Fl Studio 20 Review Mac
Image-Line’s quirky, individualistic and unmistakably colorful FL Studio has gone from strength to strength since its initial 1997 release. As a DAW which has always offered usability, innovation, and functionality, FL Studio remains one of the world’s most popular music production programs.
Its modern developments have seen its professional user base grow to include headline names like the late great Avicii, Martin Garrix, Camo and Krooked, Deadmau5 and Afrojack.
The last version, FL Studio 12, wrapped up decades of software evolution from Fruity Loops – a simple drum and synth sequencing program to FL Studio – a professionally capable full-blown DAW.
The times are-a-changin once more, though, and Image-Line’s FL Studio 20 marks 20 years since the first Fruity Loops was released back in the late 90s. Let’s take a detailed look at where we are with the FL Studio line of DAWs and what changes FL Studio 20 brings to the table.
All FL Studio purchases include Lifetime Free Updates Buy FL Studio now to unlock the latest version and all future FL Studio releases. Nothing to pay, ever again! Because we believe you should have the functionality you paid for, bug-fixed, developed and updated for as long as we develop FL Studio. FL Studio 20 Review on Mac - Looks Aren't Everything. Giving my first impressions and review of the new version of FL Studio 20, which provides.
From Previous Version FL Studio 12…
Before the 20th version, FL Studio 12 was by far the strongest. It punctuated FL Studio’s evolution into a complex and scalable DAW that retained all the super-fast, easy to use and intuitive features that helped make it famous. FL Studio 12 tweaked the now-called Channel Rack, which is the window which houses a project’s instruments and samplers.
The piano-roll also shared information automatically with the step-sequencer allowing for quicker editing of MIDI information. The Channel Rack handily displayed channel routings between virtual patches, switches for bypassing effects placed on inserts and other workflow tweaks.
Revamped Vector UI
FL Studio has always been visually quirky which has partly formed its reputation as a bit of an audio ‘toybox’. FL Studio 12’s revamped GUI featured pinpoint sharp vector graphics which look awesome no matter what monitor they’re displayed on – 1080p, 2k, 4k and beyond – they’ll always look great!
Alongside advancements in the aesthetics of the program, FL Studio 12 finally improved the ability to record, edit and mix audio, which was once a little more tricky is this sequencing-focussed DAW.
Bells, Whistles, Menus and Buttons
- FL Studio 12 made major menu changes which users will be more familiar with going into FL Studio 20. There are no-longer two separate windows for imported samples – simply click on any sample from the improved Channel Rack window and each parameter can be adjusted in a new and unique window.
- FL Studio 12 also streamlined browser and import functions which set the scene for FL Studio 20’s further workflow tweaks when dealing with audio files. You can drag and drop several audio clips from your PC or Mac and by dropping them directly into the playlist, FL Studio will automatically sort them into separate tracks which can be routed to the mixer outputs.
FL Studio 12 really reinforced Image-Line’s brand and many old users of Fruity Loops and FL Studio reportedly fell right back in love with their old favorite DAW. FL Studio 20 doesn’t just add Mac support to this powerful plethora of audio treats, though.
…Into FL Studio 20, the Latest Version of FL Studio
Landmark Mac Compatibility
Like many DAWs, FL Studio was originally built for windows – mac compatibility lagged behind and with each new version of FL Studio, Image-Line would suggest mac compatibility was ‘in the pipeline’. FL Studio 20 is finally fully Mac native with OS 10.11 and above.
No More Emulators!
That means no emulation, no wrappers for its major plugins and no other cross-compatibility issues with project files.
Mac compatibility has enabled FL Studio to tap in an entirely new base of users, as the Mac is the chosen weapon of choice amongst a growing number of existing and budding producers.
FL Studio 20 comes with a license for both PC and Mac and projects are cross-compatible. This is brilliant for those who travel with a Macbook and also own a Windows desktop, thus can produce music anywhere, on the best of both worlds. Download project fl studio marshmello.
