The effects in Reason you didn't even know existed!

[@ReasonStudios]

Ryan made Combinator patches out of these effects! Download them here: www.reasonstudios.com/blog/friday-giveaway-ryans-hidden-fx /James

[@rootbeermcgee]

Please when is VST3 coming, you guys said January and it's almost March

[@artigoaudio]

Thanks #reasongang !

[@mimikova390]

I thought the way I cobbled stuff together in reason was weird. But this video is an affirmation of the way I work in reason. Reason is the ultimate modular system. And like always finding a way through the limitation of device with another device is what makes reason so fun. Thanks, Ryan. Also, tell the designers I want a wave sequencing synth.

[@sealandersoundscapes6403]

Nothing to add says it all from my point of view its kinda the way I start and possibly simplify some things yet probably complicate others lol

[@Macacos]

Never stop developing Reason, it’s amazing.

[@ingor.779]

This shows once again that I could have saved myself a lot of plugins if I had been more concerned with what I already have.

[@Dreamamine_THE_ONLY_REAL_ONE]

LOL, I know, right? I think I'm the king of that...

[@vishescheElectronic]

True true

[@monkeyplusplus]

I will never ever get tired of "using things wrong". Reason is so fun that way.

[@KarimLeMec]

Reason is the king of it. A bit like Collins in the 80s used to use a Roland chorus pedal for vocals (the experiments in Reason are much more immediate to try with surprising results).

[@Dreamamine_THE_ONLY_REAL_ONE]

@@KarimLeMec Absolutely, like an electric guitar through a Leslie cab...

[@NaviRetlav]

On The Echo, there is a breakout audio input which bypasses the delay section and let's you use the distortion and filter directly.

[@ReasonStudios]

Oh derp! Of course! :) Thanks Navi. It takes a village! /ryan

[@Dreamamine_THE_ONLY_REAL_ONE]

@@ReasonStudios Thanks Navi! I love to clandestinely 'pick your brain'!

[@crystalcvt]

maelstrom's distortion is great, i sometimes use it as a send for basses i made in thor

[@suryadnb]

Yup, I love the noise distortion on Maelstrom

[@iamthefixr]

The Kong Overdrive has been my secret weapon for years. It’s easily my favorite distortion/resonator. I’m also a huge fan of Rotor’s distortion capabilities.

[@Acid42]

Wow. Been using Reason since v2 and haven't played enough with the cabling to discover these gems. Awesome video!

[@cesarrodrigues6392]

Maybe someone mentioned it already, but there is a waveshaper in Thor also and it has even more wave shapes than the one in complex (this is a mono effect, by the way). Then it also has 2 mono filters plus one stereo filter. So 1 Thor effectively has 4 distortion effects which can be accessed simultaneously and assembled into any signal chain you can imagine using the routing matrix. But that is not all!... Since ring modulation was also mentioned as a distortion in the video, I will consider it also here as a distortion. In that case, consider also that the routing matrix allows any of the 3 Thor oscillators to be set as a amplitude modulator (AM is very similar to ring modulation). - Now, if you are using Thor to distort a monophonic signal, there is even one further trick... Rather than giving you a fixed-frequency tone as the basis for AM modulation of your signal, you can actually use the same MIDI clip or source to trigger the Thor oscillator (and then tune it to taste), meaning your modulator frequency can be the same (or related to) the carrier. This will give you access to different tones versus the usually overly metallic tones obtained with AM or ring modulation. Phew !!!!

[@ronpieket8164]

It amazes me how unique and distinctive each of these distortion effects is. Thanks for sharing.

[@ReasonStudios]

Right?! Who knew that destroying a sound could offer up so much complexity and subtle differences? :) /ryan

[@Xzone9]

Every video from this artist Ryan here seems well worthwhile. Reason product with no plugins or extensions is entirely suitable for millions of sounds right out of the box. Really it's already in there, aside from adding new audio loops and samples.

[@earthmike532]

throw synchronous on anything just to add saturation alone, its such an awesome, low cpu hogging device. great video. wow I never realized that about scenic!!!! there are so many hidden gems in Reason because every device is made to last and enhances all the other devices.

[@NiharSavala]

REASON is "THE" ULTIMATE sound resource & sound mangling machine. Thanks for the video Ryan, you the best.

[@dustintheblacklight]

The way you use Alligator for the distortion effect is really cool! Good work, Ryan. Next video about reverb? I am looking forward to! :-)

[@flaemyng]

I love the following effect chain: Scream4's tape effect (including slight compression), then a reverb (as an insert!), then the Pulveriser.

