Drum sound channels

The selected patch

The Select Patch button

16. Try out the drum sounds by clicking the audition buttons at the top of each drum sound channel. 15. Select a Redrum patch in the same way as you selected a Subtractor patch. The patches are located in category folders within the folder Redrum Drum Kits in the Reason Factory Sound Bank.
Now, lets start building a pattern. By default, the empty patterns have sixteen steps, with each step corresponding to a sixteenth note (so that the length of a pattern is one 4/4 bar). To make things simple, well keep this setting for now. 17. Click the Run button on the Redrum device panel. The pattern will start playing (as indicated by the running LED on the step buttons at the bottom of the device panel). Nothing will be heard, since you havent added any drum beats yet.
18. Click the Select button for one of the drum sounds. In Redrum, you add drum beats for one sound at the time. 19. Click on the first step button (marked 1). The button lights up, indicating a drum beat.
Now try recording some synth notes in the sequencer: 23. Click in the In column for the synthesizer track in the sequencer so that the MIDI connector symbol appears. 24. Click the record button in the transport panel. The button lights up, indicating record standby mode.
The Play button The Fast Forward button

The Stop button

The Rewind button

The Record button

You will now hear the sound of the selected drum on the first beat of each bar. 20. Add more drum beats by clicking other step buttons. Clicking a lit step button will remove the beat. 25. Click the play button. Recording is activated, and the drum machine pattern automatically starts playing. 26. Play your MIDI keyboard while listening to the drum pattern. 27. When youre done, click the stop button. 28. Click stop again to move the song position to the beginning of the song. You can also click and hold the rewind button. 29. Click play to listen to your recording. Finally, lets record some automation of a synthesizer parameter. In this example, we automate the cutoff frequency of the filter (Filter 1 Freq), but you can automate any parameter you like. 30. Rewind the song to the beginning again. 21. Select another drum sound (by clicking its Select button) and proceed in the same way until you have a drum pattern you want to use. 22. To stop the playback, click the Run button again.
The Overdub/Replace switch
You can add beats of different strength (velocity level) by adjusting the Dynamic switch. Exactly how each sound is affected by different velocity levels depends on the settings. You can also adjust the dynamics on the fly by pressing [Shift] or [Option] (Mac) / [Alt] (Windows) when you add beats. [Shift]-click for hard beats, [Option]/[Alt]-click for soft beats.
31. Make sure the Overdub/Replace switch (just below the record button) is in the Overdub position. This allows you to record more on the same track, without removing the previous recording.

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

The track list.

The right part of the sequencer area has two main modes, the arrange view and the edit view.
The edit view, with the drum lane, velocity lane, pattern lane and two controller lanes visible.

The Devices

The following devices are available in Reason:
Reason Hardware Interface
This device handles Reasons communication with your hardware. The upper half of the hardware interface contains settings for MIDI input, allowing you to select a separate MIDI channel for each device when controlling Reason from an external multi-channel MIDI source. This is a mixer with fourteen stereo channels, four stereo effect sends and a basic two-band EQ section. By connecting the different devices to different mixer channels (and the stereo output of the mixer to the hardware interface) you can listen to all your devices at the same time, adjust levels and pan, add effects and so on - just like on a physical mixer.
For standard MIDI control of one device at a time in Reason, you dont need to use the hardware interface (since the MIDI signals are routed through the sequencer, as described in the tutorials earlier in this chapter).

Subtractor Analog Synth

The lower half of the hardware interface contains audio output indicators with level meters. This is where you connect different devices to different outputs on your audio hardware. Reason supports up to 64 separate audio outputs. However, if you are only using audio hardware with standard stereo outputs, the connections to the audio hardware are automatically taken care of when you create a mixer device at the top of the rack.
The Reason Hardware Interface is riveted into the rack, and cannot be removed.
The Subtractor is a polyphonic synthesizer laid out much like an advanced analog synth. It features two oscillators, two filters and a host of modulation functions, allowing for everything from fat basses to swirling pads and screaming lead sounds.

BV512 Vocoder

RV-7 Digital Reverb
The BV512 is an advanced vocoder device with a variable number of filter bands and a unique 1024-point FFT vocoding mode (equivalent of 512-band vocoding) for very precise and high quality vocoded speech. By connecting the BV512 to two instrument devices, you can produce anything from vocoded speech, singing or drums to weird special effects.
This is a reverb effect with ten different reverb algorithms, ranging from hall and room simulations to special effects. You can fine-tune the effect with the knobs on the device panel if you like. The reverb is normally used as a send effect.

DDL Digital Delay Line

Scream 4 Sound Destruction Unit
This is an extremely versatile sound destruction device, featuring various kinds of distortion, signal warping and transformation effects. There are three main sections: Damage (where you select a sound mangling algorithm and make settings), Cut (a three band EQ) and Body (a resonant body or cabinet simulator, excellent for making the sound come alive).
This is a basic digital delay, useful for echoes, slapback, doubling, etc. The delay time can be set in steps based on and synchronized to the current song tempo, or in milliseconds for free-running delays. The maximum delay time is 2.0 seconds.

D-11 Foldback Distortion

RV7000 Advanced Reverb
The D-11 is a simple but highly effective distortion device, that can convert mellow synth sounds to screaming leads and basses, add grit and dirt to drum patterns or loops, etc.
ECF-42 Envelope Controlled Filter
The RV7000 is a high quality reverb processor with nine different reverb and echo algorithms, ranging from rooms and halls to special effects. The RV7000 also contains an equalizer and a gate section, making it possible to get virtually any kind of reverb character, including gated reverb.
This is a synth-style resonant filter with three different filter modes. You can either use it as a static filter (and vary the filter frequency on the device panel, or via Control Voltage from another device) or use the built-in envelope to create rhythmic filter effects of various kinds. The envelope can for example be triggered by a drum machine or the Matrix pattern sequencer.

CF-101 Chorus/Flanger

PEQ2 Two Band Parametric EQ
The CF-101 does double duty as chorus (for making textures rich and swirly) and flanger (for creating sweeping, metallic effects). You can use it as a send effect or as an insert effect (connected between an instrument device and a mixer).

You can turn off these tool tips by deactivating the option Show Parameter Value Tool Tip on the Preferences-General page.

Parameter Context Menus

If you click on an automatable control (a synth parameter knob, a fader, etc), the context menu will contain the following items: Functions for clearing and editing the recorded automation data for the control. Functions for associating computer keyboard commands and/or MIDI messages to the parameter (allowing you to remote control parameters from a MIDI device or the computer keyboard).

Context menus

Context menus are tailored to contain the relevant menu items only, allowing you to work quicker and more efficiently with Reason. D To bring up a context menu, click with the right mouse button (Windows) or press [Ctrl] and click (Mac). If you are using a Macintosh 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.

Empty Rack Context Menus

If you click in an empty section of the rack, the context menu will contain the following items: A Paste Device item, allowing you to paste any copied or cut devices into the rack. A duplicate of the Create menu, allowing you to create new devices.