Playlist changes
In FL Studio 20, it’s possible to create different versions of your playlist. You can essentially clone and edit as many playlists as you want. If you’ve finished a mix or composition but want to swap out some instruments, for example, then you can simply clone your arrangement and swap around instruments to experiment!
FL Studio 20’s Major Changes
Advanced Time Signature Support
- In support of FL Studios attempt to grow with professional audio recording outfits like Pro Tools and Ableton, FL Studio 20 now offers the same ability to create different time signatures throughout your arrangement.
- You can change time signature at any point along the timeline. This may see limited use amongst EDM producers but Djent producers, unite!
Rendering on the Fly
- FL Studio makes bouncing clips to audio super-easy. There comes a point in every project where the CPU cannot cope and things stop running smoothly – having a quick and easy method to ‘freeze’ or bounce clips is extremely useful.
- This means you can consolidate a track to audio, freeing up all of the inserts and instruments you used to create it. With FL Studio 20 you can render clips to audio in-situ and can choose whether to bounce a complete track or just a playlist clip selection.
Behind the Scenes Workflow Improvements
- I’m sure that FL Studio 20 brings a ton of fixes and minor changes which aren’t yet obvious but one major improvement is the rebuilt the Plugin Delay Compensation engine. This is part of Image-Line’s efforts to make FL Studio better in a more traditional studio setting when recording acoustic sources with microphones.
- Audio information is now displayed graphically in real-time and with updates across mixer sends, wet/dry FX and audio inputs, FL Studio 20 is much better at its predecessor when used as a more formal audio recording DAW when paired with external recording hardware.
Return of the Graph Editor
- Old FL Studio users will recognize this feature and now you can once again edit MIDI information from your Channel Rack.
Revamped Plugins
- Tons of FL Studio plugins have been tweaked and revamped to bring them in-line with the program’s other changes. It is worth noting that Image-Line is still working on bringing every plugin to Mac OS.
- Plugins currently in the alpha stage of development include: Sytrus, Edison, Harmless, Ogun, Maximus, Gross Beat, Slicex, Harmor and Vocodex.
- Those which are already available in OS X VST or Audio Unit (AU) format include Toxic BioHazard, Drumaxx, Hardcore, Poizone, Groove Machine, Sakura, Morphine and Sawer.
Conclusion
In general, advanced FL Studio 12 users aren’t going to notice many changes instantly but with time, new features like playlist duplication and in-situ bouncing will creep into your workflow and you’ll definitely notice that FL Studio 20 has revamped both in-the-box arrangement, composition and mixing and the recording audio with outboard gear. It’s another great product in the now-legendary line and FL Studio has proven it can keep its head well above the water in our rapidly advancing world of audio-tech.
ShareTweetPin20 years is a long time in music technology and FL Studio, which started life many moons ago as FruityLoops, has just turned two decades old. It’s massively more advanced now than at launch, having evolved into a fully fledged music production suite some time ago. In recent years it has had big overhauls like the vectorisation of the interface to allow resizing on huge displays, and some of the most advanced touch screen support available on any music platform.
Long Time Coming
Fl Studio 20 Review Mac Pro
What has been a constant over its history was its sole availability on the Windows platform - until now, that is. Back in 2015 when we met up with the Image Line team at Musikmesse they showed us an Alpha (i.e. very early) version of FLS working on Mac OS X. We kept tabs on it for a while, but after a couple of years things seemed to have gone fairly quiet. The company remained committed to bringing it to the Mac, but rewriting or porting every part of it including all the plugins was a massive job.
But now it’s here - 64-bit native, with support for Mac VST and AU plug-ins, complete project exchange with the Windows version and also third party plugins as long as they are installed on both systems. The Mac and Windows versions are functionally identical barring minor setup differences. We must also mention Image Line’s almost uniquely generous licensing policy of lifetime free updates. That means you’ll never pay for updates to your version, and also now if you already own a Windows license, it will unlock the Mac version too.
