OPERATION MANUAL
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.
©2011 Propellerhead Software and its licensors. All specifications subject to change without notice. Reason and
Reason Essentials are trademarks of Propellerhead Software. All other commercial symbols are protected trademarks
and trade names of their respective holders. All rights reserved.
Table of Contents
Introduction 17
Welcome! 18
About this chapter 18
About this manual 18
Editing parameters 40
Knobs 40
Faders and sliders 40
Buttons 41
Fold/Unfold buttons 41
Multi Mode selectors 42
Numerical controls 42
Alpha-numeric controls 43
Numerical segment displays 44
About the Reason Essentials operating
system versions 18
Conventions in the manual 18
Authorization 20
Registering and authorizing Reason Essentials 20
Running Reason Essentials with the Ignition Key
hardware 22
Running Reason Essentials with Internet Verification 22
Running Reason Essentials in demo mode 23
Reassigning the Function Keys in Mac
OS X 24
Common Operations and
Concepts 27
About this chapter 28
Tool Tips 45
Context menus 46
Parameter context menus 46
Device context menus 47
Main Mixer channel strip context menu 48
Rack “background” context menu 49
Main Mixer “background” context menu 49
Sequencer context menus 49
Undo and Redo 50
On-screen Piano Keys 53
About this chapter 54
Using the On-screen Piano Keys 54
Opening the Piano Keys window 54
Mouse mode 55
Computer Keys mode 56
Areas, windows and basic navigation 28
Song window overview 28
The Main Mixer 29
The Rack 30
The Sequencer 31
The Transport Panel 32
The ReGroove Mixer 32
Navigating between the areas 33
Showing/hiding the Navigators 33
Using several Reason Essentials Song windows 33
The Tool Window 34
The On-screen Piano Keys window 35
General window techniques 36
Resizing 36
Scrolling 37
Zooming in the Sequencer 38
Scrolling and zooming using a wheel mouse 39
Audio Basics 59
About this chapter 60
How Reason Essentials communicates
with your audio hardware 60
Manual audio routing 61
Audio quality 61
Audio settings 62
About audio levels 65
System signal paths 67
Audio Track signal paths 67
Instrument Track signal paths 68
4
General information about audio and
computers 69
About latency 69
About processors 70
About RAM 70
Note lane 95
Parameter automation lane 96
Pattern lane 97
Creating/adding lanes 98
Deleting lanes 100
Moving note lanes 102
Copying (duplicating) note lanes 102
Muting lanes 103
Sequencer Functions 71
About this chapter 72
Introduction 72
Sequencer area overview 72
Arrange Mode and Edit Mode 72
Toolbar overview 73
Track List overview 74
Tracks overview 74
Lanes overview 74
Clips overview 75
Inspector overview 75
Ruler overview 75
Edit/Arrangement Pane overview 75
Track Navigator overview 76
Song Navigator overview 76
Transport Panel overview 76
Track details 77
Track definition 77
The relationship between the track, the rack and the
Main Mixer 78
Master Keyboard Input 82
The relationship between tracks, lanes, clips and
events 83
Track types 83
Track List elements 85
Creating tracks 86
Selecting tracks 89
Moving tracks 90
Deleting tracks 90
Duplicating/copying tracks and devices 91
Coloring tracks 92
Naming tracks 92
Folding tracks 92
Muting tracks 93
Soloing tracks 93
Lane details 94
Audio lane 94
Clip basics 103
Clip types 103
Toolbar details 104
Toolbar tools 104
Alternate tools 106
Snap 107
Sequencer Toolbar keyboard shortcuts 108
Ruler details 108
Transport Panel details 109
Transport keyboard commands 112
About the Inspector 113
About subticks in the Position and Length displays 113
About the “Match Values” function 113
Recording in the
Sequencer 115
About this chapter 116
General recording functions 116
Record enabling 116
Click and Pre-count 120
Loop mode 121
General recording procedure 122
Undoing a recording 123
Recording tips 123
Audio recording details 123
Setting up the audio track 123
Recording audio 128
Recording audio in Loop mode 130
Overdubbing audio using the “Dub” function 131
Duplicating audio tracks using the “Alt” function 131
5
Recording over or into an existing audio clip 132
Recording audio from Mix Channel outputs 133
Recording a mixdown of several audio tracks 135
Note recording details 139
Setting up the instrument track 139
Recording notes 139
Recording notes in Loop mode 139
Recording over or into an existing note clip 140
Recording notes using the “Dub” and “Alt” functions 141
Moving clips 163
About overlapping clips 165
Duplicating clips 165
Cutting, Copying and Pasting clips 165
Naming clips 166
Coloring clips 166
Splitting clips 167
Joining clips 168
Muting clips 170
Merging clips on note lanes 170
Matching clips using the “Match Values” function 171
Parameter automation recording
details 143
Performance controllers vs. track parameter
automation 143
Recording performance controller automation 144
Recording parameter automation into Note Clips 145
Recording performance controller automation over or
into an existing clip 145
About performance controller automation on multiple
lanes 146
Recording parameter automation 146
Recording parameter automation in Loop mode 147
Recording parameter automation over or into an existing
clip 148
Adjusting automated parameters during playback - “Live
mode” 149
Recording parameter automation on multiple tracks 149
Pattern automation recording details 150
Recording pattern automation 150
Tempo automation recording 151
Recording tempo automation 151
Inserting bars 173
Removing bars 173
About removing bars that contain audio recordings 174
Audio Editing in the
Sequencer 175
About this chapter 176
The Edit Mode 176
Opening audio clips for editing 177
Edit Mode elements for audio clips 179
The relationship between Clips, Comp Rows and
Recordings 182
Edit Mode window handling 184
Audio editing tools 185
Razor (Cut) Tool 185
Speaker Tool 185
Arranging in the
Sequencer 153
About this chapter 154
Clip handling 154
Selecting clips 154
Setting audio clip Level and Fades 156
Deleting clips 157
Resizing (masking) clips 158
About masked recordings and events 159
Tempo scaling clips 161
Selecting a Comp Row for playback in Single Mode 186
Selecting Comp Rows 187
Deleting Comp Rows 187
Moving Comp Rows 188
Duplicating Comp Rows 188
Cutting, copying and pasting Comp Rows 189
Adjusting the Comp Row Level 189
Adjusting the Recording Offset 190
Delete Unused Recordings 190
Bounce Clip(s) to New Sample(s) 191
Normalizing Clips 192
Reversing Clips 193
Tempo scaling Clips 193
6
Editing audio clips 186
Editing audio in Comp Mode 195
Adding Cuts 195
Adding Segments 196
Adding Crossfades to Cuts 196
Deleting Cuts 197
Moving Cuts 197
Changing Comp Row assignments 198
Bounce Clip(s) to New Recording(s) 199
Creating a comped audio clip 200
Audio and tempo matching 204
Matching an imported audio clip to the song tempo 204
Moving a snare hit 205
Editing audio using the Inspector 208
Editing recordings and cuts in the Inspector 208
Matching audio values using the "Match Values"
function 208
Note and Automation
Editing 211
About this chapter 212
Automation editing 243
Overview 243
Editing parameter automation 243
Drawing parameter automation events 246
Deleting automation events 247
Editing performance controller automation 247
About Automation Cleanup 249
Editing pattern automation 250
Drawing pattern automation 251
Moving, resizing and duplicating pattern automation
clips 252
Deleting pattern automation clips 252
The “Convert Pattern Automation to Notes” function 253
Editing tempo automation 253
About tempo changes and tempo automation of audio
tracks 254
Automating time signature 254
Moving, resizing and duplicating time signature
automation clips 255
Deleting time signature automation clips 256
Note and automation editing in the
Inspector 256
Editing notes and events in the Inspector 256
Matching notes or events using the “Match Values”
function 257
The Edit Mode 212
Selecting what to edit 213
Opening note and automation clips for editing 213
Edit Mode elements 215
Edit Mode window handling 217
Note Edit Modes 217
Creating empty clips 220
Tool Window editing tools 221
Note editing 222
Selecting notes 222
Deleting notes 222
Drawing notes 223
Resizing notes 225
Moving notes 228
Duplicating notes 231
Using Cut, Copy and Paste 232
Quantizing notes 233
Transposing notes 236
Extract Notes to Lanes 237
Scale Tempo 240
Editing note velocity 241
Working with the Rack 261
About this chapter 262
Rack device procedures 262
Navigating in the rack 262
Resizing and detaching the rack 263
About Device Groups 263
Creating devices 265
Selecting devices 267
Deleting devices 268
Re-ordering devices 268
Creating new rack columns 270
About the “Sort Selected Device Groups” function 270
Duplicating devices 271
Cut, Copy and Paste devices 271
Naming devices 272
Folding and unfolding devices 273
7
Sounds and Patches 275
About this chapter 276
About patches 276
Devices that use patches 276
Loading patches 277
Saving patches 278
Copying and pasting patches between devices 279
Initializing patches 280
About ReFills 280
Using the Browser 281
Opening the browser 282
Browser elements 283
Navigating in the Browser 286
Using Locations and Favorites 288
Favorites Lists 288
Selecting and auditioning patches 291
Selecting and auditioning samples 291
Selecting multiple files 291
Cross-browsing patch files 292
Create Instrument/Create Effect 293
About patch formats and sampler devices 293
Using the “Search” function 294
Opening files 295
About browse lists 295
Handling Missing Sounds 296
The Missing Sounds dialog 297
Reason Essentials file formats 299
Automatic routing 305
Auto-routing of audio input signals 305
Auto-routing of Instrument devices 306
Auto-routing of Effect devices 306
Auto-routing of CV/Gate signals 307
Auto-routing devices after they have been created 307
Manual routing 308
Connecting cables 309
Connecting cables using pop-up menus 309
Disconnecting cables 310
Disconnecting devices 310
Using CV and Gate 310
Routing CV and Gate signals 310
About CV Trim knobs 310
The Main Mixer 311
About this chapter 312
Overview 312
The Audio Track, its device and mixer channel strip 313
The Mix Channel device and channel strip 314
The Master Section device mixer strip 315
Navigating in the Main Mixer 316
Viewing the Main Mixer area 316
Scrolling and navigating in the Main Mixer 316
Switching between channels, rack devices and
tracks 317
Routing Audio and CV 301
About this chapter 302
Signal types 302
Audio signals 302
CV/Gate signals 302
About P-LAN signals 303
About MIDI routing 303
About cables 303
Cable appearance 303
Checking and following cable connections 304
Cable color 305
Managing mixer channels 318
Creating and deleting channels 318
Selecting channels 318
Moving channels 318
Copying and duplicating channels 319
Copy channel settings 319
Resetting channel settings 320
Naming mixer channels 320
Coloring mixer channels 321
The channel strip 322
Input section 322
EQ section 322
Insert FX section 323
8
FX Sends section 323
Fader section 324
Channel Header section 325
The Master Section strip 326
Master Compressor section 327
Master Inserts section 328
FX Return section 329
Master Fader section 330
Master Section Header 330
Automating mixer parameters 331
Saving Songs 354
Saving a Song 354
Saving and optimizing a Song 355
Including Song Information 356
About Self-Contained Songs 357
Making a Song appear as a Template Song 358
A note about saving Songs as audio files 358
Audio data and Scratch Disk settings 359
About audio data in Song files 359
Changing Scratch Disk folder location 359
About “Orphan Audio Streams” 360
Working with effects 331
Insert FX 331
Send FX 335
Remote controlling the Main Mixer 338
Remote controlling a single mixer channel 338
Remote controlling multiple mixer channels 338
Advanced routing tips and tricks 341
Chaining Send effects from Redrum or Mixer
devices 341
Splitting signals using the Insert FX Out 343
Using the Mix Channel and Audio Track devices’ Direct
Outs 344
Creating an input channel for recording with effects 345
Creating a sub-mixer 347
Song File Handling 351
About this chapter 352
Importing and exporting Standard MIDI
Files 360
Importing Standard MIDI Files 360
Exporting Standard MIDI Files 361
Importing and Exporting
Audio 363
About this chapter 364
Importing audio 364
Audio formats, sample rates and tempo matching 364
About tempo matching imported audio 364
Importing audio to the sequencer 365
Importing audio to sample-based devices 366
Exporting audio 367
Exporting Songs or parts of Songs 367
Bouncing Mixer Channels 369
Bouncing Audio Clips 371
Opening Songs 352
Opening a Reason Essentials Song 352
Opening a Reason Essentials Demo Song 352
Opening the last Song at program launch 353
Closing Songs 353
Closing a Song 353
Creating Songs 353
Creating a new empty Song 353
Setting up the Default Song 354
Creating a new Song from a template 354
Sampling 373
About this chapter 374
Overview 374
One-click sampling 374
The Edit Sample window 374
About sample format, rate and resolution 375
9
General sampling functions 375
Setting up for sampling 375
Sampling 377
The Sample buttons 377
Sampling procedure 377
The Song Samples tab 380
Editing samples 382
The Edit Sample window 382
Setting Sample Start and End 384
Cropping samples 386
Normalizing samples 386
Reversing samples 386
Fading in/out samples 387
Looping samples 388
Saving edited samples 390
Renaming samples 390
ReGroove patches in the Reason
Essentials Sound Bank 416
Remote - Playing and
Controlling Devices 417
About the various MIDI inputs 418
About Remote 418
Setting up 419
Adding a control surface or keyboard 419
Other functions 421
Example Setups 421
Sample management 391
About Assigned and Unassigned samples 391
Saving samples in a song 392
Deleting samples from a song 392
Loading samples into a device 393
Duplicating samples 394
Exporting samples 395
About self-contained samples 397
The ReGroove Mixer 399
Introduction 400
ReGroove basics 400
The ReGroove Mixer 401
Global parameters 401
Channel parameters 402
Copy, Paste and Initialize ReGroove channels 406
Groove Settings 407
Remote basics 422
About Standard vs Remote Override mapping 423
About mapping variations 423
Locking a surface to a device 424
Locking a surface 424
Unlocking a surface 426
Remote Override 427
Activating Remote Override Edit mode 427
Remote Override mapping 428
Additional Remote Overrides... 431
Assigning Additional Overrides 432
Keyboard Control 433
Enabling Keyboard Control 433
Editing Keyboard Control 433
Saving Remote Setups 434
10
Working with grooves 410
Applying grooves to your music 410
Commit to Groove - making the grooves
“permanent” 413
Creating your own ReGroove patches 414
Groovy tips & tricks 415
ReWire 435
About this chapter 436
Why use Reason Essentials with
ReWire? 436
Introducing ReWire! 436
In ReWire version 1 436
In ReWire 2 436
How does it work? 436
Terminology 437
About system requirements 437
About synchronization 437
Optimizing Performance 447
Introduction 448
Checking Processing Power 448
Optimization and Latency reduction 448
About Latency Compensation 449
Launching and quitting applications 437
Using the Transport and Tempo
controls 438
Routing audio 438
Preparations in Reason Essentials 438
Routing in the ReWire host application 439
Routing MIDI via ReWire 2 439
Converting ReWire channels to audio
tracks 440
Details about various ReWire hosts 440
Synchronization and
Advanced MIDI 441
Optimizing your computer system 450
Optimizing Songs 452
RAM requirements 454
Hardware Interface 455
Introduction 456
About using ReWire 457
Sampling Input section 457
Advanced MIDI Device 458
More Audio 458
The Big Meter 459
About this chapter 442
Synchronization to MIDI Clock 442
ReWire users – read this! 442
What is synchronization and MIDI Clock? 442
Slaving Reason Essentials to an external MIDI
application or instrument 442
Slaving Reason Essentials to another program on the
same computer 443
Synchronization considerations 443
Advanced MIDI - The External Control
Bus inputs 445
About the External Control Bus inputs 445
Routing MIDI to devices 446
Sending Controller data via MIDI 446
About recording Pattern Changes 446
The Combinator 461
Introduction 462
Creating Combinator devices 463
Combinator elements 464
About internal and external
connections 465
About External Routing 465
Adding devices to a Combi 467
About the Insertion line 467
11
Creating new devices in a Combi 467
Adding devices using drag and drop 468
Adding devices using copy/paste 469
Adding a Combi to a Combi 469
Combining two Combis 469
Combining devices in a Combi with devices in the
rack 469
The Line Mixer 6:2 489
Introduction 490
Channel parameters 490
Combi handling 469
Moving the entire Combi 469
Moving devices within a Combi 470
Moving devices out of a Combi 470
Deleting devices in a Combi 470
Uncombining devices 470
Sequencer tracks and playing
Combis 470
The Controller panel 471
Select backdrop... 472
Using the Programmer 473
Key Mapping instrument devices 474
Setting Velocity Ranges for instrument devices 475
Using Modulation Routing 476
CV Connections 479
Mixer 14:2 481
The Auxiliary Return section 490
Master level 490
Connections 491
ID8 Instrument Device 493
Introduction 494
The Sounds 494
The ID8 and Standard MIDI Files 494
Using the ID8 495
Selecting Sounds 495
Controlling Sounds 496
About saving edited Sounds 496
Subtractor Synthesizer 497
12
Introduction 482
The Channel Strip 482
Channel Strip Controls 483
The Mixer signal flow 484
About the EQ modes 484
The Auxiliary Return Section 485
The Master Fader 485
Connections 485
Chaining several Mixer 14:2 devices 487
Introduction 498
Loading and Saving Patches 498
The Oscillator Section 499
Oscillator 1 Waveform 499
Setting Oscillator 1 Frequency - Octave/Semitone/
Cent 501
Oscillator Keyboard Tracking 501
Using Oscillator 2 501
Oscillator 2 Waveform 502
Noise Generator 502
Phase Offset Modulation 503
Frequency Modulation (FM) 505
Ring Modulation 506
The Filter Section 507
Filter 1 Type 507
Filter 1 Frequency 510
Resonance 510
Filter Keyboard Track (Kbd) 510
Filter 2 511