Sequencer Context Menus

If you click in the sequencer, the context menu will contain items related to editing Tracks, Groups and Events. The available items will differ depending on in which area or lane you click (Track list, Key Edit lane, etc.), and depending on whether you click on an event or not. For example, the sequencer context menus contain functions for inserting or removing bars, adding tracks, and grouping, changing or deleting events. See the electronic documentation for details.
The Dr. REX context menu.
The contents of the context menu depends on where you click. Basically, the following different context menu types are available:
Virtually all actions in Reason can be undone. This includes creation, deletion and reordering of devices in the Rack, parameter value adjustments, editing in the sequencer and tempo/time signature adjustments. You can undo up to 10 actions. D To undo the latest action, select Undo from the Edit menu or press [Command]/[Ctrl]-[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 say Undo Delete Devices.
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 1. Create Mixer Device 4. Change pan 5. Adjust tempo REDO

By default, Reason plays back a middle A at 440 Hz, which is the standard tuning in most instruments. However, if you are playing Reason together with other instruments, you may want to adjust the tuning: 1. Pull down the Edit menu (or Reason menu, under Mac OS X) and select Preferences. 2. Use the pop-up menu at the top of the Preferences dialog to select the Audio page.
D To remedy this, lower the master level on the mixer (or other device) that is connected to the Hardware Interface, until Audio Out Clipping doesnt light up on playback.
3. Adjust the global tuning with the Master Tune control. If you like, you can adjust this during playback. Note that this affects the tuning of all sound sources in Reason, including the drum machine and loop player.
Note that it doesnt matter if the level meters on the individual devices (effects, mixer channels, etc) hit the red. Clipping can only occur in the Hardware Interface.
The technical reason for this is that internally, Reason uses high resolution floating point processing, which ensures high audio quality and virtually limitless headroom. In the Audio Hardware device, the floating point audio is converted to the resolution used by the audio hardware, and thats where clipping may occur.
If you are using multiple outputs
If you are using audio hardware with more than two outputs, you may have different devices connected to different outputs in the Hardware Interface. If the Audio Out Clipping indicator lights up, you should play back the section again while checking the Hardware Interface. Each output socket has a level meter - if the red meter segment lights up, the output is clipping. Lower the output level of the device connected to the clipping output, until no clipping occurs.
Clipping on the stereo outputs.

If you are using ReWire

If you are streaming audio to another application using the ReWire protocol, clipping can not happen in Reason. This is because the conversion from floating point audio happens in the other audio application. See the electronic documentation for more information about ReWire.

D Managing the Rack

As you have seen by now, the central part of Reason is the rack. This is where you create and configure your devices, and make parameter settings. This chapter describes all the procedures for managing the rack, that is, procedures and techniques common to all devices. Device parameter specifics are described in the electronic documentation.

Creating Devices

To create a new device, select the desired item on the Create menu. This menu is available both on the main menu bar and on the context menus (see page 38 for an introduction to context menus).

This is the result. Note that the filter device is moved to the left, to fill out the gap.
D If you hold down [Shift] when you duplicate the device, Reason will attempt to automatically route it, just as when you move devices. See page 51.

Cut, Copy and Paste

In this case, the red line indicates that the reverb device will be inserted to the right of the chorus/flanger.
Selected devices can be moved or duplicated using the Cut, Copy and Paste Device functions on the Edit menu or device context menu. For example, this allows you to copy one or several devices (such as an instrument device and all its insert effects) from one Reason Song to another. The following rules apply: D Cut and Copy affects all selected devices, and work according to the standard procedures. That is, Cut moves the devices to the clipboard (removing them from the rack) while Copy creates copies of the devices and puts these on the clipboard, without affecting the rack.
This is the result. All three devices are moved to the left, to fill out the gap.
D When you Paste devices, these are inserted into the rack below the currently selected device. If no device is selected, the pasted devices will appear at the bottom of the rack. D If you Copy and Paste several devices, the connections between these are preserved.
4. Release the mouse button. The device(s) are moved to the new position and the other devices in the rack are adjusted to fill up the gaps.
D If you hold down [Shift] when you Paste a device, Reason will attempt to automatically route it. The rules are the same as when moving or duplicating devices by dragging. See page 51.
Note that if you start to move a device but change your mind, you can abort the operation by pressing [Esc] while keeping the mouse button pressed.
D If you hold down [Shift] when you move a device, Reason will attempt to automatically re-route it. See page 51 for more info on auto-routing.

A Quick Note on Routing

This section only describes the basics in routing. For detailed descriptions of routing procedures and possibilities, see the electronic documentation. Reason allows for extremely flexible routing of audio and control signals between the devices in the rack. Basically, routing can be done automatically or manually:
Auto-routing Devices after they have been Created
Here follows some additional rules about auto-routing devices that are already in the rack: D To reroute a device already in the rack, you can select it and use Disconnect Device and Auto-route Device, both on the Edit menu. D If you delete a device connected between two devices, the connection between the two remaining devices is automatically preserved. A typical example would be if you have an effect device, connected as an insert effect between a synth and a mixer. If you delete the effect, the synth will be routed directly to the mixer. D When you move a device, connections are not affected. If you instead would like the program to re-route the device according to its new location in the rack, hold down [Shift] when you move it. D When you duplicate devices (by dragging) or use copy and paste, the devices are not auto-routed at all. If you would like them to be automatically routed, hold down [Shift] when you perform the operation.

Tempo and Time Signature

The tempo and time signature settings are located on the transport panel. D You can specify any tempo between 1 and 999.999 bpm (beats per minute). The tempo field to the right allows you to fine tune the tempo, in steps of 1/ 1000 bpm.
The tempo set to 110.094 bpm.
To move the song position, drag the P marker or click directly in the ruler.
You may want to start a few bars early to get time to start playing.
You can also adjust the tempo (in bpm steps) by using the [+] and [] keys on the numeric keypad. D You set the time signature by specifying a numerator (left value field) and a denominator (right value field). The numerator is the number of beats per bar, and the denominator governs the length of a beat.

3/4 time selected.

3. Click the record button or press [*] on the numeric keypad. The record button lights up to indicate Record Standby mode.
4. Click the play button or press [Enter] on the numeric keypad. Recording starts. 5. When you are done, click the stop button or press [0] on the numeric keypad.
When you record, it is often necessary to have some sort of rhythmic guide to help you keep time. The easiest way is to use the built-in metronome click:
Recorded notes are indicated as red bars in the Arrange window.
When this is activated, you will hear a click on each beat, with an accent on the downbeat of each bar. The click is played back during recording and playback. You can adjust the volume of the click by using the Level knob.
At this point, you may want to move the song position to the beginning of the recording (by rewinding or by moving the song position marker in the ruler), and click the play button to listen to what you recorded. You can undo the recording if you like. D It is also possible to activate recording during playback (punch in), by starting playback and then clicking the record button. Similarly, you can deactivate recording without stopping playback (punch out).
Sometimes it might be easier to use a drum machine pattern as a rhythmic guide.

