With FL, there really is nothing that you can't do, even all the way to the professional level, using nothing but what they give you. I have lots of DJ friends that make techno beats on FL and remix them on Traktor for live shows, and it sounds every bit as good as the vintage vinyls they mix them with. Lex Lugar got his start by selling un-mastered beats that he made in FL. Their compressors and EQ's are as good or better than what you get with Cubase or even Pro Tools sometimes. So, my advice is to hit up youtube with searches on how to use FL, and be specific as to what version you have, as they have a LOT of differences, usually good, between versions. The synths in FL can do ANYTHING YOU WANT THEM TO if you learn the basics of synthesizers. Long story short, DON'T LET ANYONE TELL YOU FL STUDIO SUCKS!!!!!!!
...However, one problem I found is that the drums in FL were not what I was looking for. Finding good sounding (and by that I mean realistic) drums for free is next to impossible, but then again I make rock and roll, so probably doesn't apply to you.
Use google to search for free plugins. There are TONS of designers that make tons and tons of stuff for free all the time. Check out BlueCat, Steinberg, Wavves, IK Multimedia, and billions and billions of indies for free shit. Most major manufacturers offer a few free plugins, but rather than spend the rest of your life downloading a bunch of VST's you'll never use, learn the basics of what FL can do and how to operate a synth. Once you do, you can then cross transfer that knowledge to ALL synths and ALL DAWs, to some extent.
Also, look up interviews with your favorite producers and listen to what they have to say about how they got the sounds they did. If they used compressor X and gate X, do the same thing with the stock compressors and gates and be amazed at how it sounds.
p.s. To the geezers bitching about the Y generation ****ing it all up; I'm a dad, too. I have bills and a job, too. I grew up using 8 track cassette recorders because digital music HADN'T BEEN INVENTED YET. The internet IS for free shit. Say thank you to the kids that grew up realizing this and gave it all to us.
Good luck, Static!
)!!~~<< *gasp* *cheer* *cry*... without having some jerks come into the thread and say "Well you need a job" "Well if you plan on doing music, you need money" and thats cause yall aint open minded enough to figure out that music is more than that. Thanks to the users that gave real help that I asked for. I thought you were cool pumpthrust cause you were one of the people who helped me out but you had to take the side of the old guy just because he complimented you, smh.