Envelopes - General 512
Amplitude Envelope 513
Filter Envelope 513
Mod Envelope 514
LFO Section 515
LFO 1 Parameters 515
LFO 2 Parameters 516
Loading NN-XT Patches 526
Loading NN19 Patches 526
Loading SoundFonts 526
Loading complete REX files as Patches 527
Using the main panel 528
The Pitch and Modulation wheels 528
The External Control wheel 528
High Quality Interpolation 529
Global Controls 530
Overview of the Remote Editor panel 531
The Key Map display 531
Sample parameters 532
Group parameters 532
Synth Parameters 533
Play Parameters 517
Velocity Control 517
Pitch Bend and Modulation Wheels 518
Legato 519
Retrig 519
Portamento (Time) 519
Setting Number of Voices - Polyphony 520
About the Low Bandwidth button 520
External Modulation 520
Connections 521
Audio Output 521
Sequencer Control 521
Modulation Inputs 522
Modulation Outputs 522
Gate Inputs 522
NN-XT Sampler 523
Introduction 524
About Samples and Zones 533
Selections and Edit Focus 534
Selecting Zones 535
Moving Edit Focus 537
Adjusting parameters 537
Adjusting Synth parameters 537
Adjusting Group parameters 537
Sample parameters 538
Managing Zones and Samples 539
Creating a Key Map 539
About file formats and REX slices 540
Adding more samples to the Key Map 540
Replacing a sample 540
Quick browsing through samples 541
Removing samples 541
Auditioning samples 541
Adding empty Zones 541
Duplicating Zones 541
Removing Zones 542
Rearranging Zones in the List 542
Sampling in NN-XT 524
Panel overview 525
The main panel 525
The Remote Editor panel 525
Loading complete Patches and REX
files 526
Working with Grouping 542
About Groups 542
Creating a Group 542
Moving a Group to another position in the List 543
Moving a Zone from one Group to another 543
Selecting a Group and/or Zones in a Group 544
The Group Parameters 544
13
Working with Key Ranges 544
About Key Ranges 544
Setting up Key Ranges 544
About the Lock Root Keys function 548
About the Solo Sample function 549
Sorting Zones by Note 550
Setting Root Notes and Tuning 551
About the Root Key 551
Setting the Root Note manually 551
Tuning samples manually 551
Setting the Root Note and Tuning using pitch
detection 552
About changing the pitch of samples 552
The Modulation Envelope 567
The Amplitude Envelope 569
The LFOs 570
Connections 572
Sequencer Control 572
Modulation Input 573
Gate Input 573
Audio Output 573
Dr. Octo Rex Loop Player 575
Using Automap 552
Layered, crossfaded and velocity
switched sounds 553
Creating layered sounds 553
About velocity ranges 553
Setting velocity range for a Zone 555
About Crossfading Between Zones 555
Setting crossfading for a Zone 557
Using Alternate 557
About the Alternate function 557
Sample parameters 558
Root Note and Tune 558
Sample Start and End 558
Loop Start and End 558
Play Mode 559
Lo Key and Hi Key 559
Lo Vel and Hi Vel 559
Fade In and Fade Out 559
Alt 559
Out 559
Group parameters 560
Key Poly 560
Legato and Retrig 561
LFO 1 Rate 561
Portamento 561
Synth parameters 562
The Modulation controls 562
The Velocity controls 564
The Pitch section 565
The Filter section 566
Introduction 576
ReCycled Loops 576
About REX file formats 577
Loading and saving Dr. Octo Rex
patches 577
About the Dr. Octo Rex patch format 577
Playing Loops 578
Switching playback between Loop Slots 578
Adding Loops 579
Loading Loops “On the Fly” 580
Removing Loops 580
Cut/Copy and Paste Loops between Loop Slots 580
Playing individual Loop Slices 580
Creating sequencer notes 581
Slice handling 584
Selecting Slices 584
Editing individual Slices 584
Editing in the Waveform Display 585
The Slice Edit Mode 586
Dr. Octo Rex panel parameters 587
Pitch and Mod wheels 587
Trig Next Loop 587
Note To Slot 587
Loop Slot buttons 588
Enable Loop Playback and Run 589
Volume 589
Global Transpose 589
14
Dr. Octo Rex synth parameters 590
Select Loop & Load Slot 590
Loop Transpose 590
Loop Level 591
Oscillator section 591
Mod. Wheel 591
Velocity section 592
The Filter Section 592
Envelope section 594
LFO section 595
Pitch Bend Range 596
Setting number of voices - polyphony 596
Audio Quality settings 597
Connections 597
Modulation Inputs 597
Modulation Outputs 598
Gate Inputs 598
Gate Output 598
Slice Outputs 598
Main Outputs 598
The Enable Pattern Section switch 609
Pattern functions 610
Chaining patterns 610
Converting Pattern data to notes in the main
sequencer 611
Redrum parameters 612
Drum sound settings 612
Global settings 615
Using Redrum as a sound module 616
Connections 617
The MClass Effects 619
The MClass effects 620
The MClass Equalizer 621
Redrum Drum Computer 599
Introduction 600
Sampling in Redrum 600
About file formats 601
Using patches 602
Loading a patch 602
Checking the sounds in a patch 602
Creating a new patch 603
Creating an empty patch 603
Programming patterns 603
Pattern basics 603
Pattern tutorial 605
Setting pattern length 606
Setting pattern resolution 607
Step dynamics 607
Pattern Shuffle 608
Flam 608
The Pattern Enable switch 609
The MClass Stereo Imager 622
The MClass Compressor 623
The MClass Maximizer 626
Line 6 Amps 627
Introduction 628
About the Amp Tones patch format 628
Basic usage 628
Front panel 629
Using the Line 6 Amps 630
Selecting Patches (Amp Tones) 630
Selecting Amp and Cabinet model 631
About the Amp/Cabinet models 632
Amp Parameters 632
Additional parameters 632
Additional Line 6 Amp Models 633
Connections 634
15
RV7000 Advanced Reverb 635
The RV7000 Advanced Reverb 636
Reverb algorithms and parameters 638
The EQ section 644
The Gate section 645
CV Inputs 646
Scream 4 Sound Destruction
Unit 647
Setting Pattern Resolution 676
Pattern Shuffle 676
Pattern Mute 676
Pattern Functions 677
Chaining Patterns 677
Converting Pattern data to notes in the main
sequencer 678
Example usage 679
Using the Matrix for modulation 679
Programming “Acid Style” lead lines 680
Triggering samples 680
Scream 4 Sound Destruction Unit 648
Parameters 648
CV inputs and outputs 652
Screamy tips and tricks 653
Half-Rack Effects 655
Common effect device features 656
DDL-1 Digital Delay Line 658
CF-101 Chorus/Flanger 659
Spider Audio Merger & Splitter 661
Spider CV Merger & Splitter 663
Matrix Pattern Sequencer 667
Menu and Dialog
Reference 681
Reason Essentials menu (Mac OS X) 682
File menu 683
Edit menu 687
Preferences – General 703
Preferences – Audio 706
Preferences – Control Surfaces 710
Preferences – Advanced 714
Preferences - Keyboard 716
Preferences - Language (Windows) 717
Create menu 718
Options menu 719
Window menu (Windows version) 723
Window menu (Mac OS X version) 725
16
Introduction 668
About the three Output types 668
Programming patterns 669
Pattern basics 669
Tutorial 672
Using Curve Patterns 674
Setting Pattern Length 675
Using Tied Notes 675
Help menu 727
Index 729
Chapter 1
Introduction
Welcome!
This is the Operation Manual for Propellerhead’s Reason Essentials music production software. The information in
this manual is also available as html files in the built-in Reason Essentials Help system.
If you haven’t already, don’t forget to check out the Video Tutorials web site, which can be accessed from the Help
menu in Reason Essentials.
Also, be sure to regularly check out the Propellerhead web site at www.propellerheads.se for the latest news!
About this chapter
The Introduction chapter describes some of the general conventions used throughout the Reason Essentials reference manual. It also contains instructions on how to utilize the Reason Essentials protection system.
About this manual
In this Operation Manual, all aspects of the Reason Essentials program are described in detail. The first chapters deal
with general methods and techniques, e.g. how to connect audio sources, mix and record. Then follow descriptions of
all rack devices in Reason Essentials.
About the Reason Essentials operating system versions
Propellerhead Reason Essentials comes in two platform versions: one for Windows (XP SP3, Vista or Windows 7)
and one for Mac OS X 10.5.8 or later (10.6.3 or later together with Propellerhead Balance). The screenshots in this
manual were taken from both platform versions of Reason Essentials. Since the program layout is more or less identical in the two versions, there shouldn’t be any problem following the instructions, regardless of which platform you
use.
Conventions in the manual
This manual describes both the Windows and Mac OS X versions of Reason Essentials; wherever the versions differ
this is clearly stated in the text.
Text conventions
The text conventions are pretty straightforward. The examples below describe when certain text styles are used:
D This style instructs the user to perform the task(s) described in the sentence.
! This text style means IMPORTANT INFORMATION. Read carefully to avoid problems!
q This text style is used for tips and additional info.
Key command conventions
In the manual, computer keyboard commands are indicated with brackets. For example:
D Hold down [Shift] and press [C].
However, some modifier keys are different on Windows and Mac computers. Whenever this is the case, the manual
separates the commands with “(Win)” and “(Mac)” indications as in the following example:
18
INTRODUCTION
D Hold down [Ctrl](Win) or [Cmd](Mac) and press [S] to save your song.
Rack
Sequencer
References to context menus
Whenever the manual instructs you to select an item from the “context menu”, it means that you should right-click (or
[Ctrl]-click if you’re using a Mac with single-button mouse) on the specific area, section or device, and then select the
item from the pop-up menu that appears - the context menu. The item list in context menus varies depending on
where in the application you click. See “Context menus” for an overview of the context menus in Reason Essentials.
Frames and circles (call-outs)
In pictures throughout this manual there might be circles and/or rectangles highlighting certain areas or objects.
These are indicated by filled lines according to the examples in the picture above. Sometimes these highlighting
frames/circles might also be accompanied by descriptive texts. The different colors of the frames and texts are only
to enhance the contrast to the background picture.
Dashed arrows
A dashed arrow in a picture indicates the directions in which the pointer (or other tool) should be dragged to perform
the desired operation. The example in the picture above shows in which directions (up and down) to drag the pointer
to change the knob’s setting.
INTRODUCTION
19
Authorization
Reason Essentials uses an authorization system designed to be as flexible as possible, while at the same time providing the best possible copy protection for the product. Here's how it works:
• The core of the authorization system is your license number, which is registered to your user account on the
Propellerhead web site.
• You then use this license to authorize your Propellerhead hardware - either the Propellerhead Ignition Key
USB stick or other hardware with the Ignition Key built-in, such as the Propellerhead Balance audio interface.
You can then use your Propellerhead audio interface (or Propellerhead USB stick) to run Reason Essentials in Authorized Mode, anywhere and on any computer.
• If you don't have the Ignition Key hardware at hand, you can still run Reason Essentials in authorized mode,
provided that you have a working internet connection.
The program will then contact the Propellerhead web site and verify that Reason Essentials is registered to your
user account.
• Finally, should you be without both your Ignition Key hardware and internet connection, you can run Reason
Essentials in Demo mode.
This is also the mode you use if you are trying out the program, but haven't yet purchased it. In this mode, you can
work as usual and even save your work. You cannot, however, open songs (except for demo songs) in demo mode
(for details, see “Running Reason Essentials in demo mode”).
Registering and authorizing Reason Essentials
To be able to run Reason Essentials in authorized mode (see “Running Reason Essentials with the Ignition Key hard-
ware” and “Running Reason Essentials with Internet Verification”), the program must be registered to your account
on the Propellerhead web site.
Here's how you register and authorize your copy of Reason Essentials.
! Note that a working internet connection is required to be able to perform the following steps.
1. Launch Reason Essentials.
When you start Reason Essentials for the first time, this window is displayed:
20
INTRODUCTION
2. Click on the Register and Authorize button.
The following dialog appears:
3. Connect your Ignition Key hardware to a free USB2.0 port on your computer.
If you don't have the Ignition Key hardware at hand, but just want to register Reason Essentials, click "Proceed
without Ignition Key hardware".
Reason Essentials will start the Authorizer, an application which manages authorizations and the Ignition Key
hardware. This will guide you throughout the rest of the registration and authorization process:
4. Click the "Launch Browser" button.
The default Internet browser on your computer is launched and will direct you to the Reason Essentials registration and authorization page at the Propellerhead web site.
5. Enter your user name and password and log in on your Propellerhead account.
If you don't have an account already, click on the "Create account" link and follow the instructions to register a
new account.
The following step depends on the situation:
6. If you haven't already registered Reason Essentials, you will be asked to do that: enter the license number and
registration code found in the Reason Essentials box, then click the button below.
• If you have connected your Ignition Key hardware, the button will be called "Register and Authorize".
Your license will be registered and the Ignition Key hardware will be authorized with your license.
If your Reason Essentials license is already registered, it will be shown on the web page. Select it and click the button called "Authorize". This authorizes your Ignition Key hardware with your license.
INTRODUCTION
21
• If you don't have your Ignition Key hardware connected, the button will be called "Register".
Your license will be registered, allowing you to run Reason Essentials in authorized mode with Internet Verification.
You can later return to authorize your Ignition Key hardware.
• If your Reason Essentials license is already registered, it will be shown on the web page.
Select it and click the button called "Authorize". This authorizes your Ignition Key hardware with your license.
7. When you're done, go back to Authorizer and click Quit.
Reason Essentials will restart automatically, and you will now be able to run the program in Authorized Mode.
Running Reason Essentials with the Ignition Key hardware
If you launch Reason Essentials with an authorized Ignition Key hardware connected, the program will simply start
without further ado.
q From now on, always connect your Ignition Key hardware before starting your computer and launching Reason
Essentials. This way Reason Essentials will start up immediately, without the Application Authorization procedure.
When you have an authorized Ignition Key hardware connected to your computer, it’s no longer necessary to have an
Internet connection when running Reason Essentials.
Running Reason Essentials with Internet Verification
If you launch Reason Essentials without an authorized Ignition Key hardware connected, the following window appears:
22
1. Click on the "Run with Internet Verification" button.
! Note that this requires a working internet connection (and that your Reason Essentials license has been regis-
tered to your user account as described in “Registering and authorizing Reason Essentials”).
2. Enter the username and password for your Propellerhead account in the dialog that appears.
Reason Essentials launches in Authorized Mode.
• Should you at any point connect your authorized Ignition Key hardware, internet connection will no longer be
required.
INTRODUCTION
• It is not possible to run two instances of Reason Essentials (on different computers) authorized to the same
user account. Reason Essentials will then enter demo mode (see “Running Reason Essentials in demo
mode”).
INTRODUCTION
23
Running Reason Essentials in demo mode
If you don't have a Reason Essentials license, or if you're without both your Ignition Key hardware and a working internet connection, you can run Reason Essentials in demo mode:
1. Launch Reason Essentials.
The following window appears:
2. Click on the "Run in Demo mode" button.
Reason Essentials launches in Demo Mode.
The Demo Mode alert lights up to the left on the Transport Panel:
Running Reason Essentials in Demo Mode allows you to perform all operations as in Authorized Mode, with two exceptions:
• You cannot export audio or bounce mixer channels to disk.
• You cannot open songs.
The only songs that can be opened in Demo Mode are the dedicated demo songs (file extension ".reedemo"). See
“Opening a Reason Essentials Demo Song”.
If you disconnect your Ignition Key hardware or lose the Internet connection while running Reason Essentials with Internet Verification, the program will automatically enter Demo Mode. You can continue working, and save your songs
as usual. When you reconnect your Ignition Key hardware or reconnect to the Internet, Reason Essentials will automatically revert to authorized mode and the Demo Mode alert will go out on the Transport Panel.
24
INTRODUCTION
Reassigning the Function Keys in Mac OS X
When you work with Reason Essentials, you will do a lot of navigating between the three main areas - the main mixer,
the rack and the sequencer. The quickest way to switch between these areas is to use the function keys F5, F6 and
F7 (see “Navigating between the areas” for details). Also, the F3, F4 and F8 keys are shortcuts for showing and hid-
ing the Recording Meter window, On-screen Piano Keys window and the Tool Window, respectively.
However, on many Macintosh models (especially MacBooks), the function keys double as hardware control buttons.
