Optimizing FL Studio Performance
Optimizing FL Studio Performance
Optimizing FL Studio Performance
Search TROUBLESHOOTING
FL Studio 20 Search
Title Page If your CPU load climbs too high, you will hear clicks, pops or
stuttering in the live audio. This is known as a buffer underrun.
What is FL Studio?
The good news is, CPU load can be lowered if you take the time to
What's New in FL Studio 20? make some adjustments to FL Studio as shown below.
Product Information Why do underruns happen? - Live audio is pre-rendered in small
chunks that are then sent to your audio interface. The Buffer
Purchasing & Registration
length decides how long these chunks are. The purpose of pre-
Introduction to FL Studio rendering is to even out momentary spikes in CPU load, when your
What's New? computers ability to generate audio is slower than 'real-time'. In
this case, some of the buffered audio can be used while real-time
The user interface
processing catches up. If the buffer runs out, because your CPU
Video tutorials can't keep up with real-time for too long, then your audio device
will start crackling or stuttering.
Making music (Tutorial)
Underruns only matter during real-time playback - Loading
Hardware controllers
projects and plugins will cause underruns and so the total count
Software controllers should not bother you. Underruns also can't occur in exported wave
or mp3 files as the render process can take as long as it needs to
Touch Controllers
generate audio. If you do hear glitches in an exported audio, then
IL Remote App it's a plugin behaving badly. Further information is available in the
FL Studio Optimization YouTube playlist.
Keyboard & Mouse
shortcuts
First settings and things to check
Useful web-links
Some very important settings are located on Options > Audio:
Setting Up FL Studio
Setup Wizard
Audio Setup
MIDI Setup
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Project Settings NOTE: Do not connect your audio device through a hub.
Project General Settings 2. Increase the audio buffer length - For Windows and
macOS, make sure the Buffer length setting is not less
Main Menu, Panels & Tool
than 10 ms (441 samples). The Buffer length setting is
Bars
found on the Audio settings page. For Windows you will
Main Menu Bar need to click the 'Show ASIO panel' button there, to see
File Menu the settings if you are using an ASIO driver (as you should
be!). Starting from 10 ms (441 samples) keep adding 5
Edit Menu ms (220 sample) increments until you notice a drop in
Add Menu CPU usage. But there are limits, buffer lengths over 40
ms (1764 samples) make live playing difficult and will
Patterns Menu
probably not help CPU usage. NOTES:
View Menu
Options Menu
Tools Menu
Help Menu
Toolbar
Main Menu
Transport Panel
Global Snap Panel The graph shows why very short buffers are bad,
and very long buffers don't help - In this example the
Output Panel
minimum time needed to generate audio for the project
Online Panel is 50% of real-time. That is, no matter how long the
buffer, the computer needs half the buffer-time to
Pattern Panel
generate the audio to fill it. Longer buffers don't come
Shortcut Icons for free, as more audio needs to be generated to fill
Time Panel them. Short buffers are a problem because there is a
minimum time that can't be crossed without the CPU
Multilink Controllers Icon
falling behind real-time. As the buffer is reduced,
Main Volume & Pitch processing overheads become an increasingly large
Panel proportion of the workload and the CPU meter climbs
rapidly, usually below 10 ms, as the theoretical minimum
Window Controls
buffer length is approached. Conversely, longer buffers
File Browser simply converge on the minimum possible buffer-fill-time,
in this case 50%.
Plugin Database
NOTES: The graph is based on the assumption the
Project Browser
processing overhead is 1 ms and the buffer-fill-time is
Advanced folder stuff 0.5 x Buffer Length (ms). For an explanation on how the
FL Studio CPU meter is different from the OS CPU
Channel Rack & Step
meter, see here. Quoted sample latencies assume a
Sequencer
sample rate of 44100 Hz.
Channel Button Menu
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Instrument / Generator
VST library mismatches - Make sure you are
Plugins
using plugins that match your version of FL
Plugin Wrapper Studio (32 or 64 Bit). Some people switch to FL
Studio 64 Bit while their VST library is still 32 Bit
Wrapper: Menu
OR they unnecessarily run the 32 Bit version on a
Wrapper: Additional 64 Bit system with mainly 64 Bit plugins. If FL
Settings
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g
Studio can't find 64 Bit equivalents of the plugins
Wrapper: Plugin
it will bridge 32 Bit versions to 64 Bit mode and
Processing
vice versa. This uses more CPU than 32 Bit plugin
Wrapper: on FL Studio 32 Bit or 64 Bit plugins on FL Studio
Troubleshooting 64 Bit.
Dashboard 7. Time stretching > Mode > Stretch - If you have a lot
of Audio Clips set to this mode, they will consume far
DirectWave Sampler
more CPU than when set to Resample. Generally, you
FLEX should only use 'Stretch' mode for Clips that span a
FL Keys Tempo change. Otherwise, use offline stretch modes.
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Groove Machine Synth dependency and can't be split across cores efficiently.
PoiZone: Envelope
Generator
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PoiZone: Arpeggiator
5. Consolidate patterns - Check for your highest CPU
PoiZone: Effects usage plugins using the Plugin Performance Monitor and
use the Playlist Track (header) Right-Click menu option
PoiZone: Trance Gate
'Consolidate this track' to convert your highest CPU usage
ReWire patterns to Audio Clips.
Sakura
6. PPQ setting (Pulses Per Quarter note) - The PPQ setting
Sawer sets the 'event' resolution for the project. That is, how
finely the Piano roll and Playlist grid is divided for
Sawer: General
processing by FL Studio. This affects the smallest
Settings
movements and so sampling of notes, clips and
Sawer: Master Controls automation. Settings above 192 PPQ can have a
Sawer: Oscillators significant impact on CPU load. Generally use 96 PPQ
unless you need the extra temporal resolution.
