· 7 min read
How to create modern glitchy vocal effects
Glitches work because they break the pattern for a moment. Here's how to make stutters, chops, tape stops and digital crunch on vocals in FL Studio, mostly with tools you already have.
A good glitch is short, intentional and on the beat. The vocal does something "wrong" for half a bar, and that's what makes the next line hit harder. Here's how to make the most common ones.
Before you start: duplicate the vocal
Do glitch edits on a copy of the vocal clip or on a separate track. Keep the original untouched so you can always go back, and so the glitch can be blended or muted in sections.
1. Stutters and repeats
The classic: "a-a-a-anything".
- In the Playlist, set the snap to 1/8 or 1/16 step.
- Slice the clip at the start of the word, copy the first small slice and paste it several times before the full word.
- Make the repeats shorter as they go, or fade the volume in, for a roll that builds.
FL Studio Signature Bundle and up includes Gross Beat, which can do stutters, repeats and gates in real time from presets.
2. Tape stops
The vocal slows down and dies at the end of a line.
- Free: Tape Stop in Kilohearts Essentials, free with a Kilohearts account.
- By hand: on the last word, automate the clip's pitch down, or stretch the end of the clip, so it slows and drops.
Use it right before a drop or beat switch.
3. Bitcrush and digital crunch
Lower the bit depth and sample rate for a broken, digital sound.
- Fruity Squeeze comes with every FL Studio edition and does bit and sample-rate reduction.
- Bitcrush in Kilohearts Essentials is free.
Automate the amount so it's only crushed on specific words or adlibs.
4. Pitch jumps
Pitch a single word up or down an octave for a glitchy accent. In FL Studio you can change the pitch of a duplicated audio clip, or use a pitch shifter on a separate track and automate it on and off. Short and occasional works best.
5. Gated chops
Chop the vocal rhythmically so it cuts in and out on the grid. Trance Gate (Kilohearts Essentials, free) does this with a step pattern. Sync it to the song tempo, and try it on a held note or an adlib.
6. Filter drops and underwater moments
Not every glitch needs to be choppy. A sudden filter change is a glitch too: the vocal goes muffled for one bar, then snaps back. That's exactly what SUBMERGE is built for. Automate DEPTH from 0 to full for a bar, then back to 0.
7. Reverse
Reverse a single word or the tail of an adlib. In FL Studio, the audio clip settings have a reverse option. Reversed adlibs under the lead vocal add a lot of texture with almost no effort.
Keep glitches musical
- On the grid: line edits up to the beat. Random glitches sound like mistakes.
- Short: half a bar to a bar is usually enough.
- With purpose: transitions, the end of a line, before a drop.
- Not every bar: the effect works because it's rare.
More effects for the underground sound: the best vocal effects for underground rap.