For example, they might control the volume of the built-in speaker, the display brightness or keyboard backlight. To
make these keys actually work as function keys for software such as Reason Essentials, you need to hold the "Fn"
key while pressing them.
This can work perfectly OK, but to get the best workflow in Reason Essentials we recommend that you change this
behavior, so that pressing e.g. the F5 key actually sends "F5" to Reason Essentials (and you hold down the Fn key to
get the hardware control functions instead). Here is how you change this:
1. Open the System Preferences in Mac OS X and select the "Keyboard & Mouse" item.
The "Keyboard & Mouse" preferences are shown.
2. Select the "Keyboard" tab and make sure the checkbox "Use all F1, F2, etc. keys as standard function keys" is
ticked.
Now you can use F3-F8 for controlling functions in Reason Essentials. To use hardware control features such as
volume and display brightness, you need to hold down the "Fn" key before pressing the function keys.
Some function keys might also be pre-assigned to Mac OS X keyboard shortcuts, which will have priority over software such as Reason Essentials. This is easily changed:
3. Click the “Keyboard Shortcuts” tab in the “Keyboard & Mouse” window.
The Keyboards & Mouse Preferences window shows a list of keyboard shortcuts assigned to system functions.
For example, [Cmd]+[F5] is assigned to turn VoiceOver on or off. In Reason Essentials, this is the keyboard shortcut for detaching the main mixer into a separate window.
INTRODUCTION
25
4. Scroll down to the "Turn VoiceOver on or off" item and either remove the tick from the checkbox or assign it to
another keyboard shortcut.
5. Scroll down further to the "Spaces" item (keyboard shortcut F8) and either remove the tick from the checkbox
or assign it to another keyboard shortcut.
In Reason Essentials [F8] is assigned to show/hide the Tool Window.
6. Now, you’re finished with the settings and can close the “Keyboard & Mouse” window.
From now on, the function keys and keyboard shortcuts will perform their intended functions in Reason Essentials.
26
INTRODUCTION
Chapter 2
Common Operations
and Concepts
About this chapter
Main Mixer
Rack
Sequencer
Transport Panel
This chapter gives a basic overview of the Reason Essentials application and describes general methods and techniques employed throughout the Propellerhead Reason Essentials software. It also explains the terminology used
throughout the program, manuals and help files.
Areas, windows and basic navigation
Song window overview
28
A Reason Essentials Song window with its Main Mixer, Rack and Sequencer areas
The Reason Essentials graphical user interface is divided into three main areas:
•The Main Mixer
The Main Mixer is located at the top in the Reason Essentials Song window. Here are the channel strips for the audio and instrument tracks in your song.
•The Rack
The Rack is where all sound and effects devices you use in your song are located. The Rack resembles a traditional hardware rack, where sound modules and effects units can be mounted.
• The Sequencer
The Sequencer is where you record your audio and instrument tracks. Here you can also record automation of device parameters in the Rack and of channel strip parameters in the Main Mixer. The Sequencer also incorporates
the Transport Panel, where all sequencer transport controls are located.
The areas can be viewed together, as in the picture above, in pairs or separately - see “Navigating between the ar-
eas”. The areas can also be resized - see “Resizing”.
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
The Main Mixer
Channel Strip Navigator
Mixer Navigator
Maximize Main Mixer button
Detach Mixer button
The Main Mixer with the Fader sections currently scrolled into view
In the Main Mixer, all channel strips of the Reason Essentials song are visible. You can scroll vertically in the Main
Mixer by clicking and dragging inside the frame in the Channel Strip Navigator to the right. This way you will be able
to access all channel strip parameters. If you have a lot of channels present you can also scroll horizontally by clicking
and dragging the frame in the Mixer Navigator at the top.
By pressing function key [F5], or by clicking the Maximize Main Mixer Area button at the top right of the Channel
Strip Navigator, you can maximize the Main Mixer to cover the entire Reason Essentials Song window.
The Maximize and Detach buttons for the Main Mixer
Below the Maximize Main Mixer Area button is the Detach Main Mixer button. Clicking on this, or holding [Ctrl](Win)
or [Cmd](Mac) and pressing [F5], will detach the Main Mixer and place it in a separate window. This is especially useful if you are using multiple screens with your computer.
For more details about the Main Mixer, please refer to “The Main Mixer” chapter.
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
29
The Rack
Rack
Navigator
Maximize Rack button
Detach Rack button
The Rack with two rack columns next to each other, and the Rack Navigator to the right
In the Rack, all instruments, effects and mixer channel devices of the Reason Essentials song are visible. You can
scroll vertically and horizontally in the Rack by clicking and dragging the frame in the Rack Navigator. You could also
click anywhere outside the frame in the Rack Navigator to immediately jump to the desired position. Alternatively,
place the pointer on either of the wooden “side panels” in the rack, and click and drag in any direction. This way you
will be able to access all devices in the rack.
By pressing function key [F6], or by clicking the Maximize Rack Area button at the top right of the Rack Navigator,
you can maximize the Rack to cover the entire Reason Essentials Song window.
The Maximize and Detach buttons for the Rack
Below the Maximize Rack Area button is the Detach Rack button. Clicking on this, or holding [Ctrl](Win) or
[Cmd](Mac) and pressing [F6], will detach the Rack Area and place in a separate window. This is especially useful if
your are using multiple screens connected to your computer.
When you detach the Rack, the Transport Panel at the bottom of the Sequencer will be duplicated below the Rack in
the new window. This way, you will be able to control the Sequencer transport functions without needing to change
window.
For more details on how to work with the Rack, refer to “Working with the Rack”.
30
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
The Sequencer
Track Navigator
Song Navigator
Track List
Edit/Arrangement Pane
Toolbar
Ruler
Maximize Sequencer button
The Sequencer with a number of recorded audio tracks
To the left in the Sequencer, all tracks in the Reason Essentials song are listed in the Track List. By clicking on a
track in the Track List you select the track for playback from a connected MIDI master keyboard and/or for recording.
At the top to the left are the Edit Mode button and the Toolbar, with various sequencer editing tools.
The big center section of the Sequencer is called the Edit/Arrangement Pane. Here is where all recorded sequencer
data is displayed.
You can scroll and zoom in the Sequencer by using the Track Navigator to the right and the Song Navigator at the
bottom of the Sequencer - see “Scrolling” and “Zooming in the Sequencer”.
By pressing function key [F7], or by clicking the Maximize Sequencer Area button at the top to the right of the Track
Navigator, you can maximize the Sequencer to cover the entire Reason Essentials Song window.
The Maximize button for the Sequencer
For more details about the sequencer, refer to “Sequencer Functions”.
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
31
The Transport Panel
At the bottom of the Reason Essentials Song window is the sequencer Transport Panel. From here you control the
sequencer transport functions, such as Rewind, Fast Forward, Stop, Play and Record. You can also set Tempo and
Time Signature and various other parameters.
The Transport Panel is always available together with the Sequencer. If you have detached the Rack, a duplicate of
the Transport Panel will be also present in the Rack window.
To the left on the Transport Panel are indicators for Audio In and Out levels, DSP Load, Disk Overload, Audio Calculation, Demo Mode and Automation Override status.
By clicking the small grey triangle button to the far upper right you can hide the Transport Panel if you like.
For more details about the Transport Panel, please refer to “Transport Panel details”.
The ReGroove Mixer
To the right of the Toolbar in the Sequencer is a big “G” button. Clicking this will bring up the ReGroove Mixer.
32
The ReGroove Mixer is used for adding advanced grooves to your instrument tracks in the Sequencer.
To hide the ReGroove Mixer, just click the “G” button again.
For more details about the ReGroove Mixer, please refer to “The ReGroove Mixer”.
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
Navigating between the areas
By using the functions keys [F5], [F6] and [F7] you can quickly and easily navigate between the different areas of the
Reason Essentials window.
D Press [F5] to toggle between a maximized Main Mixer area and the previous view.
D Press [F6] to toggle between a maximized Rack area and the previous view.
D Press [F7] to toggle between a maximized Sequencer area and the previous view.
! If the Main Mixer and/or the Rack are detached in separate windows, you have to press [F5] to view the Main
Mixer window, [F6] to view the Rack window and [F7] to view the Sequencer window. It’s not possible to toggle
between views/windows by repeatedly pressing the same function key.
It’s also possible to press any of the [F5], [F6] and [F7] function keys simultaneously in different combinations to
switch between combined area views. For example, pressing [F5] and [F6] simultaneously will bring up a combined
maximized view of the Main Mixer and Rack areas in the Reason Essentials window. The Sequencer area will then
automatically become minimized
Pressing all three function keys simultaneously, or holding [Ctrl](Win) or [Cmd](Mac) and pressing [F7], will bring up
all areas together, equally sized.
! Note that using three function keys simultaneously is not supported on all computer keyboards.
! If the Main Mixer and/or the Rack are detached in separate windows, pressing any of the [F5], [F6] and [F7]
keys in combination will automatically attach the corresponding (detached) window(s).
To select an area for editing etc., simply click anywhere in the desired area. The selected area will then be surrounded
by a thin blue rectangle.
Showing/hiding the Navigators
Deselecting “Show Navigators” on the Options menu will hide all navigators in all areas of the Reason Essentials
song document window(s). These include the Mixer Navigator and Channel Strip Navigator in the Main Mixer, the
Rack Navigator in the rack as well as the Track Navigator and Song Navigator in the sequencer.
Selecting “Show Navigators” on the Options menu will show all navigators in the Reason Essentials song document
window(s).
Using several Reason Essentials Song windows
You can have several Songs open at the same time. Each Song will appear in a separate Song window, complete with
Main Mixer, Rack, Sequencer and Transport Panel. Each Song window can be moved, minimized and resized using
the standard Windows and Mac procedures.
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
33
The Tool Window
The Tool Window is a floating window which features four tabs that contain short-cuts for creating devices, editing in
the sequencer, editing grooves for the ReGroove mixer and sample editing functions. The Tool Window can be accessed from the Window menu.
D Open the Tool Window by selecting “Show Tool Window” from the Window menu. Alternatively, press [F8].
The [F8] key can be used for toggling between showing and hiding the Tool Window.
34
The Tool Window
• See “Creating devices” for information on how to use the “Device Palette” tab.
• See the “Note and Automation Editing” chapter for information on how to use the various functions of the “Sequencer Tools” tab.
• See “The ReGroove Mixer” chapter for information on how to use the functions of the “Groove Settings” tab.
• See the “Sampling” chapter for information on how to use the functions of the “Song Samples” tab.
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
The On-screen Piano Keys window
The On-screen Piano Keys floating window features a virtual keyboard which lets you play instrument devices without needing to have a MIDI master keyboard connected to your computer. The On-screen Piano Keys window can be
accessed from the Window menu.
D Open the On-screen Piano Keys window by selecting “Show On-screen Piano Keys” from the Window menu.
Alternatively, press [F4].
The [F4] key can be used for toggling between showing and hiding the On-screen Piano Keys window.
The On-screen Piano Keys window in “Mouse” mode
See “On-screen Piano Keys” for more information.
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
35
General window techniques
Resizing
Adjustable dividers in the Reason Essentials Song window
Between each area in the Reason Essentials Song window are dividers that separate the areas from each other.
Some of the dividers can be adjusted, making it possible to resize the areas. The horizontal dividers between the Main
Mixer and Rack, and between the Rack and Sequencer can be adjusted, as well as the vertical divider to the left of
the Rack Navigator in the Rack. Adjustable dividers have four (Windows) or one (Mac) small “dents” in the center.
When you place the mouse pointer on this type of divider, the pointer will change to a double-arrow symbol. Clicking
and dragging these types of dividers makes it possible to resize the adjacent areas.
36
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
Scrolling
Reason Essentials offers a few different options for scrolling in the different areas.
Scrolling with the Navigators
Navigators in the Reason Essentials Song window
Whenever there is information “outside” the visible screen area, you may want to scroll to the desired destination. The
Reason Essentials Song window features a number of Navigators that can be used for scrolling. Navigators are present by default in the Main Mixer, in the Rack and in the Sequencer.
The Main Mixer and the Sequencer have both horizontal and vertical Navigators.
The Rack has only one Navigator which can be used for scrolling both vertically and horizontally (when using more
than two rack columns next to each other). The Rack Navigator can also be resized by moving the vertical divider to
the left of the Rack Navigator. Resizing the Rack Navigator will also resize the rack devices inside the Navigator,
making them easier to distinguish.
D To scroll with a Navigator, click anywhere inside the frame in the Navigator and drag the frame to the desired
position.
As the pointer enters the frame, it automatically switches to a hand symbol.
D Alternatively, click anywhere in the Navigator area to immediately jump to the desired position.
• At high zoom values in the Sequencer, you can hold [Shift] and drag the Song Navigator frame to scroll with
greater precision.
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
37
Scrolling with the Hand tool
Scrolling with the Hand tool in the Rack
In the Rack and Sequencer, you can also use the Hand tool for scrolling the view.
1. In the Rack, place the pointer on either of the wooden side panels of a rack column.
The pointer will switch to a hand symbol.
2. Click and drag the rack vertically and/or horizontally to scroll in the rack, as shown in the picture above.
If you are using only a single rack column, it’s only possible to scroll vertically.
In the Sequencer you have to manually switch to the Hand Tool by selecting it from the sequencer Toolbar. With the
Hand Tool selected, you can scroll in any direction on the Edit/Arrangement Pane. Refer to “Hand Tool” for more in-
formation.
Zooming in the Sequencer
In the Sequencer it’s possible to zoom in and out using the Track Navigator and Song Navigator. You can also use the
Magnifying Glass Tool on the Sequencer Toolbar - see “Magnifying Glass Tool”. In addition to this, it’s also possible to
set a zoom level for the audio recordings inside the Audio Clips.
q See also “Scrolling and zooming using a wheel mouse”.
Zooming vertically in the Sequencer
D To zoom in vertically in the Sequencer arrangement, and thus increase the Track height, click on the “+” mag-
nification button below the Track Navigator:
Increase the Track height by clicking the + magnification button below the Track Navigator
D To zoom out vertically, click on the “-” magnification button.
• When the Sequencer is in Edit Mode, individual vertical zoom controls become available.
38
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
Waveform Zoom Mode
D Choose between three zoom modes for the audio recording(s) inside all Audio Clips.
Using the Small Waveform Zoom Mode is especially useful if you have recorded with the Clip Safe function (see
“Recording using the Clip Safe function in Propellerhead Balance”) where the dynamic range can be quite wide.
! The zoom modes only affect the visual presentation of the waveform, not the audio levels.
Zooming horizontally in the Sequencer
You can also zoom in and out horizontally in the Sequencer by using the Song Navigator.
D To zoom in horizontally, click on the “+” button to the left in the Song Navigator.
D To zoom out horizontally, click on the “-” button to the left in the Song Navigator.
D To zoom in and out horizontally, click and drag a Song Navigator handle sideways.
The pointer changes to a double arrow symbol and you can now zoom in by resizing the Song Navigator Frame.
D [Shift]-click on a Song Navigator handle and drag horizontally to zoom in and out symmetrically.
D By right-clicking (Win) or [Ctrl]-clicking (Mac) inside the Song Navigator frame you can both scroll (drag side-
ways) and zoom (drag up or down) simultaneously.
Scrolling and zooming using a wheel mouse
If you’re using a mouse equipped with a scroll wheel, this can be used for the following scrolling and zooming operations:
Scrolling in the Main Mixer with a wheel mouse
D Spin the scroll wheel to scroll vertically in the Main Mixer.
D Press [Shift] and spin the scroll wheel to scroll horizontally in the Main Mixer.
Scrolling in the Rack with a wheel mouse
D Spin the scroll wheel to scroll vertically in the Rack.
D Press [Shift] and spin the scroll wheel to scroll horizontally in the Rack.
Note that the Rack must have at least two rack columns next to each other for this to work.
Scrolling in the Sequencer with a wheel mouse
D Spin the scroll wheel to scroll vertically on the Edit/Arrangement Pane.
D Press [Shift] and spin the scroll wheel to scroll horizontally on the Edit/Arrangement Pane.
! Note that scrolling horizontally cannot be done when the Song Navigator frame is fully expanded.
Zooming in the Sequencer with a wheel mouse
D Press [Ctrl](Win) or [Cmd](Mac) and spin the scroll wheel to zoom in and out vertically on the Edit/Arrange-
ment Pane.
D Press [Ctrl]+[Shift](Win) or [Cmd]+[Shift](Mac) and spin the scroll wheel to zoom in and out horizontally on
the Edit/Arrangement Pane.
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
39
Editing parameters
Since a large part of Reason Essentials is laid out like “real” hardware devices, such as the Main Mixer, instrument
and effect devices etc., almost all controls are designed like their real world counterparts - mixer faders, effect unit
knobs, transport buttons, etc. How to adjust these controls is described in the following paragraphs.
Knobs
D To “turn” a knob, point at it, hold down the mouse button and drag up or down (as if the knob was a vertical
slider).
Dragging upwards turns the knob clockwise and vice versa.
D If you press [Shift] and drag, the knob will turn slower, allowing for higher precision.
