Propellerhead Reason - THE SOUND QUALITY

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Jus using reason for 2 years now.. the only thing I can say about reason is that 60% or more of the library needs to be updated. They just have that old sound to them compared to the new libraries out now. It's like hard to get an inspiration from the same dull sounds over n over n over.... u have keep trying to recreate the wheel with those old sounds....
I rather do that with newer quality sounds. They need to come with updated stuff in version 7 or else I'm moving.....mainly seems like their heading more into the electronic direction...those new piano/keyboard rack extension is good though....Let's see what else they come up with.

Pertaining to the "sound" of reason...I dont hear it....I hear the library itself
 
deep'n'dark said:
The Reason "sound" is one thing to discuss, but another thing is the quality of Reason effects. Why can't Reason Equalizers boost or cut the way you'd become satisfied. I have used VST equalizers and they got me a feeling that I did it right. Why don't the Reason compressors do anything like the Reaper's xcomp?

And why does the Reason music sound so shit quality wise on the car stereos?
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I was thinking the same thing and it was way before I ever read this. I use something as simple as FL or I go to my boys house and hear his stuff and it sounds good as is. I feel like in reason you have to do some extreme tweaking to get your song to sound like your not an armature.
 
Placebo effect. There is no difference in sound quality. Only that Reason requires you to know what you're doing so if you're music sounds like crap on a different system that means YOU did something wrong. There's plenty of music released using nothing but Reason.

This is music and you are ultimately responsible for how the final product sounds. Don't blame your tools kids. That's what scrubs do.
 
stillfunkin said:
in my opinion... if you do not know the functions of eq, reverb, compression, flanger, chorus, etc... Reason can sound dull... when using VSTs most presets have eq, reverb, compression, flanger, chorus, etc applied on the patch already... therefore there is a learning curve when using Reason... and most do not want to take time to learn how to use these efx or not into building patches/sounds from scratch... this is where Rack Extension comes into the picture... with more RE synths this problem of "dull" sounds in Reason will go away for those who are not into building patches or do not have an understanding of eq, reverb, compression, flanger, chorus, etc....

in other... what "you" put into Reason is what "you" get out of Reason...
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You've done a good job pointing out the reason why DAWs tend to have a "fingerprint":
Most amateur music-makers (the majority of indie music on the Internet) TEND to do whatever the DAW makes EASIEST to do. They follow the path of least resistance.

Examples:

That cool Malstrom preset doesn't come with any reverb? It's going to be dry all the way through the mixing stage!
That Subtractor sound is in mono panned dead center? It's going to stay panned straight down the center.

To me, many songs made in Reason have a "dark" tonality to them. Even when you initialize the patch, Thor has a lowpass filter actively cutting out some of the highs. I find that a lot of the synth presets might have "bite" and "presence" around 1-5k but are lacking a lot of the "air" around 8k+. It's reminiscent of the way songs were mixed from the late 90s to the early 2000s -- a little "warmer" sounding than modern mixes.

The better the producer, the harder it is to hear a sonic "fingerprint". When you're first starting out, the DAW is your master and you have to ask it what you're allowed to do. Over time, you become its master and you command the results you expect from it.

-Ki
Salem Beats
 
Salem Beats said:
You've done a good job pointing out the reason why DAWs tend to have a "fingerprint":
Most amateur music-makers (the majority of indie music on the Internet) TEND to do whatever the DAW makes EASIEST to do. They follow the path of least resistance.

Examples:

That cool Malstrom preset doesn't come with any reverb? It's going to be dry all the way through the mixing stage!
That Subtractor sound is in mono panned dead center? It's going to stay panned straight down the center.

To me, many songs made in Reason have a "dark" tonality to them. Even when you initialize the patch, Thor has a lowpass filter actively cutting out some of the highs. I find that a lot of the synth presets might have "bite" and "presence" around 1-5k but are lacking a lot of the "air" around 8k+. It's reminiscent of the way songs were mixed from the late 90s to the early 2000s -- a little "warmer" sounding than modern mixes.

The better the producer, the harder it is to hear a sonic "fingerprint". When you're first starting out, the DAW is your master and you have to ask it what you're allowed to do. Over time, you become its master and you command the results you expect from it.

-Ki
Salem Beats
Click to expand...

You missed your true calling ... you should be in advertising. Throw words that almost mean something into a sentence that is just on the verge of making sense, without committing to any actual context.

From Propellerhead Software:

reasonTweet.jpg

You have a gross misconception of the topics you claim to be an expert on.
 
^^^Not by far. All he said was effects like filtering are put in place to give certain patches in Reason a certain "sound" that doesn't mesh with alot of current mixes(FACT). It can be fixed with an EQ to bring out highs or by turning filters off. I presume the same that he does, propellerhead makes these patches to sound "vintage/analog".

He also said certain patches are in mono and centered(FACT) using automation to pan from speaker to speaker or even just panning a sound in one direction to add stereo spread to the mix fixes this.

He said some patches are created dry with no effects(FACT). Easily fixed by...adding frikkin FX!!!

These are all practices I'm constantly performing while making tracks in Reason. I load up pro tools or FL to make a beat using vsts/rtas I don't have to adjust things quite as much. It's not a hassle of any kind in Reason, just procedure when using the program. You can avoid alot of it by using combinators, but if you know how to mix, you'd rather use dry patches and do it all yourself than to rely on someone else's patchwork that IMO is a little worse than just going dry.

Nothing to do with a "sound engine" but with the way patches are created. If they're created differently for tools majority of producers are using(vst/au/rtas plugs), a difference will be reflected. Are we gonna argue that the IK Miroslav Philharmonik vst/au is the exact same sound as the Miroslav refills that consist of the same initial samples? I hope not.

It's like within Logic, i often find myslef turning effects DOWN because everything is overprocessed. Soon as you load AUs or dry patches in Logic, this is not a factor either.
 
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If you are getting a shitty sound in any DAW not just reason, its honestly because you don't know what you're doing within that given software. You just simply don't know how to optimize it. Some people are more comfortable in other programs but to say that Reason sounds like shit just makes you sound ignorant. If you know how to fine tune your sounds, mix the overall project, and then get the track mastered by professionals, your track will sound legit.
 
/thread - this was dead for a long time (9 months, then resurrected briefly, then died, now resurrected again)
 
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