Recording more tracks

Once you have recorded something, you can continue recording on other tracks, while hearing the first recording play back. Just remember to route MIDI to the desired recording track. D You can change the MIDI routing during recording if you like. This is especially useful when recording in loop mode: record the first track, then click in the In column for the next track you want to record, and so on. Everything you record will be played back on the next loop lap. For more info about the loop mode, see page 68.
Replacing a section of a previous recording
If you have made a largely successful recording, in which only a section needs to be redone, you can use Replace mode for this: 1. Select Replace mode. 2. Start playback at a position before the faulty section. 3. At the start of the section, activate recording. 4. Re-record the section. 5. At the end of the faulty section, deactivate recording or stop.

Recording more on the same track - Overdub/ Replace
If you like, you can continue recording over the same area on the same track. This can be useful for adding elements to a loop, for recording automation of multiple controls or for replacing a faulty part of an otherwise good take. Whether the previous recording is kept or removed depends on the Overdub/ Replace setting.

Playback and Positioning

If you are using ReWire, transport functions can be handled by either application. See the electronic documentation.

Play and Stop

D To play back from the current song position, click the play button or press [Enter] on the numeric keypad. D In Overdub mode, the new recording is added to whatever was on the Track before. When you play back, you will hear both recordings. This is the mode to use when you want to add elements to an existing recording (e.g. add controller data to recorded notes). D In Replace mode, the new recording replaces any previously recorded notes. Only the notes in the actual recording area are replaced. D To stop playback, click the stop button or press [0] on the numeric keypad. If you click the stop button when the song is already stopped, the song position is moved according to the following rules: If the song position is to the right of the left locator, it is moved to the left locator. If the song position is at the left locator or to the left of it, it is moved to the start of the song. If the song position is at the start of the song, nothing happens.
Its probably best to use Overdub mode as your default mode, to avoid removing material by mistake. The Overdub/Replace switch affects notes only - not recorded controllers! See the electronic documentation for details.
This means you can always click twice on the stop button in stop mode, to return to the beginning of the song.

Positioning

About Snap to Grid

The Snap on/off button.

The song position is indicated by the vertical line with the P marker in the ruler. There are several ways to move the song position: D Use the rewind and fast forward controls on the transport panel. This moves the song position in steps of one bar (from its current position). That is, if you just click once on the rewind/fast forward button, the song position will be moved exactly one bar back or forward. To move the song position several bars, click and hold the mouse button. D Use the transport key commands on the numeric keypad. See the table on page 64. D Click and drag the P marker in the ruler, or click directly in the ruler at the desired song position. The resulting song position takes the Snap value into account, as described below. D Adjust the song position numerically in the value display below the transport buttons. The song position is shown as three digits: bars, beats and sixteenth notes.

The Snap value pop-up.

The Snap to Grid function (from now on called Snap) restricts movement to specific positions. This is especially useful when you are editing in the sequencer (moving material, creating events, etc), but it will also affect the result of moving the song position in the ruler. To set up and activate Snap, proceed as follows: 1. Pull down the Snap pop-up menu and select a value. If you select Bar, you will only be able to move the song position to the beginning of bars. The other options restrict movement to the corresponding note values. 2. Activate Snap by clicking the button next to the pop-up menu.
In this example, Snap is activated and set to quarter notes. This means you can move the song position to exact quarter note positions only.

Using the Loop

In loop mode, the sequencer will repeat a section over and over again, during playback or recording. You specify the section to be looped by setting the left and right locator: D Set the left locator (the start of the loop) by dragging the L marker in the ruler. Or, you can hold down [Option] (Mac) or [Ctrl] (Windows) and click in the ruler. D Set the right locator (the end of the loop) by dragging the R marker in the ruler. Or, you can hold down [Command] (Mac) or [Alt] (Windows) and click in the ruler.

Mute and Solo

To mute a track means to silence it, so that no data is sent from the track during playback. This can be very useful when you are trying out different versions of an arrangement, for bringing elements in and out of the mix during playback, etc. D To mute (silence) a track, click in the M column in the track list. The notes and events on the muted track will not be heard on playback.
Note that Snap applies when moving the locators in the ruler, just as with the song position.
A red cross indicates a muted track.
Both locator positions can also be adjusted numerically on the transport panel.
To unmute the track, click in the M column again. Several tracks can be muted at the same time. D You can also solo a track, by holding down [Option] (Mac) / [Alt] (Windows) and clicking in the M column. This mutes all other (unsoloed) tracks.

Randomize

The Randomize functions create random patterns. These can often be great starting points and help you get new ideas.
The Alter functions modify existing patterns. Note that there must be something in the pattern for the function to work on - using an Alter function on an empty pattern will not do anything.

D The Browser

Background

About the Database

Reason songs and patches can contain references to other files on your hard disk, namely samples (wave or aiff files), loop files created in ReCycle (REX files, see below) and Soundfonts (.sf2 files, see page 79). To keep track of all files, Reason makes use of a database. If you keep your Reason files within the database, Reason can update file paths, automatically search for missing files, etc. D You specify the search path(s) for the database on the Sound Locations page in the Preferences dialog on the Edit menu or Reason menu, as described on page 17. You can specify up to four different search paths. However, it is normally enough to specify a single path, since all underlying folders are automatically included in the database. Use the additional paths if you use more than one hard drive, CD-ROM drives etc. (see also the note about finding ReFills on page 80).
Samples (Wave and AIFF files) are compressed to about half their original file size when stored in ReFills.
In Reason, you can use the browser to list and access the embedded sounds and other components within the ReFills. just as if the ReFills were folders on your hard disk.
Double clicking on the ReFill in the browser.
.opens it for navigation, just like a folder.
Furthermore, if a song makes use of components from ReFills, Reason will tell you which ReFills are required.
An example of the database. If the folder Reason Sounds is specified as search path, all its subfolders are automatically included in the database.
It is possible to select the root of a hard disk as search path, thus making the database contain all files on your hard disk. However, this will make search times much longer, since Reason will have to look at a lot of unnecessary files. Generally, to keep things as snappy as possible you should avoid having files unrelated to Reason in your search paths.

About ReFills

A ReFill is a kind of component package for Reason which can contain patches, samples, REX files, Soundfonts and demo songs. If you like, you could compare ReFills to ROM cards for a synthesizer. On your computer, ReFills appear as large files with the extension.rfl. All sounds included with Reason are embedded in a huge ReFill called Reason Factory Sound Bank (which was either installed on your hard drive or kept on the Factory Sound Bank CD, depending on the choice you made during installation - see page 10). You can also download ReFills from other Reason users on the Internet, purchase them from sample manufacturers, etc.

