REASON 8.0 IN DUB (2): THE
ECHO AND SYNAPSE WETNESS STUDIO DUBROOM ON PROPELLERHEAD'S
REASON
WWW, November 2014 - For this second part
of REASON 8.0 IN DUB, Messian Dread created another original riddim and took a
thirty-day trial of the Synapse DR-1 Reverb Rack Extension. He also tweaked THE
ECHO in what became yet another fat Dub created only with Propellerhead's Reason
8.0. Another report from the studio.
Reason's
RV-7000 Advanced Reverb does more than a decent job, especially when you
consider it's the standard reverb in a 450 Euro DAW. It has been used by many
producers whose choice was the RV-7000. Still, it turns out the blue device
doesn't do everything and that's exactly where the DR-1 comes into focus. Taking
a thirty-day trial for the 35 Euro Reverb device is free, and it turned out to
be a very interesting choice.
Another thing that really needed a deeper
review is THE ECHO, Propellerhead's very own "Advanced Delay". To see
it live in action during a Dub mix is obviously the best way to discover some of
it's features and that's exactly what can be done in this report.
Yet a third thing is the bass. As it turned
out, feeding the AUDIOMATIC with the "Psyche" preset, which at it's
turn feeds the DR-1 produced a wonderful effect on the bass.
Before the Dub could be mixed, again from eight
different audio tracks or stems, the riddim had to be made. Drums,
percussion, bass, organ, piano, guitars, horns and vocals. Once again, the
NEPTUNE Voice Synthesizer was applied to create some kind of effect on the
vocals just because of the vibe it gives. For the vocals, just a few phrases
were used. Once again, the bass amp was used for the bassline and two different
guitar amps for the two different guitars. The horns went through DR Octorex's
own filter before it was rendered to an audio track.
When you would like to compare the DR-1 with
the RV-7000, download the MP3 files. The two mixes are identical, the only
difference is the reverb device.
REASON 8.0 IN DUB (1): ACTION
RACK EXTENSION STUDIO DUBROOM ON PROPELLERHEAD'S
REASON
WWW, November 2014 - After the very well
received review of Reason 8.0 especially for the DUB Community, the Dubroom
continues to explore and review Propellerhead's flagship. In "Action Rack
Extension", Messian Dread mixes eight audio tracks into a heavy DUB using
all six FX outputs on Reason's console. A report in sight and sound.
The best way to explore Reason, obviously, is
to create riddims and make a Dubs from them. This is exactly what has been going
on these last weeks over here in the Dubroom. At a later stage, more about
creating riddims with Reason. For now, just the report that creating riddims is
a true joy and Reason has a positive role in the inspiration.
Reason runs in 64bit on a machine with 8 Gigs
of RAM and Intel processors of the newest kind. The software was loaded with
drum computers, sound modules, loop players and of course the Neptune voice
synthesizer. As soon as Reason hit the ceiling, the riddim was rendered to hard
disk in the form of eight multi-tracks or stems. Unfortunately these
multi-tracks cannot be shared as that would go beyond the Dubroom's license, but
the result can be witnessed in the form of a You Tube video you can watch later
on in this report.
In fact, making a DUB from an audio multi-track
is the authentic and original way of making DUB. This is how the music came into
existence, as the Jamaican studio bands played one riddim after the other into
the multi-track recorder and the DUB engineer turned everything into that music
we all love to play so much. This is exactly how the DUB for this report was
made.
Reason was set up with eight audio channels,
one for sound FX, and six console input channels for all six auxiliary outputs.
Yes, six different effect devices are used in this particular set up. Their
output goes to console input channels. Over here, we don't deal with returns but
you can read about these things elsewhere in the studio.
Next
to different RV7000's for delays and reverbs, The Echo was put in there as well
as two Audiomatic devices. The Audiomatic is a Rack Extension, Propellerhead
Reason's very own plug-in format. It ships for free with Reason 8.0, just like
the excellent bass amp responsible for the warm and deep bass sound in this mix.
Another Rack Extension used is the T2 Phaser (review).
You can download and use the device in your Reason rack for free for 30 days or
decide to buy it. It's only about 15 euros and worth much more than that. In
fact, for DUB created only with Reason the T2 is obligatory.
