Customize a template

You almost never want to write a template from scratch. The faster move is customize an existing one — duplicate, override the fields that matter, save. The app keeps both versions, your edits live in the user library, and the original built-in stays clean even if you nuke your custom version.

Customisation is also how most marketplace templates are born. Somebody takes FL Studio — Channel Rack, swaps the channel, tunes the deadzone for their drifty third-party stick, adds touchpad XY, and ships the result. That's a totally valid contribution.

Duplicate first, edit second

Hit Templates → Duplicate on any preset. The app writes a copy to your user library with a (custom) suffix and selects it. Edit fields in the UI panels — buttons, axes, sticks, haptics — and changes save on blur. No "Save" button, no version conflicts, no orphaned drafts.

The fields most worth changing

Eighty percent of customisations touch three things. Here's the cheat sheet, with sane ranges and what each value actually does:

Field	Default	Safe range	What it controls
midi_channel	0	0–15	MIDI channel for all notes/CCs in this template
deadzone	0.05	0.01–0.20	Radial deadzone applied to both sticks
poll_hz	100	30–250	How often controller state is sampled
buttons	varies	MIDI notes 0–127	Face/shoulder/special button to note number
axes	varies	CC numbers 0–127	Stick / trigger axis to MIDI CC
left_stick_corners.n	8	4, 8, 12, 16	Angular zone count on left stick
right_stick_corners.n	8	4, 8, 12, 16	Angular zone count on right stick

{
  "name": "Beat Making — Finger Drumming (custom)",
  "schema_version": 2,
  "midi_channel": 2,
  "deadzone": 0.08,
  "poll_hz": 120,
  "buttons": { "0": 36, "1": 38, "2": 40, "3": 41 },
  "axes": { "0": 1, "1": 11 }
}

Stick corners — the secret weapon

Most users ignore left_stick_corners and right_stick_corners until they discover them. Each stick can fire up to 16 notes based on angular zone. Set n to the zone count, list the notes, then tune r_enter / r_exit for hysteresis (prevents chatter at the deadzone boundary). Read the deep dive at stick corners.

{
  "left_stick_corners": {
    "enabled": true,
    "n": 8,
    "notes": [60, 62, 64, 65, 67, 69, 71, 72],
    "r_enter": 0.9,
    "r_exit": 0.7
  }
}

Trigger haptics

On PS5 controllers, l2_haptic_effect and r2_haptic_effect turn analog triggers into tactile feedback. Set to "trigger_resist" for bow-like expression, "trigger_click" for hard transients, or null to keep the trigger free-running. The full effect catalogue lives at adaptive effects.

Real-world template patterns

• Channel-matched DAW preset — clone FL Studio — Channel Rack, set midi_channel to 10 so it plays nice with drum tracks routed there.
• Drift-tolerant live rig — clone any template, bump deadzone to 0.10–0.12 for stage-worn controllers.
• Scale-locked corners — clone Beat Making, replace left_stick_corners.notes with a C-minor pentatonic, save per key.
• Expression-heavy MPE — clone MPE Polyphonic, drop deadzone to 0.02 and bump poll_hz to 200.
• Haptic-restricted streamer rig — clone any template, set both haptic fields to null so the controller stays quiet during long sessions.

Polished it? See best practices for safe defaults, then share when it's ready.