You can also adjust the knob precision with the “Mouse Knob Range” setting on the General page in Preferences.
This dialog is opened from the Edit menu (or from the Reason Essentials menu if you are running Mac OS X).
D To reset a knob to its default value (usually zero, center pan or similar), press [Ctrl](Win) or [Cmd](Mac) and
click on the knob.
Faders and sliders
D To move a fader or slider, click on the handle and drag in the fader/slider direction.
D You can also click anywhere on the fader/slider to instantly move the handle to that position.
D If you press [Shift] and drag, the fader/slider will move more slowly, allowing for higher precision.
D To reset a fader/slider to its default value (usually zero, 100, center pan or similar), press [Ctrl](Win) or
[Cmd](Mac) and click on the fader/slider handle.
40
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
Buttons
Click on the Fold/
Unfold Button to
unfold the front panel.
Click on the second Fold/
Unfold Button on the
unfolded panel to bring up
the Remote Programmer.
Many functions and modes are controlled by clicking buttons. Many of the buttons in Reason Essentials have a “builtin” LED, or the button itself lights up, indicating whether the button is on or not.
Fold/Unfold buttons
Fold/Unfold buttons are distinguished by a small triangle at the top to the left on a device. Clicking on a Fold/Unfold
button will unfold the device panel so that more controls are visible and can be accessed for editing on the screen.
On some devices, such as the RV7000 Advanced Reverb, there are more than one Fold/Unfold button. Clicking on
the second Fold/Unfold button on the unfolded front panel will open up the Remote Programmer panel from which
more parameters can be accessed:
The Fold/Unfold buttons on an RV7000 Advanced Reverb device
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
41
Multi Mode selectors
or
Some parameters allow you to select one of several modes. There are two different graphical representations of this
in Reason Essentials.
The multi mode selector type below consists of a button with the different modes listed above it:
D Click the button to step through the modes or click directly on one of the modes printed on the panel, or click
on the corresponding LED, to select mode.
The currently selected mode is indicated by a lit LED.
The multi mode selector type below is a switch with more than two positions:
D To change mode, click and drag the switch, or click directly at the desired switch position (just as when adjust-
ing a slider).
Numerical controls
In Reason Essentials, numerical values are often displayed in numerical displays with “spin controls” (up/down arrow
buttons) on the side. Some parameter values, such as oscillator and LFO waveforms, are displayed graphically in the
displays. There are two ways of changing values in these types of controls:
D By using the up and down buttons on the spin controls.
To adjust a value in single steps, click on its up or down arrow button. To scroll a value continuously, click on an arrow button and keep the mouse button depressed.
D By clicking and holding the mouse button depressed in the actual display and then dragging the mouse up or
down.
This allows you to make coarse adjustments very quickly.
42
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
Alpha-numeric controls
or
In Reason Essentials, alpha-numeric values and/or device presets are displayed in alpha-numeric readouts with “spin
controls” (up/down arrow buttons) on the side. There are two ways to change alpha-numeric/preset values:
D By using the up and down buttons on the spin controls.
To adjust a value or select a preset in single steps, click on the up or down arrow button. To scroll a value continuously, click on an arrow button and keep the mouse button depressed.
D By clicking and holding the mouse button depressed in the actual alpha-numeric display and selecting from
the list that appears.
This allows you to make coarse adjustments very quickly or to immediately change to a preset anywhere in the list.
q This type of control is used to select, e.g., patch and reverb algorithms and some oscillator waveforms.
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
43
Numerical segment displays
Click the up/down arrow buttons to change tempo in steps of 1 BPM
(the leftmost segment).
Click on the left display segment to select the “whole BPM” value.
Then, either click and drag up or down or click on the up/down arrow
buttons to change tempo in steps of 1 BPM.
Alternatively, type in the new tempo and press [Enter] on the computer
keyboard.
You can also type in a number preceded by [+] or [-] to add or subtract
the number from the current tempo value. Then, press [Enter] on the
computer keyboard.
Click on the right display segment to select the “1/1000 BPM” value.
Then, either click and drag up or down or click on the up/down arrow
buttons to change tempo in steps of 1/1000 BPM.
Alternatively, type in the new tempo and press [Enter] on the computer
keyboard.
You can also type in a number preceded by [+] or [-] to add or subtract
the number from the current tempo value. Then, press [Enter] on the
computer keyboard.
Double-click on the display, type in the new tempo and press [Enter] on
the computer keyboard.
In the numerical segment displays on the sequencer Transport Panel and in the sequencer Inspector, values can be
edited in a number of different ways. The editing principle is exactly the same for the Transport Panel and Inspector
displays, which is shown in the two examples below.
Transport Panel segment displays
The segment displays of the Transport Panel can be edited as shown in the following Tempo display examples. The
Tempo display segments show (from left to right) BPM and 1/1000 BPM:
The other segment displays on the Transport Panel can be edited in the same way as described above.
44
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
Inspector segment displays
Click the up/down buttons to change the value in
steps of 1 Bar (the leftmost segment).
Click in the display to select either the Bar, Beat,
1/16th note or Ticks segment. Then, click the up/
down buttons to change the value of the selected
segment in steps of 1 unit.
Click in the display to select either Bar, Beat,
1/16th note or Ticks. Then, click and drag the
cursor up/down to change in steps of 1 unit.
Double-click in the display. Then, type in the
desired value and press [Enter].
Click in the display to select either Bar, Beat,
1/16th note or Ticks. Then, type in a number and
press [Enter].
Alternatively, select a segment, type in a number
preceded by a [+] to add or a [-] to subtract the
number from the current value. Then, press [Enter].
The segment displays in the Inspector can be edited as shown in the following Position display examples. The Position display segments show (from left to right) Bars, Beats, 1/16th Note and Ticks:
The other segment displays in the sequencer Inspector can be edited in the same way as described above.
Tool Tips
If you hover with the mouse over a control on a device panel and wait a moment, a tool tip appears. The tool tip shows
the name of the parameter associated with that control and its current value. This helps you fine-tune settings, set
several parameters to the same value, etc.
D You can turn off the Tool Tips function by deactivating the option “Show Parameter Value Tool Tip” in the “Ap-
pearance” section on the General tab in Preferences.
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
45
Context menus
Context menus are “tailored” to contain only menu items that are relevant to the current circumstances. Using the
various context menus allows you to work more quickly and more efficiently with Reason Essentials.
D To bring up a context menu, right-click (Win) or [Ctrl]-click (Mac) on the desired object, section or area in Rea-
son Essentials.
The Mixer 14:2 device panel context menu
q If you are using a Mac with a two button mouse, you may want to set this up so that clicking the right mouse
button generates a [Ctrl]-click. This way, you can right-click to bring up context menus.
The contents of the context menus depend on where you click. These are the primary types of context menus you will
encounter in Reason Essentials:
Parameter context menus
If you click on an automatable control (a mixer parameter, a device parameter, a fader, etc.), the context menu will
contain the following items:
• Functions for editing and clearing the recorded automation data for the control.
• Functions for associating computer keyboard commands and/or MIDI messages to the parameter.
This allows you to remote control parameters from a MIDI device or from the computer keyboard.
46
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
Device context menus
If you click anywhere on a device in the Rack (but not on a parameter or display), the context menu will contain the
following items:
The Mixer 14:2 device panel context menu
• Cut, Copy, Paste, Delete and Duplicate Device and Track items, allowing you to rearrange and manage the devices in the rack.
• Commands for managing Device Groups.
• A duplicate of the Create menu, allowing you to create new devices.
• A “Go To” submenu, listing all devices connected to the current device.
Selecting a device from the Go To submenu scrolls the rack to bring that device into view.
• Auto-routing and Disconnect functions.
This allows you to automatically route (connect) or disconnect a selected device in a logical way.
• Combine and Uncombine are used when you want to use the selected device in, or exclude it from, a Combinator setup.
• A Browse Instruments item which lets you browse for sounds for a selected Instrument device.
This item is available only for Instrument devices.
• Additional device-specific items.
If the device is pattern-based, there will be various pattern functions (Cut/Copy/Paste, Clear, Shift, Randomize,
etc.). These affect the currently selected pattern in the device.
If the device uses patches, there will be functions for managing patches.
Depending on the device there may also be various device-specific functions available. For example, the drum machine device has functions for manipulating the pattern for the selected drum sound only, etc.
• “Create Track for ...” and “Delete Track for ...” are used if you want to create a Sequencer Track for the selected
device, or delete the Sequencer Track used for the device without deleting the actual device.
• The “Go To Track for ...” will scroll the corresponding Sequencer Track into view in the Sequencer.
• The “Lock Control Surface to this Device” lets you lock a connected control surface to the selected device.
• The “Track Color” item lets you select color for the associated Sequencer Track (and Main Mixer channel strip,
if the selected devise is an Audio Track device).
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
47
Main Mixer channel strip context menu
The Channel Strip context menu.
If you click anywhere on a channel strip in the Main Mixer (but not on a parameter or display), the context menu will
contain the following items:
• Cut, Copy, Paste, Delete and Duplicate Channels and Track items, allowing you to rearrange and manage the
channel strips in the Main Mixer.
• Commands for managing Device Groups.
• A duplicate of the Create menu, allowing you to create new devices.
• The “Create Send FX” lets you browse for an effects device, or Effect Combi patch, to connect and use as a
send effect.
The send effect will be automatically connected to the first available Send FX connectors of the Master Section
device in the Rack.
• The “Copy Channel Settings” item lets you copy groups of settings for the selected channel strip.
The groups that can be selected are: “Filters and EQ”, “Insert FX”, “FX Sends” and “All”.
• The “Paste Channel Settings” item appears if you have previously copied any channel settings and want to
paste these to the selected channel strip.
• The “Browse Insert FX Patches” lets you browse for, and load, Effect Combi patches to the Insert FX section.
• The “Clear Insert FX” lets you remove any devices currently in the Insert FX area.
• The “Reset Channel Settings” resets all channel strip parameters to their default values.
It also automatically removes any used Insert FX devices from the channel strip.
• The “Set Remote Base Channel” item lets you set the remote base channel to the selected channel strip.
This is useful when you remote control channel strips from a control surface via MIDI.
• The “Lock Control Surface to this Device” lets you lock a connected control surface to the selected channel
strip.
• The “Track Color” item lets you select color for the associated Sequencer Track (and Main Mixer channel strip,
if the selected devise is an Audio Track device).
48
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
Rack “background” context menu
If you click in an empty area of the rack, the context menu will contain the following items:
• A Paste Devices and Tracks item, allowing you to paste any copied or cut devices and tracks.
• A duplicate of the Create menu, allowing you to create new devices.
Main Mixer “background” context menu
If you click in an empty area of the Main Mixer, the context menu will contain the following items:
• A duplicate of the Create menu, allowing you to create new devices.
• The “Create Send FX” lets you browse for an effects device, or Effect Combi patch, to connect and use as a
send effect.
The send effect will be automatically connected to the first available Send FX connectors of the Master Section
device in the Rack.
Sequencer context menus
If you click in the Sequencer, the context menus will contain items related to editing tracks, clips and events. The
available items will differ depending on in which section or lane you click (Track List, note lane, etc.), and depending
on whether you click on a note or automation event or not.
For example, the sequencer context menus contain functions for inserting or removing bars, deleting tracks, changing or deleting note and automation events.
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
49
Undo and Redo
Virtually all actions in Reason Essentials can be undone. This includes creation, deletion and reordering of devices in
the rack, parameter value adjustments, recording and editing in the sequencer etc. You can undo up to 30 actions.
D To undo the latest action, select “Undo” from the Edit menu, or hold down [Ctrl](Win) or [Cmd](Mac) and press
[Z].
The action to be undone is indicated next to the Undo command on the Edit menu. For example, if your latest action was to delete some device(s) from the rack, the Edit menu will display “Undo Delete Devices and Tracks”.
D To redo the last undone action (“undo the undo operation”), select “Redo” from the Edit menu, or hold down
[Ctrl](Win) or [Cmd](Mac) and press [Y].
Similarly, the action to be redone is shown on the Edit menu.
About multiple Undos and Redos
The concept of multiple undos may require an explanation: You can undo up to 30 actions, or in other words, Reason
Essentials has an Undo History with up to thirty steps.
Let’s say you have performed the following actions:
1. Created a Mixer device.
2. Created a synth device.
3. Adjusted the Attack parameter of the synth device.
4. Changed the panning for the synth device in the Mixer.
5. Adjusted the playback tempo on the Transport Panel.
After these five actions, the Undo History will look as follows:
UNDO
|
5. Adjust tempo
4. Change pan
3. Adjust Attack
2. Create Synth Device
1. Create Mixer Device
If you now select Undo, your latest action (the tempo change) will be undone, and moved to a “Redo list”:
UNDO
|
4. Change pan
3. Adjust Attack
2. Create Synth Device
1. Create Mixer Device 5. Adjust tempo
REDO
|
Selecting Undo again undoes the next action in the list (the panning adjustment):
UNDO
|
3. Adjust Attack
2. Create Synth Device 4. Change pan
1. Create Mixer Device 5. Adjust tempo
REDO
|
50
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
If you now select Redo, the most recently undone action will be redone. In this case, your panning adjustment will be
performed again (and added to the Undo History again):
UNDO
|
4. Change pan
3. Adjust Attack
2. Create Synth Device
1. Create Mixer Device 5. Adjust tempo
REDO
|
At this point, you still have the option to Redo the tempo change. But if you instead perform another action (e.g.
change the level of the synth device in the mixer), this would become the action at the top of the Undo History - and
the Redo list would be cleared.
UNDO
|
5. Change level
4. Change pan
3. Adjust Attack
2. Create Synth Device
1. Create Mixer Device (Empty)
REDO
|
You can no longer redo the “undone” tempo change!
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
51
52
COMMON OPERATIONS AND CONCEPTS
Chapter 3
On-screen Piano Keys
About this chapter
This chapter describes the functions of the On-screen Piano Keys window.
The On-screen Piano Keys window enables you to play instrument devices using either your mouse or computer key-
board. This provides a simple and convenient way to input notes or chords when using the program without an attached MIDI master keyboard.
Using the On-screen Piano Keys
Opening the Piano Keys window
D To open the window, select “Show On-screen Piano Keys” from the Windows menu, or press [F4].
Like the Tool window, the On-Screen Piano Key window “floats” on top of other windows, remaining visible most
of the time.
• You can choose between two basic operational modes to enter notes; “Mouse” or “Computer Keys”.
Mouse Mode is for entering notes with the mouse, and Computer Keys Mode for using the computer keyboard to
enter notes. The two modes are described separately below.
The respective buttons in the middle of the window are used to switch modes.
54
Mode buttons.
• Regardless of mode, the On-screen Piano Keys window always follows Master Keyboard input.
This means that the Piano Keys will trigger the device associated with the track that has Master Keyboard Input.
The Piano Keys input is merged with any attached keyboard/control surface input so you can use both simultaneously.
• The available note range is 10 octaves (C -2 to E 8).
• When the On-screen Piano Keys window is in Mouse mode, you can resize it by clicking and dragging the window frame according to standard procedures.
This is especially useful in “Mouse” mode, since you can adapt the window to show the desired note range.
ON-SCREEN PIANO KEYS
The Keyboard Navigator
Keyboard Navigator
Available notes for the
currently selected instrument
This is present in both modes and shows the total key range. The green area indicates the key range available in the
On-screen Piano Keys window.
Keys that produce sound are indicated by a gray strip above the keyboard in the Keyboard Navigator. This is useful
when playing a patch where only certain keys or key ranges produce sound, e.g. a REX file or a sampler patch.
Setting Octave range
There are several ways to set the Octave range:
D Click the arrow buttons on either side of the Keyboard Navigator.
Each click will shift one octave up or down.
D Click and drag the green key range area in the Keyboard Navigator.
The current octave number is always shown for the leftmost key - by default the [A] key on the computer keyboard.
Mouse mode
When Mouse Mode is selected, the Piano Keys window will show a standard piano keyboard.
D To enter notes, simply click on the keyboard with your mouse.
As described above, the record enabled track governs what instrument device is played.
ON-SCREEN PIANO KEYS
55
D The keys are velocity sensitive. The higher up on the key you click, the lower the velocity and vice versa.
Velocity=40
Velocity=127
The velocity range is between 40 and 127.
Low and high note velocities.
D The keyboard octave range can be set using the arrow buttons at each side of the navigator keyboard.
Each C key is labeled with the octave number. You can also simply drag the green key range area to where you
want. It will snap to octave ranges.
D In Mouse Mode, the keyboard can be resized both vertically and horizontally.
Resizing horizontally extends or diminishes the key range. By resizing the window vertically you change the key
size for the keyboard, as well as the key range.
Adding sustain
If you press [Shift] when entering notes, the notes will sustain, just like when using a sustain pedal.
Repeat and Hold functions
D The Repeat function will continuously repeat the last clicked note as quarter notes with a quarter note pause
in between (at the current tempo).
This feature can be useful when tweaking synth parameters or browsing for patches. It is activated/deactivated by
checking/unchecking the box.
D The Hold function will keep any keys you click on pressed down for as long as Hold is active.