Click one of the four buttons: | Option: | Description:
The main display in the dialog lists all missing files. The four columns show the following properties: | Column Device Sound | Description Shows the name of the device in which the missing sound is used, along with a device type icon. Shows the name of the missing file.
Search & Pro- Reason will search for the missing files in all database folders. ceed If all files are found, the song or patch will be opened without further ado. If one or more files cannot be found, the Missing Sounds dialog will appear (see below). Note that the file search will look at the file names only - files that have been renamed will not be found! Proceed The song or patch will be opened, with sounds missing. This means that sampler patches, drum machine patches and/or loop players will not play back correctly. On the device panels, missing samples are indicated with an asterisk (*) before the file names:
The Intruder sample is missing.
Part of Re- If the missing file is part of a ReFill, or a Soundfont within a ReFill, Fill/Sound- this column shows the name of the ReFill/Soundfont If there is an font URL (Internet address) associated with a ReFill, you can download the necessary ReFill(s) from this dialog, as described below. Status When the dialog appears, all files will have the status Missing. Files that are found by the auto-search function or manually replaced will be indicated as Replaced.

Selecting

The Replace and Auto Search functions (see below) are performed on the files that are selected in the list. This allows you to replace some files manually (necessary if the files have been renamed or are outside the database), have the program find other files automatically and skip the rest of the files. D To select a file, click on it in the list. You can use [Shift] (Mac) or [Ctrl] (Windows) to select several files. D To select all files in the list, click the Select All button. When the dialog first appears, all files in the list are selected.

Open Dialog Cancel

Opens the Missing Sounds dialog (see below). Cancels the operation, i.e. no song or patch will be opened.
The Missing Sounds dialog

Auto Search

If you click the Auto Search button, Reason will search for the selected files in all database folders. If the program finds a file with the matching name and file type, the new path is stored in the song/patch and the file is shown as Replaced in the Status column. D Since the file search looks at the file names, files that have been renamed will not be found! This also means that if your database contains several files with the same name, the wrong sounds may be found.

Replace

This dialog appears if you clicked the Open Dialog button in the previous dialog, or if you clicked the Search & Proceed button but the program couldnt find all missing sounds. Clicking the Replace button opens the browser dialog, allowing you to manually locate each missing file. This allows you to use files outside the database or files that have been renamed. The browser dialog will appear once for each selected file in the list.

Download ReFill

If a missing sound is part of a ReFill (as indicated in the Part of ReFill Package column), and there is a valid URL (Internet address) for this ReFill, you can download the ReFill directly from this dialog (provided you have a working Internet connection): 1. Select the sound(s) that use the ReFill. You should only select several sounds if they use the same ReFill. 2. Click the Download ReFill button. This launches your Internet browser and takes you to the URL associated with the ReFill. 3. A dialog appears, asking you to download the ReFill and place it in one of the database folders. Do so. 4. Click OK. Reason automatically scans the downloaded ReFill and locates the files.

Proceeding

At any point, you can click the OK button to close the dialog and open the song or patch. Note: D For the files you have found (status Replaced), the new paths will be stored in the song or patch. However, you need to save the song or patch for the changes to become permanent! D If any file is still missing when you click OK, there will be sounds missing in the song/patch. Sometimes, you may want to proceed with sounds missing, and then remove or replace the sounds from the device panels in the rack instead.
On the device panels, missing samples are indicated with an asterisk (*) before the file names:
Clicking Cancel will abort the operation, i.e. the song or patch will not be opened.

D Working with Patches

What are Patches?
A Reason patch contains settings for a specific device. As explained in the chapter The Browser, patches can either be separate files on your hard disk or files embedded in a ReFill.

Selecting a Patch

To select a patch for a device, use one of the following methods: D Click the folder button in the Patch section on the device panel.
Seven device types use patches:
D Subtractor & Malstrm synth patches contain all settings on the device panel. Selecting a patch brings up a new sound, just like when selecting programs or patches on a hardware synthesizer. D NN19 & NNXT sampler patches contain information about which samples are used and their settings (key mapping, tuning, etc.), plus the parameter settings on the device panel. It is important to note that the sampler patch doesnt contain the actual samples - only information about which sample files are used. D Redrum drum computer patches contain a complete drum kit, that is, information about which drum samples are used, together with the parameter settings for each drum sound. Again, the actual samples are not included in the patch, only file references. Also note that Redrum patches are separated from Redrum patterns - selecting a new patch will not affect the patterns in the device. D Scream 4 and RV7000 effect patches contain all settings on the respective device panel. Selecting a patch brings up a new sound, just like when selecting programs or patches on a hardware effect device.

Note that this operation simply copies the settings from one device to another. Adjusting the settings on one of the devices will not affect the other; neither are the settings connected to any patch file on disk.

D Song File Handling

About Self-contained Songs
The song is the main file format in Reason. A song contains the device setup and all settings in the rack, as well as everything you have recorded in the sequencer. However, this is not always sufficient! Should you open your song on another computer or send it to another Reason user, you would also have to bring all samples and REX files used by the devices in the song. To make this easier, Reason allows you to create self-contained songs. A self-contained song contains not only the references to the used files, but also the files themselves. You can choose exactly which files should be included in the self-contained song, with the following exception:
D You can use the Check All button to activate all checkboxes in one go. Similarly, the Uncheck All button deactivates all checkboxes. D Files that are part of a ReFill are indicated by a lock symbol instead of a checkbox (since they cannot be included in the song file). The rightmost column indicates to which ReFill each such file belongs. 3. When you have selected the desired sounds, click OK. The dialog is closed. The next time you save, the specified sounds will be included in the song file.
Files that are part of a ReFill cannot be included in a self-contained song.
Note that a self-contained song file will be considerably larger than the original song file. However, samples included in a self-contained song are automatically compressed by approximately 50%, meaning that the self-contained song will still be a lot smaller than the original song and the sample files combined.
If your song contains samples or REX files from a ReFill, other users must have the same ReFill to be able to play the song. To specify which files should be included in the song, proceed as follows: 1. Pull down the File menu and select Song Self-Contain Settings. A dialog appears, listing all samples and REX files used in the song.
Un-self-containing a Song
If you have opened a song that is more or less self-contained (i.e. contains one or several sounds embedded in the song file), you may want to extract these sounds and make the song refer to them on disk as usual. This is done in the following way: 1. Select Song Self-Contain Settings from the File menu. The dialog appears. 2. Locate the sounds you want to extract from the song file, and deactivate their checkboxes (or click Uncheck All). 3. Click OK to close the dialog. Now, the program will check for each extracted sound file whether it is available in your database (at its original, stored location) or not. D If the program finds the sound file at the location stored in the song, it is simply removed from the song file, and the original file reference path is used. This would be the case if you made the song self-contained yourself, and unself-contain it on your own computer (provided that you havent removed the original sound files from disk since you made the song self-contained). D If the program doesnt find the sound file, a file dialog appears, allowing you to select a folder and name for the sound file. The extracted file will be saved in the specified folder, and the path in the song will be adjusted. This would be the case if you got the self-contained song from another user, for example.