Rack extensions work like any other device you
can load in Reason's rack. Connect them, make a sequencer track and start
recording your automation.
The T2 and the Audiomatic Rack extensions turn
out to integrate fully in a DUB environment. The Echo on top of that gives that
extra touch but at this time, the device is not fully tested so there is much
more potential than the stuff you can hear in the mix created for this report.
After an initial sound check on the correctly
connected set up, finally the DUB could be mixed. An exciting moment. This would
show how much is true concerning Propellerhead's claims about workflow in Reason
8.0. Will there be hick-up's when the loop points are changed? Will everything
be in sync in the first place? How about latency when you use the on-board
soundcards with an ASIO4ALL driver?
Everything went extremely smooth. Six different
effects that take up their processing power, not to speak about the console
itself and the eight different audio tracks can all be handled in virtual
real-time. There's no experienceable latency, as the Reason sequencer records
and plays the mixing automation.
Both the Audiomatic and the T2 get their fair
chance, especially in the second half of the mix when the two effects follow up
on each other. The Audiomatic turns out to be crucial in deforming both the bass
and the drums. Especially when combined with other effects (reverb), this little
big thing can drive your mix to a next dimension. The T2 (reviewed here)
is a very, very decent phaser that works excellently as well.
The RV7000's and the manual delay do their
thing. A ping-pong delay, a reverse reverb and a more or less standard hall
effect for the RV7000 devices. The Echo is tweaked at a certain point showcasing
some of it's potential, but there has to be some deeper exploring of the delay.
Even though not so much effort was put in the
actual riddim, the result is a very reasonable Dub mix. Mixing the Dub is a true
pleasure, and Reason's workflow plays a part in it, definitely. The technique
behind the automation and everything is very high in quality and low in causing
problems.
THE T2 PHASER RACK EXTENSION STUDIO DUBROOM ON PROPELLERHEAD'S
REASON
WWW, November 2014 - The in-program phaser
in Reason is not the DAW's strongest feature. This very fact has been picked up
by "That Music Company": they developed a very fine phaser which can
be yours for the price of about 15 euros. Presenting the T2 Phaser Rack
Extension!
Rack Extensions. It's Propellerhead's name for
the Reason internal plug-in format. You get a few when you purchase Reason, you
can download one or two for free but the bulk can be discovered by visiting the
"Prop Shop".
For a DUB engineer, browsing the Rack
Extensions can be, well, time-consuming. After all, most are aimed at the
production of EDM ("Electronic Dance Music") and will not really add
much to the standard effects and instruments in Reason.
Not
so with the T2 Phaser (see picture, click to enlarge). It's the second device
created by the small Rack Extension developer "That Music Company",
based in San Jose (California, USA) and it truly is an extension to your rack.
First thing that stands out is the price. For
about 15 euros, the T2 is yours. That's fifteen euros to de facto replace
Reason's standard phaser because as soon as you run the T2 in your set up you'll
hear the power in the thing.
It basically has three main sections:
Overdrive, Phaser and HPF (Hi-Pass Filter). Overdrive and HPF will add vibes to
the main sound the Phaser section produces. You can set waveforms and on top of
that, different steps. Pan effects belong to the possibilities too, you can even
trigger the T2 by midi notes.
Got Reason? Get the T2. It's that simple. Just
download the phaser, you will have thirty days to discover the fully functional
device before you will undoubtedly decide to have it permanently in your effect
collection.
REASON 8.0: A REVIEW
FOR THE DUB COMMUNITY
STUDIO DUBROOM SOFTWARE AND SOUNDWARE REVIEW
WWW, October 16 2014 - It's been close to a
decade since the launch of Reason 3.0 and the Dubroom's review of the then
groundbreaking, ultra-flexible Dub-friendly music production software. We've
promoted the software continually ever since it was established how it was
possible to make Dub using just one program. Just recently, Reason 8.0 was
released and arrived in the Dubroom not much later. We went in-depth again, from
3.0 straight to eight and came back with this review exclusively for the Dub
Community.
