Please add folder tracks to the playlist!

djfirewalk wrote:
Ayjent wrote: I completely agree, and you make great points on why the organizational tools and options need to be available.

I sometimes have a really hard time understanding what people love so much about the free form of it. It has more drawbacks than benefits without enough organizational options, and without ability to be linear if you want. You don't want to be linear fine, but why resist it for others is the part that drives me nuts when other posters respond with go use a different DAW or you chose the wrong DAW, as if it is some badge of honor to be FL Studio user that bucks the traditional DAWs. I know people think FL Studio has a bad reputation in some establish music industry and feel the need to defend the program and their use of it - although I rarely see or hear anyone outright dis FLS anymore (most are of the opinion - if it works for you, then use it) - but I can tell you that many people with several successful musical releases who I know who have worked or watched me work in this free form playlist space shake their head at the stuff I need to do and ask me why I use the program - then I show them some of the other features and they understand, but they all say the same thing - they need to fix that sequencer (i.e., Playlist) because it would drive me crazy having to do all that work that is really simple to do in other DAWs.
In FL there's always more than one way to do things, allowing for great flexibility and creativity. That's the beauty of FL. At least that's what most FL users keep saying. Exept this is not completely true: In the playlist there's two ways to work: organized or unorganized. And In FL you don't really have much choise when working with large projects, it will be organized no matter what you do. Because there's no organizational tools awailable exept from the "auto name track" and "group with above" option which is, sadly, not very helpful.

I think this is part of the reason many professionals don't consider Fl a professional DAW. They wold find this unorganized way of working very distracting and would eventually conclude that it's impossible to get anything done. I suspect this is why so many still consider it almost a toy, something you can start out on, but then as you learn you should move to something else, like Ableton, cubase etc. Because it certainly isn't due to lack of features overall! I keep reading on forums where people has switched to Ableton etc, and the same reasons are always the same: "It's too messy" "Windows everywhere" "too much menu diving" "too much work to do simple tasks" etc. Nobody is complaining about features lacking! It always has to do with the lack of organization!

I actually like working with the freeform aproach. It's very fast! I love the step sequencer and much else. I like how I can change a loop, and it will be changed everywhere.
So much great in FL! But there's this one thing that is holding me back as a producer, and that's the lack of organization in the playlist. This has forced me (like so many others) to start looking at other DAWs to try and get the job done. And that's just sad! Because Image Line could easily fix this. It's not in Image Line's interest to loose users to other daws because of this restricted way of working.

I can live with things taking a bit longer to do in FL, having to dive into menues etc instead of the easy solution many other DAWs has implemented in return for the awsome piano roll etc that FL has to offer. But what I can't seem to live with is this unorganized playlist. I simply can't work like that. I can color and name everything int he mixer and channel rack and route everything so it's nicely organized. I can add groups in my channel rack. But In the playlist I can't do anything.. It is what it is.
Every time I reach about 120 tracks it just stops.. My brain overloads. Too much information it seems. I keep trying and I keep failing.. I really need those folder tracks! I need to be able to spend my time producing, not searching trough a messy playlist just looking for stuff, like searching for a needle in a heystack.

The freeform, non linar way of working has some huge advantages, especially if you're into dance music with focus on midi editing etc. IT's very fast to just paint in clips. And the FL Piano roll is the best of any DAW!
If they had implemented some great organizational options like folder tracks, groupings etc like most other daws has, then it could be possible to work organized in FL studio too. The haters could no longer argue that FL is a toy, a daw that it's impossible to work organized in it because it's too messy. If anyone don't bellieve me then do a search on google, "fl studio switched to ableton" f.eks and you will see allot of people who has switched from FL studio due to this reason.

I suggest we fix this by adding some very simple yet extremely effective (and optional of course) changes to the playlist! Folder tracks and "drag and drop automation" would not be too hard to implement! And it would really speed things up.

I hope FL 13 will focus on implementing smart features to help keep things organized and boost workflow speed. By doing that they will also ensure that FL is regarded a more professional DAW by the overall community, as it will then be possible to work just as organized in FL as in any other DAW.

