Fruity Loops has been a long time fave of CleverJoe's. This superb software has evolved over the last few years from a 'cool and quirky' drum machine and electronica pattern generator into a monolithic musician's tool. Fruity Loops is very easy to use so you won't get bogged down in the software. Allowing creativity to flow freely is something that Fruity Loops has always been good at.Fruity Loops can be used on its own as a complete package, or in combination with a digital recording program like Cakewalk, Cubase, etc. Complex songs and sweet drum loops can be created with a few clicks, and the resulting song or loop can be exported to a WAV or MP3 file, and MIDI can be exported to a standard MIDI file.
Although FL can be used as a complete, stand-alone package, it's also easy to use with other music software including Cakewalk, Cubase, etc. I use Fruity Loops to create the drum track beds for songs I'm working on, then export the tracks as WAV files. The WAV files are then imported into Cakewalk Pro Audio, which is my main digital recorder. Apparently FP can also be synched to external sequencers but I find it very easy to simply export the file as a WAV or mp3 and then import it into another program.
There are a wide range of pro quality effects at your disposal including reverb, phaser, flanger etc. Complex mixing chains can be created with ease. It's loads of fun to just screw around and try different combinations of effects. You can get pretty freaky, which of course is one of the joys of Fruity Loops.
For years, Fruity Loops has long been known and loved as a 'secret gem' within the electronica musician community. Today FP has become much more widely known, and the improved features of this version are truly a dream. The most complete virtual studio currently available, you will be creating wav, mp3 or midi songs or loops only minutes after launching it.
For the record, although another user mentioned that he had trouble registering his product for the lifetime upgrade, I didn't have any trouble at all. I found customer service to be second to none, and the legions of musicians who swear by Fruity Loops are a testament to FP's success.
This software should definitely be included in your arsenal of music software. CleverJoe gives it three big thumbs up!
