Fl Studio On Chromebook, Does it work?

Since the first model was released in June 2011, Chromebooks are one of the latest creations that are helping redefine the laptop market. 

When they first come out weren't quite a big deal, they didn't have much good reputation because of them not being able to do very much. But around 2014 the manufacturers started equipping them better, introducing more expensive pieces of hardware, and some years after Google added Android Apps into Chromebooks, which really made a difference for the users, giving the device many more options than you were able to choose from on the Chrome OS before. And making it compatible with many other devices. 

Running Google's web-browser-based Chrome OS, and made by different brands like ASUS, LG, DELL, Samsung, among others.

Chromebooks present a great option for making music on the go, given their lightweight OS, and SSD Drives, turning on in a matter of a few seconds.

Also if you are looking for a computer and you are on a budget the mid-range Chromebooks are the best choice if you are after a better Price/Quality option, as they are affordable but without compromising the performance.

Fl Studio on Chromebook can prove useful just because you can access your files from other devices using your wifi connection. For those moments when creativity hits you, and you are far from your studio but you have a good idea of a beat and you don't want to lose it! Using Cloud Storage not only do you save the need for bigger disk space but you also can be synced with your pc folder and send/receive files, or backup your mobile recordings to continue working on your ideas.

So, Can you run FL Studio 20 on Chromebooks? At the moment FL Studio is not compatible with Chromebooks. On many forums, exists the hope that this is due to a bug and it's going to be fixed, but right now you are not able to directly install any DAW onto a Chromebook. 

But there's an alternative, we recommend Fl Studio Mobile (the mobile version of the software) from the Android App Store and Google Play.

For when the bug is fixed, we're giving you the tutorial to Install Fl Studio on Chromebook but first...

📋Specs to consider when selecting your new Chromebook

🧠 CPU

To begin with, you need to look for an Intel or AMD Processor on your device for these apps to work. On Chromebooks with an ARM (Advanced RISC Machine) architecture, that may be more energy-efficient, and optimized for Android Apps Fl Studio won't run satisfactorily.

🖥 Screen

Chromebooks are generally designed to be small and portable for maximum convenience. The most common screen sizes come between 10 to 15.6 inches, so far, maybe we'll see models with bigger screens in the future. With resolutions of 1366 x 768 pixels (more common), 1920 x 1080 (Full HD), and 2560 x 1700 on the bigger screens.

So you should consider the weight when picking the size. 

There are models with detachable Screens (like the Lenovo Chromebook Duet), and also you can save some money by getting a model without a touchscreen if you are used to a mouse and keyboard.

⚙ RAM

We recommend models with 8GB RAM (the more high-end models feature 16GB), so you can work with more open tabs and/or apps, also because we all know Chrome likes to eat up your RAM!

If you are used to multitasking avoid the 4GB models to be safe.

📀 Internal storage

As we mentioned before they come with SSD drives, which helps a lot when you need your Fl on Chromebook on and ready in seconds. 

And present the feature of Cloud Storage using more than one user account, and being able to change users too, keeping all your files safe.

They come in between 16GB and 64GB of internal storage, which you can expand using a microSD card on most models (the expandable limit depends on the model of your device) the Google Pixelbook for example offers up to 512GB of internal storage, for those who are looking for more storage capability.

It can prove to be a challenge to find the right model, that complements the best with your needs since the Chromebook market is pretty crowded right now, so

Here is a little list of options for you to consider or have a starting point on your search 👇

📝 How to install and Run Fl Studio 20 Chromebook

1- First, allow/enable Linux apps on your device, to do this go to System Settings and click on the Linux Icon on the left panel.

2- Then turn on the Linux apps, and go through with the installation.

Now that we've enabled Linux apps on our device, we'll continue to the next part of the installation process, which is to run several commands in a terminal that will install wine, its an application that will allow us to install windows applications on a Like Fl Studio 20 on a Chromebook.

3- To start things up we'll copy this first command: sudo dpkg --add-architecture i386
And open a Terminal session from our App Menu.

After that we'll paste the command into our terminal, either with a 2 finger click on your terminal or click+control+shift+V together.

This command will enable 32 bit architecture for Wine on your system. This command should run automatically once you have pasted it into Terminal.

4- Now we'll update our system repositories of our Linux apps, by entering this command: sudo apt update

5- After it's done we'll install Wine, copy and paste this: sudo apt install wine
(you have to press Y and Enter to confirm the installation, when it pops up).

6- Then we'll run the following command that will create some files and folders which Wine requires: winecfg

7- Now we'll download Fl studio, copy and paste this: wget -c https://demodownload.image-line.com/flstudio/flstudio_win_20.7.3.1987.exe

8- Next we'll enable Audio Input for Fl Studio

🔁 Alternatives

As this Fl Studio Chromebook combination may not be a possible option at the moment (June 2021) due to a bug, this should be fixed and the tutorial could still be useful.

But as a Plan B, we definitely recommend you to try Fl Studio Mobile, which is a great option to produce on the go and don't miss the creative impulse when you get your inspiration but you are far from your studio, or any of the gear you usually use.

🔗Bonus Knowledge 💻

If you read this far you deserve a little something for sure, here is a link for the Fl studio Mobile for you to try! And of course, if it proves useful and it works for you, Buy the Full version there. 

Let us know in the comments here, or also you can find us on YouTube and also on Instagram if you'd like us to make the following articles about Fl Studio Mobile and all that it can offer to us, or any other things that you'd like us to talk about or review!