Reason Guru Now In The House!!!

  • Thread starter Thread starter BigRush
  • Start date Start date
BigRush said:
9-duece gave you some really good advice! Although it was a bit "educated" (HAHAH!!)!!! I guess to repeat what he said in "dummy" speak, it try setting your Quantize to something like 50%. The one thing you may have to to do is go back and Make sure things that are supposed to happen on the down beat (The One), are actually there. If not, when you start the sequence there will be no kick, for example. The point is to make your tracks sound less mechanical and the mechanical sound starts with the hard quantize. Loosen that up a bit, then try to find sonds that compliment what you're looking to do (Thats a whole " 'nother " thread! )


The next thing I'd suggest is NEVER EVER EVER EVER EVER use the factory sounds unless you're layering them with custom stuff!!! Why? Two reasons: They are set to a "general type of sound, meaning they intended them to appeal to hip hop, house, trance, jungle, rock you name it. What drum sounds do you know of that are "general" to every style of music?? So find sounds that are suitable for YOUR music. Number 2: Its a matter of STYLE!! Hip-Hop in particular was founded on doing things with sound that no-one else did, even with all the factory churned out music today, guys who have a unique sound are the ones who get noticed AND COPIED THE MOST!!!! So if you started out using the MPC for instance, keep sampling drums from records and samples from vinyl. No sense in changing your flavor because you changed the way you operate. Thats like becoming an asshole when you get a porsche..(ok bad analogy, cause I AM an asshole now!! HAHAHA)... Don't use canned sounds!! It'll only make you sound like everyone else!!!

On the tech side, 92 was right, getting to know EQ and compression is extremely important. Most young cats see the drum machine and the subtractor and go nuts, but when it sounds like your speaker is covered with a blanket, or its so shrill you can't play it loud, you learn that eq and compression (when used wisely) can help a mix! We do differ on the fine points, but overall eq and compression is a big part of the total package.

I use ReWire sometimes. Like 92, I usually just export it all out and open Cubase or Nuendo (No diss to Pro-Tools!! Please no flames!). Sometimes I'll even export a midi file so I can double or replace sounds with modules like Trilogy or the NI modules!

FYI, I use the ReDrum (usually 2 of them do the trick), and now I am hooked on the Combinator!! I start with a patch I like and screw with it until i like it or hate it. If I hate it, I'll just startover...simple. Patience is a virtue not some old broad!! (corny!).
I will Combine strings with synths to get that perfect string for a particular record. The key is train yourself to keep throwing new stuff together so you don't get stuck using the same patches all the time.

By the way thanks for the love... Its cool when folks dig what you do! I'm looking forward to hearing some music from you as well....




Wish there was a place HERE to post music... I hate having to go update soundclick!!!
Click to expand...


The reason I aimed that one at big rush is because I heard his music. It sounds good. I have heard alot of music done in reason were people say they are good with it but it sounds like some shit. Just what I think. Do not want to offend any one. I have searched all over for reason hip hop
music. It was just one other dude and he worked for Dr Dre on one of reasons sites.92 I feel what you are saying. I just love music point blank. What I get from the both of yall is that I have to find the sound from within the program. I feel the same way I just can not explain it. I just work with it untill it sounds right.More of an unconcious feeling.Also both of ya'll have a more of a tehnical aspect to it which is good because I can understand that to.

Both of you supplied quality information. Which believe me will be used.

Oh one other question to either 92 or big rush.

HOW DO I GET MY MUSIC OUT THERE

Ive heard from a couple of people that my music sounds good.

Not good as big rush though when I heard his music I was yeah this dude got some heat.

What is it like being commercial with your music is the people cut throat, fake what ever.

I can rap too nah fo real I can really rap.

So if one day you guy's might want to see what i'm about then I will send you a song and let know how I sound.

