Studio One vs FL Studio: Which is Best for Metal?

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The DAW debate can feel as endless and tribal as a ’90s death metal scene. But when you’re trying to churn out punishing, mix-ready metal, your choice of digital audio workstation actually matters. A lot.

Two DAWs that often come up are Image-Line’s FL Studio and PreSonus’ Studio One. One is a certified legend in the beat-making world, while the other is a powerful, modern contender that’s been turning heads. But for a metal producer who lives and breathes multi-tracked drums, quad-tracked Mesa Boogies, and precise vocal editing, which one is the right tool for the job?

Let’s be real: any DAW can technically record audio. But being “technically possible” and being “optimized for a brutally efficient workflow” are two very different things. Once you’re locked into a DAW’s ecosystem, changing is a massive pain. So let’s break down the strengths and weaknesses of FL Studio and Studio One for metal.

FL Studio: The Beat-Making Behemoth

There’s no denying FL Studio’s impact. It’s arguably the most popular DAW in the world by user count, and for good reason. It’s famous for being the gateway for countless producers (remember Soulja Boy making “Crank That” on a cracked copy?). Its workflow is built for speed when it comes to MIDI, loops, and sequencing.

FL Studio Pros for Metal Producers (The Short List)

• Unbeatable MIDI and VSTi Workflow: If your metal tracks involve intricate synth layers, orchestral intros, or complex drum programming with VSTs like GetGood Drums or Superior Drummer 3, FL Studio’s Piano Roll and Step Sequencer are legendary. It’s incredibly fast for sketching out musical ideas.
• Creative Powerhouse: The “Fruity Loops” DNA means it’s packed with creative tools for sound design, glitch effects, and automation that can be great for industrial or electronic-infused metal.

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FL Studio Cons for Metal Producers (The Big Hurdles)

• The Audio Recording Workflow: Here’s the deal-breaker for most of us. FL studio was not designed with a traditional band recording session in mind. Recording, comping (combining the best parts of multiple takes), and editing dozens of audio tracks for drums, bass, guitars, and vocals is clunky and unintuitive compared to its peers. The entire workflow is optimized for MIDI and loops first, with audio as a secondary element.
• The “Playlist” as a Timeline: The Playlist view, which serves as the arrangement timeline, can feel limiting and less precise for the kind of micro-editing that metal demands—like painstakingly aligning a kick drum transient to a guitar chug.
• Industry Disconnect: In the pro-metal world, FL Studio is a ghost. You won’t find it in major studios, and collaborating with other producers or mix engineers almost always means laboriously bouncing every single track down to stems. For context, out of all the world-class producers who have mixed on Nail The Mix, not one has done it in FL Studio.

PreSonus Studio One: The Modern All-Rounder

Studio One is the new-school contender. Designed by former developers from Steinberg (the creators of Cubase), it was built from the ground up to be a modern, streamlined, all-in-one production environment. It learns from the mistakes of older DAWs and focuses on a fast, intuitive workflow.

Studio One Pros for Metal Producers

• Killer Audio Editing: This is where Studio One shines for metal. The drag-and-drop workflow is everywhere, making everything from routing to plugin chains a breeze. Its audio editing tools are fast, precise, and powerful. Features like native ARA integration with Melodyne are an absolute game-changer for tuning aggressive vocals without leaving the timeline.
• A True Hybrid Studio: It handles high track counts of audio just as gracefully as it handles complex MIDI arrangements. You can go from programming synth pads to comping a brutal vocal performance seamlessly. The workflow feels cohesive, whether you’re working with audio or MIDI.
• Mastering Made Easy: Studio One’s unique Project Page allows you to master your songs in a dedicated environment linked directly to your mixes. You can apply processing, check metering, and export your final masters without ever leaving the DAW. It’s an incredibly efficient feature you won’t find elsewhere.
• Great Stock Plugins: The included Pro EQ, Fat Channel, and compressors are genuinely high-quality and more than capable of handling a heavy mix, saving you money right out of the box.

Studio One Cons for Metal Producers

• Smaller User Base: While growing fast, Studio One doesn’t have the massive, decades-old user base of Pro Tools or Cubase. This can mean it’s sometimes harder to find a specific tutorial or you might be the only one in your circle using it, which can be an issue for collaboration.

The Verdict: Which DAW Wins for Making Metal?

For metal production, the choice is clear: PreSonus Studio One is the far superior option.

FL Studio is an incredible tool for making beats and electronic music, but its audio workflow is a significant bottleneck for the demands of a modern metal session.

Studio One, on the other hand, is built for the exact kind of work we do: recording and editing massive amounts of audio with precision, while also providing top-tier tools for MIDI programming and sound design.

But Wait, What About the Other Guys?

Of course, FL Studio and Studio One aren’t the only options. The metal world is dominated by a few key players:

• Pro Tools: The long-reigning industry standard. Unbeatable for pure audio recording and editing (Beat Detective is still a go-to for drum editing). However, its MIDI capabilities are archaic compared to others.
• Cubase: A beast of a DAW that’s huge in Europe and gaining traction in the US. It’s a fantastic all-rounder that excels at both audio and MIDI, making it a top choice for metal.
• Reaper: The dark horse that has become incredibly popular in the DIY metal scene. It’s affordable, endlessly customizable, and has incredibly powerful audio functionality.
• Logic Pro X: A great Mac-only option for writing and mixing, but many metal producers find its audio editing tools, especially for drums, to be less efficient than Pro Tools or Reaper.

The Final Takeaway: Stop Arguing, Start Mixing

Choosing the right DAW is an important first step. It sets the foundation for your workflow. But the truth is, the DAW itself doesn’t make the mix. The producer does.

The techniques for getting skull-crushing guitars, punchy drums, and clear, aggressive vocals are universal concepts. It’s about learning how and why to apply them. That’s where the real work begins.

Want to see how the pros do it? Nail The Mix gives you a front-row seat. We put you in the studio with the list of Nail The Mix instructors who mixed albums for bands like Gojira, Periphery, and Architects. You get the original multi-tracks from massive songs and watch the producer build the mix from scratch, explaining every single move.

You’ll see them apply insane metal compression secrets to make drums pop and learn the secrets behind EQing modern metal guitars for max impact. It’s the ultimate deep-dive into how professional metal records are made.

Check out our full catalog of Nail The Mix sessions and see how the best in the business turn raw tracks into finished masters, regardless of which DAW they use. Because at the end of the day, it’s the skills—not just the software—that make a killer mix.