If you are upgrading from a previous version, please note the following: D Our recommendation is that you uninstall the previous version before installing the new one. Under Windows, please use the Uninstall feature. Under Mac OS, just drag the program files to the Trash. Uninstalling will ensure that there is no confusion between versions and that shortcuts and aliases point to the right files etc.

MIDI Connections

D Simply connect the USB cable from your keyboard to your computer. Although many USB MIDI keyboards are plug-and-play, some may require a driver to be installed. Consult the documentation that came with your MIDI keyboard. Or D Connect a MIDI cable from the MIDI Out on your MIDI keyboard (or other MIDI controller) to a MIDI In on your MIDI interface. This is sufficient to be able to play and record notes and controllers in Reason from the MIDI keyboard. D If you are not using a USB keyboard, you may also connect the MIDI Out from the MIDI interface to the MIDI In on your MIDI keyboard. This is not strictly necessary to use Reason, but it will enable two-way communication when you run the Reason Setup Wizard which appears the first time Reason is launched (see page 12), or when using Auto-detect Surfaces in the Preferences. Whether auto-detection works or not depends on the keyboard model.
If you have several MIDI control surfaces or similar that you want to use, we recommend that you connect them to separate MIDI ports (or directly to the computer using USB).

Installing the Software

Running the Installer
Now its time to install the actual Reason software: D Insert the Reason CD labeled Program Disc into your CD-ROM drive. What to do next depends on whether you are installing on a Mac or a Windows computer. Windows: 1. On the CD-ROM, locate the file called Install Reason and double click on it. Under Windows, the installer may automatically start when you insert the CD, depending on your system settings. 2. Follow the instructions on screen. Before executing the installation of the software components, you will be asked to specify a install location, and whether you wish to create a program shortcut/alias on your desktop. When the installation is complete, you have the option of launching Reason directly. Mac OS: On the Mac, there is only a folder called Reason - simply drag this to the Applications folder on your hard disk.
3. First a Licensing Agreement is shown. Read it through and click Agree to proceed. 4. You will now be asked to insert the Orkester CD in your CD-ROM drive. The Orkester Sound Bank will be then be automatically copied into the Reason Program folder. During this process, which will take a while, various splash screens are shown, along with a progress meter. 5. Next, you will be asked to insert the Factory Sound Bank CD in your CD-ROM drive. The Factory Soundbank will also automatically be copied into the Reason Program folder. 6. Fill in the authorization form that appears. Your license number can be found on the product authorization card included in the package. At this point a dialog appears, asking you whether you want to register your copy of the program at the Propellerhead web site. Registering gives you immediate access to various benefits such as free, extra sounds for Reason!

D If Reason can't find the keyboard you have connected, or if you clicked Don't Use, you will be asked to specify a master keyboard manually. This is done by first selecting a Manufacturer, and then a model. If your model keyboard isnt on this list select Other - see below.
For Reason to auto-detect a device you need two-way MIDI communication! Non-USB keyboard devices without a MIDI input can of course still be added manually. Note that your keyboard model is not necessarily one that Reason knows. This is especially true for older models. You can still use such a MIDI keyboard, by selecting Other from the Manufacturer pop-up.
First run - Reason Setup Wizard
If you followed the instructions correctly in the last chapter, Reason should be running, and the first dialog in the Reason Setup Wizard guide should be open. This only appears the very first time the program is run.
D You will also have to specify a MIDI port to use. This can be done manually or by playing a few notes on your keyboard. D Note that if you have additional remote control surface devices in your setup, these will have to be added in the Preferences - see page 13. The Setup Wizard will only establish a connected master MIDI keyboard device. If all went well, you should now have established audio and MIDI communication - the basics needed to play back audio and to direct MIDI to Reason! Reason will launch and bring up the default song. However, if for any reason the Setup Wizard failed to establish the necessary settings, or if you wish to add other devices etc., you have to make settings in the Preferences. Read on.
Note that any settings made in the Setup Wizard can always be changed later in the Preferences!
Clicking Next will take you through a series of dialogs, where the following happens: D The Setup Wizard will first try to find a compatible audio driver. It will automatically select the first compatible driver it finds. If this is the driver you wish to use, fine. If it isnt, select your preferred driver from the Audio Card Driver pop-up. If you dont know which driver to use, see page 13. D Next, Reason will try to auto-detect a master MIDI keyboard. If one is found and you want to use this, click Use and proceed.

SETTING UP

About the Preferences
The basic settings for audio and MIDI are done in the Preferences dialog. This is opened from the Edit menu (or, if you are running Mac OS X, from the Reason menu).
Setting up the Audio Hardware
In case this wasnt done in the Setup Wizard, you need to establish a connection between Reason and the audio hardware. This is done by selecting a driver - a software component that acts like a link between the program and the audio hardware. Proceed as follows: 1. In the Preferences dialog, use the pop-up menu at the top to select the Audio page.

The Preferences dialog.

Described herein are only the most important settings in the Preferences. For information about other Preferences settings, see the Operation Manual pdf. 2. Pull down the Audio Card Driver pop-up menu and select one of the options. Which option to select depends on the platform and the audio hardware. If an option is not applicable to your setup it will be greyed out in the dialog.
D Select the option that corresponds to the hardware you want to use (the built-in audio connectors or some additional audio hardware that you have installed).
About Latency and other Audio Settings
In the audio page, you will find a number of additional settings for audio. The most important ones are Buffer Size and the corresponding readout for Output Latency.
D If you are using audio hardware for which there is a specific ASIO driver, you should select this. With an ASIO driver written specifically for the audio hardware, Reason can communicate more or less directly with the audio hardware. The benefits are lower latency (see below) and possibly better support for additional hardware features such as multiple outputs. D If there is no specific ASIO driver, you should select the Direct Sound driver for the audio hardware. This makes Reason communicate with the hardware via Direct Sound (a part of the Microsoft DirectX package). You need to have DirectX installed on your computer, and there must be a Direct Sound driver for the audio hardware.
Latency is the delay between when audio is sent from the program and when you actually hear it. The latency in an audio system depends on the audio hardware, its drivers and their settings. If the latency is large, you will notice that the sound is delayed when you play a device from a MIDI keyboard. You may also notice that reactions are delayed when adjusting controls on the device panels (for example, if you lower the volume of a device, you will not hear this immediately but after the latency time). If you experience high latency values, you will need to make adjustments to your configuration. If available, use the Buffer Size slider to lower the latency. If this is greyed out, you may be able to lower the buffer size in the control panel for the audio hardware - click the Control Panel button to open this.

Its possible to play the drum machine device via MIDI in the same way, but lets try creating a pattern with the built-in pattern sequencer instead: 13. Click the folder button in the lower left corner of the Redrum panel. This opens the patch browser for the drum machine, allowing you to select a Redrum patch (a drum kit). Note that there are folder buttons for each drum sound channel too - these let you add drum samples one by one and create your own drum kits.

