How To Customize The Reaper DAW Layout

[@TNStutorials]

Yeah, I tweaked my REAPER so it completely fits my needs for mixing, it's really amazing to setup all your custom toolbars

[@ReapertvUk]

It certainly is a very customisable interface :)

[@TNStutorials]

Yeah, love the fact that you can adjust a different look for both the mixer panel and the track control pane, it's making every step of the production easier.

[@declan32001]

I've watched Reaper videos to the point of exhaustion while I decided to actually dive in. Yours are great. A lot of concise info for anyone who's familiar with it.

[@ReapertvUk]

Cheers, glad you're enjoying them :0)

[@aniher4949]

Great video. Just wanted to give a little side tip... While dragging the window to place it in a new spot in the docker, try holding down Ctrl (Command for MAC) and you will get a few more options for placement. For instance, you are able to place windows, side by side, or next to each other along the bottom row of the docker. The same goes for either the left or right side and the top. You can align multiple windows vertically or horizontally this way, instead of stacking them on top of each other and having to switch between them by clicking their respective tabs. I personally use both methods, as some windows I want to always be visible, while others I only need to see when they are needed. The options to do this is there automatically I believe, but using the Ctrl-Cmd key will help with doing a little fine tuning like this. Give it a try!

[@BuddhaVybezProd]

i have to say im very proud of owning a liscence and being a geniune reaper user! best daw i have ever purchased to be honest, so simple , never crashes, it really is great! thedown side is some stuff is hard to find but u can create shortcuts to them.. really flexible plus customizable! thanks guys

[@gtraillot3597]

You are great my man. Keep on doing what you're doing cause information you show about reaper is very very helpful for those people that don't know how to customize their theme.. Like me, Lol😊 Thank you very much for showing me how to change it👍

[@desoconnor7445]

Great Chanel ..everything is comprehensively worked through and effectively relayed 🙏🏿🙏🎩✨🦄

[@grocker7683]

Thank you for all this fine work you've done. I just found your channel & subscribed. Enough typing & back to the videos. :) Cheers mate.

[@simplejuan]

Found this, really helpful.

[@andyinwales]

Great to hear this from a Welshman, sounds like my mate talking at me. Diolch o galon.

[@ReapertvUk]

Diolch Andy :0)

[@philburns5656]

Some (not only British) accents are hard to understand for non-native speakers, but this guy is very easy to follow, and also he has a very pleasant voice and talking style.

[@Limbiclesion]

Great channel full of information...thanks 👍

[@KoolKatRecordingStudios]

Thanks Man, I learned tonight because of your video here, on how to get color in My faders completely too. I just started using Reaper & I Love it, im hoping to learn more & more. I just subscribed to you . Thanks

[@charliegrey2767]

Hi Reaper TV, loving these video's! I have a question regarding layouts, I have my master fader on the right hand side. Is is possible to have all your created 'send channels' on the right hand side (grouped) next to the master fader like you can in ableton for example?

[@michaellandrumguitar]

thanks bro for your hard work i learn a lot

[@greenleaf1635]

How did you get those extra buttons on the top left corner of your main window?

[@lianeisme]

I’m vision impaired and find the hue and the fonts really had to see. Is there a simple way to fix this. Screen colour font colour font size and things like this. I’m not tech savvy and help would help

[@soulelle]

Master track fully left/right is not working (or anything for that matter- ex. routing matrix, fx browser, etc). It's either top half or bottom half, but not full side. Very frustrating as it's messing up my flow.

[@olympproduction2358]

Everything you do really helps me. Thank you for this video.

[@Ale-Desafinados]

Thank's a lot. Very useful!

[@mattmurray517]

I accidentally deleted where the “play, pause, stop etc” thing usually is in the middle. Any advice on how to get it back?

[@ReapertvUk]

View > Transport or press Ctrl + Alt + T

[@xIIxGOBLINxIIx]

lol same i was to lit to figure it out til today. Thanks ReaperTV

[@Caleb101]

Same here but also my master track and all the others got deleted from the bottom and the side!!!? Help

[@uniquetruth2097]

thats the same as in my daw: go to the view bar there you find what to be shown.

[@uniquetruth2097]

@@Caleb101 same is for the mastertrack you cab activate or deactivate it in the " view " bar.... there you can activate many things including the master track, mixer, transportconsole etc....

[@varmmanelangkovan3206]

And whats the theme you use? would you please share it?

