PROPELLERHEAD Reason 3.0 ( Windows/Macintosh )

by Propellerhead

Product Features

• Control almost anything in the rack with the Matrix Analog Pattern Sequencer - an analog sequencer with 32 steps per pattern, with free sizing of time signatures
• Merge and split audio and CV signals easily with Spider Audio & Spider CV Mergers & Splitters
• Advanced RV7000 Reverb lets you dial in your desired reverb sound in seconds, and saving it as your own preset
• The all new Combinator builds elaborate chains of Reason units - instruments, effects, pattern sequencers, you name it - and save as patches
• 512-band Digital Vocoder modulates in analog and digital, for a robotic voice or weird harmonics

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00093OLM6
• Media: Video Game
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #59,010 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

Making music should be as easy as powering up a computer, loading up a powerful piece of music software, and getting down to business. And it is. Reason 3.0 is a virtual studio rack with all the tools and instruments you need to turn your ideas into music. And it's more than just a set of excellent synths and effects. It's a complete music system. Step into the age of Reason.

Synthesizers, samplers, drum machine, REX file loop player, professional mastering tools, mixer, vocoder, world-class effects, pattern sequencer, and more. As many of each as your computer can handle. Reason is an infinitely expandable music workstation on a CD-ROM, complete with its own realtime sequencer.

Less fuss, more inspiration

As a Reason user, you can forget about the downsides of music production. Forget malfunctioning modules and confusing connections. Reason's cables don't tangle. Forget about tiny backlit displays and steep learning curves. Reason is so direct you'll learn it in minutes. And forget the tedious process of gathering all the different disks and sound banks needed to load up a song. With Reason, picking up where you left off--be it last night or last month--is as simple as turning the power on. When you save your music, your whole studio setup is stored along with it. You can even include your samples, loops, and drum kits in the Reason file, for easy Web publishing or email collaboration with other Reason users. For once, total recall is truly total.

And so is the sound. The audio quality is everything you would expect from Propellerhead Software. But pristine sound quality is only half the story; the instruments and effects in Reason are loaded with character and attitude. Although easy to learn and a breeze to use, Reason is an extremely flexible system that's as complex and advanced as you make it. And with sophisticated tools such as the MClass mastering suite, or the Combinator, which lets you build new instruments and effects by combining and layering Reason devices, Reason will not just impress, but inspire you.

Control your controls

Each unit in Reason's virtual rack is edited from its own on-screen front panel. All the sliders, knobs, buttons, and functions are right in front of you, ready to be tweaked, turned, and twisted in absolute real-time. And all your front panel actions--filter adjustments, pitch bending, gain riding, or panning--can be recorded and automated in the Reason sequencer.

Radical routing

A single keypress will turn Reason's rack around, and there you are, in patch-cord heaven. Most audio connections are made automatically. When a new device is created, it appears immediately below the currently selected device, and Reason patches it into the system in the most logical way. Repatch by dragging the patch cord plug to the desired connector, or just make a pop-up menu choice. Most devices have one or more parameters controlled by Gate and/or CV. And all instrument devices have several Gate or CV output options. Combine this with easy, transparent patching, and you have connection power approaching that of a fully modular synth.

Need more gear?

No problem. Choose a synth, a drum machine, a loop player, or any device from the Create menu, and it will instantly appear in your rack, logically patched into the signal chain. And because Reason is designed to go easy on your computer, you can repeat the process until you're more than happy. If you ever wished you had 11 samplers and 10 compressors, Reason is definitely for you. And if you have created more machines than you have mixer channels, just create another mixer. The studio of your dreams is just a few mouse clicks away.

Product Description

Reason 3.0 is truly stunning production software. It collects synthesizers, samplers, a drum machine, loop player, mixer, effects, pattern sequencer -- and as much as your PC can handle. It also has advanced MIDI tools and the power to sync up with external devices. Make your life a lot easier and turn your PC into a complete recording studio. Built-in NN-19 Digital Sampler for adding samples and using them as an instrument Scream 4 turns distortion into art - compiling all your favorite distortion pedals and overdrive boxes in one rack-mount UN-16 Unison fattens up incoming sound with detuned versions of the same note, for a chorus-like effect Dr. Rex Loop Player

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The amateur perspective, August 22, 2005

By 

Earl P. Thayton (Kirkland, WA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: PROPELLERHEAD Reason 3.0 ( Windows/Macintosh ) (Video Game)

I need to begin this review with an important disclaimer: I am an armchair musician, the kind of person who played an instrument in high school but hasn't been serious about music in a long time. I am also a person who loves gadgets, including musical ones like synths. I was bitten by the synth bug in the late `80s when I discovered techno music and the great analog masters of the `70s like Isao Tomita. (I remember having great times listening to Tomita and trying arrangements of `The Planets' suite with a buddy from high school who had an Oberheim analog synth and a sequencer. Good times!)

In other words, I am . . . a dabbler. So this review is from a technophile, music-loving amateur's perspective.

