most o my recent projects all end up the same tons of automation grafhs in the playlist and it gets to the piont were i get lost i go back to a project and its a head ache tryin to change sumfin n wat cud turn a gud tune gets ditched n e ideas?
I had the same problem as you, so I switched to a method I call "project folders."
I do each element (bass, drums, pads) all in a separate project file, then render the finished pieces out as audio and assemble them in a final project.
Also, I started "bouncing" elements- processing, then re-rendering as a wav, then processing more...
i assume u guys are talking specifically about FL here? yeah on Reason a lot of my projects have loads of automation lanes but I just build em as i go along, don't see it as too much of an issue but im sure if i went back to an old project and looked at it i would be scratching my head a bit
lol
In FL every recorded section and automation can have color and label, just like in Reason 4. You can rename the automation channel, and change its' color, just like with any normal channel.
__ Thinking about becoming an Image-Line/FL Studio customer? Want a 10% reduction in price? Use this affiliate link:
I don't know much about FL tbh.
I just know I didn't like it much because everything is in seperate windows rather than one window like in Reason.
That's about my only beef with it.
I had FL7 on my old laptop but I can't get it to work on this one for some reason.
Originally posted by Muad'Dib
In FL every recorded section and automation can have color and label, just like in Reason 4. You can rename the automation channel, and change its' color, just like with any normal channel.
good ol' fl labelling and colouring....the biggest (and essential) pain in the arse in the world.....
Originally posted by Muad'Dib
In FL every recorded section and automation can have color and label, just like in Reason 4. You can rename the automation channel, and change its' color, just like with any normal channel.
good ol' fl labelling and colouring....the biggest (and essential) pain in the arse in the world.....
It's a matter of clicking the channel and pressing F2
__ Thinking about becoming an Image-Line/FL Studio customer? Want a 10% reduction in price? Use this affiliate link:
Originally posted by Muad'Dib
In FL every recorded section and automation can have color and label, just like in Reason 4. You can rename the automation channel, and change its' color, just like with any normal channel.
good ol' fl labelling and colouring....the biggest (and essential) pain in the arse in the world.....
It's a matter of clicking the channel and pressing F2
i can think of a lot more annoying intricacies in music production than this tho!
It's more annoying for us Reason uses isn't it man !?
I don't know if theirs any shortcuts. - Haven't looked.
We have to right click object and go through popup menus to change name, colors, note lanes etc.
Multiple note lanes was a good addition to Rv4 though !
yeah i don't bother colour coding my automation, as normally say on a synth i may have like 4 or 5 normally and its all grouped under the synth in the sequencer window anyways, maybe when i get to 20 i can start that stuff! lol
Dunno if any of you FL guys have tried using the main automation on the playlist screen(you can use any pattern really), real simple ( better to have a midi controller) just select main auto or empty pattern, click record and play and anything you have routed to knobs sliders buttons will record under current project-automation intialized controls...I kinda stumbled upon that on accident but its great, its just one long line of automation including everything that is linked to controller and knobs that you twist manually, cleans up the clutter and is real easy to reference what you did in past projects ehhh... my 2 cents
p.s. I dont name or color code anything, waste of time if you ask me
__ Time is never wasted when you're wasted all the time.
i hav a project at the min wiv 41 automation clips in.
am useing fl 8 it automaticly color codes for u. b 4 that i used 2 do it myself its no biggy its just wen u back to a project u ent so familiar wiv n e more i find it a head ache.
i like MinasTirithGuard idea of working :
'I do each element (bass, drums, pads) all in a separate project file, then render the finished pieces out as audio and assemble them in a final project.'
its hard to put my finger on but i find sumtimes difficult to keep pace wiv my creativity. i thought its was the automation clips that was the sticking piont but maybey i shud try a new aproch to working like above.
i wounder if n e 1 eles produce like me laptop + monitors and nothing eles = a lot mouse pionting and clicking.
Originally posted by GeeZZ
i wounder if n e 1 eles produce like me laptop + monitors and nothing eles = a lot mouse pionting and clicking.
mate i used to use a custom build pc with a phat soundcard and some cheeky equipment, only it was built in 2000 and has become obsolete in present 2008 lol
so yup at the mo i'm on a high powered laptop, no monitors, only headphones and i just stick a mouse in there (no way im using the laptop touch sensor mouse - too much!!!)
Originally posted by Muad'Dib
In FL every recorded section and automation can have color and label, just like in Reason 4. You can rename the automation channel, and change its' color, just like with any normal channel.
good ol' fl labelling and colouring....the biggest (and essential) pain in the arse in the world.....
It's a matter of clicking the channel and pressing F2
]
tru but clicking f2 and typing in the name of every pattern etc is time-consuming..especially since i dont tend to start labelling etc until it gets out of control with too many patterns etc.
Get some structure into your stuff, that will make it easier to keep an overview.
Colours are a nice plus, but when you use colours on your mixer channels you can't see them highlighting anymore and a general pain when using coloured labels is that you can't read the text on the label when you use light or bright colours.
So try to use soft dark colours to keep an overview.
I tend to order my channels like this:
Kick
Snare
Hihat
percussion
break
bass
synth
pad
vocal
FX (other)
ofcourse some elements will appear several times in the list.
I also assign my FX channels in this order. If needed it is also very easy to switch the order of patterns, instruments, FXchannels, ...
Automation is a pain as it is not really well linked to the object you automated in an obvious visible way. It is clear to me that automation got slammed in once the guys at ImageLine discovered that there was an audience for FL as a product. It is one of those many things that could be improved and causes FL to be a hobby thing rather than a pro thing.
I've had several occasions where I decided to throw away all automation in a project and do it all again.
It is a good idea (imo) to have a project ready without automation and do the automation as a last step. Often automation gets really stubborn if you move some patterns around or add some patterns in the middle of a tune or something like that. So make sure you have a set structure before automating.
Also don't overdo it with automating, 2 max 3 things at a time should do it.
__ Check my soundcloud (exclusive tracks on there)
Originally posted by selig
Sometimes it's better just to right click and "edit events" instead of creating a automation clip every time.
You can easily automatcally convert that automation into automation clip. It makes things so easy.
Maybe not the best, but automation in FL Studio is good enough.
__ Thinking about becoming an Image-Line/FL Studio customer? Want a 10% reduction in price? Use this affiliate link:
when i've got a piece of track that i say - well, this is gonna be smth worth enough, i group channels, route em in mixer and make several "main several construction patterns" (track in a nutshell). and colour em course!
The colour of sections (drums, synths, basses) is the same: in stepseq, playlist, mixer. I made a scheme for myself showing what each colour stands for. Like:
Deep Brown (red)____Brown________Yellow__Green___Deep Green
____bass______drums+snares+hats__perc___synth___instruments (real)
and etc... just as an example.
it really helps me and and i can easily find the thing i need in any track. making this F2 stuff takes 10-15 min (maximum for whole track, even when sometimes i want to get my ideas first, then order in the project!)
And then i just "discover, expose, uncover" the track, filling it with break downs, add tunes, fx, vocals (the latter depends on the track
automations always respond to the colour of the sampler of the group in which it stands (and the knob it tweaks, u can read in title) so not such a problem for me...
lol
