Propellerhead Reason - 3.0 User Manual

, English

, Getting Started

3.0

14 Channel Expandable Mixer,Analog Polysynth,Graintable Polysynth,Digital Samplers,Mastering Tools,REX-loop Player,Drum Machine

ReBirth Input Device,Multiple Effects Processors,Combinator Device,Shelving and Parametric EQs,Master Song Sequencer,Pattern

Sequencer

64 Channel Audio Output,64 Channel ReWire Output,512 Band Vocoder,CV Processing Tools,Full Automation,To tal Recall

stand-alone music production instrument

Operation Manual by Synkron: Anders Nordmark

The information in this document is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on the part of Propellerhead Software AB. The software described herein is subject to a License Agreement and may not be copied to any other media expect as specifically allowed in the License Agreement. No part of this publication may be copied, reproduced or otherwise transmitted or recorded, for any purpose, without prior written permission by Propellerhead Software AB.

Note: Trademarks referred to within the Reason product are the property of their respective trademark holders. None of these trademarks holders are affiliated with Propellerhead Software AB or our products. The referrals to these trademarks do not in any way constitute trademark use. Nor does the use of these trademarks intend to explore the goodwill associated with these trademarks.

C 2005 Propellerhead Software and its licensors. All specifications subject to change without notice. Reason is a trademark of Propellerhead Software. All other commercial symbols are protected trademarks and trade names of their respective holders. All rights reserved.

5 Installation

6 Welcome! 6 About the manuals 7 What is in the Reason package? 7 Requirements 8 About the Audio Hardware 9 About MIDI Interfaces 9 Upgrading vs. New Installations 10 Installing the Software

11 Setting Up

12 About this Chapter 12 First run - Reason Setup Wizard 13 About the Preferences 13 Setting up the Audio Hardware 15 Setting up MIDI 17 Setting the default song

19 Quick Tutorial

20 About this Chapter 20 Playing a Song 21 Creating a new song 26 Guided Tour

35 Common Operations and Concepts

36 About this Chapter 36 Conventions in the Manual 36 Making Settings 38 Tool Tips 38 Context menus 39 Undo 40 Window Techniques

43 Audio Basics

44 About this chapter 44 How Reason communicates with your audio hardware 45 About Sample Rates and Resolutions 46 About Audio Levels 46 Master Tune

47 Managing the Rack

48 About this Chapter 48 Navigating in the Rack 48 Creating Devices 49 Selecting Devices 49 Deleting Devices 49 Reordering Devices 50 Duplicating Devices 50 Cut, Copy and Paste 51 A Quick Note on Routing 54 Naming Devices 55 Folding and Unfolding

57 The Sequencer - Basics

58 About the Sequencer 59 Sequencer window handling 61 Managing Tracks 63 About the two Views 64 About the Ruler, Song Position and Locators 64 Transport Controls - Overview 65 Setting Up for Recording 65 Recording 67 Playback and Positioning 68 Mute and Solo 69 What else can I do in the sequencer?

TABLE OF CONTENTS

71 Introduction to the Combinator

72 What is the Combinator device? 73 Creating a layered instrument Combi patch - a tutorial 75 About the Programmer

77 Using Pattern Devices

78 About this chapter 78 What are Pattern Devices? 79 Selecting Patterns 79 Programming a Pattern 80 Clearing a Pattern 80 Using Cut, Copy and Paste 81 Pattern Functions

83 The Browser

84 Background 85 About the Browser 86 Opening the browser 86 Browser elements 88 Navigating in the Browser 90 Cross-browsing patch files 92 Using the Search function 93 Opening files 93 Using Favorites 95 Handling Missing Sounds

97 Working with Patches

98 About Patches 98 Selecting a Patch 99 Saving Patches 100 Copying and Pasting Patches between Devices 100 Initializing Patches

101 Song File Handling

102 About Self-contained Songs 103 Song Information 104 Saving a Song 104 Publishing a Song 104 Opening a Song 104 Closing a Song 105 Creating a New Song 105 Creating a Default Song 106 Exporting as an Audio File

107 Index

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Installation

Welcome!

About the manuals

Thank you for purchasing Reason 3.0!

Version 3.0 is the third major update of Reason, and this time we have designed the update with live playing in mind. With the powerful Combinator device, an updated and expanded sound bank, a completely new Browser, the awesome Remote technology and also a new range of mastering effect devices, we think we have created a piece of music software that is just as well suited in the studio as it is on stage.

Replacing expensive and easily outdated hardware with easy-to-use, cool sounding software has always been our mission. And with Reason 3, we feel that we have pushed the software synthesis concept one step further by bringing it on stage!

A strong driving force for us at “PropellerHeadQuarters” is the communication with all the people around the world that use our applications for expressing themselves. One meeting point for all of us is the song archives and message boards on our web pages. This is a unique forum where professionals and beginners meet on equal terms to exchange music and ideas. Even more importantly, it’s a forum open to you! Share your experiences by communicating with us and others and by uploading your songs for others to hear. We think you will appreciate the feedback from other Reason users all over the world, just as much as we appreciate the feedback we get from you.

So, see you on the Propellerhead web!