It was actually Propellerhead's demo software that inspired me to take another crack at music as a hobby after many years away. I got myself a nice M-Audio keyboard and the full version of Reason and dived in. In short, I am in hog heaven.

Whether you are a dabbler or a pro, I suspect the first thing you will feel upon firing up Reason 3.0 is, "holy cow, there is a LOT of stuff here." The software is just insanely packed with features. Synths, effects modules, samplers, and more... It is literally like having a room full of hardware. And when you hit Tab the rack turns around so you can use virtual patch cords to wire everything up. And oh yeah - it sounds great!

Reason has so many features, in fact, that it's intimidating for a new user. You'll quickly be making some good sounds, but getting the sound you had in mind to BEGIN WITH is where the skill comes in. It's like going from a Yugo to a race car: now you can adjust the suspension in 10 different ways, but how do you know what you want to do unless you are already a gearhead?

And this is why I mark Reason down from 5 to 4 stars: I wish it held my hand more. The manual isn't bad, but the program is so rich that I am going to have to invest in a tutorial package to get the most out of it. I can't blame Propellerhead TOO much, for admittedly I am a dabbler in a pro's world, but I suspect I am not alone in this feeling judging from the amount of 3rd party Reason products out there.

One thing for actual keyboard players to be aware of: since Reason uses your computer's CPU to generate sound, there is a small amount of latency between a key hit and the sound being produced. On my system, an Athlon 64 3000+, this delay is 34 milliseconds. That is hardly perceptible, but anyone used to a real hardware synth could find it annoying.

If you are a hardware junkie, get a keyboard controller with as many hardware inputs as possible. I am using a Radium M49, which has 9 sliders, 8 knobs, one foot pedal jack, plus the pitch and modulation wheel - and when I am playing with the Reason synths, I wish I had more. Of course you can twiddle all the virtual knobs with the mouse, but sometimes there is no substitute for the real thing.

Lastly, be sure to visit the publisher's web site. They have a lot of cool free downloads and user forums.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars DUBROOM.com Review on REASON 3.0: The DUB is in there, August 21, 2005

By 

Messian Dread "DUBROOM.com" (Drachten, Fryslan Netherlands) - See all my reviews

This review is from: PROPELLERHEAD Reason 3.0 ( Windows/Macintosh ) (Video Game)

CONCLUSION

Even an in-depth review can only scratch the surface of this incredible piece of software. Especially when looked at it from the perspective of creating DUB, and after establishing the endless technical possibilities, it can be said without apology that Reason 3.0 is what the computer based DUB producer of today is waiting for.

While you are producing your music, you're already dealing with the sounds and the effects. You're building your tune on the vibe rather then your technical insight. This means, your final product will simply be the climax of your own experience. Reason definitely takes the boring school vibe out of computer based DUB production. Making the riddim and dubbing it will be the methods of which you will be educating yourself.

Propellerhead Software knows very well, that producing music is an esthetic experience. Professionalism doesn't show in the amount of knowledge you managed to memorize. Making music is not the same as making cookies. Professionalism consists out of the ability to produce music that others will enjoy.

The technical know-how comes as a natural fact, when you are developing yourself in the good way. You start to see the need for a compressor, for example, because you constantly think about ways of making a fatter bass. Technical books filled with formula's that only trigger your school-trauma's become interesting, because you know what you want to reach. And all these things come naturally in an environment such as created by the developers of Reason.

The requirements are remarkably low for the high quality; the price is remarkably low for a complete studio with sequencer. The sounds are professional and because of the very large online community of Reason users, your collection is only bound to grow. Reason even reads open standards such as WAV and SF2, opening the door to other communities too.

Releasing your music is easy, too. Reason will write your final product as a wave file, enabling you to use other software for further processing of the mix. Reason does have an internal mastering section, so the other software could in principal be limited to an MP3 encoder or CD burner.

There are only a few reasons not to get the software.

The first one may be, that you already own a big studio with musicians and digital devices. The second one may be, that you're not interested in creating DUB. The third one can only be, that you already own it.

Full 27 page review on http://reviews.dubroom.org/various0002full.htm
(including soundclips)

3.0 out of 5 stars Reason 4 surpasses this, October 31, 2009

By 

M (CA, USA) - See all my reviews

= Fun:4.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: PROPELLERHEAD Reason 3.0 ( Windows/Macintosh ) (Video Game)

With Reason 4 out, reason 3 is obsolete. But it's a good program, and very easy to learn, even in the newest incarnation.

The synths are very versatile and easy to learn to program. The sequencer doesn't get any easier and the mixing console is very direct as is the patching if you want to fiddle with that. Thing is reason automatically patches things for you taking much of the drudger out of the mix.

It doesn't handle live audio though, and that has been corrected with a new companion product, Record. I'm not sure if record works with Reason 3, but it works with Reason 4 out of the box.

I coud go on but check out Reason 4 instead as I might write a review for that someday.