Load Sample buttons

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

Drum sound channels

The selected patch

The Select Patch button

15. Try out the drum sounds by clicking the audition buttons at the top of each drum sound channel. 14. Select a Redrum patch in the same way as you selected a Subtractor patch. The patches are located in category folders within the folder Redrum Drum Kits in the Reason Factory Sound Bank.
Now, lets start building a pattern. By default, the empty patterns have sixteen steps, with each step corresponding to a sixteenth note (so that the length of a pattern is one 4/4 bar). To make things simple, well keep this setting for now. 16. Click the Run button on the Redrum device panel. The pattern will start playing (as indicated by the running LED on the step buttons at the bottom of the device panel). Nothing will be heard, since you havent added any drum beats yet.
17. Click the Select button for one of the drum sounds. In Redrum, you add drum beats for one sound at the time. 18. Click on the first step button (marked 1). The button lights up, indicating a drum beat.
Now try recording some synth notes in the sequencer: 22. Click in the In column for the synthesizer track in the sequencer so that the MIDI connector symbol appears. 23. Click the record button in the transport panel. The button lights up, indicating record standby mode.
The Play button The Fast Forward button

The Stop button

The Rewind button

The Record button

You will now hear the sound of the selected drum on the first beat of each bar. 19. Add more drum beats by clicking other step buttons. Clicking a lit step button will remove the beat. 24. Click the play button. Recording is activated, and the drum machine pattern automatically starts playing. 25. Play your MIDI keyboard while listening to the drum pattern. 26. When youre done, click the stop button. 27. Click stop again to move the song position to the beginning of the song. You can also click and hold the rewind button. 28. Click play to listen to your recording. Finally, lets record some automation of a synthesizer parameter. In this example, we automate the cutoff frequency of the filter (Filter 1 Freq), but you can automate any parameter you like. 29. Rewind the song to the beginning again. 20. Select another drum sound (by clicking its Select button) and proceed in the same way until you have a drum pattern you want to use. 21. To stop the playback, click the Run button again.

This is a combined compressor and limiter. It will affect the dynamics of the sound, by boosting low levels and attenuating loud sounds. Use it for keeping levels even (from individual devices or the whole mix), for adding punch and power to drums, etc.
PEQ2 Two Band Parametric EQ
The Matrix Pattern Sequencer
While the mixer device has basic two-band EQ on each channel, sometimes you may need some more precise control over the tone color. For this purpose, you can use the PEQ2. This device contains two independent parametric equalizers, with controls for frequency, gain and Q value.
Spider Audio Merger & Splitter
The Matrix is a stand-alone pattern sequencer, somewhat similar to a vintage analog sequencer. A Matrix pattern can have between 1 and 32 steps, and for each step you can specify which control voltage levels should be sent out from the three separate CV outputs on the back of the device. If you like, you could view this as having three separate pattern sequencers in one. By connecting the Matrix to e.g. a synth device, you can have the pattern sequencer play the device (for a repeating synth pattern), or control various parameters, for rhythmic effects that you cannot obtain using the synth device alone.

ReBirth Input Machine

This is not an effect device, but a utility. With the Spider Audio you can merge up to four audio input signals into one output, as well as split one audio input signal into four outputs. This makes audio signal routing much more flexible and allows for very creative patching and connections.
Spider CV Merger & Splitter
This device allows you to use Reason in conjunction with Propellerheads classic ReBirth application. The audio from ReBirth will be streamed via the ReWire protocol into Reason. By routing the different outputs on the ReBirth Input Machine to different mixer channels, you can mix the sound of ReBirth with the sound of Reason, add effects to separate ReBirth sounds, etc.
Again, this is not an effect device, but a utility. With the Spider CV you can merge up to four CV input signals into one CV output, as well as split CV or Gate inputs into several outputs (one of which can be inverted). One use for the Spider CV is to split Gate and Note CV to control several instrument devices with one Matrix.
D Common Operations and Concepts
This chapter describes some general methods and techniques employed throughout Reason. It also contains some terminology, useful for better understanding of the program and the manual. To make your work with Reason as effective and rewarding as possible, we recommend that you read this chapter.

Deleting Devices

To delete one or several devices, select them and use one of the following methods: D Hold down [Command] (Mac) or [Ctrl] (Windows) and press [Backspace] or [Delete]. D Select Delete Device from the Edit menu or the device context menu. You can also automatically delete devices when you delete sequencer tracks: If there is a single sequencer track routed to a device, and you delete this track, you will be asked whether you want to delete the device as well (see page 63).
D To select several devices, hold down [Shift] and click. In other words, [Shift]-clicking a device selects it without de-selecting any other selected devices. D To de-select all devices, click in the empty space at the bottom of the rack. D To de-select one of the selected devices, hold down [Shift] and click on it. Any other selected devices remain selected. D You can also use the up and down arrow keys on the computer keyboard to select the device directly above or below the currently selected one. When you use this method, Reason will automatically scroll the rack so that the selected device is fully visible. This is a quick way to step through the rack. Narrow devices (e.g. half-width devices such as the effects) are ordered left-to-right, i.e. pressing the down arrow key will step through the devices from left to right before moving on the next device row. D If you hold down [Shift] when using the up or down arrow keys, the currently selected device will remain selected. This allows you to select a range of devices. Adjusting a parameter in a device will automatically select it. In other words, you never have to select a device before making settings.
If you delete a device connected between two other devices, the connection between these is automatically preserved. The Hardware Interface device at the top of the rack cannot be removed.

Reordering Devices

You can rearrange the devices in the rack by moving them, in the following way: 1. If you want to move more than one device at the same time, select the devices. 2. Click in the handle area of one of the devices. For full width devices, this is the area to the left and right of the panel (between the rack fittings); for smaller devices you can click anywhere outside the actual parameters. 3. With the mouse button pressed, drag the device(s) up or down in the rack. A thick red vertical line indicates where the device(s) will be positioned. Note that the red line can be to the left of a device (indicating that the moved device will be inserted before the other device) or to the right of a device (indicating that the moved device will be inserted after the other device).

Manual Routing

To connect devices manually, you need to flip the rack around to see the back. This is done by pressing [Tab] or selecting Toggle Rack Front/Rear from the Options menu.
There are two ways to route audio from one device to another: by connecting virtual patch cables between inputs and outputs, and by selecting connections from a pop-up menu:

Using Cables !

For the cables to be visible, the option Show Cables must be activated on the Options menu. See below.
1. Click on the desired input or output jack on one of the devices, and drag the pointer away from the jack (with the mouse button pressed). A loose cable appears.
2. Drag the cable to the jack on the other device. When you move the cable end over a jack of the correct type (audio/CV, input/output) it will be highlighted to show that a connection is possible. 3. Release the mouse button. The cable is connected. If both input and output are in stereo and you connect the left channels, a cable for the right channel is automatically added.
On the back of each device you will find connectors of two different types: audio and CV (Control Voltage, used for controlling parameters - see the Operation Manual pdf). Audio inputs and outputs are shown as large quarter inch jacks, while CV input and output jacks are smaller. For now, we stick to audio connections.