Hold is activated/deactivated by checking/unchecking the box.
Computer Keys mode
When Computer Keys Mode is selected, the On-screen Piano Keys window shows a graphic (partial) representation
of a computer keyboard. The window cannot be resized in this mode.
56
ON-SCREEN PIANO KEYS
D In Computer Keys Mode you can play notes and chords using your computer keyboard.
The Computer Keys keyboard range is fixed to 18 notes (from C to F), although the octave range will give you access to any notes within the ten octaves shown in the navigator. You can also click on the keys with your mouse
to trigger notes. The numerical keys in the top row are not used to enter notes but to set velocity, see “Velocity”.
D The default layout of the Computer Keys logically reflects the layout of a piano keyboard’s black and white
keys.
The first (leftmost) key represents C and so on up to F an octave above. By default, the [A]-key will play the first C,
the [W]-key a C# and so on, according to piano keyboard standards. If you wish, you can customize the note to key
assignment in the Preferences - Keyboard tab (see “Preferences - Keyboard”).
Octave range
D Press [Z] or [X] on your computer keyboard to shift one octave down or up, respectively.
There are also “Z” and “X” Octave buttons in the On-screen Piano Keys window that function in the same way.
See “Setting Octave range” for more ways of changing the Octave range.
Repeat and Hold functions
See “Repeat and Hold functions”.
Adding sustain
D Press [Shift] when entering notes to make the notes sustain, just like when using a sustain pedal.
There is also a Sustain button in the On-screen Piano Keys window that has the same functionality.
Velocity
In Computer Keys Mode, note velocity for notes you enter is set using the numerical keys in the top row. The currently
set value is also shown in the Velocity value field. The numerical keys correspond to the following velocity values:
Numerical key
|
11
214
328
442
556
670
784
8 98 (default)
9 112
0 127
Velocity value
|
ON-SCREEN PIANO KEYS
57
Velocity Variation
This feature will randomly vary the velocity values for the notes you enter. There are four modes; None (default),
Light, Medium and Heavy. The degree of velocity variation is as follows.
Item
|
None (default) 0
Light +/- 5%
Medium +/- 10%
Heavy +/- 25%
Variation
|
58
ON-SCREEN PIANO KEYS
Chapter 4
Audio Basics
About this chapter
This chapter contains some useful information about how audio is handled by Reason Essentials and how the audio
is routed. Some of it may seem a bit technical, but we recommend that you read it to get the most out of Reason Essentials.
How Reason Essentials communicates with your audio hardware
Reason Essentials receives, generates and plays back digital audio - a stream of numerical values in the form of ones
and zeroes. For you to be able to record and play back anything, the audio must be converted from analog to digital
when recording, and from digital to analog when playing back through some kind of listening equipment (a set of
speakers, headphones, etc.).
This conversion is most often handled by the audio card installed in your computer, or by an external audio interface
connected via USB or FireWire. To achieve the best possible performance, Reason Essentials requires that the audio
card uses an ASIO driver on Windows systems. On Mac OS X systems, Reason Essentials supports Core Audio drivers.
When you use the Propellerhead audio interface, its audio drivers were automatically installed during the installation
of Reason Essentials from the Reason Essentials DVD. You don’t need to install any additional audio drivers.
To receive and deliver digital audio to the computer’s audio hardware, Reason Essentials uses the driver you have selected in the Preferences dialog. In the Rack on screen, this connection is represented by the Hardware Interface
(also known as the Hardware Device):
The Hardware Interface is always located at the top of the rack
! If you are using Reason Essentials as a ReWire slave, Reason Essentials will instead feed the digital audio to
the ReWire master application (typically another audio sequencer program), which in turn handles the communication with the audio hardware. See “ReWire” for more details.
The Hardware Interface contains 64 input and 64 output “sockets”, each with an indicator and a level meter. There
are also two Sampling Inputs that can be used for sampling audio to sampler devices. 16 input and 16 output sockets
are shown on the main panel, and an additional 48+48 sockets are shown if the “More Audio” button is activated on
the main panel. Each one of these indicators represents a connection to an input or output on your hardware audio
interface (or a ReWire channel to another application if you are using ReWire).
However, the number of available inputs and outputs depends on the number of inputs and outputs on your hardware
audio interface. For example, if you are using the Propellerhead Balance audio interface with 2 input and 2 output
channels, only the first two inputs and outputs will be available. In the Hardware Interface, the indicators are lit green
for all currently active and connected inputs and outputs. Activation of inputs and outputs on your hardware audio interface is done on the Audio page in the Preferences dialog (see “Active Input and Output Channels”).
Inputs and outputs that are currently connected have green indicators. Available but un-connected inputs and outputs have yellow indicators and any connections made to unavailable inputs and outputs have red indicators.
In this case, Inputs 1 and 2 are available, but not connected in the Rack, Outputs 1 and 2 are available
and connected, whereas Output 3 is unavailable, but connected on the back of the Hardware Interface.
60
AUDIO BASICS
! You never have to connect any cables to the Audio In jacks of the Hardware Interface to be able to record au-
dio on sequencer tracks. This routing is made internally “in the background”, which means you just have to select audio interface inputs from the Audio Input drop-down list - see “Selecting audio input(s) and defining
mono or stereo”.
Manual audio routing
In most cases, you will want to have the Main Mixer Master Section device connected to outputs 1 and 2 of the Hardware Interface. This connection is made automatically as soon as you create a new Song document. However, there
might be situations where you want to manually route audio to other outputs of the Hardware Interface.
To send the sound of a device in the Rack to a specific output, you route the device output to the corresponding Output jack on the Hardware Interface. This is done by using the patch cables on the back of the rack, as described in
“Manual routing”. If we flip the rack around, by pressing the [Tab] key, the Hardware Interface looks like this:
On the rear of the Hardware Interface, Inputs 1 and 2 are available but not connected,
Outputs 1 and 2 are available and connected, whereas Output 3 is connected but unavailable.
! You never have to connect any cables to the Audio In jacks of the Hardware Interface to be able to record au-
dio on sequencer tracks. This routing is made internally “in the background”, which means you just have to select audio interface inputs from the Audio Input drop-down list in the sequencer Track List - see “Selecting
audio input(s) and defining mono or stereo”.
Audio quality
The audio quality in a computer based recording system depends on two things:
• The quality of the software calculating the audio.
In our case, this is the Reason Essentials DSP (Digital Signal Processing) code.
• The quality of the hardware audio interface used for recording and playing back the sound.
Software
• Reason Essentials uses 32-bit floating point arithmetic for all internal audio operations, with 64-bit summing
in the mix bus in the Main Mixer Master Section.
This ensures the highest possible audio quality throughout the entire signal chain.
• Reason Essentials supports 16, 20, and 24 bit resolution for input and output audio.
• Reason Essentials supports all standard sample rates between 44.1 kHz and 192 kHz - as long as the audio interface supports these sample rates.
Reason Essentials also supports lower sampling frequencies, but using a sample rate of less than 44.1 kHz is not
recommended since it might affect the audio quality negatively.
• A number of digital audio techniques that reduce the risk of “aliasing”, background noise, unwanted distortion
and “zipper noise” are implemented in Reason Essentials.
AUDIO BASICS
61
Audio hardware
How good a hardware audio interface actually sounds depends on a number of things; its frequency range and frequency response curve, the resolution (bit depth), the signal to noise ratio, the distortion under various circumstances,
etc. Furthermore, some designs are more prone to disturbance from the other electronics in the computer than others. Such disturbance might add hum or high pitched noise to the signal.
The only advice we can give is that if you are serious about sound, choose your audio hardware carefully, for example
the Propellerhead Balance audio interface!
Audio settings
Sample rate and resolution are properties of digital audio which determine the quality of the sound. Generally, higher
sample rate and resolution result in better audio quality (but also larger audio files and higher demands on computer
performance and audio hardware). The table below shows some common sample rate/resolution combinations:
Sample rate:
|
44.1 kHz 16 bit This is the format used on standard audio CDs.
44.1 kHz –
192 kHz
Resolution:
|
24 bit These are formats used in professional studios and high-end recording
Comment:
|
equipment.
To cater for all different situations, Reason Essentials supports multiple sample rates and resolutions.
Sample Rate settings for recording and playback
Reason Essentials handles all internal audio processing in 32-bit floating point resolution, with 64-bit summing in the
mix bus in the Main Mixer Master Section. However, the resolution of the input and output audio is determined by the
hardware audio interface. That is, if you have a 24-bit audio card, such as the Propellerhead Balance audio interface,
Reason Essentials will record and output audio in 24-bit resolution, and if you have a 20-bit audio card, audio will be
recorded and played back in 20-bit resolution.
The recording and playback sample rate can be specified on the Audio tab in the Preferences dialog (accessed from
the Edit menu (Win) or Reason Essentials menu (Mac)):
D Select the desired sample rate from the drop-down menu.
Note that the available options on this pop-up menu depend on which sample rates are supported by the audio
hardware.
62
AUDIO BASICS
! Reason Essentials supports multiple sample rates in the same song!
Reason Essentials allows import (or recording) of audio at any standard sample rate. If the original sample rate of
a recording is different than the rate currently set for the audio card, Reason Essentials will automatically do a
high-quality sample rate conversion.
First, a real-time sample rate conversion algorithm is used (allowing the audio to be played back immediately).
Meanwhile, in the background, the program calculates a sample rate conversion of the highest quality, which will
be used as soon as it is calculated. The CALC progress indicator on the transport panel lights up whenever the
program is performing high quality calculations in the background:
The CALC progress indicator on the Transport Panel appears when Reason Essentials performs high quality audio calculation
Buffer Size settings
The Buffer Size can be adjusted on the Audio tab in the Preferences dialog (accessed from the Edit menu (Win) or
Reason Essentials menu (Mac)):
D Select Buffer Size by clicking and dragging the slider sideways.
The trick here is to find the optimum relationship between audio quality, DSP Load and latency. Experiment with different Sample Rate settings in combination with different Buffer Size settings to get the best result.
A professional audio interface used together with a state-of-the-art computer should normally be able to handle a
combination of a high sampling frequency (96 kHz) and a small Buffer Size (64-128 samples) without problems. A
budget priced audio interface normally requires a lower sampling frequency (44.1 kHz) in combination with a little
higher Buffer Size (256-512 samples).
The Propellerhead Balance interface can typically work with a small buffer size of 64 samples on a good computer.
See “About latency” for more information about buffer size and latency.
CPU Usage Limit settings
In the “Miscellaneous” section on the “General” page in Preferences, you can define an upper limit for the CPU usage. If the DSP Load should exceed this set limit, the Reason Essentials application will stop receiving and outputting
sound. If this happens, you might have to change the audio settings (see “Sample Rate settings for recording and
playback” and “Buffer Size settings”) - or remove tracks and/or devices from your song. By default, the “CPU Usage
Limit” is set to 80%. This is where the CPU load usually starts to make the sound crackle and distort.
AUDIO BASICS
63
About MultiCore Audio Rendering
Reason Essentials fully supports multicore audio rendering. This means that if your computer has multiple CPU
Cores (Dual Core or Quad Core, for example), or multiple CPUs, Reason Essentials takes advantage of this to significantly enhance the performance. A higher system performance allows for more tracks and devices in your songs.
If your computer has a multi-core CPU, or multiple CPUs, MultiCore Audio Rendering is active by default, as indicated
on the “General” page in Preferences:
Master Tune setting
By default, Reason Essentials plays back a “middle A” at 440 Hz, which is the standard tuning in most instruments.
However, if you are playing Reason Essentials together with other instruments, you may want to adjust the tuning:
1. Select “Preferences...” from the Edit menu (Win) or Reason Essentials menu (Mac).
2. Click the “Audio” tab.
3. Adjust the global tuning with the Master Tune slider or button controls.
D If you like, you can also adjust the Master Tune during playback.
! The Master Tune setting affects the tuning of all sound sources in Reason Essentials, including the Tuner func-
tion on the Audio Tracks. It also affects the tuning of the Redrum and Dr. Octo Rex loop player.
64
AUDIO BASICS
About audio levels
The Clip indicators will stay lit for a short
moment, to make them easier to spot.
If the audio out level is, or has been,
too high, the Clip indicators in the
Master Section will stay lit until you
click the “Reset” button.
Audio Out Clip indicators
Reset button
Channel Selection buttons
for the “Big Meter”
The “Show Big Meter” button
Clip indicators
Reset
button
Channel Selection knob
for the “Big Meter”
When recording and playing back in Reason Essentials, you should keep an eye on the Audio In and Audio Out Clip
indicators on the Transport Panel, or on the Hardware Interface and the Big Meter. You should also keep an eye on
the clip indicators on the Main Mixer Master Section. If any of the clip indicators light up, the audio level is too high,
resulting in clipping (digital distortion).
The Clip indicators on the Audio In and Audio Out meters on the Transport Panel
The Clip indicators in the Master Section of the Main Mixer
! Note that if you use the Propellerhead Balance audio interface when recording audio tracks in Reason Essen-
tials, you can use the unique Clip Safe function. The Clip Safe function allows you to heal clipped input signals!
See “Recording using the Clip Safe function in Propellerhead Balance” for more information
! Note that the Main Mixer Master Section Clip indicators will only work if there are no other devices connected
between the Master Section device and the Hardware Interface!
The Big Meter on the Hardware Interface
AUDIO BASICS
65
D To remedy Audio In clipping, adjust the level at the input source, i.e. on the hardware audio interface or on the
Output 7 indicates
audio clipping.
preamp connected to the hardware audio interface.
! When recording or sampling external audio signals, clipping cannot be adjusted in the Reason Essentials ap-
plication - it must be adjusted at the audio input source!
! When sampling audio internally from devices in the rack, you have to adjust the Output Level on the source de-
vice to make sure clipping doesn’t occur in the Hardware Interface.
D To remedy Audio Out clipping, lower the master level on the Mixer (or other device) that is connected to the
Hardware Interface, until Audio Out clipping doesn’t light up on playback.
You could also use the MClass Maximizer as an insert effect on the Master Section in the Main Mixer to ensure
that clipping never occurs - see “The MClass Maximizer”.
D To get a better overview of the levels, bring up the Big Meter on the Hardware Interface, by clicking the “Big
Meter” button on the front panel. Then, select the input or output pairs to view in the Big Meter by clicking on
the corresponding channel selection button below each input or output pairs. Alternatively, select channel by
turning the channel selection knob.
If the audio level is, or has been, too high, the Clip indicators on the Big Meter will stay lit until you click the Reset
button, or select new audio channels for the Big Meter.
! In some situations, the Audio Out Clip indicator on the Transport Panel and the Output Clip indicators on the
Reason Essentials Hardware Interface might light up if the metronome Click is active in the sequencer during
playback (see “Click and Pre-count”). This is nothing to worry about and won’t cause any distortion in your
song. To determine if the metronome is causing the clipping indication, just disable Click and see if the clipping stops.
! Note that it doesn’t matter if the level meters on the individual devices (effects, MIxer channels, etc.) “hit the
red”. Output clipping can only occur in the Hardware Interface.
The technical reason for this is that internally, Reason Essentials uses high resolution floating point processing,
which ensures highest audio quality and virtually limitless headroom. In the Hardware Interface, the floating point
audio is converted to the resolution used by the computer’s audio interface, and that’s where audio out clipping
might occur.
If you are using multiple outputs
If you are using an audio interface with more than two outputs, you might want to have different devices connected
to different outputs. If the Audio Out Clip indicator on the Transport Panel lights up, you should play back the section
again while checking the Reason Essentials Hardware Interface. Each output socket has a level meter - if the red
meter segment lights up, the output is clipping.
The indicator for Output 7 on the Hardware Interface indicates clipping
D If necessary, bring up the Big Meter and select the output pair where the clipping occurs. Lower the output
level of the device connected to the clipping output, until no clipping occurs.
If you are using ReWire
If you are streaming audio to another application using the ReWire protocol, clipping can not happen in Reason Essentials. This is because the conversion from floating point audio happens in the other audio application. See “Re-
Wire” for more information.
66
AUDIO BASICS
System signal paths
MASTER INSERTS
MASTER COMPRESSOR
SEQ RACK
LEVEL
1
2
3
4
PAN
0
-56
VU
VU
2
6
12
8
4
0
DIM
-20dB
SOLO
ALL OFF
MUTE
ALL OFF
Init Patch
THRESHOLD
RATIO
ATTACK
RELEASE
MAKE-UP
MAS
L
Rec Source
External Routing
Bypass Insert FX
G
HF
Khz
dB
LF
Khz
dB
INSERT FX
INPUT
EQ
L R
BELL
BELL
INV
ON
O
BYPASS
0
20
56
MUTE
SOLO
FX SENDS
1
PRE
2
PRE
3
PRE
4
PRE
M
M
M
M
Init Patch
SEQ RACK
AUDIO TRA...