Yours truly,

The Propellerhead Software Team

www.propellerheads.se

This is the Getting Started manual, covering the basic features and procedures in Reason. It also contains a tutorial section and a guided tour, to help you get going with the program.

The more advanced features in Reason are described in the Operation Manual, a file in Adobe Acrobat (".pdf") format. This and other pdf documents are installed with the program - you find them in the Documentation folder inside your Reason application folder. The Operation Manual also contains reference descriptions of all Reason devices and commands.

To read the Operation Manual you will need the Adobe Acrobat

Reader application (version 5.0 or later). Since this has become something of a household utility application, chances are you already have it installed on your computer. If not, run the Acrobat Reader installer included on the Reason program disc.

About Mac and Windows

Reason runs under Mac OS X and Windows (for operating system details, see below). All Reason packages contain program versions for both platforms. Everything said in the manuals applies to both platforms, unless explicitly stated.

If you are running Mac OS X, please note that there’s an additional menu called the Reason menu, which is not present under Windows. This contains the Preferences menu item (otherwise found on the Edit menu).

Virtually all screenshots in the manuals are from the Windows ver-

sion of Reason. However, the contents of all windows and dialogs are the same on both platforms.

INSTALLATION

What is in the Reason

Requirements

package?

When you purchase Reason, the package contains the following items:

The Program Disc CD.

This contains the Reason installer, electronic documentation in Adobe Acrobat format, and an installer for Adobe Acrobat Reader. There will also be additional files such as promotional material, demo versions of other Propellerhead Software products, etc.

The Factory Sound Bank CD.

This contains the Reason Factory Sound Bank, a large file containing samples, patches and loops for use with Reason. This is copied to your hard disk the first time you launch Reason (see page 10 for more information).

The Orkester CD

This contains the Reason Orkester Sound Bank. This is also copied to your hard disk the first time you launch Reason (see page 10 for more information).

The printed documentation.

The product authorization card.

This contains the license number required for the installation. Keep this card in a safe place, in case you need to re-install Reason!

Below you will find the minimum requirements for running Reason:

Note that these are the minimum requirements! You will benefit from a fast computer with a lot of RAM, since this will allow you to use more devices at the same time.

Mac OS X

• G3, G4 or G5 processor, sufficiently fast to run Mac OS X 10.2.

• 256 MB RAM

•2 GB free hard disk space.

• CD-ROM drive.

• Mac OS X 10.2 or later.

•A MIDI interface and a MIDI keyboard recommended.

Windows

• Intel Pentium 3 or better. 300 MHz or faster.

• 256 MB RAM.

•2 GB free hard disk space.

• CD-ROM drive.

• Windows 2000/XP (or later).

• 256 color monitor (or better), 800x600 or larger.

•A 16 bit Windows compatible audio card, preferably with an ASIO or DirectX driver.

•A MIDI interface and a MIDI keyboard recommended.

INSTALLATION

About the Audio Hardware

The audio hardware is the computer equipment that converts the digital signals from Reason to analog audio signals (for connection to an amplifier, headphones, or similar). This equipment could be a standard stereo sound card, a USB audio interface, the built-in audio hardware on a Macintosh or some more advanced audio card with several inputs and outputs, digital connectors, etc. Regardless of which, you need to make sure the hardware and its drivers are properly installed:

Mac OS X

If you are using the built-in audio hardware of the Macintosh

In this case you don’t need to make any extra settings. Just connect the audio output to your listening equipment (speakers, mixer, headphones or similar) and make sure your Mac plays audio properly.

If you are using other audio hardware

You may want to use other audio hardware with Reason (e.g. an audio interface with multiple outputs, digital connections, etc.). For this to be possible, the audio hardware must be compatible with Mac OS X, that is, there must be a Mac OS X driver available for the card.

1. Install the audio hardware and its drivers as described in its documentation.

2. Connect the stereo outputs of your audio hardware to your listening equipment (speakers, mixer, headphones or similar).

For info about how to use multiple outputs (i.e. more than a stereo output), see the Operation Manual pdf. For now, we stick to standard stereo connections.

3. If possible, test that audio plays back OK with the audio hardware.

With some audio hardware, a test application is supplied for this purpose.

Windows

If possible, you should use ASIO compatible audio hardware (i.e. audio hardware for which there is an ASIO driver).

ASIO drivers generally provide better performance and lower latency (see page 14).

If there is no ASIO driver available, you should make sure your audio card supports DirectX.

DirectX is a Microsoft protocol for handling audio and other multimedia aspects.

As a last resort, you could use audio cards that don’t support ASIO or DirectX, provided that they are Windows compatible.

In this case, Reason will communicate with the audio hardware via MME (Windows Multi Media Extensions). However, most often this results in large latency values (see page 14), making real-time playback of instrument devices difficult or even impossible.

Regardless of which type of audio hardware or drivers you are using, you should follow these basic steps:

1. Make sure you have the latest drivers for the audio hardware!

Please check the manufacturer’s web site for the latest versions.

2. Install the audio hardware and its drivers as described in its documentation.

3. Connect the stereo outputs of your audio hardware to your listening equipment (speakers, mixer, headphones or similar).