To ya'll thanks again for the quick replys both of you dudes are a god send.
 
i want to get more into reason

i'm using just fruity loops now, and i have also produced nearly a full cd with it. i checked out reason a while back and i'm impressed with it's versatility. fruityloops is pretty versatile also especially with vst, rtas, and dxi's, but i think reason comes with a lot more out of the box.

btw, i definitely want to peep out some of your music.
 
You can send any snippet demo or idea you have to Harvey@wallbangerz.com Attn BigRush. I'll be glad to play Simon Cowell!!! HAHAHAH!!! No seriously I am not one of the those cocky cats who wont speak to up and coming cats, I remember the crap I used to make!!! LOL!! So believe me if you're not that hot now, if you stay at it and truly commit yourself to music, you'll get noticed. Its not that many new cats doing hot music so if you're hot you'll stand out like Flava Flav at a klan rally!!!

Any advice or help just hit me. I will usually respond rather quickly.

BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR TEAIRRA MARI (ROC-A-FELLA/DEF-JAM)!!! "YOU BETTA RECOGNIZE" PRODUCED BY RUSH!!!!
 
I wish BigRush all the best with his music. I'm tgrying to learn Reason as best I can and it's dope that he would come through and drop advice on us like that

much appreciated
 
Eyyyy...sounded a bit educated!?!? Ain't no mafakk'n education in my blood man hehe
It might just be that you meant that I did the whole "storyline", the why's, who's and all of that. My job rubs of on me, instructing young punks :p

I just got one advice about the music man. Stay with it...you're probably gonna get some flack from someone sooner or later. It might be cause you suck at it, or what's more likely: Some guy/girl can't handle the pressure with fresh meat around. That's what most people tend too. The moment someone shows up with skills, the critisism is on. Don't pay attention to it, do your thang and don't let anyone kill your passion, and one more thing...the day you stop learning new stuff, or think you're to good to pick up a magasine/book and read...then you're a class A prick and they tend to go down...
I think it was some old chinese guy who said something like this: "A wise man that think he's got nothing more to learn, is no longer a wise man..." Now...why do they always have to be old chinese guys? Just for once man, once it would be nice to hear someone quote an old norwegian felllow...that's not gonna happen I guess. I'll stay content with being a citizen of the founders of the aerosol can hehe

-Nito
 
HAHAHAH!!! Yeah and Why are they always old?? So if I say something wise, am I old??? Damn!! Yo for those of u in the states, I just found out that my song on Teairra Mari will only be released in Europe! Welcome to the music bizness!!!! Even when you have hot music and skills, you still have to play the music game!!! Tell me how I'm doin in fuckin Norway when it comes out!!!! That does SHIT for me here in the Dirty South!!!! :mad:
 
I'm using Reason 3.0. Been a Reasonhead since 1.0 and with every new release and every new refill I get my hands on, the more I love it. I'm still thinking about getting other ways to do beats, just for versatility sake, but truthfully, I prefer Reason more than anything else. Never listen to the naysayers because they nay say so much that they don't see the picture correctly.
 
True that you do have to do some tweaking with sounds in Reason, but I try to tweak damn near everything just so I can have it sound the way "I" want it to sound. Usually factory presets do nothing for me, but sometimes they're alright if they're layered with a different sound. I notice I seem to layer most strings and keys though and/or tweak them. As crazy as this might seem, I find myself using both the Reason 2.5 factory sound bank and orkester refills along with R3 simply because some of the sounds that aren't in 3 were on 2.5. Not that those are the only refills I use, that'd get boring and uneventful.
 
Dude you're buggin!! You can't have the 2.5 Factory Sondbank and the R3 installed at the same time!! The 3.0 Soundbank is ALLL the 2.5 sounds plus new ones that weren't on the 2.5 release. You have some really inventive stuff goin on over there brother. I installed 3.0 and it asked me to unistall 2.5 completely! So how do have 2.5 and 3.0 on the same cpu?
 
BigRush said:
Dude you're buggin!! You can't have the 2.5 Factory Sondbank and the R3 installed at the same time!! The 3.0 Soundbank is ALLL the 2.5 sounds plus new ones that weren't on the 2.5 release. You have some really inventive stuff goin on over there brother. I installed 3.0 and it asked me to unistall 2.5 completely! So how do have 2.5 and 3.0 on the same cpu?
Click to expand...

