TWO MORE PLACES TO FIND THE ONE
SoundCloud and BeatStars
inside FL Studio.
Barz is a VST3 plugin that opens SoundCloud and BeatStars in a panel inside FL Studio. Pick a beat, let Barz drop a linked WAV into the Playlist, and record against it using FL’s own transport.
This guide covers Barz for Windows. You need FL Studio with VST3 support and a Barz account. Start the 30-day trial, or read the YouTube workflow if that is where you usually dig. A tested Mac installer is not available yet.
Which source to reach for
All three sources sit behind the same tabs in Barz, and a single favourites list or playlist can mix them freely. They suit different moments.
- SoundCloud is where producers post work in progress, loose type beats and tagged uploads. Good for finding a sound nobody has rapped on yet, and for following a producer’s stream of new uploads.
- BeatStars is a marketplace, so most beats carry a licence and a price on the page itself. Good when you already know you want to release the song and would rather sort the paperwork up front.
- YouTube has the deepest catalogue of type beats and the best search for a vibe you can only describe in words. The YouTube guide covers it in detail.
Load a SoundCloud or BeatStars beat
- Install and scan Barz. Close FL Studio, run the Windows installer, then reopen FL and use Options → Manage plugins → Find installed plugins. Open Barz from the Channel Rack. The setup guide walks through it with screenshots.
- Choose SoundCloud or BeatStars at the top of the Barz window. You are browsing the real site, signed in or signed out exactly as you would be in a browser, so your own follows and purchases are there.
- Select a beat. Barz loads the audio and puts a linked WAV clip in FL’s Playlist, routed to Mixer Insert 1. Detected BPM and key appear in the panel; treat both as estimates and check them against whatever the producer wrote on the page.
- Press play in FL. The site’s own player stays silent. FL Studio drives the transport, the tempo and the mix, so the beat behaves like any other clip in your arrangement.
- Keep the ones that land. Favourite a beat, add it to a playlist, or use Keep with project to save a local copy of the audio alongside your FL project.
Selecting a different beat replaces the linked WAV in place, so auditioning ten beats against the same verse costs you ten clicks and no re-routing.
Licences, tags and what you can release
This is the part worth slowing down for, and it works the same whichever source you used.
Loading a beat in Barz gives you no rights to release music over it. Barz is a browser and a loader, not a licence shop. Before you put a song out, buy the licence or get the producer’s written permission, and keep the receipt.
On BeatStars the licence tiers are usually on the beat page: what you may do, how many streams or units are covered, and whether the producer keeps a share. On SoundCloud the terms are more often in the track description or the producer’s profile, and plenty of uploads are tagged or demo-only versions that are not meant for release at all. A tagged beat will still load and play in Barz, because it is simply the audio the site serves.
Barz does not strip tags, unlock downloads or bypass anything a site does not already give you. If a producer takes a beat down, the linked WAV you already saved with your project stays on your computer as an ordinary audio file, but nothing new will load from that page.
Common questions
Do I need a SoundCloud or BeatStars account?
Only for the things those sites already require an account for, such as following a producer, buying a licence or reaching purchases you have made. Browsing and loading work signed out.
Can one playlist mix sources?
Yes. Favourites and playlists in Barz can hold YouTube, SoundCloud and BeatStars beats together, and FL stays in charge of playback for all of them.
Will the BPM always be right?
The detected tempo and key are estimates from the audio. They are usually close, but producers name things loosely and some uploads are pitched or sped up, so confirm against the producer’s own information before you commit a whole session to it.
Is Barz affiliated with SoundCloud or BeatStars?
No. Barz is independent software and is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by Image-Line, YouTube, SoundCloud or BeatStars. See the disclaimer.
What does Barz cost?
Thirty days free, then £4.99 a month, £49.95 a year, or £79.99 once for lifetime access with no renewal. A card is needed to start the trial, but nothing is charged until you choose a plan and approve the payment. See the trial and pricing.