For information about how to use multiple outputs (i.e. more than a stereo output), see the Operation Manual pdf. For now, we stick to standard stereo connections.

4. If possible, test that audio plays back properly with the audio hardware.

In the case of audio hardware with ASIO drivers, you will need some test application for this (often included with the audio hardware). If you are using DirectX or MME drivers, you can use Windows’ Media Player application for this.

INSTALLATION

About MIDI Interfaces

Upgrading vs. New

While it is possible to use Reason without an external MIDI controller (by playing patterns and loops only, or drawing notes and automation in the sequencer), this would not allow you to use the program to its full potential. From now on we assume that you are using a MIDI interface and some kind of external MIDI controller (typically a MIDI keyboard with a built-in USB interface).

When installing the MIDI interface and its drivers, follow the instructions in its documentation carefully.

While a MIDI interface with a single input is sufficient, you will benefit from having two or more individual inputs.

This is especially true if you want to manipulate Reason parameters with additional MIDI control surface devices or use the program in conjunction with an external, stand-alone sequencer, groove machine or similar.

• For some MIDI interfaces connected via USB, no driver installation is required. Just plug in the interface and you’re ready to go!

• For other, more advanced MIDI interfaces (or at least to take advantage of more advanced features, like multiple inputs) you will need to install a driver. Please consult the documentation that came with the interface for details.

MIDI Connections

Simply connect the USB cable from your keyboard to your computer.

Although many USB MIDI keyboards are “plug-and-play”, some may require a driver to be installed. Consult the documentation that came with your MIDI keyboard.

Connect a MIDI cable from the MIDI Out on your MIDI keyboard (or other MIDI controller) to a MIDI In on your MIDI interface.

This is sufficient to be able to play and record notes and controllers in Reason from the MIDI keyboard.

If you are not using a USB keyboard, you may also connect the MIDI Out from the MIDI interface to the MIDI In on your MIDI keyboard.

This is not strictly necessary to use Reason, but it will enable two-way communication when you run the Reason Setup Wizard which appears the first time Reason is launched (see page 12), or when using Auto-detect Surfaces in the Preferences. Whether auto-detection works or not depends on the keyboard model.

If you have several MIDI control surfaces or similar that you want to

use, we recommend that you connect them to separate MIDI ports (or directly to the computer using USB).

Installations

If you are upgrading from a previous version, please note the following:

Our recommendation is that you uninstall the previous version before installing the new one.

Under Windows, please use the Uninstall feature. Under Mac OS, just drag the program files to the Trash. Uninstalling will ensure that there is no confusion between versions and that shortcuts and aliases point to the right files etc.

INSTALLATION

Installing the Software

Running the Installer

Now it’s time to install the actual Reason software:

Insert the Reason CD labeled “Program Disc” into your CD-ROM drive.

What to do next depends on whether you are installing on a Mac or a Windows computer.

Windows:

1. On the CD-ROM, locate the file called “Install Reason” and double click on it.

Under Windows, the installer may automatically start when you insert the CD, depending on your system settings.

2. Follow the instructions on screen.

Before executing the installation of the software components, you will be asked to specify a install location, and whether you wish to create a program shortcut/alias on your desktop. When the installation is complete, you have the option of launching Reason directly.

Mac OS:

On the Mac, there is only a folder called “Reason” - simply drag this to the Applications folder on your hard disk.

About the Sound Banks

The first time you launch Reason, you will be asked to insert the Reason Factory Sound Bank and the Orkester Sound Bank. These each consist of one big file, containing a large number of patches, samples and loops, serving as your main supply of sounds (much like the sound ROM in a synthesizer).

These are copied to your hard disk and are required to run the program.

Launching the Program

Now, the Reason files have been installed in a folder on your hard disk. Under Windows, all Reason related items have also been added to the Start menu and possibly you will have a Reason shortcut on the Desktop.

1. Check for any ReadMe files in the Reason folder or on the Start menu, and open and read these.

ReadMe files may contain important last minute information that didn’t make it into this manual.

2. Launch the program by double clicking the Reason icon (or by selecting the Reason item from the Start menu).

3. First a Licensing Agreement is shown.

Read it through and click “Agree” to proceed.

4. You will now be asked to insert the Orkester CD in your CD-ROM drive.

The Orkester Sound Bank will be then be automatically copied into the Reason Program folder. During this process, which will take a while, various splash screens are shown, along with a progress meter.

5. Next, you will be asked to insert the “Factory Sound Bank” CD in your CD-ROM drive.

The Factory Soundbank will also automatically be copied into the Reason Program folder.

6. Fill in the authorization form that appears.

Your license number can be found on the product authorization card included in the package.

At this point a dialog appears, asking you whether you want to register your copy of the program at the Propellerhead web site. Registering gives you immediate access to various benefits such as free, extra sounds for Reason!

You must have a working Internet connection to be able to register

on-line.

If you click the Register Now button, your Internet browser will launch and take you to the registration page on the Propellerhead web site.

Follow the instructions on the web page. After finishing the registration, click the Continue button in the installation dialog.

If you don’t want to register at this point, click the Later button.

You can register at any time by selecting Product Registration from the Contact menu (Mac) or Help menu (Windows) in Reason (or by going to www.propellerhead.se/register).