Audio connectors

Dragging a cable to make a connection can be aborted by pressing [Esc] while keeping the mouse button pressed. To give a better overview of the connections, the cables have different colors. Connections to or from effect devices are different shades of green, other audio connections are different shades of red and CV connections are different shades of yellow.

CV connectors

When the back is shown, you can still navigate in the rack by scrolling, by using the computer keyboard, etc. (see page 48).
These cables are green, indicating effect device connections.

Disconnecting Devices

Again, there are two ways to disconnect devices: D Click on one end of the cable, drag it away from the jack and drop it anywhere away from a jack. or D Click on one of the connectors and select Disconnect from the context menu that appears.
This cable is yellow, indicating a CV connection.
These cables are red, indicating connections between instruments and mixer devices.
D You can change an existing connection in the same way, by clicking on one end of the cable and dragging it to another connector.
Hiding and Showing Cables
You can choose whether you want the patch cables to be visible or not, by activating or deactivating the Show Cables item on the Options menu. When the cables are hidden, connectors in use are indicated by a colored dot:

Lets say you have a 16 step pattern with resolution set to 1/16. The length of each pattern step is then one sixteenth note, and the whole pattern plays back over a whole 4/4 bar (16 sixteenth notes = one whole bar). Now, if you change the resolution to 1/32, each step will be a 1/32 note - half its original length. There are still sixteen steps. This means that the whole pattern plays back over half a bar (16 * 1/32 = 1/2). In other words, the pattern plays back at double speed.
Using Cut, Copy and Paste
By using the Cut, Copy and Paste Pattern commands on the Edit menu or device context menu, you can move or duplicate patterns between devices of the same type. The following rules apply: D Copy Pattern makes a copy of the currently selected pattern and places the copy on the clipboard. D Cut Pattern moves the currently selected pattern to the clipboard. This is the same as first performing Copy Pattern and then Clear Pattern. D Paste Pattern copies the pattern on the clipboard to the selected pattern location in the selected device. This overwrites the selected pattern with the one on the clipboard.

Pattern Shuffle

Shuffle is a rhythmic feature, that gives the music a more or less pronounced swing feel. It works by delaying all sixteenth notes that fall in between the eighth notes.
Straight sixteenth note pattern
Transferring patterns between Reason songs
If you want to copy patterns between different Reason songs, you use copy and paste:
Sixteenth note pattern with shuffle.
1. Open both songs. 2. Select the pattern you want to copy.
In Reason, you can activate or deactivate shuffle individually for each pattern in a pattern device. However, the amount of shuffle is set globally with the Pattern Shuffle control on the transport panel.
3. Select Copy Pattern from the Edit menu or the device context menu. You can also hold [Command] (Mac) or [Ctrl] (Windows) and press [C] to copy. 4. Make the other song active. This is done by clicking in the song window or by selecting the song from the Windows menu. 5. Select the bank and pattern location to which you want to copy the pattern. Note that any pattern already stored in that location will be overwritten!
The Shuffle on/off switch in the Redrum (left) and the Pattern Shuffle control on the transport panel (right).

Clearing a Pattern

To clear (empty) a pattern, select it and use the Clear Pattern command on the Edit menu or device context menu.
6. Select Paste Pattern from the Edit menu or the device context menu. You can also hold [Command] (Mac) or [Ctrl] (Windows) and press [V] to copy.
If you want to use the same patterns in several songs, you could either create a Pattern Supply Reason song and copy patterns from this, or program the patterns into your Default Song (see page 105).

Browser elements

The Patch Browser dialog.
Regardless of what browser mode is chosen (song/patch/sample etc.), the Browser dialog basically contains the same main elements, although items may be grayed out if not applicable. The dialog contains the following elements:

File and folder list

This is the main browser list, showing the contents in a selected root folder - see page 88.

Show pop-up menu

Locations list
This is only available in the Patch browser (it is otherwise grayed out). It determines what patch types are shown in the files and folder list view and thus which patches can be selected. See page 90.

Where pop-up menu

This is a list of shortcuts to different locations. You can manually add any locations (on any local drive) to this list. Selecting an item in this list will open the corresponding folder/ReFill as the root in the main files and folder list - see page 88.

Favorites section

The field above the file and folder list displays the name of the currently selected root folder. By clicking in the field a pop-up menu is shown, allowing you to move up in the folder hierarchy (search results and Favorites lists, however, are shown as flat lists with no folder hierarchy). In the Favorites section of the dialog you can create folders containing shortcuts to patches, samples or song files - see page 93.
Search pop-up and text field Back/Forward buttons
These items allow you to specify a search location and to enter a text string to search for, respectively. The Search function is described on page 92.
These arrow buttons allow you to move between the browser locations opened while browsing, much like pages in a web browser. When the browser dialog is closed, the location list is cleared.

Info and details

Navigating in the Browser
The Info section in the left corner can show Song/ReFill splash images and the Details section will show information about the item currently selected in the file and folder list. Exactly which information is shown depends on the file type. For example, samples or REX files contains information about the file format and length of the selected file, while a selected song file can display comments from the author (Song Information, see page 103), etc. If the selected file is part of a ReFill, this will be indicated regardless of the file type.

The Search For text field
This is where you can enter a text string to search for. D You can specify one or several words, whole or partial. If you specify more than one word, the search will show results that match all specified words. Text search is not case sensitive.
Note that you dont have to enter text to use the Search function. Depending on the selected Browser (Patch, Sample etc.), you can also simply search for files of the corresponding type in the selected location(s).

Opening files

When you have navigated to the desired folder (on your hard disk or within a ReFill) and located the desired file, you open it by double clicking it in the file display or by selecting it and clicking the OK button. As described earlier, patches and samples are loaded directly upon selection, so clicking OK doesnt actually open the file, it simply confirms the selection, and closes the Browser dialog.
Note that if you opened a patch after having used cross-browsing (see page 90) or used the Search function (see page 92), the active browse list could contain patches in different formats, and stepping through patches from the device panel could change the device type.

Using Favorites

Favorites provide a way to group and order files that may be physically located anywhere on your local drives. Any file that can be loaded in Reason (songs, patches, samples etc.) can be added to a Favorites folder. Only shortcuts to files are added - the original files arent moved. This is particularly useful for handling patches. By adding the patches you need for a given situation to a Favorite list, you can determine exactly which patches will be selectable for a device, and in what order. You can then sequentially step through these using patch select buttons on your MIDI keyboard or control surface device. See page 94 for a practical example of this. D To add a New Favorite List, click the New Favorite List button. An empty folder is created, named New Favorite List. The Browser list remains unchanged. If you double-click the folder you can type in a new name for the list. D To add a file to the Favorite List, select it in the Browser and drag it to the Favorite List folder. You can also select multiple files using standard selection techniques [Shift] and/or [Ctrl] (Win)/[Command] (Mac) - and drag these into the folder in the same way.