My Master Patch
D
Show Programmer
Show Insert FX
MODE
VU
PPM
PEAK
RESET
12
10
840
-10
-20VU-56
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 1112 13 14 15 16 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 1112 13 14 15 16
AUDIO INPUT AUDIO OUTPUT
ADV. MIDI DEVICE IN USE
MORE AUDIO I/O IN USE
REWIRE
AUDIO CARD
SHOW BIG METR
FIREWYRE 16x16 Audio Interf
L
R
1
10
8
4
6
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840
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External Routing
Bypass Insert FX
Rec Source
Init Patch
Frippe FW ASIO Interfaze Analog In 1
MUTE SOLO
Show Programmer
Stretch Type
Show Insert FX
10
8
4
6
AUDIO TRA...
Audio Track 1
M
M
S
S
Rack
Monitor signal via Audio Track device
Input signal from Hardware Device
Input signal
Monitor signal
Playback signal via Audio Track device
Audio Track device control
Master Section control
Output signal from Master Section device
Playback signal from Audio Track in sequencer
Sequencer
Main Mixer
EDIT
BYPASS
EDIT
SIGNAL
PATH
FX
RETURN
MASTER
COMP
MASTER
INSERT
FADER
Audio Interface
Depending on the track types in the sequencer, the default signal chain varies. In this section we’re going to describe
the default audio signal paths for Audio Tracks and Instrument Tracks.
Audio Track signal paths
When you’re recording and playing back audio that originates from an external source, like a guitar or a vocalist, the
audio signal must first travel from the source, via a hardware audio interface, into the Reason Essentials application.
Then, when played back, the audio travels from the Reason Essentials application, via the hardware audio interface,
to a speaker system or similar. The figure below shows a schematic overview of the audio signal paths for a “standard” auto-routed Audio Track in Reason Essentials:
TER SECTION
TTM SERIES SUPERDIGITA
An Audio Track signal path in Reason Essentials
IM -20dB
AIN
0-10-20VU-5
2
0-10-20VU-5
-
AUDIO BASICS
N
2
0
5
67
Instrument Track signal paths
MAS
L
Rec Source
External Routing
Bypass Insert FX
My Master Patch
D
Show Programmer
Show Insert FX
MODE
VU
PPM
PEAK
RESET
-20VU-56
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 1112 13 14 15 16 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 1112 13 14 15 16
AUDIO INPUT AUDIO OUTPUT
ADV. MIDI DEVICE IN USE
MORE AUDIO I/O IN USE
REWIRE
AUDIO CARD
SHOW BIG METR
FIREWYRE 16x16 Audio Interf
R
6
-20-VU
-56
Rack
MIDI In
MIDI Out from Master Keyboard
ID8 audio output signal via Mix Channel device
Mix Channel control
Master Section control
Output signal from Master Section device
Live and playback MIDI data from Instrument Track in sequencer
Sequencer
Audio Interface
ID8 audio output signal
External Routing
Bypass Insert FX
Rec Source
Init Patch
Show Programmer
Show Insert FX
MUTE SOLO
L
10
8
4
0
-20VU
-56
2
10
840-10
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MIX CHAN...
PITCH MOD
VOLUME
Piano
Upright
Delay
Chorus
Dance
Vibes
Grand
A
B
C
D
instrument device
ID8 1
ID8 1
M
S
S
MASTER INSERTS
MASTER COMPRESSOR
SEQ RACK
LEVEL
1
2
3
4
PAN
FX RETURNS
20
-56
VU
VU
20
56
8
0
DIM
-20dB
SOLO
ALL OFF
MUTE
ALL OFF
Init Patch
SIGNAL
PATH
FX
RETURN
MASTER
COMP
MASTER
INSERT
FADER
THRESHOLD
RATIO
ATTACK
RELEASE
MAKE-UP
G
HF
Khz
dB
LF
Khz
dB
INSERT FX
INPUT
EQ
L R
BELL
BELL
BELL
BELL
INV
ON
ON
BYPASS
6
MUTE
SOLO
FX SENDS
1
PRE
2
PRE
3
PRE
4
PRE
M
M
M
M
Init Patch
SEQ RACK
MIX CHAN...
Main Mixer
EDIT
BYPASS
EDIT
When you’re recording and playing back audio from an instrument device, like the ID8 Instrument device, the audio
signal only has to travel only in one direction: from the Instrument device, via the hardware audio interface, to a
speaker system or similar. The figure below shows a schematic overview of the audio signal paths for an auto-routed
Instrument Track in Reason Essentials:
AIN
TER SECTION
TTM SERIES SUPERDIGITA
IM -20dB
An Instrument Track signal path in Reason Essentials
12
0-1
1
-20VU-5
20
5
68
AUDIO BASICS
General information about audio and computers
About latency
On any personal computer system, there is a delay between the moment you input a sound, or “tell” the hardware to
play a sound, and when you actually hear it. This delay is referred to as the “latency” of the design. This imposes a
problem for any system where you want real-time user input to affect the sound.
Why is there latency?
All audio applications receive and generate their audio in chunks. These chunks are then passed on to the audio card
where they are temporarily stored before being converted into regular audio signals. The storage place for these
chunks are called “buffers” (an analogy would be a bucket brigade, where a number of people each have a bucket,
and water is poured from one bucket to another to reach its final destination).
The smaller the buffers and the fewer they are, the more responsive the system will be (lower latency). The general
rules regarding the buffer size are these:
• A small buffer size reduces the latency (the time it takes for the audio to “travel” from the audio interface input(s) to the application and from the application to the audio interface output(s)).
However, a small buffer size also increases the DSP Load. Too small a buffer size setting could also make the
sound crackle and distort.
• A large buffer size reduces the DSP Load (allowing for more tracks to be played back simultaneously) and also
ensures good audio quality.
However, a large buffer size also increases the latency.
A high sample rate will also reduce the latency. However, this will also raise the demands on the computer and its
software. If the system can’t cope with moving the data to and from the buffers fast enough, there will be problems
that manifest themselves as glitches in audio playback.
To make things worse, audio playback is always competing with other activities on your computer. For example, a
buffer size that works perfectly under normal circumstances might be too small when you try to open files during
playback, switch over to another program while Reason Essentials is playing or simply play back a very demanding
song.
What is acceptable?
On a regular PC, the latency can vary quite a lot. This is an effect of the fact that computers and their operating systems were created for many purposes, not just for recording and playing back audio. For multimedia and games, a latency of a 100 ms might be perfectly acceptable, but for recording and playing back audio it is definitely not!
• PC audio cards running under Windows with a MME driver might at best give you a latency of around 160ms.
• The same card with a DirectX driver running under Windows provides at best around 40ms.
• A card specifically designed for low latency, with an ASIO driver under Windows, or a Core Audio driver under
Mac OS X, can usually give you figures as low as 2-3 ms. This is definitely good enough for audio applications.
That’s also why ASIO or Core Audio drivers are required to run Reason Essentials.
Reason Essentials’s built-in sequencer is not affected by latency
When Reason Essentials’s sequencer is playing back a song, the timing between notes and audio is perfect! Once
playback of a Reason Essentials pattern or song is up and running, latency isn’t a consideration at all. The computer
clocks the audio between the steps and does this with perfect quartz accuracy! The timing is immaculate!
AUDIO BASICS
69
ReWire and Latency
When you run Reason Essentials as a ReWire slave, it is the other program, the ReWire master, that is responsible for
actually rendering the audio and playing it back via the audio card. It means that any latency is present in the ReWire
master.
! When Reason Essentials runs as a ReWire slave, what audio hardware you have, what audio driver you use,
and the audio settings you have made in the Preferences dialog are of no importance at all! All audio hardware
settings are then instead made in the ReWire host application.
! Note, however, that you may have to adjust the “External Sync Offset” in Preferences if Reason Essentials is
synced via MIDI from the host application (see “Synchronization considerations”).
For information on ReWire, see “ReWire”.
Reducing latency
There are a few general methods for making sure latency is as low as possible:
D Make sure you are using the latest version of the drivers for your hardware audio interface.
D Adjust the Sample Rate and Buffer Size parameters as described in “Audio settings”.
D Remove unnecessary background tasks on your computer.
This might be any background utility you have installed as well as networking, background internet activities etc.
D Optimize your songs.
You might run into situations where you have to raise the Output Latency setting to be able to play back a very demanding song on your computer. Another option would be to actually optimize the song. See “Optimizing Perfor-
mance” for details.
D Get a better audio interface.
This is only required if you find that you need to increase Output Latency because your audio card can’t really cope
with the songs you try to play.
D Get a faster computer.
This is only required if you find that you need to increase Output Latency because your computer can’t really cope
with the songs you try to play.
70
About processors
When you run Reason Essentials, the clock speed of the processor is a major factor determining how many audio
tracks and devices you can use at the same time.
If you plan to buy a computer specifically for Reason Essentials, you could play it safe and choose a computer with at
least an Intel P4, or equivalent AMD processor, running at 2.0 GHz or faster. MultiCore processors will give better
performance and are highly recommended.
About RAM
Another important performance factor is the amount of installed RAM in the computer. Generally, one could say: the
more the better, especially if you’re running several applications simultaneously. To run Reason Essentials, a minimum of 1 GB RAM is required, but more is recommended for even better performance.
AUDIO BASICS
Chapter 5
Sequencer Functions
About this chapter
Edit/Arrangement
Pane
Toolbar
Track
List
Ruler
Inspector (context sensitive)
Audio Clips
Note Clips
Tracks
Edit Mode button
Track Navigator
Transport Panel
Song Navigator
Lanes
Automation Clips
Waveform Zoom Mode
This chapter describes the layout and general functions of the main sequencer. Recording, editing clips and events
and arranging in the sequencer are described in detail in the chapters “Recording in the Sequencer”, “Audio Editing
in the Sequencer”, “Note and Automation Editing” and “Arranging in the Sequencer”.
Introduction
The sequencer is where you record your songs. The sequencer can be used to record audio tracks as well as instrument tracks, performance controllers, parameter automation and pattern automation.
Sequencer area overview
72
Arrange Mode and Edit Mode
Arrange Mode is the “normal view” where you are working with your song arrangement. This mode gives a good overview of the content of the tracks in your song.
Edit Mode is where you edit the contents of the clips in your song. In Edit Mode the Edit Pane shows detailed information about the content of one track (see “Tracks overview”), or lane (see “Lanes overview”) at a time and you can
edit the events in individual clips (see “Clips overview”).
q When you open a note or audio clip by double-clicking it in Arrange Mode, the sequencer automatically
switches to Edit Mode. However, if you double-click a parameter automation clip, it opens up for editing directly in Arrange Mode.
SEQUENCER FUNCTIONS
Arrange Mode
In Arrange Mode, all clips on all tracks can be viewed. Use this mode to get an overview of your arrangement, and
when you want to perform clip-based editing such as rearranging whole sections of your song, etc.
Edit Mode
In Edit Mode, you get a close-up look at the recordings on a track. In Edit Mode, the Edit Pane can be divided into
several horizontal edit rows, showing different types of events (notes, velocity, audio, parameter automation, etc.). This
is the view mode of choice for fine editing the content of your recorded clips, and for drawing notes, performance
controllers and other events manually.
Toolbar overview
The sequencer Toolbar features various sequencer editing tools as well as the Snap function. The tools can be used
both in Arrange Mode and Edit Mode, with slightly different purposes in the respective modes. See “Toolbar details”
for details about each tool.
SEQUENCER FUNCTIONS
73
Track List overview
Tracks
Lanes
To the left in the sequencer, all tracks are listed in the Track List. Each track in the sequencer is associated with a
specific device in the rack. By clicking on a device icon in the Track List you automatically set Master Keyboard Input
(see “Setting Master Keyboard Input”) to the corresponding device in the rack for playing and/or recording.
Tracks overview
Most rack devices in a song automatically get their own dedicated track in the sequencer when you create the device.
Each track can feature one or several lanes on which audio, note, performance controller, pattern and parameter automation events can be recorded - in clips. See “Track details” for more details about tracks.
Lanes overview
Each track consists of one (default) or several parallel lanes. The lanes can contain clips that feature note events or
audio recordings, depending on track type. A track can also feature automation lanes that contain clips with parameter automation events - or pattern automation for pattern based devices. See “Lane details” for more details about
lanes.
74
SEQUENCER FUNCTIONS
Clips overview
Audio Clips
Note Clips
Automation Clips
Note, audio, performance controller, pattern and parameter automation events are always contained in clips. A clip is
basically a “container” for recorded data. Audio clips are displayed on the Edit/Arrange Pane as rectangular boxes
with one or two graphical audio waves inside (mono or stereo). Note events are displayed in a “piano roll” fashion in
the clip. Performance controllers and parameter automation events are displayed as continuous lines, and pattern
events are displayed as repeated rectangles in the clips. See “Clip basics” for information about the different clip
types.
Inspector overview
The context sensitive Inspector shows the properties of whatever is currently selected in the sequencer: clips, notes,
automation events, audio comp rows and cuts etc. The properties of the selected item can be edited by changing the
values in the various displays. See “About the Inspector” for more info.
Ruler overview
The Ruler is the song’s “time line”, measured in bars. In the Ruler, the Song Position Pointer indicates the current position in the song, i.e. in which bar the song is, or will begin, playing. The Ruler also shows the Left and Right Loop Locators as well as the Song End Marker. See “Ruler details” for more details.
Edit/Arrangement Pane overview
The big center section of the sequencer is called the Edit/Arrangement Pane. This is where all recorded events reside in clips - on one or more lanes on the respective track.
SEQUENCER FUNCTIONS
75
Track Navigator overview
To the far right in the sequencer is the Track Navigator. With the Track Navigator you can scroll vertically in the Edit/
Arrange Pane. In the Track Navigator, you can also see which track is selected (dark background color) and which
track has Master keyboard Input (red frame around the device icon). See “Scrolling” and “Zooming in the Sequencer”
for more details.
Song Navigator overview
Below the Edit/Arrangement Pane is the Song Navigator. With the Song Navigator you can scroll and zoom horizontally on the Edit/Arrangement Pane. The Song Navigator also features indicators for the Ruler’s Loop Locators, Song
Position Pointer and Song End Marker. In the Song Navigator, all clips on all lanes are displayed as colored lines, indicating their positions in the song. See “Scrolling” and “Zooming in the Sequencer” for more details.
Transport Panel overview
The Transport Panel features the sequencer transport controls (Rewind, Fast Forward, Stop, Play and Record) as well
as controls for Tempo, Time Signature, Position, Time and Loop Locator placements and some other functions. See
“Transport Panel details” for more details.
76
SEQUENCER FUNCTIONS
Track details
Transport Track
Audio Tracks
Instrument Tracks
Automation Track
Track definition
The tracks in the sequencer are where you record your audio, note and automation to create your songs. A track is always associated with a device in the rack (except for the Transport track). An icon with a picture of the associated
device is shown in the Track List on the left hand side in the sequencer. In the Track List, the name of the associated
device is shown, as well as icons and buttons related to the specific track. Each track can incorporate various lane
types (depending on track type). To the right of the Track List - on the Edit/Arrangement pane - each track has its
own dedicated area for recorded events.
In the picture below, six sequencer tracks are shown. From the top down are the Transport Track (which is always
present and cannot be moved or deleted), two audio tracks, two instrument tracks associated with one ID8 instrument device each, and one automation track for a Mix Channel strip.
SEQUENCER FUNCTIONS
77
The relationship between the track, the rack and the Main Mixer
Audio Track
Instrument Track
Automation Track (of channel strip parameters)
Automation Track (of device parameters)
External Routing
Bypass Insert FX
Rec Source
Init Patch
Frippe FW ASIO Interfaze Analog In 1
MUTE SOLO
Show Programmer
Stretch Type
Show Insert FX
2
10
0
VU-56
DISK CHA...
Mix Channel 1
S
S
FX2 Send On
ON
ON
MIDI
MIDI
Control
Khz
LF
Khz
dB
INSERT FX
L R
ON
BYPASS
0
20
56
12
8
MUTE
SOLO
FX SENDS
1
PRE
2
PRE
3
PRE
4
PRE
Init Patch
SEQ RACK
MIX CHAN...
EDIT
PITCH MOD
VOLUME
Piano
Upright
Delay
Chorus
Dance
Vibes
Grand
A
B
C
D
instrument device
ID8 2
External Routing
Bypass Insert FX
Rec Source
Init Patch
Frippe FW ASIO Interfaze Analog In 1
MUTE SOLO
Show Programmer
Stretch Type
Show Insert FX
1080-10
-20VU-56
AUDIO TR...
External Routing
Bypass Insert FX
Init Patch
Show Programmer
Show Insert FX
MUTE SOLO
VU
-56
VU
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MIX CHAN...
Disk Channel 1
S
S
ID8 1
M
S
S
M
L
Rec Source
External Routing
Bypass Insert FX
My Master Patch
D
Show Programmer
Show Insert FX
MODE
VU
-56
VU
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VU
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MAS
ON
T
Rec Source
External Routing
Bypass Insert FX
My Master Patch
0dB
Show Programmer
Show Insert FX
MODE
VU
-56
L
V
6
VU
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Audio
Audio
Audio
Audio
Audio
MIDI
MIDI
Control
Control
Control
Control
MASTER INSERTS
SEQ RACK
LEVEL
1
2
3
4
PAN
FX RETURNS
0
56
2
DIM
-20dB
SOLO
ALL OFF
MUTE
ALL OFF
Init Patch
SIGNAL
PATH
FX
RETURN
MASTER
COMP
MASTER
INSERT
FADER
THRESHOLD
RATIO
ATTACK
RELEASE
MAKE-UP
HF
Khz
dB
LF
Khz
dB
INSERT FX
EQ
L R
O
O
BYPASS
0
20
56
8
MUTE
SOLO
FX SENDS
1
PRE
2
PRE
3
PRE
4
PRE
M
M
M
M
Init Patch
SEQ RACK
MIX CHAN...
