Looking to expand my Producing Skill

[Jay-Dubzie]

Hi there,
I am currently using Reason 4 to produce dubstep but am hearing Logic Pro is the way foward for Dubstep.
Would it be worth my while to purchase an Apple iMac with Logic Pro 9 or just try out a diffrent Music Programm?
Advice is needed as i am not very clued up with this kind of thing and been ignorant and only concerntrating on Reason 4 which i wish i hadn't been for the last 4 years lol.
Thanks.
J-Dubz

[Shum]

Are you comfortable with your current setup? Are you producing music that you are happy with? I'm sure after 4 years of using Reason that your quite proficient with it, so I would stick with what you have.

[Redderious]

there's nothing wrong with using reason. You could use garage band to produce beats if you know what your'e doing. I use ableton 8.2.1 suite with an osx. Ive only been producing for a few months, all it takes is practice and experimenting with the differant instruments and fx provided in the software. Ive thought about trying out logic though i like the way everything appears to be layed out in it.

[-[2]DAY_-]

Solo each track in Reason, export to audio, drag into garage band, and experiment with how much further that takes you. Even a little bastard like GB can make Reason exports sound better mixed. It also has decent AUs nowadays with improved interfaces (their comp/expander, filters n EQs etc)

Taking that approach a bit further, u could try importing different submixes of instruments from Reason to get a different sound. This i tried because GB cannot bus tracks. You get the master bus with i think 2 inserts but thats all.

tbh i'm just thinking back to the first steps i started to take outside of Reason before deciding to invest in a bunch of other kit.

so my reply to the original post would be to keep fucking with what you have now until your work is making it burst out the seams of its maximum functionality. GB would help you get hip to audio sequencing and editing.

[ogunslinger]

I'd stick with reason

[makemerich]

reason is good but logic is good too.
if u got the money get logic. i use reason a lot and have to bounce between that cubase and protools and i know in logic u can do it all at once. maybe you would like fruity loops.
things that might interest you :

assignable cc's/midi learn
automatable vst and effects plugins

reason is great for some stuff but logics automation is great and simple. the thing i didnt like about reason automation for example is if you are writing in lfo rates you have to eyeball the rate in the hyperdraw and cant actually see where the numbers are. i mean u can keep expanding on logic. new vsts, new fx...

[dj nation]

i use FL, basically its just what u feel comfortable with really, i mean i learned to produce on reason, spent maybe a year on it, n then switched to FL, basically what won me over was that u can use VST's in FL. tis ideal

[Jay-Dubzie]

I have used FL before i actually started onit but where i just stuck it out on reason i never used FL. I did use to do bootlegs with sound forge and acid pro and everyone i know thinks i was best doing them but dont want to be a bootlegger. I will maybe explore FL again as i am much more advance to when i was last onit.

[dj nation]

yea man, just do what feels right innit

[paravrais]

I know it's very fashionable to be all hippy about this issue and like "yeah man use whatever feels right it's all equal man" but as an ex-reason user myself I have to say I seriously advise against using it as your only DAW. YES you CAN make good tunes with it but the extra work you need to put in working around it's horrible mixing plugins and wonky audio engine just isn't worth it. If your really in love with Reason then start rewiring it into something that can give your mixes a breath of life. If you're feeling sick of it then I'd jump ship and start on something else.

Don't just buy logic because you've heard lots of people say logic is good though. Don't buy anything without giving it a try first and I'd advise also trying as many as you can before making a purchase.

[EDN]

^^ This is it.
However it depends on what works best for you.
Logic is a good daw and you can do basically everything ever but its quite a steep learning curve compared to something as intuitive as Reason or Ableton.
I have used all three of these programs and I use Ableton for most of my stuff, occasionally rewiring Reason and I use Logic at college (which I hate to be honest).
But if you are gonna use something out, give them all a try, most of the DAW's support Rewire.

[therook]

i use FL, basically its just what u feel comfortable with really, i mean i learned to produce on reason, spent maybe a year on it, n then switched to FL, basically what won me over was that u can use VST's in FL. tis ideal

My only gripe with fl is the mixer. Such a pain in the ass.