This completes the installation and the program is opened, but a new dialog appears named “Reason Setup Wizard” which will guide you through the basic settings needed to use Reason.

This is described in the “Setting Up” chapter so just leave things as they are for now and go to the next chapter...

INSTALLATION

Setting Up

About this Chapter

This chapter describes the settings you need to make before you can start using Reason. These are necessary in order to get any sounds from the program and to be able to play and control Reason via MIDI.

First run - Reason Setup Wizard

If you followed the instructions correctly in the last chapter, Reason should be running, and the first dialog in the “Reason Setup Wizard” guide should be open.

This only appears the very first time the program is run.

Note that any settings made in the Setup Wizard can always be

changed later in the Preferences!

Clicking Next will take you through a series of dialogs, where the following happens:

The Setup Wizard will first try to find a compatible audio driver.

It will automatically select the first compatible driver it finds. If this is the driver you wish to use, fine. If it isn’t, select your preferred driver from the Audio Card Driver pop-up. If you don’t know which driver to use, see page 13.

Next, Reason will try to auto-detect a master MIDI keyboard.

If one is found and you want to use this, click “Use” and proceed.

If Reason can't find the keyboard you have connected, or if you clicked “Don't Use”, you will be asked to specify a master keyboard manually.

This is done by first selecting a Manufacturer, and then a model. If your model keyboard isn’t on this list select “Other” - see below.

For Reason to auto-detect a device you need two-way MIDI commu-

nication! Non-USB keyboard devices without a MIDI input can of course still be added manually.

Note that your keyboard model is not necessarily one that Reason

“knows”. This is especially true for older models. You can still use such a MIDI keyboard, by selecting “Other” from the Manufacturer pop-up.

You will also have to specify a MIDI port to use.

This can be done manually or by playing a few notes on your keyboard.

Note that if you have additional remote control surface devices in your setup, these will have to be added in the Preferences - see

page 13.

The Setup Wizard will only establish a connected master MIDI keyboard device.

If all went well, you should now have established audio and MIDI communication

- the basics needed to play back audio and to direct MIDI to Reason! Reason

will launch and bring up the default song.

However, if for any reason the Setup Wizard failed to establish the necessary settings, or if you wish to add other devices etc., you have to make settings in the Preferences.

Read on...

SETTING UP

About the Preferences

Setting up the Audio

The basic settings for audio and MIDI are done in the Preferences dialog. This is opened from the Edit menu (or, if you are running Mac OS X, from the Reason menu).

The Preferences dialog.

✪

Described herein are only the most important settings in the Preferences. For information about other Preferences settings, see the Operation Manual pdf.

Hardware

In case this wasn’t done in the Setup Wizard, you need to establish a connection between Reason and the audio hardware. This is done by selecting a driver

- a software component that acts like a link between the program and the audio

hardware. Proceed as follows:

1. In the Preferences dialog, use the pop-up menu at the top to select the Audio page.

2. Pull down the Audio Card Driver pop-up menu and select one of the options.

Which option to select depends on the platform and the audio hardware. If an option is not applicable to your setup it will be greyed out in the dialog.

SETTING UP

Mac OS X

Select the option that corresponds to the hardware you want to use (the built-in audio connectors or some additional audio hardware that you have installed).

Windows

If you are using audio hardware for which there is a specific ASIO driver, you should select this.

With an ASIO driver written specifically for the audio hardware, Reason can communicate more or less directly with the audio hardware. The benefits are lower latency (see below) and possibly better support for additional hardware features such as multiple outputs.

If there is no specific ASIO driver, you should select the Direct Sound driver for the audio hardware.

This makes Reason communicate with the hardware via Direct Sound (a part of the Microsoft DirectX package). You need to have DirectX installed on your computer, and there must be a Direct Sound driver for the audio hardware.

The Direct Sound driver for a Creative SoundBlaster PCI card selected.

If the audio hardware doesn’t support Direct Sound (i.e. there is no Direct Sound driver available for the audio hardware), select the MME driver.

This makes use of Windows Multimedia Extensions, the part of Windows that handles audio, MIDI, etc. Using MME often results in larger latency values (see below).

About Latency and other Audio Settings

In the audio page, you will find a number of additional settings for audio. The most important ones are Buffer Size and the corresponding readout for Output Latency.

Latency is the delay between when audio is “sent” from the program and when you actually hear it. The latency in an audio system depends on the audio hardware, its drivers and their settings.

If the latency is large, you will notice that the sound is delayed when you play a device from a MIDI keyboard. You may also notice that reactions are delayed when adjusting controls on the device panels (for example, if you lower the volume of a device, you will not hear this immediately but after the latency time).

If you experience high latency values, you will need to make adjustments to your configuration.

• If available, use the Buffer Size slider to lower the latency.

• If this is greyed out, you may be able to lower the buffer size in the control panel for the audio hardware - click the Control Panel button to open this.

For more information, please consult the Operation Manual.

SETTING UP

Setting up MIDI

In Reason, MIDI keyboards or remote control devices are called control surfaces. MIDI input from control surfaces is handled by a system called Remote. Here are some of the main features:

You can use any number of control surfaces at the same time.

