Novation built its reputation on the Launchpad, the grid controller that became an Ableton Live icon. With the FLpad and its smaller sibling the FLpad Mini, the company finally brings that recipe to FL Studio: an 8×8 pad grid designed end to end for Image-Line’s software, with native integration that generic controllers never truly offered FL users.
An 8×8 grid shaped for the FL Studio workflow
The FLpad packs 64 velocity-sensitive, RGB-backlit pads in a square 8×8 layout, surrounded by 16 dedicated controls for driving the software. The guiding idea is simple: stay inside FL Studio without reaching for the mouse out of habit. The controller navigates the Channel Rack, triggers and selects channels, builds tracks from Patterns, switches modes and handles transport and undo straight from the hardware.
For playing, several layouts sit under your fingers: a Note mode, chromatic or scale-locked, for melodies and basslines; performance layouts for the in-house drum instruments — FPC, Slicex, Fruity Slicer — and step sequencing to lay down melodies, basslines and drums one cell at a time. The FLpad even talks to the Graph Editor and offers a mixer mode where the grid acts as faders for the Channel Rack. In short, most of the moves that used to mean trips back to the screen now live on the pads.
FLpad and FLpad Mini: two formats, one logic
Two models share this philosophy. The full-size FLpad leans on a large grid and velocity-sensitive pads; the FLpad Mini carries the same grammar into a more compact, more affordable format built for on-the-go creation or tight setups. The larger model stays reasonably portable: 240 mm square, 17.6 mm thin and 820 g, powered by a single USB-C cable with no wall adapter.
What this launch changes for FL Studio producers
FL Studio is one of the most widely used DAWs in the world, yet its users have had to make do with pad grids designed for other environments, at the cost of scripts and compromises. A controller badged for FL, with mapping built around the Channel Rack and step sequencer, removes much of that friction. If cell-based sequencing still feels abstract, our guide to step sequencing covers the basics. The FLpad also rounds out the brand’s family of FL controllers alongside keyboards such as the Novation Launchkey 88 MK4.
Price, availability and software bundle
The FLpad is priced at $229.99 and available now from authorized retailers and Novation’s website; the FLpad Mini joins it in a more compact version. Both ship with six months of FL Studio Producer Edition, a bundle of instruments and effects from UVI, GForce and Klevgrand, plus access to Melodics finger-drumming lessons — enough to get going without adding to the software budget.
My take
About time. The Launchpad shaped a whole way of producing in Ableton, and seeing Novation carry that know-how over to FL Studio fills a gap that lasted years. The 64 velocity-sensitive pads and the mixer mode are tempting, especially for beatmaking and finger drumming. The open question is price: at $229, the full model isn’t cheap for a grid, and that’s where the Mini will likely earn its keep. If you live in the Channel Rack, it’s worth a try.
