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Usage Guide

Comprehensive usage guide for FL Studio MCP Server.

Basic Usage

Connecting to MIDI

# List available ports
midi_list_ports()

# Connect to default port
midi_connect()

# Check connection
# Returns: "Connected to MIDI port: FLStudio_MIDI"

Sending MIDI Notes

# Simple note (default: velocity=64, duration=0.5s)
midi_send_note(note=60)

# Custom parameters
midi_send_note(note=60, velocity=100, duration=1.0, channel=0)

# Manual control
midi_send_note_on(note=60, velocity=100)
# ... do something ...
midi_send_note_off(note=60)

MIDI Control Changes

# Volume (CC 7)
midi_send_cc(control=7, value=100)

# Pan (CC 10)
midi_send_cc(control=10, value=64)  # Center

# Custom CC
midi_send_cc(control=74, value=80, channel=0)

FL Studio Control

Note: FL Studio must be running for these features.

Transport

# Playback control
transport_start()
transport_stop()
transport_record()

# Position control
transport_get_song_pos()  # Get current position
transport_set_song_pos(position=1920)  # Set position (in ticks)

Mixer

# Volume control
mixer_get_track_volume(track_num=0)
mixer_set_track_volume(track_num=0, volume=0.8)

# Track naming
mixer_get_track_name(track_num=1)
mixer_set_track_name(track_num=1, name="Drums")

Channels

# Get channel info
channels_channel_count()
channels_get_channel_name(channel_num=0)

# Control channels
channels_set_channel_volume(channel_num=0, volume=0.9)
channels_mute_channel(channel_num=0, mute=True)

Patterns

# Pattern info
patterns_pattern_count()
patterns_get_pattern_name(pattern_num=0)

# Rename pattern
patterns_set_pattern_name(pattern_num=0, name="Verse")

Advanced Usage

Creating a Melody

# C major scale
notes = [60, 62, 64, 65, 67, 69, 71, 72]
for note in notes:
    midi_send_note(note=note, velocity=80, duration=0.25)

Multi-Channel Setup

# Drums on channel 10
midi_send_note(note=36, velocity=127, channel=9)  # Kick

# Bass on channel 1
midi_send_note(note=40, velocity=100, channel=0)

# Melody on channel 2
midi_send_note(note=64, velocity=80, channel=1)

Automation

# Fade in
for value in range(0, 128, 4):
    midi_send_cc(control=7, value=value)
    # Add delay if needed in your workflow

Complete Workflow

# 1. Setup
transport_stop()
transport_set_song_pos(position=0)

# 2. Configure mixer
mixer_set_track_name(track_num=1, name="Drums")
mixer_set_track_name(track_num=2, name="Bass")
mixer_set_track_volume(track_num=1, volume=0.8)

# 3. Setup patterns
patterns_set_pattern_name(pattern_num=0, name="Intro")
patterns_set_pattern_name(pattern_num=1, name="Verse")

# 4. Start playback
transport_start()

MIDI Reference

Note Numbers

Note Number Octave
C0 12 0
C1 24 1
C2 36 2
C3 48 3
C4 60 Middle
C5 72 5
C6 84 6

Control Change Messages

CC Function
0 Bank Select
1 Modulation
7 Volume
10 Pan
11 Expression
64 Sustain Pedal
74 Filter Cutoff
91 Reverb Level
93 Chorus Level

Velocity Values

  • 0: Note off (or very soft)
  • 1-31: Pianissimo (pp)
  • 32-63: Piano (p)
  • 64-95: Mezzo-forte (mf)
  • 96-127: Fortissimo (ff)

Error Handling

All tools return text responses. Check for error messages:

result = midi_connect()
if "Failed" in result:
    print("Connection failed!")
    # Troubleshoot
    midi_list_ports()
else:
    print("Connected!")

Best Practices

MIDI

  1. Always connect first 

    midi_connect()
midi_send_note(note=60)

  2. Use appropriate durations

  3. Fast notes: 0.1-0.25s
  4. Normal notes: 0.5s

  5. Long notes: 1.0s+

  6. Check port availability 

    midi_list_ports()

FL Studio

  1. Keep FL Studio running for API features
  2. Use descriptive names for tracks and patterns
  3. Be careful with positions - values are in ticks (typically 960 PPQ)

Troubleshooting

MIDI Not Working

# Check ports
midi_list_ports()

# Verify loopMIDI is running
# Ensure FL Studio has port enabled

FL Studio API Unavailable

# Check if FL Studio is running
general_get_version()

# MIDI still works without FL Studio
midi_connect()
midi_send_note(note=60)

Next Steps