This may be a simple but dumb question

I’ve seen some people using like multiple screens while running FL Studio, where they have a mixer in one screen and the playlist on the other and so on

I’m using a Windows 15” screen laptop, a 24” monitor and have an iPad with space desk I could use but not sure how to get the 3 working all together

What I’d like is the spectometer on my iPad to see the stereo field, the mixer on my laptop screen and the tracks on my video monitor

Besides Windows configuration, is there a correct way to do this? I know I could get the answer from an AI service but I prefer to ask real people

[SOLVED] I tried to find the answer before, and as per the recommendation, I turned the panning for the first sound to the right and for the second sound to the left, both in the channel rack and the mixer; however, when I take out my headphones from one ear, I can still hear the second sound.
I need someone to help me truly separate the sounds into right and left.

Pls!

Anybody mind sharing vocal presets I have been struggling for months please please my goats🙏🏾❤️‍🔥

I’ve been producing in FL for quite a few years now, and I’m honestly just stuck.

Whenever I open a blank project with the intention of making something, my mind just goes completely blank. Sometimes I’ll have a vague genre I want to go for, but that’s about it. I don’t even really know what kind of music I want to make.

I’m pretty decent at covers and remixes, probably because there’s already a foundation there for me to work off of.

But starting from nothing? Impossible. This entire year so far I’ve only managed to make two decent 1-2 minute unfinished tracks, and both basically happened by accident. I was messing around with patches, found a sound I liked, threw down some chords, and kept stacking stuff until it sounded good. And when I really get to work, I can lock in for hours.

Then I hit a wall. I have no idea where to take the arrangement next, and whenever I try to force a new section in, it just sounds wrong.

My tastes are also all over the place. I want to make crazy high-energy stuff like breakcore, but I also want to make really cozy, slower stuff. I don’t want to lock myself into one genre either.

So how do you guys actually just sit down and... make good stuff? How do you come up with an idea and develop it instead of just mucking about until you accidentally eventually stumble into something good?

I’m at the point where "just keep practicing" really isn’t helpful. And it's not about motivation either, I can be extremely motivated to make something and still don't even know where to start.

I’m looking for actual advice from people who’ve dealt with this specific problem and figured out how to get past it.

Hi gang!

Backstory / Context

This post is going to be shared in both r/ableton as well as r/FL_Studio because these two DAW's and their communities (!) mean a great deal to me! But also because both DAW's have been a target for a rather "suspicious" marketing campaign promoting "free" online services.

My story starts with a post that promoted a website which pitched the idea to provide "version control" for DAWs. They claimed that it kept your hard work safe, that you could easily collaborate with others and get this: the service was free! (for now). You only needed to register with them and upload your project files.

So I did what I always do when something is "free": I read the policies and it just didn't add up for me. So I commented. The OP responded, but ignored all my concerns about their policies. One hour or so later and the post got removed by the moderators, despite the fact that the poster had permission to post (allegedly?). After I noticed that the post got removed I checked the posters profile and history and what do you know... it was almost a spam campaign in my opinion: the same post promoting the same shadey website shared within dozens of audio related sub-reddits.

Fast forward to today: another post in the same sub-reddit which heavily upped the ante: now it promoted an app hosted on GitHub which, according to the post, provided "version control and collaboration" for the DAW, while the GitHub repository itself mentioned that the project provided a "marketplace to buy and sell media, right from within your DAW!".

"Obviously" the app used a blockchain (either its own or an existing crypto) to keep track of expenses. And this time there were no policies shared what so ever!

Major red flags for me so once again I responded, and also did a little more. Within 10 minutes the post was gone, and the whole account got removed from Reddit entirely!

Maybe I'm overreacting a little right now, but I refuse to just watch all this nastiness happen in some of my favorite communities without at least trying to do something... Especially because I'm starting to see a pattern.

When something is free, YOU are the product!

Now, this definitely sounds more dramatic than it sometimes is but even so you always need to keep your guard up these days. Free online mastering service? Of course you need to upload your project for them to process it, right?

No biggie!?

...but what exactly do they allow themselves to do with your hard work?

Always read the policies before doing anything (even registerering)!

Now, I understand all too well that not everyone is comfortable with reading "legal" because it's often a lot of mumbo jumbo. Even so there are some tips which you can use to protect yourself...

First: the shorter a policy, the more broad (and dangerous!) it probably is. The reason why some policy files are so long is because they try to define everything into legal terms in order to make sure that there can be no doubt about what is being agreed on. The very moment when it's not fully clear what something really means then that is a HUGE red flag.

For example: "When you delete your account we will delete your account data". So... what is "account data" supposed to be? You might assume that it includes all the stuff you also uploaded to their platform, but it doesn't say that here. In fact, it's even fair to argue that "obviously" they only meant the data directly related to your account; such as your username, password, e-mail address, etc.

Second: I already hinted at this above, but don't read between the lines. Do NOT assume! 'Legal' means straight to the point, direct. And it also goes both ways.

For example: "We only use your data to keep things running; storing, back up and provide you access of course". So, first major red flag: they show some examples but no where does it state that the things they want to do is limited (!) to the examples they provided. Which means that we need to go back to the literal meaning of what is being said here: "we only use your data to keep things running". So what if money becomes a requirement for them to keep things running?

The nastiness here is that policies like these are often 'coated' into terms that try to make you feel confident about it: "we don't claim rights" (yaaay!) "only those we need to keep things running" and then they'll probably list a few sensible examples, but without stating that this is strictly limited to those.

Third: Be sure of your actual rights!

Now, this is the real problematic part, because what exactly are you allowed to do with whatever finish product that they provide? You see... the moment you violate this part then it potentially opens you up for plenty of claims.

Feel free not to believe me, but this concept is major income model for for dozens of shady media websites: they provide tons of pictures and make sure that these get indexed by all (!) the major search engines. The only caveat: they're watermarked and not provided "free of charge". So the very moment you use these for your own (commercial?) project then there's a good chance that once the service finds out about it they'll come knocking on your door, demanding their fair share for using their product.

SO why assume that this won't happen with "free" services that provide you with an "enhanced" version of your product?

And finally: if their service is so great, then why does it need such heavy advertising?!! At the very least go check a Reddits profile and their post history.

I mean, how credible is a post really when they tell us that this is especially designed for Ableton Live and/or FL Studio, but when you check their post history that very same message is also shared with tons of other audio related channels... so much for exclusivity!

Ey, just be careful out there, ok?

The days that "something too good to be true" are kinda behind us. I mean... setting up an "easy" service using AI, then promising "real" results doesn't sound all that crazy anymore these days.

And why wouldn't you take them up on their generous offer? Surely it didn't cost them all that much to provide their generosity.

Please note that I'm not claiming that "they" will always come after you every time you use a free service, it doesn't work that way.

All I am saying is that if you're not careful and they do come knocking on your door then you will probably have a major problem on your hands.

Getting a DMCA takedown for sharing (or worse: selling) your own work, just because you unknowingly (!) gave a 3rd party rights to it is NOT a fantasy tale these days.

Please be careful, ok?

And thanks for reading!

For the past 5 years I have been making music, and I've been struggling to make anything worth listening too. I tried different methods. And yeah i wouldn't call myself a beginner, but i'm not near a pro/legend though. Music is very important to me, as a hobby and potentially a career and I don't just want to give up. If someone could maybe offer some advice as to what i should learn first. I'm sick of asking AI for help, cause it doesn't know anything about true music. If maybe you could tell how you learned music it could help me too... I appreciate anything you have to offer. Thank you for reading