EDIT
BYPASS
EDIT
MASTER INSERTS
SEQ RACK
LEVEL
1
2
3
4
PAN
FX RETURNS
0
6
2
DIM
-20dB
SOLO
ALL OFF
MUTE
ALL OFF
Init Patch
SIGNAL
PATH
FX
RETURN
MASTER
COMP
MASTER
INSERT
FADER
THRESHOLD
RATIO
ATTACK
RELEASE
MAKE-UP
HF
Khz
dB
LF
Khz
dB
INSERT FX
EQ
L R
O
ON
BYPASS
0
20
56
8
MUTE
SOLO
FX SENDS
1
PRE
2
PRE
3
PRE
4
PRE
M
M
M
M
Init Patch
SEQ RACK
MIX CHAN...
EDIT
BYPASS
EDIT
H
C/S
Q
Bypass
On
Off
Equal
LO
S
O
CUT
MClass
FREQ
GAIN
Q
FREQ
GAIN
Q
FREQ
30-600Hz 30Hz-20kHz 30Hz-20kHz30Hx
GAIN
SLOPE
FREQ
3kHz-18kHz
GAIN
SLOPE
18 dB
12 dB
6 dB
0 dB
-6 dB
-12 dB
-18 dB
39Hz 78Hz 156Hz 312Hz 625Hz 1kHz 2.2kHz 4kHz 8kHz 16kHz
M EQ 1
Mix Channel 1
S
S
FX2 Send On
ON
ON
MIDI
MIDI
A track in the sequencer is always associated with a device in the rack; i.e. there can never be a sequencer track without an associated rack device (except for the Transport track). Audio Track devices and Mix Channel devices in the
rack also have their corresponding channel strips in the Main Mixer. Mixer Channel strips can be considered “remote
controls” for their corresponding rack devices. Depending on track type, the signal chain differs somewhat. The picture below shows the signal flow in four scenarios with three different track types:
MASTER SECTION
TTM SERIES SUPERDIGITA
N
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TM SERIES SUPERDIGITAL
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SEQUENCER FUNCTIONS
-
1
840-10-2
L
izer
IGH DEFINITION PARAMETRI
HELVING E
HELF
Audio track relationships
Audio Track
Audio Track device
Audio Track Channel strip
Control
Audio and mixer
automation
An audio track is always associated with an Audio Track device in the rack and its corresponding Audio Track channel strip in the Main Mixer. An Audio Track device can also house insert effects.
In the figure above, the audio track is associated with the Audio Track device in the rack,
which in turn is controlled from the Audio Track channel strip in the Main Mixer. The audio track
features recorded audio and mixer automation.
SEQUENCER FUNCTIONS
79
Instrument track relationships
The ID8 Track
Audio
ID8 Mix Channel device
ID8 Mix Channel strip
Control
MIDI and
parameter
automation
ID8 device
An instrument track is always associated with an instrument device in the rack. The instrument device in the rack is,
in most situations, connected to a Mix Channel device in the rack. The Mix Channel device in the rack is controlled
from the corresponding channel strip in the Main Mixer. A Mix Channel device can also house insert effects.
80
In the figure above, the ID8 track is associated with the ID8 instrument device in the rack. The ID8 instrument
device is connected to the ID8 Mix Channel device in the rack, which in turn is controlled from the ID8
channel strip in the Main Mixer. The ID8 track features recorded MIDI notes and parameter automation.
Note that when you create an instrument, the connected Mix Channel device doesn’t automatically get a track in the
sequencer. If you want to record Mixer Channel automation, you have to first create a separate sequencer track for
the Mix Channel device. See “Automation (non-instrument) track relationships”.
SEQUENCER FUNCTIONS
Automation (non-instrument) track relationships
The Mix Channel Automation Track
ID8 Mix Channel device
Mix Channel strip
Control
Parameter
automation
The Equalizer
Automation Track
The Equalizer device
MIDI
A pure automation track is always associated with a “non-instrument” device, i.e. a device which can’t receive MIDI
Note
information. Consequently, an automation track can only consist of parameter automation lanes. Examples of
non-instrument devices are Mix Channel devices with their corresponding Mix Channel strips, effect devices, mixer
devices and Spider Merger & Splitter devices. The picture below shows an example with an automated Mix Channel:
In the figure above, the Mix Channel automation track is associated with the Mix Channel device
in the rack, which in turn is controlled from the channel strip in the Main Mixer.
The picture below shows an example with an automated MClass Equalizer device. Note that no mixer channel strip is
involved in this situation since the automation only concerns a non-instrument device and not any Mix Channel device:
In the figure above, the Equalizer automation track is associated with the Equalizer device in the rack.
SEQUENCER FUNCTIONS
81
Master Keyboard Input
The standard way of routing MIDI from a connected MIDI master keyboard or control surface to a device in the rack
is to set the Master Keyboard Input in the sequencer. When MIDI is routed to a selected track in the sequencer, the
notes and controller data are automatically echoed to the associated device in the rack.
• Setting Master Keyboard Input to an instrument track is necessary if you want to play notes on an instrument
device from your MIDI master keyboard (and control the instrument device parameters via MIDI).
By locking additional MIDI keyboards to separate devices in the rack, you will be able to play and record on several
sequencer tracks simultaneously, see “Locking a surface”.
• Setting Master Keyboard Input to an audio track is only necessary if you want to control the Main Mixer chan-
nel strip parameters via MIDI.
• Setting Master Keyboard Input to a “non-instrument” (parameter automation only) track is only necessary if
you want to control the device’s parameters via MIDI.
Besides the standard routing described above, it’s also possible to lock certain rack devices to specific control surfaces. See “Locking a surface” for more details.
! If you have several MIDI keyboards/control surfaces locked to individual devices in the rack, it is possible to
control and record on several tracks simultaneously!
Setting Master Keyboard Input
D To set Master Keyboard Input to a track and its associated device, click the device icon in the Track List.
Master Keyboard Input set to an instrument track
Master Keyboard Input set to an audio track
The device icon gets a keyboard symbol below it and a red border, indicating that the track and associated device
has Master Keyboard Input. The track and device will now respond to incoming MIDI data from a connected MIDI
keyboard/control surface. By default, setting Master Keyboard Input also automatically selects the track, which is
indicated by the darker color of the track in the Track List.
It’s also possible to set Master Keyboard Input and track selection independently from each other by selecting
“Separated” on the “Keyboards and Control Surfaces” page in Preferences - see “Preferences – Control Surfaces”.
• Only one track at a time can have Master Keyboard Input. However, if you have locked additional MIDI key-
boards to specific devices in the rack via Remote (see “Locking a surface”), you will be able to play and record
these together with the track that has Master Keyboard Input.
82
SEQUENCER FUNCTIONS
The relationship between tracks, lanes, clips and events
Track
Lane
Lane
Lane
Lane
Clip
Clip
Clip
Clip
Note Events
A track is the top level in the sequencer Track List hierarchy. A track can consist of one or several parallel lanes. A
lane can contain clips, which in turn can contain audio recordings, note events, performance controller events, parameter automation events or pattern events, depending on track type.
An instrument track with four note lanes featuring clips with note events.
• A device in the rack can never have more than one track in the sequencer.
• A clip is a “container” for various types of events (audio recordings, note, performance controller, parameter
automation or pattern events).
Track types
These are the different track types:
• The Transport track.
The Transport track is always present at the top of the Track List and cannot be moved or deleted. The Transport
Track can have a maximum of two lanes: one containing time signature automation, and the other containing
tempo automation. See “Automating time signature” and “Editing tempo automation” for more details.
• Audio tracks
An audio track can only have a single audio lane containing clips with mono or stereo audio recordings. However,
each audio clip can contain several recordings, i.e. different "takes". You can view and comp these takes in Edit
Mode. See “Audio Editing in the Sequencer” for more details. An audio track can also have parameter automation
lanes containing automation for the Audio Track Channel strip parameters in the Main Mixer.
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• Instrument tracks
Devices that can receive MIDI notes, such as the Combinator device, will automatically be assigned a record enabled track when created. On an instrument track you can create a number of separate note lanes that can incorporate clips containing a combination of note and performance controller events. Multiple lanes are perfect if you,
for example, are recording a drum track and want to record each drum sound on a separate lane. An instrument
track can also have a number of parameter automation lanes that can contain clips with instrument parameter automation events.
• Parameter automation (“non-instrument”) tracks
Tracks for devices that do not receive MIDI note data (e.g. effects and mixer devices and mixer channels in the
Main Mixer) can only contain parameter automation lanes. These “non-instrument” devices are not automatically
assigned a track when created. To automate parameters for non-instrument devices you need to manually create
a track for these. The number of available lanes is limited by the number of parameters of each device. There can
be one lane for each automatable parameter in the device.
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Track List elements
Device Icons
with names
Track Mute buttons
Track Solo buttons
Record Enable Parameter Automation buttons
Note Lanes
Parameter Automation
Lanes
Parameter Automation
Lanes
Parameter Automation
Lanes
Transport Track
Audio Track
Instrument Track
Automation Track
In the picture below, a Track List with four different tracks is shown. From the top down are the Transport Track
(which is always present and cannot be moved or deleted), an Audio Track associated with an Audio Track device, an
Instrument Track associated with an ID8 Instrument device and an Automation Track associated with the Mix Channel device connected to the ID8 Instrument device.
The Transport Track in the picture features two parameter Automation Lanes (for Time Signature and Tempo) that
have been manually created for the track. The audio track features only a single audio lane. The ID8 1 track features
four note lanes and has two parameter automation lanes added. The Mix Channel 1 track is associated with the Mix
Channel 1 device and has three parameter automation lanes added.
Depending on track type, the elements shown in the Track List can vary. The only common element for all track types
is the "Record Enable Parameter Automation" button which should be enabled when you want to record parameter
automation for the associated device. This and the other track elements will be described in detail later in this chapter.
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Creating tracks
Audio Track
Audio Track device
Audio Track Channel strip
Control
Audio and mixer
automation
Creating an audio track
An audio track can be created as follows:
1. Hold down [Ctrl](Win) or [Cmd](Mac) and press [T]. Alternatively, select “Create Audio Track” from the “Cre-
ate” menu or from the context menu in the Track List, rack or Main Mixer.
D Alternatively, click the “Create Audio Track” button on the “Devices” tab in the Tool Window.
2. An audio track is created in the sequencer and the associated Audio Track device is created in the rack. The
Audio Track device’s channel strip is created in the Main Mixer.
By default, the audio track is set up in mono. You can easily change to stereo by selecting “Stereo Input” in the
“Audio Input” drop-down list - see “Selecting audio input(s) and defining mono or stereo”. If you select “Stereo In-
put”, the Audio Track channel strip in the Main Mixer automatically switches to a stereo channel.
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Creating an instrument track
The ID8 Track
Audio
ID8 Mix Channel device
ID8 Mix Channel strip
Control
MIDI and
parameter
automation
ID8 device
To create an instrument track, you need only create the instrument device. An instrument track is automatically created when you create a device which can receive MIDI notes:
1. Select desired instrument type from the “Create” menu.
Alternatively, to select an Instrument patch and automatically load the patch into the appropriate device type, hold
down [Ctrl](Win) or [Cmd](Mac) and press [I], or select “Create Instrument” from the “Create” menu to bring up the
Patch Browser. Under Windows, you can also press [Insert] to open the Patch Browser. In the Patch Browser you
can select and preview patches before loading them into the instrument.
D Alternatively, drag and drop or double-click the desired instrument device from the “Device Palette” tab on the
Tool Window. Or, to bring up the Patch Browser, click the “Create Instrument” button on the “Device Palette”
tab.
2. An instrument device is created in the rack and the associated track is automatically created in the sequencer.
In addition, a Mix Channel device for the instrument is automatically created in the rack and its channel strip is created in the Main Mixer. All devices are automatically connected. The Mix Channel device automatically adapts its
inputs to the created instrument type - if the instrument is in mono, the Mix Channel device will be in mono, and if
the instrument has stereo outputs, the Mix Channel device will be in stereo.
! Note that no automation track is created for the Mix Channel device. This has to be manually created if you
want to automate any of the Mix Channel strip parameters (see “Creating a parameter automation track for a
non-instrument device”).
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Creating a parameter automation track for a non-instrument device
RV7000 device
RV7000 device
TheRV7000 Automation Track
For non-instrument devices, such as effects devices and Mix Channel devices, you need to manually create a track if
you want to record parameter automation. You can do that either by following the description below or by following
either of the two last descriptions in “Creating/adding parameter automation lanes”.
The track creation procedure described below also applies if you have manually deleted a track for an instrument device or an Audio Track device and want to create a new track for the device:
1. Select the device by clicking on it in the rack.
A border around a device in the Rack indicates that it has been selected.
2. Select ”Create Track for (name of device)” from the Edit menu or the device context menu.
! Note that if a track already exists for the device, this menu item will not be available - a device can only have
one track.
• The new track will be automatically associated with the device and will get the same name as the device.
D Another way of creating a parameter automation track is by holding [Alt](Win) or [Option](Mac) and clicking
on a parameter on the device panel. Alternatively, select “Edit Automation” from the parameter context menu.
q If you press [Alt](Win) or [Option](Mac) when you create a non-instrument device, this will automatically create
an associated automation track for the device.
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Short-cut for creating a Mix Channel track or Audio track
A faster way of creating a track for a Mix Channel device, or to create a new audio track (if you deleted the original
one), is to go via the corresponding mixer channel strips in the Main Mixer:
1. Scroll to the Main Mixer and locate the channel strip you want to create a track for.
2. [Shift]-click the SEQ (Goto Sequencer Track) button at the bottom of the channel strip.
A new track will be automatically created in the sequencer for the selected channel strip.
! If a track should already exist for the selected channel strip, [Shift]-clicking the SEQ (Goto Sequencer Track)
button will only scroll the corresponding sequencer track into view, not create any new track.
Selecting tracks
D Select a track by clicking on it in the Track List.
A selected track gets a darker color.
q Selecting a track in the sequencer will automatically scroll the corresponding device into view in the rack.
• Selecting an audio track will set Edit Focus to its channel strip in the Main Mixer.
• Selecting another type of track (e.g. an instrument track) will set Edit Focus to the Mix Channel belonging to
that device group.
See “About Device Groups” for information about device groups.
D You can also select the next or previous track in the Track List list by using the up and down arrow keys on the
computer keyboard.
! By default, selecting a track will automatically set Master Keyboard Input to that track. If you’d rather select
tracks independent of the Master Keyboard Input selection, select “Separated” mode in the Preferences menu
(“Keyboards and Control Surfaces” page). In “Separated” mode, you can select another track without automatically changing Master Keyboard Input. To change Master Keyboard Input, click the device icon on the desired track in the Track List.
D It is possible to select several tracks by using standard [Shift], or [Ctrl](Win) or [Cmd](Mac), selection tech-
niques.
This allows you to e.g. move or delete several tracks in one go.
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Moving tracks
D To move a track to another position in the Track List, click on the track handle (the leftmost area of the track)
and drag the track up or down.
A red insertion line is shown, indicating where the track will be placed after releasing the mouse button. All clips on
all lanes of the track will be moved along with the track.
You can use the same technique to move several selected tracks at once. Use standard [Shift]-select or use
[Ctrl](Win) or [Cmd](Mac) to select non-adjacent tracks.
About sorting devices and channel strips according to the track order
Note that the order of the tracks in the sequencer Track List is totally independent from the device order in the rack
- and from the channel strip order in the Main Mixer. However, it’s possible to re-order devices and channel strips according to the track order in the Track List:
1. Select the tracks in the Track List you want to re-order devices and channel strips after.
2. Select “Sort Selected Device Groups” from the Edit menu or from the track’s context menu.
The associated devices and channel strips are now re-ordered, in the rack and Main Mixer respectively, according
to the order of the selected tracks in the Track List.
! Note that the re-ordering only affects the devices and channel strips of the selected tracks - all other devices
and channel strips will remain unaffected.
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Deleting tracks
The most common scenario would probably be to delete a track together with its associated device(s). However, it’s
also possible to delete only the track while keeping the associated device(s) in the rack.
Deleting tracks together with their associated devices
D To delete one or several tracks together with their associated devices in the Rack, select the tracks and then
select “Delete Track(s) and Device(s)” from the Edit menu or from the track’s context menu. Alternatively,
press [Delete] or [Backspace].
An alert appears which prompts you to confirm or cancel the deletion of the track(s) and device(s).
