Delay is one of the most versatile and creative effects you can use in FL Studio. It can add depth, movement, rhythm, and space to your sounds. But how do you blend delay with reverb, chorus, and other effects in FL Studio? In this article, we'll show you some tips and tricks to make your delays sound more natural, musical, and expressive.
The first step to blend delay with other effects is to choose the right delay for your sound and style. FL Studio has several delay plugins, such as Fruity Delay 3, Delay Bank, Delay 2, and Echo. Each one has different features and parameters, such as feedback, filter, modulation, ping-pong, and time. You can experiment with different delay plugins and settings to find the one that suits your sound best. For example, if you want a warm and analog delay, you can use Fruity Delay 3 with a low-pass filter and some saturation. If you want a more complex and rhythmic delay, you can use Delay Bank with multiple taps and modulation.
Ping-pong is a great feature for if you want your delay to frequently pan between the left and right monitors. In Delay 2, you can increase the rate and intensity of which this effect takes place.
The next step to blend delay with other effects is to control the delay level. You don't want your delay to be too loud or too quiet, as it can either mask or disappear from your mix. You can use the dry/wet knob or the mixer fader to adjust the balance between the original sound and the delayed sound. A good rule of thumb is to set the delay level so that you can barely hear it when the original sound is playing, and then increase it slightly until it sounds good. You can also automate the delay level to create more variation and dynamics in your music.
One of the most common effects to blend with delay is reverb. Reverb can add more space and ambience to your delays, making them sound more realistic and smooth. However, you need to be careful not to overdo it, as too much reverb can make your delays sound muddy and distant. A good practice is to apply reverb after delay, not before. This way, you can avoid creating a reverb tail on every delay repeat, which can clutter your mix. Instead, you can create a reverb tail on the last delay repeat, which can create a nice fade-out effect. You can use any reverb plugin you like in FL Studio, such as Fruity Reeverb 2, Convolver, or Reeverb.
Order of importance with effects is very important. With Delay, almost every time I've used it, it's come before reverb. Now, we can't put ALL creativity in a box however, but: I general start with and EQ and Compression at the end, and wedge my other effects in between that and some very minimal harmonic distortion/saturation at the front to make it brighter or darker. I posted below, but truly being able to make an effect happen during pre-processing is huge with this? If you want three "delay tails," could you perhaps copy and paste to achieve that sound? Learn those tools and don't be afraid to twist knobs! Creativity be keeping things super simple can leave room for an idea that may never have been effectively possible!
Another way to blend delay with other effects is to use chorus and other modulation effects. Chorus can add some width and movement to your delays, making them sound more lush and rich. You can use chorus either before or after delay, depending on the effect you want. If you use chorus before delay, you can create a more subtle and natural modulation on your delays. If you use chorus after delay, you can create a more dramatic and noticeable modulation on your delays. You can use any chorus plugin you like in FL Studio, such as Fruity Chorus, Flangus, or Phaser.
Truly understanding what all this does at the most fundamental level (Width, Space, Height, etc), really helps. With almost minimal tinkering using only 4 plug-ins I can generally achieve a sound. How? Don't stress over every knob & tool! Focus those ears (the music) and eyes (the actual waveform- eq on master to visualize*). Play around some simple with saturation, panning, reverb, and EQ 1st. Understand the importance of filtering your tracks in this general order of effect, but don't be afraid to swap. A great once told me, "all you need to truly mix a song is eq, panning, saturation, and reverb." What is delay? Really the audio repeating w/ noise just lowered over time! Thought: Do you really to post process this particular sound!?
The final step to blend delay with other effects is to experiment with parallel processing. Parallel processing is a technique where you send your sound to two or more different effects chains and then blend them together. This way, you can create more complex and interesting sounds without losing the clarity and definition of the original sound. You can use parallel processing in FL Studio by using the send tracks in the mixer. For example, you can send your sound to one send track with delay and reverb, and another send track with chorus and distortion. Then, you can adjust the levels and panning of each send track to create a unique blend of effects.