Already stumped by Reaper :(

  • Thread starter Thread starter nopeda
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nopeda

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Thank you folks for help deciding on a DAW! I loaded Reaper and the user guide and when I open Reaper it shows the message:

You have not selected an audio device.

Would you like to select your audio device driver now (recommended)?

I don't know what to do or really what it wants. Is it referring to the keyboard I still need to get? Will there be more stuff like that? Also, it seems like the user guide is a bigger program than the program itself. Is that how it's supposed to be?

Thanks for any help!
David
 
Recording isn't simple so recording software isn't simple.

Go to Options -> Preferences -> Device. There's a panel with options for selecting your audio device. If you just have a stock sound card that will be your audio device for now. You can change it later if necessary.
 
Read the manual - it's a PDF file and highly informative! You can skip the advanced stuff, but download the samples if you want to 'follow along' and learn from the lessons in it.
 
nopeda said:
Also, it seems like the user guide is a bigger program than the program itself. Is that how it's supposed to be?
Click to expand...

Yes. The programmers of Reaper are a small, brilliant team who pride themselves on efficiency. The lead programmer also happens to own the company. The programmers of other DAWs are sometimes huge teams who answer to "8 different bosses" and it's an entirely different kind of operation...hence bloat, bloat and more bloat. Adobe is one of those big operations, hence PDF files being giganto-enormous, and, humorously, making Reaper's manual bigger than Reaper, itself.

I don't even use Reaper (Cubase user since the dawn of time, it feels like) but Justin Frankel is something like a nerd hero to dorky software developers like myself.
 
nopeda said:
Thank you folks for help deciding on a DAW! I loaded Reaper and the user guide and when I open Reaper it shows the message:

You have not selected an audio device.

Would you like to select your audio device driver now (recommended)?

I don't know what to do or really what it wants. Is it referring to the keyboard I still need to get? Will there be more stuff like that? Also, it seems like the user guide is a bigger program than the program itself. Is that how it's supposed to be?

Thanks for any help!
David
Click to expand...

I remember the first time I started using a DAW...mine was Cubase, but the experience was the same. I was totally confused :D Don't worry though...if you ask enough questions, read the manual, and watch some tutorial vids on Youtube or wherever, then it will all piece together sooner or later! :)
 
There are tons of help threads on the Reaper forums, too.
 
Seriously...

Many/most posters on the HR forums are musicians. They've spent years learning to play their instruments to an acceptable level.

I'm afraid that, to do a good job of recording, you have to apply at least some of the same dedication to learning to use your equipment and software. Yes, the manual looks daunting but at least read the "Getting Started" section and treat the rest as a look up reference when you need to know something.

Anyway, on your specific query, Bouldersoundguy has given you the detail, but a bit of background: most doing recording have at least a couple of sound interfaces available to use. Pretty well any computer has a basic built in sound card--but for recording you'll likely use a more specialist external device. The menu mentioned above simply tells Reaper which device to use as your recording interface.

As you go deeper, you may also have to specify which inputs to the interface go to which tracks. That's totally normal.

As a parting comment, Reaper is one of the easier DAWs to learn. Take the time to teach it to yourself--it'll pay dividends later.
 
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