! If you're deleting the track for the Source Device or Mix Channel, and “Auto-group Devices and Tracks” on the
Options menu is on, you will be asked if you want to delete the whole device group. If you hold down
[Ctrl](Win) or [Cmd](Mac) while deleting, the whole device group will be deleted without the alert.
See “About Device Groups” for more information about device groups.
SEQUENCER FUNCTIONS
Deleting tracks only
D To delete one or several tracks, select them and then select “Delete Track(s)” from the Edit menu or from the
track’s context menu.
The tracks will be deleted without an alert but you can always use the Undo function. See “Undo and Redo”.
! If you delete an audio track, all recordings on that track will be removed!
If you have deleted a track for a device and want to create a new track for the device, follow the descriptions in “Cre-
ating a parameter automation track for a non-instrument device” or “Short-cut for creating a Mix Channel track or Au-
dio track”.
Duplicating/copying tracks and devices
As it is not possible for a specific instance of a device to have more than one track, you cannot copy or duplicate only
a track. These operations will instead duplicate/copy both the track (including all clips on the track) and its associated device(s) (with all settings). The duplicated/copied devices are really just like separate devices but with the
same name and settings as the original devices, although their names will have the extension “Copy” to differentiate
them from the original.
To make copies of tracks and their associated devices, complete with all lanes and recorded clips, use any of the following methods:
! Note that if “Auto-group Devices and Tracks” on the Options menu is on, the entire device group(s) associated
with the track(s) will be copied/duplicated when you perform the procedures described below.
See “About Device Groups” for more information about device groups.
D Hold down [Ctrl](Win) or [Option](Mac), click on the track handle and drag the selected track(s) to a new posi-
tion in the track list.
D Select “Duplicate Device(s) and Track(s)” from the Edit menu or from the track’s context menu.
To bring up the context menu, right-click (Win) or [Ctrl]-click (Mac) on the track in the Track List. The duplicated
track(s) will be inserted below the original track.
D Select “Copy Device(s) and Track(s)” from the Edit menu or from the track’s context menu.
This allows you to insert the copied track(s) and device(s) by selecting “Paste” from the Edit menu or from the
track’s context menu. The copied track(s) will be pasted below the currently selected track.
! Note that if “Auto-group Devices and Tracks” on the Options menu is off, duplicated/copied devices will not
have auto-routed audio connections. To hear the duplicated devices, select the device and choose “Auto-route
Device” on the Edit menu or context menu. Alternatively, flip the rack around and connect the audio outputs to
available (or new) Mix Channel devices. You might also want to mute the original track to avoid double notes.
D To duplicate a selected audio track, with all recordings and mixer channel strip parameter settings, including
any Insert FX, click the “New Alt” or New Dub” buttons on the Transport Panel - see “Duplicating audio tracks
using the “Alt” function” and “Overdubbing audio using the “Dub” function”.
q If you hold down [Shift] and select Paste from the Edit menu or context menu, the copied device(s) will be
auto-routed to an available mixer channel. If necessary, an additional Mix Channel will be automatically created.
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Coloring tracks
A track can be assigned a color in the sequencer as follows:
D To assign a new color to a selected track, select “Track Color” from the Edit menu or from the track’s context
menu and then select color from the palette.
The track color is shown in the track background in the Track List. The associated Audio Track device or Mix
Channel device in the rack and its corresponding channel strip in the Main Mixer will also be assigned the new
color. The selected track color will be reflected in all
corded clips on this track will not change color. To change color of previously recorded clips, refer to “Coloring
clips”.
D To automatically set a new color for new tracks, make sure the “Auto-color New Sequencer Tracks” box in the
Options menu is ticked.
The track color will be automatically selected from the palette when you create a new track.
new
clips you record or draw on this track. Any previously re-
Naming tracks
D Name, or rename, a track by double-clicking its name tag in the Track List, typing in a name and pressing [Re-
turn].
Note that naming/renaming a track also changes the name of the associated Source Device in the rack (and vice
versa). Furthermore, renaming an audio track also changes the name of the associated Audio Track device in the
rack as well as its corresponding channel strip in the Main Mixer. If you rename the track of a source device in a
device group, its Mix Channel will get the same name. If you want a separate name for the Mix Channel, doubleclick in the Mix Channel name tag, in the rack or Main Mixer, type in a new name and press [Return].
See “About Device Groups” for more information about device groups.
Folding tracks
To minimize the visible height of the track, and thus allow for a better overview of the tracks in the sequencer, it’s possible to fold tracks.
D To fold/unfold a track, click on the small triangle on the track handle.
An unfolded track
The same track folded
A folded track will not show the individual lanes in the Track List, and on the Edit/Arrangement Pane the clips are
shown as horizontal strips. If the folded track has several lanes, all the clips on the lanes will be shown as vertically
stacked strips on the Arrangement Pane. No events in the clips are shown.
D Basic clip operations (selecting, moving, copying etc.) are available also for folded tracks, although it is gener-
ally better to unfold a track if you want to edit its contents, as this gives you a better overview.
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D To fold/unfold all tracks in the sequencer in one go, press [Alt](Win) or [Option](Mac) and click on a track han-
dle triangle.
q It’s also possible to fold/unfold only the parameter automation lanes on a track by clicking the triangle on the
parameter automation tab. See “Parameter automation lane elements” for more details.
Muting tracks
To mute a track means to silence it, so that no data is sent from the track during playback. This can be useful when
you are trying out different versions of an arrangement, for bringing elements in and out of the mix during playback.
D To mute a track, click the corresponding Mute (M) button in the Track List.
Everything present on the track will be muted.
A red “M” button in the Track List indicates that the track is muted.
D To unmute the track, click the “M” button again.
D Several tracks can have Mute active at the same time, in which case you can unmute them all by clicking the
master “M” button at the top of the Track List.
q It’s also possible to mute individual lanes and individual clips on a track. Refer to “Muting lanes” and “Muting
clips”.
Soloing tracks
To solo a track means that all tracks in the sequencer, except for the soloed track, are muted.
D To solo a track, click the corresponding Solo (S) button in the Track List.
This mutes all other (un-soloed) tracks. Soloed tracks have green S buttons.
Here, the “Filter Chords” track is soloed (indicated by the green “S” button).
All other tracks are automatically muted (indicated by red “M” buttons)
D To turn solo off, click the green “S” button again.
D Several tracks can have Solo active at the same time, in which case you can turn off Solo for all of them by
clicking the master “S” button at the top of the Track List.
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Lane details
Audio Lane
A track consists of one (default) or several parallel lanes. Depending on track type, the clips on the lanes can contain
various types of events. A lane can also contain clips with performance controller and parameter automation events or pattern selection for pattern based devices.
Audio lane
The audio lane is not distinguished by a separate lane tab in the Track List like the other lane types. This is simply because an audio track can only have a single audio lane. Consequently, all audio lane elements reside in the audio
track section instead.
Audio lane elements
• Record Enable button
To the right of the Record Enable Parameter Automation button is the Record Enable button. Make sure this button is on (red) before recording audio on the track. By default, this is activated when you select an audio track. If
you want to record several audio tracks at the same time you need to click their Record Enable buttons first.
• Monitor button
To the right of the Record Enable button is the Monitor button. Click this button to monitor the input signal of the
track. The signal is monitored after the audio track channel strip which means that all channel strip parameters, including any Insert FXs, will be monitored.
! The Monitor button activation/deactivation depends on the setting in the “Monitoring” section on the “Audio”
page in Preferences. If “Manual” is selected, you will have to manually activate the Monitor button. If “Automatic” is selected, the Monitor button is automatically activated when the Record Enable button is on.
• Enable Tuner button
To the left below the Device icon is the Enable Tuner button. Click the button to switch to Tuner mode. The Input
Meter to the right will switch to a Tuner.
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Audio track in Tuner mode
In Tuner mode, you can tune a connected instrument - an electric guitar, for example. See “Using the Tuner” for
more info.
SEQUENCER FUNCTIONS
• Select Audio Input drop-down list
Note Lane
To the right of the Tuner button is the Select Audio Input drop-down list. Here, you select which audio input(s) to
use for the track. See “Selecting audio input(s) and defining mono or stereo” for more info.
• Input Meter
The Input Meter shows the level(s) of the input signal(s). If the selected audio input is mono, the Input Meter displays a single LED bar. If the audio input is in stereo, the Input Meter displays two parallel LED bars. See “Setting
input level(s)” for details about setting input levels.
Note lane
As the name implies, the note lane can contain clips that feature note events. Clips on a note lane can also contain
performance controller events. One or several note lanes can be present on an instrument track.
Note lane elements
•Name
At the top to the left is the name of the lane. As soon as you create a note lane it will automatically be named
“Lane n” where “n” is the number of the lane - in chronological order. You can change the name of the lane by double-clicking in the name field, typing in a new name and then pressing [Return] on the computer keyboard.
! Note that depending on the current magnification of the Edit/Arrangement Pane, the note lane names could
sometimes be hidden. To make the note lane names visible, increase the vertical magnification of the Edit/Arrangement Pane, for example, by clicking the + magnification button below the sequencer Track Navigator.
Increase the vertical magnification by clicking the + magnification button below the Track Navigator
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• Record Enable button
Parameter Automation
Lanes
Below the note lane name is the “Record Enable” button. Make sure this button is on (red) before recording on the
lane. By default, the “Record Enable” button on the latest created/added note lane is automatically activated when
you select an instrument track.
• Groove Select drop-down list
To the right of the “Record Enable” button is the “Groove Select” drop-down list. Here you can select a ReGroove
channel for all clips on the lane. See more about ReGroove in “The ReGroove Mixer”.
• M (Mute) button
Clicking the “M” button will mute the playback from the lane.
• Activity bar
To the right of the “M” button is the note lane Activity bar. As soon as there is any note playing in a clip on the lane,
the bar lights up in green. The note lane Activity bar also reflects the velocity of the played back notes.
• Delete (X) button
To the far right is the “Delete Note Lane” (X) button. Clicking this button will delete the lane (and all clips on it). If
there are clips on the lane, a dialog appears prompting you to confirm deletion.
Parameter automation lane
An instrument track with two parameter automation lanes
Parameter automation is used for controlling changes of device parameter values in a song. You could, for example,
automate a filter cutoff parameter and record filter sweeps at various positions in your song. These kind of parameter
value changes are recorded on parameter automation lanes.
Parameter automation lanes can exist in all track types and can contain clips with device and/or channel strip parameter automation. A track can have as many automation lanes as its device has automatable parameters. For Mix
Channel and Audio Track devices, parameter automation could be used for any of their corresponding channel strip
controls.
Parameter automation lane elements
• Fold/Unfold button
Parameter automation lanes in a track can be folded/unfolded, as a group, by clicking the small triangle on the
handle to the far left on the parameter automation lane tab.
D To fold/unfold all parameter automation lanes on all tracks in the sequencer, hold down [Alt](Win) or
[Option](Mac) and click on the triangle on a parameter automation lane tab.
•Name
The name of the automated parameter is displayed on the parameter automation lane tab. Since the name reflects
the original device/channel strip parameter name, this cannot be changed.
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•On button
Pattern Lane
The “On” button is active by default and enables the automated parameter in the clip on the lane to have effect.
You can switch off automation lanes by clicking the yellow “On” for a lane button so it goes dark. This will freeze
whatever value the parameter had when switching off the automation lane. Clicking the button again reactivates
the automation.
• Delete Automation Lane (X) button
To the far right is the “Delete Automation Lane” (X) button. Clicking this button will delete the lane (and all clips on
it). If there are clips on the lane, a dialog appears prompting you to confirm deletion. See “Deleting parameter au-
tomation lanes” for alternative ways of deleting parameter automation lanes.
Pattern lane
A Redrum track featuring a pattern lane
A pattern lane can only exist in a track featuring a pattern based device, such as the Redrum Drum Module or the
Matrix Analog Pattern Sequencer. A pattern lane can only contain clips with pattern Bank and pattern Number automation data. There can only be a single pattern lane per track.
Pattern lane elements
•Name
The name of the automated parameter is displayed on the pattern automation lane tab. Since the name reflects
the original device parameter name, this cannot be changed.
•On button
Click the “On” button for the pattern automation in the clip on the lane to have effect. Deselecting “On” is the same
as muting the pattern lane.
• Delete Pattern Lane (X) button
To the far right is the “Delete Pattern Lane” (X) button. Clicking this button will delete the lane (and all clips on it).
If there are clips on the lane, a dialog appears prompting you to confirm deletion. See “Deleting pattern lanes” for
alternative ways of deleting pattern lanes.
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Creating/adding lanes
Adding note lanes
You can add additional note lanes on an instrument track. This can be useful under the following circumstances:
• If you want to overdub notes or performance automation but don’t want to record in existing clips.
• If you want to record a series of takes on separate note lanes, to later decide which take is the “best” (or to
edit together a composite).
• If you want to apply different ReGroove grooves to different parts of a track, or want different grooves on sep-
arate drums on a drum track.
You can create new note lanes for selected instrument tracks in the following ways:
D Select “New Note Lane” from the Edit menu or from the context menu.
A new note lane will be created and automatically record enabled.
D Click on the “New Note Lane” (Lanes +) button at the top of the Track List.
A new Note Lane will be created and automatically record enabled.
D Click on the “Dub” button on the Transport Panel.
A new note lane will be created and automatically record enabled. See “Recording notes using the “Dub” and “Alt”
functions” for more details.
D Click on the “Alt” button on the Transport Panel.
A new note lane will be created and automatically record enabled. At the same time, the previous note lane, or (if
loop is activated and the Song Position Pointer is between the Left and Right Locators) the clips between the Left
and Right Locators, will be muted. See “Recording notes using the “Dub” and “Alt” functions” for more details.
q Note that the “Dub” and “Alt” functions can also be used on-the-fly during recording without stopping the se-
quencer.
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Creating/adding parameter automation lanes
Parameter automation lanes can be created for all track types.
• During recording of a track, changing any parameter values on the device/channels strip will automatically cre-
ate a new parameter automation lane for each unique parameter. See “Recording parameter automation” for
more details.
Do as follows to manually create a parameter automation lane on a selected track:
D Hold down [Alt](Win) or [Option](Mac) and click on a device parameter in the rack, or on a channel strip param-
eter in the Main Mixer. Alternatively, select “Edit Automation” from the parameter’s context menu.
A new parameter automation lane will be automatically created in the track for the corresponding device or channel strip. The automated parameter on the device in the rack or channel strip in the Main Mixer will get a green
border, indicating that it has been automated.
! Note that if a track hasn’t already been created for the device/channel strip, it will be automatically created
during this operation.
Other ways of creating/adding a parameter automation lane are as follows:
1. Click on the “Track Parameter Automation” drop-down list at the top of the Track List.
2. Select the parameter you want to automate from the list.
A new parameter automation lane is automatically created on the selected track.
If you click the Track Parameter Automation drop-down list again, any selected parameters will have a symbol to
the left of the parameter name, indicating that an automation lane already exists for the parameter.
The automated parameters on the device in the rack or channel strip in the Main Mixer will get green borders, indicating that they have been automated.
Alternatively, if you want to automate several parameters in one go:
1. Select “Parameter Automation” from the Edit menu or the context menu.
The Track Parameter Automation dialog opens up.
D If the parameters you want to automate aren’t visible in the dialog, uncheck the “Show Frequently Used Only”
box to view all available device parameters that can be automated.
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2. Place a tick in the boxes for the parameters you want to automate and click OK.
3. One parameter automation lane for each of the selected parameters will show up on the track.
The automated parameters on the device in the rack or channel strip in the Main Mixer will get green borders, indicating that they have been automated.
Creating a pattern lane
For pattern based devices such as the Redrum Drum Module and Matrix Analog Pattern Sequencer, a single pattern
lane can be created on a selected track. Do either of the following:
D Click the “Create Pattern Lane” button at the top right of the Track List.
D Select “Create Pattern Lane” from the Edit menu or from the context menu.
D Hold down [Alt](Win) or [Option](Mac) and click on the “Pattern” button section of the device in the rack.
D Right-click (Win) or [Ctrl]-click (Mac) on the “Pattern” button section of the device in the rack and select “Edit
Automation” from the context menu.
When you create a pattern lane, the bank buttons on the device in the rack get a green border to indicate that they
have been automated.
D Clicking the Pattern and/or Bank buttons on the device during recording will automatically create a pattern
lane. See “Recording pattern automation” for more details.
Deleting lanes
Deleting note lanes
A note lane can be deleted as follows:
D Click the “Delete Note Lane” (X) button on the lane tab in the Track List.
This will delete the lane (and all clips on it). If there are clips on the lane, a dialog appears prompting you to confirm
deletion.
D To delete the lane without the dialog, hold down [Ctrl](Win) or [Cmd](Mac) and click the Delete Note Lane but-
ton.
Deleting parameter automation lanes
There are a number of different ways of deleting a parameter automation lane:
D Click the “Delete Automation Lane” (X) button on the lane tab in the Track List.
This will delete the lane (and all clips on it). If there are clips on the lane, a dialog appears prompting you to confirm
deletion.
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D To delete the lane without the dialog, hold down [Ctrl](Win) or [Cmd](Mac) and click the Delete Automation
Lane button.
SEQUENCER FUNCTIONS
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