About browse lists

When you click OK to open a file from the Browser, the file and folder list shown at that time is memorized for that device. This is called a browse list. For patches (and to a certain extent samples) this list provides a specific functionality: D The browse list is what applies when changing patches using the Next/Previous Patch buttons on the front panel of a device (or from patch selectors on a control surface). It is also the active browse list that is shown on the patch list opened by clicking in the patch name field for a device. D For samples, the browse list applies when changing samples using the Next/Previous Sample buttons on the front panel of a sampler device.

Replace

Clicking the Replace button opens the browser dialog, allowing you to manually locate each missing file. This allows you to use files that have been renamed. The browser dialog will appear once for each selected file in the list. The name of the file to look for is shown in the Browser windows title bar.

Search In.

This function is useful when you need to replace a whole lot of samples and you know where these samples are located. A typical example would be if you have reorganized the folder structure on your computer, and the sample folder has been moved in relation to the folder with a sampler patch or song. D If you click Locate, the Browser opens, asking you to select the sample directory, i.e. the folder in which you know that the samples are located. Select either the folder, or a sample in the folder. When you click OK, Reason will search in the selected folder (and its subfolders) only.
On the device panels, missing samples are indicated with an asterisk (*) before the file names:
Clicking Cancel will abort the operation, i.e. the song or patch will not be opened.

D Working with Patches

About Patches
A Reason patch contains settings for a specific device. As explained in the chapter The Browser, patches can either be separate files on your hard disk or files embedded in a ReFill.

Selecting a Patch

To select a patch for a device, use one of the following methods: D Click the folder button in the Patch section on the device panel.
Eight device types use patches:
D Subtractor & Malstrm synth patches contain all settings on the device panel. Selecting a patch brings up a new sound, just like when selecting programs or patches on a hardware synthesizer. D NN19 & NNXT sampler patches contain information about which samples are used and their settings (key mapping, tuning, etc.), plus the parameter settings on the device panel. It is important to note that the sampler patch doesnt contain the actual samples - only information about which sample files are used. D Redrum drum computer patches contain a complete drum kit, that is, information about which drum samples are used, together with the parameter settings for each drum sound. Again, the actual samples are not included in the patch, only file references. Also note that Redrum patches are separated from Redrum patterns - selecting a new patch will not affect the patterns in the device. D Scream 4 and RV7000 effect patches contain all settings on the respective device panel. Selecting a patch brings up a new sound, just like when selecting programs or patches on a hardware effect device. D The Combinator (Combi) patch format saves all settings and file references for each device in the Combi, along with the Combinators own settings; key/velocity zones, modulation routing etc. Any audio or CV routing from/to devices that are part of the Combi is also saved.

Note: On the panels of the Redrum, NN19 and NNXT devices, there are also other folder buttons, used for loading samples. Make sure you click on the button in the Patch section (next to the patch name display)!
D Select the Browse Patches item on the Edit menu or device context menu. Note that the Edit menu reflects which device is selected - in other words, you must select the device for the corresponding Browse Patches item to appear on the Edit menu. In both cases, the Browser dialog appears, allowing you to locate and select the patch, on the hard disk or within a ReFill. D Once you have selected a patch, you can step between all the patches in the same folder by using the arrow buttons on the device panel. Note that switching patches on a device can also change the actual device! See About browse lists on page 93.
Note that patches for devices included in a Combi are not saved individually - e.g. if a Combi includes a Subtractor, and you have tweaked its settings, these settings will be saved with the Combi, but will not be saved as a separate Subtractor patch unless you do so from within the Combi - see page 99. Apart from Combis, patches do not include information about any routing done on the back of the device.

WORKING WITH PATCHES

D If you click on the patch name display on the device panel, a pop-up menu will appear, listing all patches in the current browse list- see page 93). This allows you to quickly select another patch, without having to step through each one in turn.

Saving Patches

Saving device settings in a song
When you save a Reason song, all settings for all devices are automatically included in the song file - there is no need to save the patches separately.
Its important to realize that its the actual settings that are saved in the Song - not references to patches on disk. The next time you open the song, all devices will be set as they were when you saved (regardless of whether you have removed or edited any patches on disk).
Saving device settings as patches on disk
Even though the device settings are stored in the song, you may want to save any settings you have made for a device as a separate patch file. This allows you to use the patch in other songs, and lets you try out other patches in your song without risking to lose your sound. When you select a patch, the devices parameters will be set according to the values stored in the patch, and the name of the patch will be shown in the patch name display. As with any change you make, this operation can be undone (see page 39). 1. Click the floppy disk button on the device panel.
Any parameter adjustments you make on the device panel after selecting a patch will not affect the actual patch file (for this you need to save the patch - see below).

To add a splash picture, click the folder button at the upper right corner, and locate and open the picture file in the file dialog that appears.
Splash pictures must be JPEG files (Windows extension.jpg) with a size of 256 x 256 pixels.
To remove the splash picture from the song, click the cross button.

Authors Web Page

Allows you to specify your web site. The user can go directly to your site by clicking the Browser button to the right (provided he has a working Internet connection).

Authors Email

This is where you specify your e-mail address, if you want other Reason users to send you their comments, etc.
For example, if you plan to send the song to other Reason users, this dialog allows you to add contact information, comments about the song, etc. Furthermore, if you save a published version of the song in the Reason Song Archive on the Propellerhead web site (see page 104), vital information can automatically be extracted by the web archive engine, and displayed with the song file. The dialog contains the following items:

Text in Window Title

The text you add here will be displayed directly after the file name in the song windows title bar.

More Information

This is where you add notes and comments about the song.

Song Splash

Allows you to add a picture to the song. The picture will be displayed when the song is opened.

Saving a Song

To save a song, proceed as follows: 1. Set up the self-contained settings as desired (see the previous page). 2. Pull down the File menu and select Save (or press [Command] / [Ctrl]-[S]). If this is the first time you save the song, a regular file dialog will appear. 3. Specify a name and location for the song and click Save. Once you have saved a song, selecting Save will simply save it under the same name and in the same location, without showing a dialog. If you want to save a song under another name or in another location, select Save As. from the File menu to open the save dialog.

Opening a Song

1. Pull down the File menu and select Open. The Reason song browser window appears. 2. Use the browser to navigate to the desired folder on disk or within a ReFill. See page 88. 3. When you have located the song file, select it and click Open (or double click on the file). The song appears in its own document window.
You can have several songs open at the same time if you like. This allows you to copy and paste patterns and patches between songs. However, all open songs consume some memory and performance, so you may want to close songs you dont need.