[@mykayaproduction397]

i tried to download blackmore theme but now it doesn't look the same: in mixer the tracks are not fully coloured as it is in the vesion you ued in this video....where can i fun a theme similar to this one, in particular with fully coloured tracks in mixer?

[@elijahcarr4137]

My screen resolution is shite! How do I get a higher res?

[@marcoose777]

Hi, for linux users (April 2018) to move the mixer to a left pane you have to left click on the exclamation (!) next to the mixer label on the docker. Then select which 'Attached docker position:' you want: 'left' to do as the video describes. Something new in the current beta ?

[@0oTHEJACKo0]

How can I set one of the other layouts as default? Couldn't find anything on that

[@TheBinaryWolf]

Thanks for the tutorial. I'm not sure why so many people like low contrast elements, like black text on a gray background. And if making a tutorial, the text menus is totally unreadable. What is so appealing about squinting to read text?

[@ezrashanti]

When I tell my master fader to "show in docker" it just creates a new tab in docker. It doesn't take up the full heigh of the screen still. Have they changed the behavior since this video was made? Also, how do you color your entire mixer channels instead of just a small stripe? I'm using your same theme but it just shows a small bar of color above the fader.

[@GabrielLeni]

Same thing happens to me. Any fix?

[@tunedude24]

Hello all-Im brand new to Reaper and really enjoying this. I downloaded a couple custom themes but can't seem to get sliders-only dials on the right-is there an easy solution? Thanks!

[@idie123]

i am clicking show on docker on master track, and it doesn't cover top to bottom. the mixer goes all the way to the left, and the master track is above it, and the tracks move over to give it room.

[@Murderbation]

I'm having that problem too. Did you ever figure it out?

[@MakingMineCount]

Watch the entire video, around the 16 minute mark he will show you how.

[@quailstudios]

When I zoom out I loose my wav forms. They disappear when I get more than 5 seconds on the display. How can I see them when zoomed out?

[@maxtofone]

Thanks a lot for this very informative tutorial video! Cheers, Max T.

[@underscoreisnotvalid]

How do I make the waveforms white instead of black?

[@thepacificnguyen3107]

i want my reaper, look exactly your screen at the beginning of this clip. please help

[@rpthomas672]

Paul, on a related matter...is it possible to undock and resize the transport buttons, so that they can be moved around the screen and made larger and chunkier and more visible ? An example of buttons I particularly like are the Studer type of tape recorder push buttons from the Abbey Road/REDD theme. It also seems impossible to import a particular type of transport button from one them to another...or to re-size those already included within a given theme. So, when it comes to resizing (or importing a new set of) transport buttons ....and moving them around the screen...customizability = 0 ?

[@applesapit]

🔥 *I like this DAW*

[@jimmahbee]

my current theme changed the color of my virtual keyboard and midi editor...how can I change it back?

[@sirkristoferTV]

Making the Master Track on the left doesnt always by default go to the left. It will be in the docker on another tab but you can move and snap it to the left.

[@Paradroidx]

O made the mistake of docking it to the left, now it's stuck lol

[@evillano]

Awesome mate, thanks!

[@ReapertvUk]

My pleasure 👍

[@IAmMinnian]

When trying to get the master channel to lock to the left side like you have done, I click "Show in docker" (like you show). Then the master just shows up in another tab in the mixer... help?

[@MartinvonBargen]

Check out around the 16 min mark ;)

[@sergiorivera9650]

i cant check track color, item or take color D: , do you know why ?

[@ReapertvUk]

Sergio Rivera I'm pretty sure that not every theme supports it so I'd suggest testing it with an alternative theme to confirm.

[@sergiorivera9650]

i test with commala 4 and 5 and blackmore and just de waveforme take de color, not the complete track u.u

[@lern2swim]

Same here. It's grayed out for me using Commala 5.

[@jacobrussellehler]

Same here

[@AdamFaulkner375]

Lots of great info here but I'm having trouble with my layout. I want the sequencer to take up the left half of my screen and the mixer to take up the top right quarter with bottom right quarter free for vsts, meters, etc. My workaround means floating the program to the left and the mixer to the top right leaving empty desktop in the bottom right, which means, when tweaking vsts, I'm sending reaper offline which creates many frustrations. I'd like to able to put the sequencer in a floating window or docker to the left living the right side free like working on 2 screens. Any help?