[ael1as]

I don't know if Logic is reason enough to go buy a new computer... if you want to get a more powerful DAW you can try something PC-compatible like FL Studio or Live. I've been using both for a few years and personally think Live is the way to go (easiest workflow).
Nonetheless a lot of producers are making stuff entirely in Reason... check out boyinaband.com, he has tons of good tutorials on producing songs of different genres. And I know from watching some of the Computer Music Masterclass videos that people like Funtcase produce entirely in Reason.

[Electric_Head]

Why buy an imac?
it`s intel and it`s twice the price.
Save your money and buy a more powerful pc if that`s what you`re after.
Stick to a pc based daw.
Reaper, Cubase, etc.

[shaneynclan]

op i would suggest that you get logic.
you can rewire reason into it anyway and get the best of both.

[Bass Music]

I know it's effort but give Logic a go in the Apple store, at college/uni or at a friends and you'll probably really like it. I went from using FL for a year to using Logic and found my production improved as I was paying more attention to detail to things and had a lot more sounds to work with. Even though people do say to not use the sounds the come with it, some of them are far from obvious when manipulated and sound really good. Obviously it's good to make a load of EXS24 instruments of new samples though. From having all the different instrument sounds you also get to learn how they are mixed together

[stereotactic]

Why buy an imac?

Because they are sick

OP, Logic is very nice. However I used to use Cubase, and that does a few things that Logic doesn't do so well... but Logics on board VST's are better IMO. it is very dependant on your workflow and how you make your tunes. Ableton, FL Studio, Reaper, these are all very capable programs.

I had a wad of cash and bought an iMac and Logic 9. I love my set up, but I was lucky because I had the opportunity to buy it all. I still have a lappy with Cubase 5 on it and it is just as capable.

Some top producers use Reason. If you don't get on with it, then have a look around for something new, but remember:

No DAW is specifically 'the best' for a certain genre of music, no DAW is better than another. They are all perfectly capable, it is the person sitting in front of them that creates, not the program.

[EDN]

Why buy an imac?

Because they are sick

However not even slightly as sick as a similarly priced PC.
If you don't know anything about computers you might be better off getting a Mac, however if you know even basic computer stuff buy a PC.

But in terms of DAW's just try them out and see what you like most.

[Basic A]

I'd stick with reason

Basically this... lemme try and lowest common denominator this for you O.P.

Reason isnt what you would consider your typical 'DAW', its more of a Digital Music Machine. Its awesomeley powerful for sequence-based electronic dance music, honest, its fucking tits, and you really dont need ANYTHING else to make AMAZING edm... But, there are certain parts of the traditional list of job requirements that fall onto a 'producer' that it falls short of... namely recording and processing line signals.

Logic on the other hand is a very functional platform for making EDM, it has a remarkable sequencer, some awesome synthesizers, ect. built in. But, really, Logic's strongpoint is almost the total inverse of Reasons... Its made by the same people who manufacture ProTools, and has become almost even more standard feature in recording studios then protools itsself has...

So... do you need line recording?

Ask yourself, and thats it really.

[dj nation]

i use FL, basically its just what u feel comfortable with really, i mean i learned to produce on reason, spent maybe a year on it, n then switched to FL, basically what won me over was that u can use VST's in FL. tis ideal

My only gripe with fl is the mixer. Such a pain in the ass.

very true, wud be kinda bnetter if everytime u added summat new into the pattern bow it automatically linked it to the mixer,

also, is there anyway to delete things off the mixer, there doesnt seem to be any way, so if u got rid of a synth its still kinda always there on the mixer doing nothing.

ive always wanted to kinda get a mac n logic, mainly cause ppl say its good, but i dont really see the point right now, i mean i learned on reason, then dabbled in ableton learning a totally new program, then again having to learn FL which was probably the hardest one for me mainly just because i had to work everything out from clicking on it heh.
really seems pointless to then also get a mac n logic n have to learn a new DAW all over agin, pretty much putting my workflow to a complete stop whilst learning.