[@amusik7]

This is the best reminder that whatever sound you are after it's in Reason already.

[@mgumwv]

In addition to being a distortion unit, The Echo is also a great hidden tape mod effect. Same process as you mentioned, but bring up the Wobble and LFO Amount instead of the distortion.

[@mimikova390]

Something I do is stack tape models. I love the Reason ART with the UMPF retro and the Arturia Tape mello-fi. I set them to softer more subtle settings and the chain makes its own noise and wobble

[@j.lindback]

Hats off for you, I learned a lot of new things today! After so many years of using Reason I thought I knew it all, but this only proves how much there is left to explore.

[@Farmatique]

Thanks for sharing these "hidden gems"! I recall when I used to do kinda "opposite" things, by trying to get saturation-effect from distortion effects. I was trying to create saturation effect in early versions of Reason when there's no MClass compressor been added to Reason yet (version 4, I believe). I wasn't happy with the sound of the standart Compressor-effect. So I came up with Scream4 tweaking workaround. I turned off EQ, turned off Body and set distortion type to "Tape" and played around with those 2 knobs trying to achieve that "fat" saturation effect. That was really fun times 😎

[@erkydi]

10year+ reason user here, thx for all these info man, hella excitedd to try Scenic!!

[@ssilk]

Great. I already knew a lot of it, but this gives me more insight. And now do the same for Reverbs/Shimmer/Delay :)

[@okachobired5856]

Wooaahhh. It's like christmas came early or we were told of all the hidden gifts that Santa left behind. Great stuff

[@CarlosIvanMarquez]

So many years using Reason and had no idea of most of them. Thank you!

[@Alltracmonkey]

Holy crap I wasn't aware of so much of this..Can't wait to play around, thanks for vid

[@menacerisamir198]

i use reason since version 1 , every day i found new ways to use it , this is my main daw , thanks a lot for sharing your tips , they are very usefull

[@GloveBunniesVideos]

Every time I work in Reason I am learning something new. That Kong resonator is great on tom drums. I wish you could automate the switching of the different models, very cool effect.

[@worse-than-gnomes]

Loving the blown speaker effect from Rotor at 7:20.

[@SmegInThePants]

Yeah one of my biggest deciding factors when buying an instrument for reason is what it has on the backside for stuff like this.

[@Ash-808]

Great video! BUT...You forgot "Audiomatic Retro Transformer" It's my favorite inappropriate distortion of the lot! Run anything through it, set it to "Cracked" put TRANSFORM at 0% and WET at 100%. Pure Magical Distortion with a nice warmth! (TIP: try it on an organ for trap beats)

[@ReasonStudios]

Good call!

[@SomeOne-uy4kj]

Always a fine presentation that adds value. And they're done in a fun style. Cheers!

[@Milan____]

This was great, very fun to watch. I would like to see RS promote 3rd party REs at least a little bit, like a medley of 20 random REs that can do distortion, one second at a time, just to demonstrate what else is out there in the ecosystem. Or, hmm, maybe I could make that video. 🤔

[@realnotes]

Thank you for this - I have not even scratched the surface of what reason can do

[@neilbiggin]

This was superb. Love the continuing edumacation. Wish I was 15 again and had all the time in the world!! 🎉

[@eyeloveloopy]

You guys hit gold with this one

[@N1h1L3]

Secret distortion tip: Some compressors on zero (or as low as possible) attack and release can go pretty wild due to the ultra fast envelope triggers. Sounds distorted to me.

[@KarimLeMec]

extremely refined. it is not a distortion that I find pleasant but it is still a distortion

[@thesixthundead2673]

My mind made kaboom! Thanks so much for this video, Ryan, you are great!

[@LogicControl]

That was pretty cool, thanks for sharing!

[@tonalaxis]

It all makes sense now. Distortion is always better when there is many to choose from.

[@peeb_rewer]

I like full control over what’s happening so I like to use the spider to split audio -> multiple vocoders used as graphic eq each set to different frequencies then -> each to multiple versions of your chosen distortion then recombine. Save as combinator.