Of course, we don't have to re-establish how it
is possible to make DUB using Reason as a Stand-Alone Digital Audio Workstation
(DAW). We did that when Reason 3.0 had arrived and changed the way to produce
the music we all love to produce. It's obvious that Reason 8.0 enables you
to do what version 3.0 offered, and it's obvious that we're a decade later into
the research and development at the Scandinavian laboratories.
Just in case, though. Yes, you can make Dub not
just using just a computer but using just one program. The name of that program
is Reason, of which version 8.0 was released just two weeks prior to the
publication of this review.
In a way, this is not just a review of Reason
8.0, it's a review of ten years of development at Propellerhead and in the
production of DUB Music using just a computer. In this decade, producing music
with just a computer has become what it should be: commonly accepted. No longer
is it considered to be avant-gardistic to side-step snobby studio owners with
attitudes and reach your audience directly with computer-based productions.
No longer are computer-based producers looked
down upon, and Reason has played a huge part in this wonderful development.
It's October 2014. Welcome to a review of
Reason 8.0, software that enables you to turn that idea in your head into sounds
from your audience's speakers.
We're going to take a deep look into the many
new features that have been added to Propellerhead's flag ship during the last
decade. Sure, there are many new devices that look promising at first sight.
After all, that's what we need in our studio. Brand new in Reason 8.0 is the
updated browser, which needs to be examined too. Will it be quicker in this new
way to find what you're looking for?
Questions, questions.
Door locked, all projects put on hold for more
than a week. Reason was the object of undivided attention as this review was
written, Dubs created and put on You Tube along with other things like detailed
screenshots taken. You can read all about this in this extensive, in-depth
review of Reason 8.0 where all things DUB are considered and tried.
In fact, the review is so long that it's
divided in different parts. However, it's possible to check out the full review
on one long page as well.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PART ONE: INTRODUCTION CLICK
TO READ
A review for the Dub community - A Dub engineer's perspective - The
configuration - The installation process
PART TWO: FIRST STEPS CLICK
TO READ
A first impression - A closer look - A first session
PART THREE: FEATURES CLICK
TO READ
The mixing console - The rack -The devices - The sequencer - The browser - Two
missing links - Rack extensions
PART FOUR: THE DEVICES CLICK
TO READ
The effects - The instruments - The utilities
PART FIVE: CONCLUSION CLICK
TO READ
The work-flow - A final Dub - Reason eight straight out...
REASON 8.0: A REVIEW FOR THE DUB COMMUNITY CLICK
TO READ
Read the full review on one page
WILLI WILLIAMS: "SMUGG
RECORDS ARE PIRATES"
DUBROOM (DUB) REGGAE NEWS AND VIEWS
WWW, October 3 1014 - In a very informative,
but partly disturbing interview the Midnight Raver recently held with well known
Reggae Singer Willi Williams, the Ammagideon Man was quoted about a release
called "One Love". As the album was reviewed and promoted by the
Dubroom, it was shocking to hear what the brethren had to say about this
release. In short: it's pirated, don't buy!
Ask Bunny Wailer about the early Wailers Black
Ark recordings you can find almost everywhere. Ask Scientist about his
well-known Greensleeves Dub Series. Ask Willi Williams about "One Love. Not
the concept, but the album. Released by UK-based Smugg
Records. Who were so kind to send the Dubroom a promo copy years back when it
was released. Which was subsequently reviewed and promoted from this very
website.
This is what he has to say:
“The ONE LOVE record
is a pirated record. These guys been releasing my records for years and no
matter how you try to get to them to let them know that it is not legal they
insist on doing it. I send plenty letters from my lawyers and every ‘ting
but they are shady. Its a shadowy business but Smugg Records is one of the
pirates, they just using that name to sell the records. Especially this new
record was pirated by them at whoever is behind this Smugg Records. I even got
to one of the guys one time and he was very shadowy and could not tell me how
he got it because I have no agreement with them. You know I did some tracks
way back with an individual named Steven King out of the UK – him have a
label called Uptempo – I did a couple of tracks with him as producer and he
went and took my tracks from these sessions along with some others and I
suspect that is how they release these pirated records.”
The Book of life teaches us how "The Love
For Money Is The Root Of All Evil". That's not the One Love Willi Williams
sings about, that's not the definition of One Love over here in the Dubroom,
either. That's the love for pounds, euros, dollars. The kind of love that brings
people to make wars and kill millions.