The program supports a large number of control surfaces out of the box - knobs, faders and buttons on the surfaces are automatically mapped to the most useful parameters on the Reason devices.

You don’t have to change the settings on the control surface to control different devices in Reason - if you change MIDI focus from a Subtractor track to a Malström track, the control surface will automatically adapt. You just set up your control surface once and for all for use with Reason the program handles the rest!

For control surfaces that are not natively supported at this stage, you can use generic drivers.

With the generic drivers, you can use templates or settings compatible with Reason 2.5, if available for the control surface. Note however, that Remote drivers for additional control surfaces will be added continuously - check our web page for more info.

By default, all control surfaces follow the sequencer MIDI input.

This means that you set MIDI input to a track in the sequencer to route the control surface(s) to the track’s device in the rack.

You can lock a control surface to a specific device in the rack.

For example, you could have a master keyboard that follows MIDI input, while another control surface is locked to the main mixer in the rack. This way you can control levels and pans at all times. This is described in the Operation Manual.

You can use remote overrides to map a specific control on a surface to a specific Reason parameter or function.

For example, you could override-map a knob or fader on your control surface to the mixer’s master level fader. Or you could map buttons on your control surface to control Reason’s transport (play, stop, record, etc.) at all times, regardless of which track has MIDI input in the sequencer. This is described in the Operation Manual.

D Remote also supports some control surfaces with MIDI feedback.

If you have such a control surface and it is supported by Reason 3.0, you can take full advantage of motorized faders, meters, displays, etc.

D Among the Reason documentation you will find a document called

“Control Surface Details”.

This contains useful information about the supported control surfaces.

In case you specified a master keyboard in the Setup Wizard, and you don't have any other control surfaces, you don't have to do anything else. But if you want to add additional control surfaces or edit your settings, this is done in the Preferences.

Adding a control surface

1. Open the Preferences dialog and select the Control Surfaces page.

2. If your control surface is connected via USB (or if you have made a two-way MIDI connection), try clicking the Auto-detect Surfaces button.

Reason scans all MIDI ports and tries to identify the connected control surfaces. Note that not all control surfaces support auto-detection.

All found surfaces are listed in the Attached Surfaces list.

3. To add a control surface manually, click the Add button.

This brings up a new dialog.

4. Select the manufacturer of your control surface from the Manufacturer pop-up menu.

If you can’t find it on the menu, see below.

5. Select the model of your control surface from the Model pop-up menu.

If you can’t find it on the menu, see below.

SETTING UP

6. An image of the selected control surface model is shown, often along with some information text - read this carefully.

For some control surfaces, you need to select a specific preset to use the surface with Reason - this is noted here.

7. Use the MIDI Input pop-up to select the input port to which you have connected the surface.

If in doubt, you can click the Find button and then tweak a control or play a key on the control surface to have Reason find the correct input port for you.

D Some control surfaces may have more than one MIDI Input pop-up

menu.

You need to select ports on all MIDI Input pop-up menus.

D Some control surfaces will have a MIDI Output pop-up menu.

In some cases this labeled “Optional” - then you don’t have to make a selection. In other cases, a MIDI Output is required. This is the case if the control surface uses MIDI feedback - motor fader, displays, etc.

8. If you like, you can rename your control surface in the Name field.

9. Click OK to add the surface.

D Depending on the surface model, alerts may appear, reminding you

to select a specific preset etc.

In some cases, Reason can restore a preset in the control surface to factory settings for you - you are then informed of this.

Finally you return to the Control Surfaces Preferences page, where your added surface is now listed.

If your control surface model isn’t listed

If you can’t find your control surface listed on the Manufacturer or Model pop-up menus when you try to add it, this means that there’s no native support for that model. However, the program supports generic keyboards and controllers. Here’s what to do:

D Select “Other” on the Manufacturer pop-up menu and then select

one of the three options on the Model pop-up menu.

or, if the Manufacturer is listed but not your specific model:

D Select one of the three “Other” options on the Model pop-up menu:

In both cases, the options are:

• Basic MIDI Keyboard Select this is you have a MIDI keyboard without programmable knobs, buttons or faders. This is used for playing only (including performance controllers such as pitch bend, mod wheel, etc.) - you cannot adjust Reason device parameters with this type of control surface.

• MIDI Controller Select this if you have a MIDI controller with programmable knobs, buttons or faders (but without keyboard). You need to set up your control surface so that the controllers send the correct MIDI CC messages, depending on which Reason device you want to control - check out the MIDI Implementation Chart in the Reason documentation. If your control surface has templates or presets for different Reason

2.5 devices, these can be used.

• MIDI Keyboard with Controls Select this is you have a MIDI keyboard with programmable knobs, buttons or faders. Again, you need to set your controllers to send the right MIDI CCs.

After selecting a model, proceed with selecting MIDI input as described above.

About the master keyboard

One of the control surfaces can be the master keyboard. This is like any other control surface, but it must have a keyboard and it cannot be locked to a specific Reason device (in other words, it always follows the MIDI input to the sequencer). This is the surface you use to play the instrument devices in Reason.

D The first surface with a keyboard that is added (or found by auto-

detect) is automatically selected to be the master keyboard.