[@paulweyer4339]

Cool tricks. I still end up using the foldback most often. One of reason's most overlooked fx due to its simplicity; but it's distortion! Nothing wrong with simple when it comes to wrecking your signal

[@ReasonStudios]

Ha! "Nothing wrong with simple when it comes to wrecking your signal." OMG, Paul I love that quote. That's such a perfect philosophy! :) /ryan

[@skyeonthebeat828]

One of the reasons I love reason, the endless possibilities 😆

[@7seVIIn7]

You forgot malstrom for distortion

[@ReasonStudios]

Ahhhhhhh!!! Of COURSE!! 🤯 /ryan

[@larrymyers5989]

Ryan’s videos are always very informative!

[@chocomalk]

11:40 you can also just flip the device and route the gate 1 CV output into the gate 2 input on alligator then route gate 2 to gate 3 and gate 3 to gate 1

[@MarianoCrivello1]

Been doing this since Thor was released. :^) Love to see a bunch of the newer devices in a new light though. Thank you, Ryan!

[@dustintheblacklight]

Also we can use Polar or Grain in Quartet (Size to 0 and play with Mod depth and Jitter) to get cool distortion effects. Or combine all you mentioned or some of them in a one big chain! :-)

[@29djandy]

Amazing lessons. More please 🎉

[@deeplink_audio]

Thor and Malstrom Shapers. Audiomatic Gadget, Circuit, Tape etc.

[@MrFalkbossa]

Ryan this is awesome! Thank you al lot!

[@KOISANX]

Have to ❤the options in the rack

[@3rddegreegurns]

Umpf retro + guitars... used it for years. Put 6:2 line mixer on your guitar track, route aux fx to umpf retro tape and dial to taste. You will be pleasantly surprised.

[@graykeyzmusic]

Reason never fails to surprise me!!

[@JoKrone]

You forgot to mention the waveshaper section of Thor. It‘s a little bit more complicated to use as it is in mono and you need to use a constant trigger for the routing through filter one. But with two Thor Devices in a Combinator Patch, each triggered by there own step sequencers, you can get very cool waveshaping distortion results. Back in the days when I started with Reason 4, I learned soo much routing possibilities with Thor. It‘s a really cool device. But nice video! Shows the fun possibilities with Reason! :)

[@ReasonStudios]

I debated showing the Thor shaper but yeah, it was a little fiddly to set up compared to Complex-1 but you're right! It's a cool one. Maybe I should've included it anyway. /ryan

[@soundofthenebula]

Great tips. I'm imagining the vocoder involved somehow. Would be cool ...

[@slimterrorizer8636]

I've used Rotor for plenty of unusual things, but never thought of using it without rotating (*facepalm*) The Alligator one was pretty cool too !

[@mattantXD]

INSANE!!!!!! Thank you so much!!!

[@rodrigonoales]

Well, the SSL compressor trick, where you crank it up the ratio, thres to max and at a very fast attack it will give a nice warm vintage-like distortion, specially good in drums

[@chuckbangers2590]

The more I learn about Reason, the less I feel like I know.

[@tcerul]

Please make another great video like this about Complex! Please!!!

[@RFX01]

Hearing you talk about this made me realize that you totally forgot the Thor shaper when you were talking about using Thor as a distortion. Although nice to know that there are so many distortions I always overlooked, since I use distortion effects all the time for making bass sounds.

[@ReasonStudios]

Right but there's an issue with the Thor shaper, right? In order to hear it you have to have a voice active. You could turn it down but it still needs to be active which would involve setting up the on-board sequencer to run a loop with a long gate that keeps the voice open but even that wouldn't work unless the sequencer is actively playing. So while you're stopped you'd have no sound (unless you click the run button on Thor manually). Right? Or is there a way you have to access Thor's shaper in a less clunky way? /ryan

[@HOLLASOUNDS]

Very interesting stuff Ryan, half device Unison is a distortion good for Lo Fi. Put it on Grand piano instant LoFi vibe.

[@courtlaw1]

Synchronous is a beast.

[@MixingGBP]

Ryan, here is one you missed. You can use the settings on the Audiomatic Retro Transformer for some unique distortion. I use the "Cracked" mode and sometimes even layer on with another Audiomatic instance with the "Bright" setting. The results are really program dependent and you can get some nicely weird results.

[@ReasonStudios]

Thanks for pointing that out to folks in the comments! I mention elsewhere down here that I purposefully left Audiomatic off because the effects are suites of effects that include distortion, EQ, phasing, compression, and probably other things too. So since you can't disable the individual components I ruled it out as a strict "distortion" effect. But maybe I was too strict in my self-imposed rules. :) /ryan

[@MixingGBP]

@@ReasonStudios ah ok. I missed that comment. I like that effect a lot.

