a year or even two years ago which are still incomplete because I'm not able to think of anyway to further them. In the meantime I work on other projects and come back to the previous projects if I have inspiration.

 

If you end up composing for years, it's interesting to hear how much you've improved over the years; songs I compose today are much much better than ones I made back in 2009 when I began making electronic compositions (they are quite awful).

Edited January 28, 2015 by Krovavaya Luna

[CaptainPink 13]

I've took all this advice and started composing. I also jot down beats I think of in my spare time and see how they sound with different instruments and samples. (But it kinda sucks when FL crashes while exporting)