[@Mike-nf6nf]

You can do everything you described by dragging and docking each element and then dragging its tab to the corner you wish. Except for FX docking. I'm not sure if that's possible. There doesn't appear to be a dedicated section of the interface for FX. I'm not sure how that should be defined. The question would be how does REAPER know which FX to put into the "docked FX" window?

[@Caleb101]

Why had everything gone missing on my layout I only have the record/play pause button and my tool bar!!!??

[@superwassou]

perfect video. thanks a lot

[@P1NKM4U5]

when i select the master track -> "show in docker" instead of doing what yours is doing when selected, mine just makes a new mixer window. how do i fix that ?

[@MakingMineCount]

Watch the entire video, around the 16 minute mark he will show you how.

[@MartinvonBargen]

This is the Holy Grail of ReaperTV. A million thanks mate :D

[@See_you_next_timee]

Do you get much more from reaper when you pay fir it? As I'm using it for free at the moment! Thanks

[@RMHendrickson]

Yes! You get the satisfaction of knowing you're supporting the developers while also owning a legitimate copy of REAPER. ;)

[@1234588001]

hi when i play back the recording its crackling can u help thanks.

[@rij2392]

PLEASE REPLY I have a PC which is OK atm ive used reaper trial and now i want to purchase it and install in my PC but in future ill be buying a macbook pro which wont be for another year. So if i purchase REAPER now for my PC will i have to buy again for my MAC book pro ? Has anyone experienced this before ?

[@barelycrucial]

When you buy it you will get an email. Save that email cause you will need it again when you get another computer. That email will have the activation key

[@rij2392]

Great , cheer Brian.

[@ELORIGINALDELASIERRA]

My reaper sound is static and no play back

[@charlesgibson6544]

how to get my master fader to look like yours does, with it being full on the life side

[@ronmoes42]

Coming from Sonar, I see most of Reaper is easy to understand and makes sense. There is just one thing that looks so gigantically old and tedious and I could not get used to this because I know that working like this in Sonar makes more sense and leaves much more space on the screen. Which is adding the plugins on the tracks.. Plugins are pieces of digital hardware you have bought, going from this analogy, I strongly feel that a FX box, like in Pro Tools and Sonar and many other DAWs should be visible straight out of the box, PLUS there should not be a secondairy window where you add them, it is just another list you go through to put the next plugin in the chain. Many plugins come with sizable UI's these days, people want to see the art that went into the UI, having a extra window, is looking very old and outdated and it messes with the workflow. In Sonar you right click, go through the list, and select the plugin, bam! done.

[@theaceofspades485]

...that's why every single video I see pertaining to Reaper looks different from my vanilla looking one. Was always thinking I just got some dumbed down version.

[@NihilQuest]

It's all good until you switch to high resolution monitor. I bought 27" 4k monitor and at it's native resolution Reaper is unusable. I did several tweaks and now I can use it, but still it looks like shit (big letters in small windows etc). Even worse are the third party plugins but it seems that's something Reaper won't be able to fix anyway.

[@ReapertvUk]

I think a lot of DAW's suffer from usability issues on crazy resolutions and are more geared to working on large screen displays with 1080 style resolutions. I totally agree about 3rd party plugins. Why they can't provide a scalable or at the very least, multi resolution option is beyond me.

[@NihilQuest]

Looks like we need to wait for a vector based GUI like FL Studio has. From what I read the 3rd party plugins are beyond hope as they are displayed directly not through the host.

[@ReapertvUk]

***** As long as they don't look naff! It wouldn't be too hard for 3rd party plugins to simply offer a X2 or X3 resize option. That way they can still be bitmap based and provide higher resolution capable layouts.

[@InXLsisDeo]

+Nihil Quest +ReaperTV Scalable GUI is not that easy to make. In fact it's really hard. If you go vector based, like FLStudio, you can pretty much say good bye to themes, because most theme makers work with bitmaps, not vector based drawings. I don't think anyone is ready to give up themes. So that leaves bitmapped themes. Now you have two problems: 1) If you want your theme to look good on 4K, you pretty much have to work on a 4K screen. You make your theme at the highest resolution, then you scale down for the other resolutions. But not all theme makers own a 4K screen. I even think it's an overwhelming minority as high quality 4K screens are expensive. So most themes will be at lower resolution and scaled up. 2) For Cockos and the plugin developers, it's a headache inducing problem, as now every item that is drawn (buttons, bars, windows, graphs, etc) have now to be placed relative to one another instead of an absolute position relative to the top left corner of the window. That means that you have to define by hand dozens or hundreds of formulaes to calculate the positions of these objects, or you have to write a whole framework that does it automatically for you, and then define the relative positions of each object in terms of left, right, top, bottom, etc. There is fortunately a much simpler way to do it, which is to provide absolute positions of each element, like before, but at each possible scale. So if there are 5 possible scales, provide the absolute position of each object for the 5 scales. Still that doesn't solve the problem of big letters in small windows, because the OS itself doesn't manage 4K that well.