[@GuestHouse1992]

Josh Mobley guitar sound distortion is the best

[@kronweed]

You can create a combinator that panels all of these distortions together in one place if you wanted to.

[@ReasonStudios]

It wouldn't work to put them all into one Combinator because you'd max out the number of controls available on Combinators (32 knobs and 32 buttons). But I did build Combinators of all these patches that we're giving away on our blog today. You could certain daisy-chain them all together for a monster of a sound. :) /ryan

[@seramodulation2141]

That is really cool! Do you read my wish about more distortion in Reason? 😊 Small Units like Guitar-Pedals/Preamps ( octaver, overdrive... ) for Reason please!

[@broklanders4730]

you missed the drive of the filter in complex 2. and - i wish you'd have done the video not on distortion, but on other fx types. these count more (to me). also i wish (actually since ages) for you guys to put inputs on _every_ of your instrument devices for their fx to be used everywhere (f.e. you can't use rhytmix' fx section for external signals - but these are really sounding great to ny ears. btw - please allow rhytmix to be used with our own samples - i like the simplicity of this device and would use it for most of my drum tasks). and i mean actually two inputs - one for the signal to go through the synth engine (where it makes sense) and one for only the fx section (where the synth engine is bypassed and turned off entirely to save cpu). f.e. i would love to use the drive section of radical keys for my other signals - that drive section sounds marvellous. and i would like to point out two problems that often occur when using fx of instrument devices for external signals: 1. you cannot quickly bypass them, as instrument devices do not have their own bypass switch. so one has to use the fx propetiary bypass switch - if there is one at all, or one hast to fake one by cabling stuff up. a bit tedious, as these tiny things tend to sum up. 2. often these fx parameters are not available for automation (f.e. kongs inser fx - f.e. the tape delay).

[@andyh444]

Great video, thank you

[@2tallcharles99]

Obviously the next video will be about the new Reason Banjo rack extension

[@Dreamamine_THE_ONLY_REAL_ONE]

Can't wait.........

[@BootlegBil]

Stacking distortion/overdrive is something already done by many guitarists. No rule to say Reason users can't try it. Give it a go. See where it leads.

[@chocomalk]

Scenic is one of the best FX processing devices

[@andrewwowk9385]

Honestly, I feel like I will NEVER experience everything that Reason can do. It's the ultimately experimentation tool.

[@radonegundo1906]

New keyboard in the studio? Some E-Mu ???

[@hankstephens5543]

What other DAW can do this ? …. and then do it INSIDE another DAW!!?

[@Meddred]

In the add new effects section you missed the combinator effects which has a list of many under the hood combination effects that can be edited , most people don't see ;)

[@PengWin707]

Oh my God I didnt know this existed theres so much here

[@Meddred]

@@PengWin707 yes , the Combinator effects are my usual goto section, ive been using reason since version 2.0 , there's a bunch of great delays , reverbs , distortion , modulation effects that are amazing , keep up the good work Ryan

[@chocomalk]

Audiomatic can also generate some nice distortion.

[@ReasonStudios]

That's true. I considered mentioning it but I didn't because Audiomatic's distortion is also bundled with compression, eq, sometimes phasing, and other effect textures we don't have access to changing so I left it off the list but your'e 100% correct. I love the distortion quality of some of those presets. /ryan

[@tothefinlandstation]

How many of those different distortions are actually the same algorithm recycled from elsewhere in Reason?

[@ReasonStudios]

I'm not sure if there's some recycled algos in there but there's not many if there are. Softube Amps are developed by Softube and therefore different DSP, Umpft and Processed Pianos has unique algos, the Kong effects and resonator are unique, the three band architecture of Alligator is unique to its sound, the Complex shaper is unique and so is the function module... and surely others. But don't take my word for it, you can hear the rich diversity of distortion sound in the examples in the video. /ryan

[@peeb_rewer]

Whether that’s true or not, most of those demonstrated sounded very similar. The Alligator trick looked useful though.

[@buckycore]

Synchronous is hot AF.

[@Kyoshi2012]

BOMB!