Sawer: Filter
7. For projects heavy with audio-tracks - Turn OFF 'Keep
Sawer: Modulation
on disk' for any Sampler and Audio Clip channels. This
Sawer: Effects (Delay, ensures samples are pre-loaded into memory avoiding
Chorus) underruns caused by disk-to-RAM swapping delays OR
Sawer: Arpeggiator zoom out the Playlist, ( Ctrl + Right-Click) on a blank
area, so all Audio Clips are visible prior to pressing Play.
Sawer: MIDI Modulator
This forces Audio Clip data to be cached into RAM.
Sawer: Credits &
8. Reduce the plugin count - Try to reduce the number of
Information
plugins (instrument and FX). These are the most CPU
SimSynth Live hungry parts of the program.
Slicex
9. Limit Polyphony - Use the maximum polyphony
Slicex: Master Panel setting to reduce the maximum polyphony of channels
(see Miscellaneous Channel Settings). This often reduces
Slicex: Articulation
dramatically CPU usage in complex melodies. You can still
Panel
set FL Studio to ignore the maximum polyphony settings
Slicex: Wave Editor when exporting to wave/mp3 file (see Exporting to
Slicex: Keyboard & .wav/.mp3/.mid).
Piano roll
10. Disable MIDI - Disable all the 'Enable MIDI...' options
Speech Synthesizer using the Options menu as MIDI processing uses CPU
resources even when not in use.
FL SynthMaker
Toxic Bio: Master 12. Plugins behaving badly - See this section of the
manual.
Toxic Bio: Oscillators
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Toxic Bio: LFO Competing & background programs - Close all non-
essential programs that may be competing for resources,
Toxic Bio: FM Matrix
e.g. Instant messaging programs (AIM, MSM/WLM, Skype,
Toxic Bio: MIDI CC Yahoo! Messenger), torrents, web browsers, audio/video
Toxic Bio: Sequencer players, etc. If you experience intermittent issues, check for
scheduled activity like virus scans, backups, windows
Toxic Bio: Effects
updates, disk defragmentation, even Wi-Fi & Blue-Tooth
Transistor Bass adapters have been known to cause issues, particularly if
they are constantly re-making flaky connections.
Wasp
Wrapper: Additional
Medium - 5,000 to 9,999.
Settings
Strong - 10,000 to 14,999.
Wrapper: Plugin
Processing
Very strong - 15,000 or more.
Control Surface
If your CPU is in the 'weak' or 'Medium' categories, show it
Distructor respect, don't throw 30+ high-cpu load plugins at it and
wonder why it chokes. Audio processing, as performed by
Edison Wave Editor &
DAW software, is one of the most CPU intensive tasks done
Recorder
in real-time on computers today. It's more CPU intensive
Edison: Sample than 3D games, that offload a lot of work to the video card
Properties GPU. Each audio stream needs real-time calculation of at
least 44100 samples PER second multiplied by the number
Edison: Amp Tool
of plugins you are running multiplied by their own internal
Edison: Blur Tool shenanigans. But, all hope is not lost, limitations breed
Edison: Convolution / creativity, work with what you have and rejoice in the
Reverb Tool democratization of modern music production. If you would
like to upgrade your system, we have a detailed
Edison: Claw Machine
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Tool Knowledge Base article here on Building an Audio
Fruity 7 Band EQ
Fruity Balance
Fruity Center
Fruity Chorus
Fruity Compressor
Fruity dB Meter
Fruity Delay
Fruity Delay 2
Fruity Delay 3
Fruity Fast LP
Fruity Filter
Fruity Flanger
Fruity Flangus
Gross Beat
Fruity Limiter
Fruity LSD
Maximus Multiband
Maximizer
Maximus: Credits
Fruity Mute 2
Fruity Multiband
Compressor
Newtime
Newtone
Fruity NoteBook
Fruity NoteBook 2
Fruity PanOMatic
Patcher
VFX Envelope
Fruity Parametric EQ
Fruity Parametric EQ 2
Fruity Phaser
Pitcher
Razer Chroma
Fruity Reeverb
Fruity Reeverb 2
Fruity Scratcher
Fruity Send
Fruity Spectroman
F it S
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Fruity Squeeze
Fruity Vocoder
Wave Candy
Fruity WaveShaper
Soundgoodizer
SynthMaker
Transient Processor
Tuner
Vocodex
Vocodex: Parameters
Vocodex: Carrier
Synthesizer
Vocodex: Tutorials
ZGameEditor Visualizer
Audio Recording
Note Recording
Automation Recording
Linking USB/MIDI
Controllers
MIDI Scripting
Preconfigured Controllers
(USB/MIDI)
Linking Internal
Controller Plugins
Mapping Formula
Automation Clips
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LFO Tool
Edison: Sample
Properties
Edison: Convolution /
Reverb Tool
ReWire Support
Client Mode
Host Mode
FL Studio as a Plugin
(VST / AU)
FL Studio as a Plugin
(VST or AU)
Open/Import File
Formats
FL Studio Project
Zipped (.zip)
BeatCreator/BeatSlicer
Grid File
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MIDI File
FL Studio Project
Zipped (.zip)
DrumSynth Preset
MS Waveform File
ReCycle Loops
SimSynth Preset
Speech Preset
MIDI File
Optimizing CPU
Performance
Copyright Cleared
Content
Lost Registration
Codes/Login
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Reset Settings
Troubleshooting FAQ
Monitor Speakers
Glossary
ACM Waveform
Envelope
Gate
LFO
Acknowledgements
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