Look And Feel
Fl Studio 20 Review Mac Air
FL Studio, it’s fair to say, has a rather different approach to workflow than many other DAWs. It’s a bit more esoteric than a Logic or Pro Tools for example, with its own way of doing things. Frankly it does so much that there’s not space to list it all here but a visit to the site will provide an exhaustive list. It uses different paradigms too. The main area is called Playlists, and holds Playlist tracks, which can contain MIDI, audio or automation. Clips and instruments can be routed to different mixer tracks, or one MIDI clip could trigger every channel rack instrument.
Fl Studio 20 Review Macbook Pro
These concepts - and other specific workflows it uses - will be familiar to experienced FLS veterans but do take some getting used to for newcomers. A Cubase user can figure out the basics of Logic for example pretty quickly but maybe here it's slightly trickier until they have invested a little time. That’s not a negative - products are different - but just an observation.
What’s New?
Power users will be glad to hear that the Playlist Track limit has increased from 199 to 500. While still not unlimited, this makes it much less likely that even the largest project will hit the limit. There’s also now support for multiple time signatures in a project, with the playlist switching seamlessly as it encounters time signature instructions during playback. There’s more flexibility with arrangements now, as the Arrangements menu allows you to manage multiple Playlist versions of the project - working ideas, sound design, versions and so on.
You can now “consolidate” - or freeze - tracks, sending selected audio or pattern clips to a single audio clip in several different ways. Automatic Plugin Delay Compensation now works across all parts of the DAW including audio recording, metronome, mixer FX slots and more. The main Toolbar is redesigned and now editable. They’ve even found time to bring back a couple of classic features including the Graph Editor and Sampler Channels. Mixer track count has increased from 104 to 125, new mixer layout presets are available and the comprehensive bundled plug-in set has been tweaked with multiple models receiving updates. Amongst these are many interface tweaks, 64-bit compatibility where it was lacking, and much more. There have been a great many small changes to various parts of the DAW, and a full list is available on the site.
Conclusion
There aren’t any really huge new features in this version, although there are many very solid additions and upgrades. This is likely due to the massive undertaking of porting it in its entirety to the Mac platform - something that has taken years and that would strike fear into the heart of many developers. /fl-studio-full-song-download.html. For its success in this, Image Line is to be applauded. Users on both platforms will welcome the new expanded track counts, time signature and arrangement tools, track freezing, PDC and hundreds of smaller improvements. FLS remains one of the few highly scalable DAWs in terms of its interface, and its touch screen support (which Mac users won’t really get to try out to any great extent) is among the best around.
The generous lifetime free update policy means that updating is and will always be free. For new users, the Producer Edition is 189 EUR, the Signature Bundle with expanded plugins is 289 EUR and the “all plugins” bundle is 792 EUR. Although full audio tracking and editing is available and has been for a long time, FLS still feels to me like it shows its roots as a MIDI pattern sequencer. There is a fair amount of right clicking, submenus and for the uninitiated, wrapping your head around the workflow. It’s very powerful, but does things in a way that can seem a little involved at first. Experienced users breeze through all this of course - and there are many of them.
With the move to the Mac, FL Studio 20 joins the ranks of true dual platform DAWs and comes with a great selection of plug-ins, tools and features. It’s attractively priced and though not possessed of some of the higher end features of more expensive DAWs, is also more fun to use once you are familiar with it. There’s a free demo available to download so you can check it out. And Mac users, this now means you too.
Price:
Signature Edition 189 EUR
Producer Bundle 289 EUR
Upgrading to a larger version license is possible.
Pros: Slick, scalable interface. Excellent touch screen support on Windows. Very flexible design and workflow. Great bundled plugins. Now dual platform with project compatibility. Lifetime free updates. Amazing for pattern-based composition.
Cons: Takes a little learning for switchers or new users. Can be window and menu heavy. No score editing. Requirement to pop out windows and plugins to edit audio rather than working inline can feel jarring.
Web: https://www.image-line.com/flstudio/
** Stay tuned to Ask.Audio Academy for in-depth video courses on Image Line's FL Studio 20.