What is "Pattern / song mode" for in FLS?

[Kagetori]

I've been wondering for a while now, how are you supposed to use it, what's it for and how does it work? Like, why should I use the song mode and make a bunch of patterns?

I usually just make one big pattern and I have a lot of trouble trying to do the whole song mode thing because I can't figure out how to slightly change multiple patterns or how to constantly hear it all together and instantly turn off a track without having to go back and fourth ya' know. Are there any benefits to using it? Like, maybe quality-wise? How do ya'll use the song mode thing? Does anyone else here not use it at all and just make one big pattern too?

[Edened]

From what I understand pattern mode is for making beats in the sequencer and for the piano roll, and song mode is for the playlist. This is a very basic way of putting it at least.

[Legion]

Yeah, when you're in pattern mode and press play, FL will play the pattern you have selected in the pattern sequencer. Song mode plays whatever's in the playlist. I HOPE you're not making songs as one gigantic pattern, that'll strangle you down the road. Make all kinds of different patterns, and place them in the playlist. You can easily find one pattern and make adjustments, and your workspace is infinitely bigger.

[soultensionbenjamin]

this tutorial will help a lot

[Kagetori]

Yeah, when you're in pattern mode and press play, FL will play the pattern you have selected in the pattern sequencer. Song mode plays whatever's in the playlist. I HOPE you're not making songs as one gigantic pattern, that'll strangle you down the road. Make all kinds of different patterns, and place them in the playlist. You can easily find one pattern and make adjustments, and your workspace is infinitely bigger.

But exactly HOW will it strangle me down the road? Also, if I were to use the "song" thing instead of one big pattern, how would I put more than 16 beats... or... notes, or whatever, in for a pattern, rather than having to make two separate patterns and making them play next to each other in the full song playlist thing?

this tutorial will help a lot

I'm not new to FL 7_7
I just want to know specifically about the "Pattern / song mode" thing.

I watched it anyways and from what I saw, it doesn't seem any different than just copying and pasting patterns in one big pattern, plus if done that way, it seems like there's more freedom to what you can do, or at least, from what I understand so far.

Like I asked in the OP though, does it have anything to do with quality though, possibly having something to do with why I can barely ever hear my drums without compressing the crap out of them and nearly ruining the entire song's sound quality? I know the FL default drum kits sound good for most people apparently, yet for me they don't. I mean, I can still make something like this, but you can hear how bad and quiet the drums sound-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbB4WVxevoQ

If that's not the case and I just have to somehow find better drums and/or work on the volume of the other tracks, then I think I'd prefer to just keep making giant patterns.

[Kopachris]

It's all about organization. The whole point of FL Studio is that you create patterns which are then arranged in the playlist. That way, if you have any sort of ostinato (such as a bass line or drum pattern that occurs over and over throughout the piece) and you have to change it, you simply change the pattern and every instance of it will change accordingly in the playlist. A pattern could be almost anything--a single note, a melody, a chord progression, a sound effect, or even an automation clip.

As far as changing the length of a pattern goes... In the top-left of the pattern editor is a counter that'll say "number of beats per bar for this pattern" if you hover the mouse over it. That's actually a little misleading. That number does change the number of beats per bar for the piano roll, but the number of beats per bar will remain the same in the playlist and the tempo in beats/minute will also remain the same. (e.g. If you set it to '6', one bar will be six beats in the piano roll for that pattern, but a six-beat pattern will still be a bar and a half when you place it in the playlist.)