I have the refills for 2.5 sitting on my slave hard drive (as well as on CD) and the refills for 3 sitting in the reason folder on my master hard drive. :) When I installed 3, I completely uninstalled 2.5...but I left all of my refills on my slave hard drive for easy access. I left the refills on there when I made a backup of the software since I had to burn it just right. But it might just be that they were rearranged on the 3.0 refill and I may just be so used to the 2.5 that I haven't found them yet lol.
 
Rush, did it make sense what I was doing with those refills now? I hope it did.
 
Basically you're using the soundbank of the 2.5 instead of the R3 version...Even though it's as Rush said; The same thing only with more stuff. Propellerhead decided to leave all the old stuff on the Factory Bank for R3 so that it would be backwards compatible with previous versions.
I agree with you on the sounds though. They need tweakin', in my opinion that's the essence of producing. Cause if your sounds is the same as everybody else then who the F... are you? You're like a fish in the ocean...atleast when you tweaking them you're a shark takin a shit on the others.
R3 is a great sequencer (a bit lacking at certain aspects) but I prefer it. It's easy once you get the hold of it and it's all playtime from there. I've also used Reason since it's birth and man it has grown up to be a well shaped babe over the years. I wouldn't mind seing it with some VST compatibility, but that also a part of what I like about it.
 
actually, I'm using both. I'm using 2.5 because I'm familiar with the arrangement and then 3 for the new stuff that wasn't in 2.5 (and the Electromechanical refill is on the slave as well).
 
the sample from "up to the sun" was dope.
other than that, it was produced well, but its not my type of shit.
 
Well Ethos,what type of "shit" do you like? HAHAH!

A question for the group: When u listen to joints whether Rap, Hip Hop (yes there is a difference), House Rock Gospel or Jazz, do you listen for what you like or if its a hit. An important quality of any a&r is the ability to listen beyond your personal tastes.
 
When I listen to a track, the first thing I listen to is if I like the beats on the track and then the vocal style and lyrics. The next thing I listen to is how I can interpret how other people will like it, even if it's not my style of music. I listen to how good I thought the mix was, what parts I really liked or really didn't that I think other people would agree with me on. I know that what I like is somewhat limited, but I know what people listen to in areas that I don't listen to as much. Hell, I'd even give country a decent listen with honest advice and criticism (and Fieva hates country music) :). Rush, you're right, a good a&r has to be able to listen to stuff outside of his element to see if it will work for the label he works for. He is the one who has the say on whether what he listens to goes in the garbage or the next person's hands. He knows if he sees something that the label can mold into what they want (and how much molding they would have to do) and he also knows if something is a complete waste of time.
 
i listen for what i like. if i dont like it, theres no need for me to listen to it.
that wouldnt make any sense. i dont give a shit whether its a hit or not.
the emcees i listen 95% of the country probably dosnt even know they exist.

as to what kind of "shit" i like...

i like beats that allow my mind to coast. i dont dig a whole bunch or roaring synths and hi-hats every step. i use a lot of deep organs, and haunting piano keys.
but its all opinion and taste. the type of hip-hop produced today use to anger me, but i grew up and no longer care. its all redundant and materialistic. but like i said, to each his own.

like i said, your stuff was produced well, its just not for me.
and if you take offense to that, well, thats sad.
 
I hear you ethos, to each his own, but you're in the position to be picky like that since you make music for yourself. If you were an a&r rep, you couldn't be like that and have your job too long. I agree that a lot of hip-hop is materialistic factory made bullshit, which proves that the business is all about numbers. Half of what I've seen on TV or heard on the radio, I can say "I've heard someone better who'll probably never hit the radio". I've also noticed that mainstream is more geared towards female listeners probably because female and younger listeners (say 11+ to about 23ish) are more likely to buy the CDs.
 
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