There's no logic in telling you that you choose the wrong DAW in response to you suggesting some improvements. That's like telling you that you should not drive a car because you can never remember where you pot your car keys, when the simple solution is to simply start placing the keys at the same spot every time. Keep it organized! Nobody is suggesting we turn FL into a linar DAW! We just want to be able to organize the playlist by hiding stuff that's just in the way. Those who don't feel they need such features could just choose to ignore it.

I really think this is something that should get priority because many, like myself seem to reach a point where they are unnable to keep working effectively in FL due to the lack of organization, and then they are forced over to other DAWs. I'm sure Image Line would rather have Deadmau5 keep using FL studio as his main DAW as that would be great publicity for Image Line. Everyone would want to have what Deadmau5 is using. But sadly, he too moved on to another DAW. Was it due to the inability to organize his projects? Who knows. I just know that adding smart features for organizing and speeding up workflow can't be regarded as a bad thing.

Good points. I have Ableton, too, because other producers I work with have it as well and I can work in it just fine. However, I don't prefer it - the Piano Roll as you point out in FL Studio is awesome, and Ableton's is just about the most awkward and clunky implementation of a piano roll I've ever used (which really comes down to it's draw and select features - which were poor implementation choices IMO). Recording and routing is also a little subpar and counterintuitive as well. The interface for arrangement isn't inspiring, but it does have some well though out features (except the left handed header that for some-reason drives me nuts). I know that there is no rational explanation for it, but I just don't like the way tracks sound when I create them in Ableton - I can edit and work on arrangements that have already started in Ableton, but the quality of my work when I start in Ableton seems to be garbage and there is no explanation that really makes sense - I've made all of my FPC presets the same for Ableton's drum sampler presets, I use the same 3rd party plug-ins, including Harmor and Gross-Beat. I've tried using it, it's just not for me in making tracks from scratch.

Absolutely! I expect future versions of FL to i...

Look how I add automation in studio One with ju...

I hope that they will "add" this too. I mean th...

einfachfelix wrote:I hope that they will "add" ...

We don't know which tasks/features have the hig...

I'd already be happy if they change the existin...

djfirewalk wrote: I'm sure more people currentl...

I believe the playlist already has what you guy...

Mr_MaryOh wrote:I believe the playlist already ...

a better way to organize is awesome. I wanted t...

My feeling is to keep Playlist as it is and mak...

100% Agreed!

L. E. Nas wrote:My feeling is to keep Playlist ...

djfirewalk wrote:L. E. Nas wrote:My feeling is ...

Well it's basically just Gol doing all the FL ...

Scoox wrote:Well it's basically just Gol doing ...

Is this a forum post with everyone agreeing wit...

Icenburg wrote:Is this a forum post with everyo...

We need folders for the mixer also so we can ex...

True! The botom line is: Folders are great! I...

djfirewalk wrote:True! The botom line is: Folde...

Even though audio and automation can be trigger...

Scoox wrote:Even though audio and automation ca...

There are problems with organization & auto...

djfirewalk wrote:There are problems with organi...

Ayjent wrote:djfirewalk wrote:True! The botom l...

I agree, I think everyone does this. I too alwa...

well i disagree on this one. I think a lot of ...

djfirewalk wrote:I agree, I think everyone does...

einfachfelix wrote:well i disagree on this one....

Yes this would make Fl alot more easy to use in...

it would be really nice to have feedback from t...

Folder tracks functionality is crucial for many...

I'm sure they've heard us, this thread has been...

Scoox wrote:I'm sure they've heard us, this thr...

einfachfelix wrote:Scoox wrote:I'm sure they've...

kocho1984 wrote:Folder tracks functionality is ...

djfirewalk wrote:kocho1984 wrote:Folder tracks ...

einfachfelix wrote:djfirewalk wrote:kocho1984 w...

Bump this thread.... you cannot imagine how ea...

djfirewalk wrote:Gloomer: It's basically about ...

This is a great idea, but i think if you're goi...

Folders and hide automations is really need it....

Of course it's easy to do a mockup and ask for ...

Scoox wrote:Of course it's easy to do a mockup ...

Group automation clips separately then patterns...

Max Pyger wrote:Group automation clips separate...