This is shown in the Attached Surfaces list on the Preferences page.

D If you want to use another surface as master keyboard, select it in

the list and click the “Make Master Keyboard” button.

You can only have one master keyboard.

D If you don’t want to use any master keyboard at all, select the cur-

rent master keyboard surface and click the same button (which is now labeled “Use No Master Keyboard”).

SETTING UP

Other functions

D To edit a surface, double click it in the list (or select it and click

Edit).

This lets you change its name and MIDI port settings, if needed.

D To delete a surface, select it in the list and click Delete.

D You can turn off a surface by deactivating its “Use with Reason”

checkbox.

This could be useful if the surface is connected to your system but you only want to use it with another program, etc.

D There is also an “Advanced MIDI” page in the Preferences.

This is only used for External Control MIDI buses and for MIDI Clock Sync input. All hands-on MIDI control is set up on the Control Surfaces page.

Setting the default song

Every time you start Reason, a simple default song opens. This default song contains a few devices and sequencer data and can be played. Every time you select “New” from the File menu, a default “template” song (without sequencer data) is opened, with a few selected devices. This serves as a suitable starting point for creating your own songs.

You can however decide exactly what you want the default song to look like, in the following way:

1. Open the Preferences dialog from the Edit menu (or Reason menu if you are running Mac OS X).

2. Use the pop-up menu at the top of the Preferences dialog to select the General page.

SETTING UP

3. At the middle of this page, there is a section entitled “Default Song”.

You have three choices: “Empty Rack”, Built In” and “Custom”.

Select which one you want to use by clicking the corresponding radio button.

• Empty Rack - This is an empty rack. Well, almost empty, since it contains the Reason hardware interface.

• Built In - When this is selected, launching Reason will open a basic demo song. Selecting “New” from the File menu will open a template song with a few devices to start with, but no sequencer data. Note that it is not possible to open these songs by regular means - via the browser - since they are not “independent”.rns-files, and thus do not reside anywhere in the Reason folder.

• Custom - This allows you to select a custom default song. Any Reason song can be used, so if you often create songs using the same or similar device setups, you can use a previously created song as the default song. This way, all new songs you create will have the same device setup.

D To select a custom default song, click the Folder icon to the right

and browse to the desired Reason song.

The name of the selected song will then be displayed in the text box.

SETTING UP

D Quick Tutorial

About this Chapter

This chapter is a quick introduction to the basics in Reason, laid out as step-bystep tutorials. At the end of the chapter you will also find a “guided tour”, describing the different areas and devices in the program.

! Before you proceed with the tutorials, you should have connected

your equipment and made settings for audio and MIDI as described in the previous chapters.

9. Near the top of the rack is a mixer device - make sure this is visible.

You may need to scroll the view using the vertical scrollbar to the right in the rack (or the scroll wheel on your mouse, if it is equipped with one).

The scrollbar.

Playing a Song

1. If you haven’t launched Reason yet, do so.

2. Pull down the File menu and select Open.

The Song Browser dialog appears.

3. Navigate to the Reason program folder.

4. Open the Demo Songs folder and select the song “Tutorial Song.rns”.

5. Click Open.

The document window for the song is displayed on screen. This consists of a “virtual rack” with devices (this song contains four instrument devices and two effects), a sequencer section and a transport panel.

6. Click the play button on the transport panel (at the bottom of the window).

Playback starts. If everything is properly connected, you should now hear Reason play!

The stop button. The play button.

7. Click the stop button to stop playback when you’ve heard enough.

Now, try out some real-time mixing:

8. Click the stop button again.

This moves the song position to the start of the song, allowing you to play the song from the beginning again.

The Mixer.

If you look at the mixer, you will see that each mixer channel has a “tape strip” next to the volume fader. If a device is connected to a mixer channel, the tape strip is labeled with the device name. In this song, there are only four instrument devices, so only the four first mixer channels are labeled.

10. Click the play button to start playback.

11. While the song is playing, click and drag the faders to adjust the level of each instrument device.

12. Try changing the pan setting (stereo position) of a channel, by clicking the pan knob above the fader and dragging up or down.

Dragging up will turn the knob clockwise; dragging down will turn it counterclockwise.

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You may also want to add some effects to the music. In this song, there are two effect devices connected: a delay and a chorus/flanger. These are connected as send effects from the mixer, allowing you to specify how much of each mixer channel signal should be sent to each effect.

13. Raise the Aux send level knobs at the top of a mixer channel.

Send 1 is connected to the delay, while send 2 goes to the chorus/flanger.

The Aux sends.

Finally, let’s try tweaking some controls on an actual instrument device, to change the sound. In this example we will use the Subtractor synthesizer device, but all devices have parameters that can be adjusted on the device panels in the same way.

Unless you have a very large screen, the Subtractor device isn’t visible right now. You could use the scrollbar to scroll the rack down, but here’s a quicker way:

14. In the sequencer area (above the transport panel), click on the name “Subtractor” in the track list to the left.

The rack is automatically scrolled to bring the Subtractor device into view.

15. Try adjusting some parameters while the song is playing.

You may for example want to tweak the “Filter 1 Freq” slider, to change the brightness of the synth bass sound.