[@ReapertvUk]

Funnily enough I'm a web and graphic designer and have been for around 15 years professionally so the issue of browser rendering and scaling isn't something new to me. My proposition (as can be seen in my previous comment) is to provide various pre-scaled versions that will be switchable by the user based upon their preference and screen size / resolution. This does away with scaling and position issues as the sizes are set. Agreed, it would add additional time and cost to development, but with screens & resolution getting larger and the prices coming down, it is something that really does need some attention drawn to it. I used to use a 27" monitor with high resolution for photo editing and while the extra screen space was great for Reaper itself, using plugins like Superior Drummer 2 or the more complex plugins on the small layout that was designed for large screen TV's with lower resolution or smaller screens, it just becomes really problematic.

[@ToddErickson_MusicMan]

Very helpful.

[@jhummelgaard9310]

So damn useful, THANKS!

[@hueyyukon8143]

Thank you for this video. However, my OCD insists to tell you there's no 'n' in rhythm. I've had to practice spelling it too ;)

[@UndertheMangoTree]

how do you change the color of each track in the mixer? like the whole body of the fader is red.

[@ReapertvUk]

Under the Mango Tree it partly depends on the theme you're using and if it supports full media colouring. There's an option in the Preferences to colour your media..

[@UndertheMangoTree]

Thanks for the reply! Yeah, I figured it out and found out what checkbox to check. If anyone else has the same frustration just go to Options>Preferences>Appearance:Track Control Panels>[enable] Tint track panel backgrounds

[@lawrencehowse8556]

that option for the peaks are greyed out empty box

[@Christof_Classen]

*Very much Themes are 4K Themes and i cant use them, because i can see only 2 Tracks (the Mixer Faders are way to long and cant resize) ;(* *I am 52 and have bad Eyes and 4K for me is not fun to use, so i am a 1920x1080 User and i cant use MUCH of the BEST Themes !*

[@mikulmusic32]

Link in the description..............?

[@alfkapone]

Hi!!! I like your Videos. Can you share reaper skin and configure you use?

[@ReapertvUk]

Sure, it's Default Commala 5 :0)

[@loonyguitarist]

All those saying to check the 16 minuet mark to "Fix" the issue with the master track only snapping to the top left instead of full left... he does not explain that in the video. as long as i have something docked at the bottom the left and right side dockers only snap to the height of the main window (where the timeline is) not the full window (main window + bottom docker) I am on v5.96 so maybe they changed the functionality of the dockers in the newer versions but the only way I can get the Master mixer to take up the full left side of the screen is to remove the mixer from the bottom which kinda defeats the purpose.

[@proteusblack8913]

This is exactly what I'm experiencing too... I haven't figured out any solution :(

[@Paradroidx]

Same in version 6 . I just uninstalled it, after almost punching my.monitot

[@Ramt33n]

thank you

[@michaelanthony9068]

Thanks for trying. I guess it’s not in the cards for me to use a DAW at all.

[@JJRocheO]

2:00

[@jimmahbee]

diolch yn fawr iawn...(hope that's right)

[@ReapertvUk]

Close enough Jim 😉

[@The7nUp]

Nice videos! congrats!≡ ♫ ♫

[@VladoBelo]

As a longtime cubase user, I was tempted by reaper. My initial excitement is now gone, reaper gone from my computer, windows11 totally killed me beyond repair! Blue screen all the time! The asio focusrite driver wouldn't boot after a while, reaper crashed, and after several attempts to reinstall reaper and the sound card, the system crashed completely. If he was the only one it happened to, I'd say, yeah.. it's my fault, but this has happened to more people on the forums. If you don't have any advice, and reaper support didn't answer me either.. Trash Reaper, sorry

[@PICIU_ROCK]

Volvo

[@fth1fth1]

Eew

[@funkcrewbandonly1]

It is good information that you're giving but there is a problem with your video. The problem is that you talk too too long just to get to one simple thing!! 👎👎😥

[@ReapertvUk]

Can't please everyone I guess.