In these tutorials, I will use Fruityloops Studio Producer Edition 4.52. I will use only samples that are bundled with the application, so no additional files need to be downloaded to your PC. If you use a different version of Fruityloops, don’t despair. Most of the basic functions and samples are the same, so there shouldn’t be a problem. The help feature (Help>Contents) in FL is very good, so READ IT! But if you’re like me who dive into things without going over the instructions, read on.

First things first. Let’s get familiar with the interface to FL. In this picture, look at the buttons on the top right. They are as follows:

1. Playlist (F5)
2. Sequencer (F6)
3. Piano Roll (F7)
4. Browser (F8)
5. FX (F9)

Let’s leave the Piano Roll and FX alone first. We don’t need that for this very basic tutorial. You can open the windows using their keyboard shortcuts, and also the buttons on your top-right.

Assuming you already have Fruityloops installed, there are some initial steps that I like to do before starting a project.

Go to Options>Project General Settings. In the Time Signature box, change the ‘Bar’ to 8. just click on the number (the default is 4) and drag the mouse up. This will create a longer length for one pattern.

Keep in mind, these tutorials are very basic and might sound like shit to you. However, I’ll go into tweaking the sound later on, and perhaps I’ll add in tips on recording.