Creating a new song

In this tutorial we will start with an empty rack, to let you add your own devices “from scratch”.

1. If you like, close the current song by selecting Close from the File menu.

You can have several song documents open in Reason at the same time, but each song uses some memory and computing power, so it’s good practice to close songs you don’t need.

2. Pull down the File menu and select Open.

3. Navigate to the Reason program folder and open the Template Documents folder.

4. Select the file “Empty Rack.rns” and click Open.

A song document window appears. This consists of an (almost) empty rack and there are no tracks in the sequencer.

! Normally when you create a new song, you would select “New”

from the File menu. This command opens the default song (see

page 105). The built-in default song contains a few devices, but if

you have set things up so that the default song is “Empty Rack.rns”, you can just select “New” from the File menu, and ignore step 1 - 4 above. See page 105 for instructions on setting up the default song.

5. Pull down the Create menu and select Mixer 14:2.

A mixer device is created in the rack.

! The reason why you should start with a mixer device, is that all sub-

sequent devices you add will then automatically be connected to a mixer channel.

6. Pull down the Create menu and select Subtractor Analog Synth, and then Redrum Drum Computer.

You have now added two instrument devices to the rack. If you look in the sequencer, you will note that two tracks have automatically been added, one for the synthesizer and one for the drum machine.

That concludes the first tutorial! Now, let’s move on to creating a Reason song from scratch.

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Now you could try playing the Subtractor synth “live” (provided you have a MIDI keyboard or similar hooked up):

7. In the sequencer, click in the “In” column for the synthesizer track (to the left of the name), so that a keyboard symbol is highlighted.

This symbol indicates that incoming MIDI is routed to the track. And since the track is connected to the Subtractor device, any notes you play on your MIDI keyboard will be sent to the synth.

MIDI routed to the Subtractor track.

8. Try playing your MIDI keyboard.

What you hear now is the default “Init” sound of the Subtractor, which may not be so inspiring. You could start tweaking the parameters to create a sound of your own, or you could select one of the included synth patches (and tweak this to your liking):

9. Click the folder button on the Subtractor panel.

This opens the Patch Browser dialog.

10. In the Browser “Locations” list to the left, click on “Reason Factory Sound Bank”.

This is one huge ReFill containing a large number of patches and samples that are included with Reason when you purchase it.

11. Double click the folder “Subtractor Patches”.

This contains a number of folders with different sound categories.

12. Open one of the folders, and select a patch.

The patch is loaded in the background - you can try out the patch while playing you keyboard without closing the Browser. Try selecting other patches in the Browser to audition them. Click OK to confirm a selection and to close the Browser.

D Once you have selected a patch this way, you can step between the

patches in the same folder, by clicking the up and down arrow buttons next to the patch display.

Alternatively, you can click in the patch name display to bring up a context menu with all the patches in the folder.

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It’s possible to play the drum machine device via MIDI in the same way, but let’s try creating a pattern with the built-in pattern sequencer instead:

13. Click the folder button in the lower left corner of the Redrum panel.

This opens the patch browser for the drum machine, allowing you to select a Redrum patch (a drum kit). Note that there are folder buttons for each drum sound channel too - these let you add drum samples one by one and create your own drum kits.

Load Sample buttons

The Select Patch button

14. Select a Redrum patch in the same way as you selected a Subtractor patch.

The patches are located in category folders within the folder “Redrum Drum Kits” in the Reason Factory Sound Bank.

When you have selected a patch, you will note that a sample file name is displayed at the top of each drum sound channel in the drum machine. There may also be different parameter settings for the different drum sounds - all these settings are part of a Redrum patch.

Drum sound channels

The selected patch

15. Try out the drum sounds by clicking the audition buttons at the top of each drum sound channel.

Now, let’s start building a pattern. By default, the empty patterns have sixteen steps, with each step corresponding to a sixteenth note (so that the length of a pattern is one 4/4 bar). To make things simple, we’ll keep this setting for now.

16. Click the Run button on the Redrum device panel.

The pattern will start playing (as indicated by the running “LED” on the step buttons at the bottom of the device panel). Nothing will be heard, since you haven’t added any drum beats yet.

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17. Click the Select button for one of the drum sounds.

In Redrum, you add drum beats for one sound at the time.

18. Click on the first step button (marked 1).

The button lights up, indicating a drum beat.

Now try recording some synth notes in the sequencer:

22. Click in the In column for the synthesizer track in the sequencer so that the MIDI connector symbol appears.

23. Click the record button in the transport panel.

The button lights up, indicating record standby mode.

The Play button The Fast Forward button

You will now hear the sound of the selected drum on the first beat of each bar.

19. Add more drum beats by clicking other step buttons.

Clicking a lit step button will remove the beat.

✪ You can add beats of different strength (velocity level) by adjusting

the Dynamic switch. Exactly how each sound is affected by different velocity levels depends on the settings. You can also adjust the dynamics “on the fly” by pressing [Shift] or [Option] (Mac) / [Alt] (Windows) when you add beats. [Shift]-click for hard beats, [Option]/[Alt]-click for soft beats.

20. Select another drum sound (by clicking its Select button) and proceed in the same way until you have a drum pattern you want to use.