Needless to say that from this place we offer
our apologizes -without any objection- to Willi Williams for having promoted
something that did not provide him with the daily bread that he works for so
hard.
Equally, we gladly extend this piece of
information from Willi Williams aka The Messenger Man to everyone who considers
buying or promoting the album.
One Love (yes!),
Messian Dread (editor, dubroom.org)
DUB DYNASTY - THUNDERING
MANTIS
DUBROOM ALBUM REVIEW
WWW, September 2014 - Digital download, vinyl,
CD, or a combination: the formats vary, the source does not. That source being
the UK DUB Twins Alpha and Omega with a brand new release on their Steppas
Records label. Nine vocal tracks featuring a world wide group of singers
alongside their DUB counterpart carrying the unmistakable Alpha and Omega sound.
Dub Dynasty is Alpha and Omega and Alpha
Steppa: yes, the next generation. Son and nephew, to be exact.
With that out of the way, let's talk about the
music. Thundering is the right word for the floor-shaking bass sound that we're
used to when it comes to AO productions. This double vinyl release doesn't lack
any of it. The real interesting part of Thundering Mantis is the fact that not
just do we have a whole range of vocalists ranging from a more meditative
eastern style talk to heartical singing (Prince David), there is an equal amount
of producers who lent some of their material to Alpha and Omega.
This is a musical release that's, well, kind of
obligatory when you are into the more heavy side of Sound System DUB. Whether
you're into digital download, CD or just plain vinyl for that bass sound the
choice is yours.
Whatever you do: support the independent DUB
movement with your purchase, it's so much needed.
VARIOUS ARTISTS - UNITED AS ONE
DUBROOM MP3 ALBUM REVIEW
WWW, September 20 2014 - Something brewing in
the Mediterranean: The Maltese Net Label Dub Key and it's Cyprus based
Dubophonic counterpart joined strength with a solid and varied (DUB) Roots
Reggae release as a result. Music with a message, music with a soul and general
conscious vibes. Can't refuse this one.
They've been anticipating this release with an
excellent promo mix that could be download only a hundred times. That is, until
the day of the actual album release and -not completely coincidental- the day of
this review as well. Over here at the Dubroom we've anticipated with the
inclusion of the very same promo mix in a podcast
released yesterday and a determination to publish the first review of this more
than excellent album for the online massive.
Why?
You've guessed it: this is not just another
musical release. In fact, where the two Mediterranean Net Labels continually
work on increasing their quantity and quality, this release drops the two
heavyweights together with a musical explosion as result. Remember: when the
music hits, you feel no pain but you do feel the positive vibes of this
collaboration. "United As One" sets an example for this time, wherein
we do no longer need to "kill soundboys" but rather say "One
Love", especially in the Sound System culture with which both Dub Key and
Dubophonic have their connections.
Both labels have singers and players of
instruments, engineers and producers and they've been voicing, playing and
mixing each other's work. The album that came out on this September 20 2014
carries 16 mixes of four riddims. Vocals and Dubs follow each other as each
riddim is presented in a truly different form. Truly sixteen different tracks,
that you really want to play from the top to the very last drop. Unless you're a
(online) selector in which case you will find that the track will be very fit
for a different sequence in your own DJ set.
This is niceness, this is a must download. The
only problem you face is this: from which website are you going to download it?
From DUB KEY
or DUBOPHONIC?
CRUCIAL ALPHONSO - VISIONARY CREATION
DUBROOM MP3 ALBUM REVIEW
WWW, September 2014 - True Original Sound
System Style: six titles all with two versions. Pumping steppers riddims, some
played by the mighty King Earthquake (UK) and all created in Crucial Alphonso's
Belgian Studio. When you like your digital, when you like your steppers, when
you need your bass, just download this free release by that Maltese DUB
KEY Net Label.
Crucial Alphonso grew up with Reggae. His
father a Reggae DJ, his own voicing at Sound Systems and ability to create his
own electronic devices, it was only a matter of time before he would start
releasing his own production. As said, as done. Twelve outstanding pieces of
digital niceness that yuou can play soft but preferable loud with a lot of bass.