[@grasshopper808]

Awsome

[@MiguelCatalaoMusic]

I've had this conversation in one of the reason Facebook groups I participate a couple of weeks ago. I wonder if it was inspiration for this. I don't think I've passed 10 devices though!!!! 😜

[@BenedictRoffMarsh]

You forgot with Thor: sending Audio In to Filter 1 and then the Shaper. :-)

[@ReasonStudios]

You are correct. When I made the patches that are linked in the pinned comment for download I included the Filter 1 -> shaper method. /ryan

[@BenedictRoffMarsh]

@@ReasonStudios Cool, I didn't d'load. Reason has so many ways to flense ze felines 🐕

[@finalfirst601]

Im boutta go fuckin crazy with dese fx👏🏽🔥🙏🏽

[@PhilippeBlancR5]

Dc Octorex has some cool filter too.

[@svdl3000]

Amazing

[@Kubatko]

This is great

[@amarokker]

I liked the idea with Rotor and Alligator the best. Isn't Audiomatic a kind of distortion? Maybe not in a traditional sense, but for me it is. When I crank up the Cracked, Circuit or Wash effects it sounds distorted to me.

[@leaukie]

I noticed the spectral analyzer in your hardware rack. Please tell me a new EQ is coming with different analyzer modes.

[@ReasonStudios]

Hey Chuck, that spectrum analyzer has nothing to do with what the developers are working on. I just added a little device to my rack for the visual flair of having the lights dance while I talk. ✨✨ /ryan

[@fiddlestickzmuzik]

Still hoping for more than one measly MIDI Clock output from Reason.

[@arothmanmusic]

It seems like so many tutorials are littered with "drag this into your rack, then right-click to reset it'. It'd be a handy workflow improvement if there was a preference like "drag with defaults : on/off". Then the right-click option would be "apply default settings" rather than "reset device". Either that, or another keyboard modifier similar to the shift-drag for "drag and reset device".

[@ReasonStudios]

There is that setting in the Preferences, Andrew! It's under the General section and it's called "Load default sound in new devices." If people uncheck that preference, then the "right click to reset" step is taken care of for you automatically. But since most people have that left on and don't know it's there I just mention it in my tutorials so people can follow along. If you set that preference on your end though, you'll never have to reset a device again during processes like this. :) /ryan

[@arothmanmusic]

@@ReasonStudios Ah! That's handy! The name is a bit unintuitive so I'd never thoroughly considered what it might do!

[@Serengaeth]

@@ReasonStudios I'd love to be able to have this choose a random patch for the instrument. I'm so tired of Friendly Keys.

[@tranceemerson8325]

the master mixer has that input trim, crank it to the max. it will do a hard clip.

[@tothefinlandstation]

You have to trigger the gate but you can use Thor's shaper on external audio.

[@nowheretoshower]

The RV7000Mk2 is an IR loader, so you can use it to run your sound thru broken speakers.

[@RyanHarlin]

oooh good one!

[@anthonyjoyce2757]

I love these videos. They are super helpful and insightful.....but... why not just uncheck the load default sound in your preferences so you're not constantly resetting the device? Seems like an easily avoidable step.

[@ReasonStudios]

That's true, Anthony. But since I'm making tutorials for people who might not have that on by default I mention that step. If you have that unchecked in the preferences so it loads Init Patch right away you can skip that step and ignore me repeatedly mentioning it. When I don't mention it people always end up commenting with stuff like "wait but why is your Kong blank? Mine has effects already in those slots. Help!" /ryan

[@cuulcars]

Omg thank you who knew this was even an option lol

[@ModernDevotion]

The input gain on the ssl console channels has a nice breakup to it. Just adjust your mix fader to compensate.

[@TAMason-up6xq]

It would be nice to have these "secrets" as their own Sound Pack, so users can load one or two up, good to go, out of the box, so to speak. Then just add a dash of tweak. How about it Reason and Ryan?

[@TAMason-up6xq]

Lol, found the downloads. Thanks Reason.

[@ReasonStudios]

@@TAMason-up6xq Hah! Glad you found it. I was about to reply with the link :) /ryan

[@KarimLeMec]

No more excuse to still envy the complex chains in Ableton live. By the way I will use more "echo" than scream in the immediate future all over the place.

[@ozon395]

Siema. Dzięki za bardzo dobry materiał 👍

[@robdela3632]

Hey, this question doesn’t pertain to this video but I just got a new controller and it’s not recording midi data right. Some notes are too short or it’s recording doubles and some don’t show up at all. I’m using artuia essential keylab 61. I have it using other as the midi controller and Mackie control for the daw in and out. Everything else is fine except when I try to record. Anyone got a solution?