21. To stop the playback, click the Run button again.

The Stop button

24. Click the play button.

Recording is activated, and the drum machine pattern automatically starts playing.

25. Play your MIDI keyboard while listening to the drum pattern.

26. When you’re done, click the stop button.

27. Click stop again to move the song position to the beginning of the song.

You can also click and hold the rewind button.

28. Click play to listen to your recording.

Finally, let’s record some automation of a synthesizer parameter. In this example, we automate the cutoff frequency of the filter (Filter 1 Freq), but you can automate any parameter you like.

29. Rewind the song to the beginning again.

30. Make sure the Overdub/Replace switch (just below the record button) is in the Overdub position.

This allows you to record more on the same track, without removing the previous recording.

31. Click the record button and then the play button.

Recording starts. You will hear the recorded synth notes being played back.

The Rewind button The Record button

The Overdub/Replace switch

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32. Click and drag the Filter 1 Freq slider on the Subtractor panel.

The changes you make will be heard immediately.

33. Click stop twice to end recording and go back to the beginning of the song.

If you look at the Subtractor panel, you will note that there is a green frame around the filter slider now. This indicates that the parameter is automated.

34. Play back the song again.

You will see the filter slider moving, exactly as you moved it during recording.

This concludes the second tutorial!

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Guided Tour

On the following pages you will find a brief “guided tour” through the program. This helps you get familiar with the different devices and their uses.

The Rack

This is the virtual rack, the heart of Reason. At the top of the rack you will always find the Hardware Interface, which allows Reason to communicate with the audio hardware and MIDI interfaces. Below this, you can add as many different devices you want (or as many as your computer can handle). Read more about the different devices below.

The Back

If you press [Tab] or select Toggle Rack Front/Rear on the Options menu, the rack will be “turned” to show you the back.

Here, the back panel of each device in the rack is shown. As you can see, connections between devices are indicated by “virtual patch cables”. Connections between instrument devices and mixers use red cables, connections to or from effect devices use green cables and CV connections (Control Voltage, used for controlling parameters or triggering sounds) use yellow cables. You can make connections by clicking and dragging from one “socket” to another on the back panels.

To turn the rack over again (to show the front panels), use the same command.

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The Transport Panel

The panel at the bottom of each song document window is called the transport panel. It contains transport controls and settings that are global for the song, such as tempo and time signature, shuffle amount, CPU load indicator, etc.

The Sequencer

The sequencer is located in the area below the rack. This is where you record and edit notes, controllers, device parameter automation and pattern changes.

The left part of the sequencer area is the track list, showing the names of the sequencer tracks. The columns in the track list allow you to connect tracks to devices, route MIDI and mute or solo tracks.

The track list.

The right part of the sequencer area has two main modes, the arrange view and the edit view.

When the arrange view is selected, you will see the tracks lined up vertically, with the recorded events indicated as colored bars (red for notes, yellow for pattern changes and blue for controllers). A ruler at the top of the view shows the meter positions.

The sequencer with the arrange view selected.

When the edit view is selected, the right part of the sequencer area will contain one or several lanes, showing the recorded data in detail. There are specific lanes for editing notes, pattern changes, controller data, etc.

The edit view, with the drum lane, velocity lane, pattern lane and two controller lanes visible.

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The Devices

The following devices are available in Reason:

Reason Hardware Interface

This device handles Reason’s communication with your hardware.

The upper half of the hardware interface contains settings for MIDI input, allowing you to select a separate MIDI channel for each device when controlling Reason from an external multi-channel MIDI source.

! For standard MIDI control of one device at a time in Reason, you

don’t need to use the hardware interface (since the MIDI signals are routed through the sequencer, as described in the tutorials earlier in this chapter).

The lower half of the hardware interface contains audio output indicators with level meters. This is where you connect different devices to different outputs on your audio hardware. Reason supports up to 64 separate audio outputs. However, if you are only using audio hardware with standard stereo outputs, the connections to the audio hardware are automatically taken care of when you create a mixer device at the top of the rack.

! The Reason Hardware Interface is “riveted” into the rack, and can-

not be removed.

Combinator

The Combinator allows you to create new “custom” devices by combining existing devices. Any combination of Reason devices can be added to the Combinator and then saved as a “Combi” patch. Example usage includes creating layered instruments, instrument/effect combinations and effect chains. Devices in a Combi can be mapped to velocity/key zones and the Combinator also features virtual knobs and buttons that can be assigned to any device parameter or function.

Mixer 14:2

This is a mixer with fourteen stereo channels, four stereo effect sends and a basic two-band EQ section. By connecting the different devices to different mixer channels (and the stereo output of the mixer to the hardware interface) you can listen to all your devices at the same time, adjust levels and pan, add effects and so on - just like on a physical mixer.

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+ 84 hidden pages

Propellerhead Reason - 3.0 User Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual

Table of Contents

Installation

Welcome!

About the manuals

Requirements

About the Audio Hardware

About MIDI Interfaces

Installing the Software

Setting Up

About this Chapter

First run - Reason Setup Wizard

About the Preferences

Setting up MIDI

Setting the default song

D Quick Tutorial

About this Chapter

Playing a Song

Creating a new song

Guided Tour