I wish I knew

[Taff]

What you guys are talking about.

Seriously, I often feel embarrassed reading these forums. I'm a Reason 9 user, but feel like I'm using it for the musical equivalent of banging rocks together.

Is there a case to be made for a beginners forum? One where people who do not know what "stems" "time shaping" "CV curves" "comp edit" "Automation curves" "saw waves" "sidechains" are?

One where we can ask about these things without feeling complete nincompoops?

[teddymcw]

That is a really good suggestion, just my honest two cents. Though the tutorials and techniques section, esp Benedict's list is a grand place to spend time catching up. Also, rarely ever does anyone respond with a bad answer for a beginner question, quite the opposite.

[Taff]

Oh I agree mate, however searching through the T&T forum for simple advice can get frustrating.

I've never been disappointed when I've asked a stupid question, I've always got reasonable and reasoned replies.

[MannequinRaces]

The old PUF had a beginners sub-forum. Might not be a bad idea to have one here as well. +1 for the use of the word nincompoop... haven't heard it used much these days. In general this is a nice forum with good people who want to help. Don't be afraid to ask about any of the above topics that you are curious about in new threads or if you don't want to risk being lambasted Google is your friend.

[Peter]

I remember when I was starting out I didn't even know a combinator patch could open up and let me see what was inside. Mind blown.

[TritoneAddiction]

Hey we all have to start somewhere.

I made my first album in Reason about 5 years ago and I hardly knew anything about all the stuff you're supposed to know about when using a DAW.
I knew how to write notes in the sequencer, I could open patches in synths (though I didn't even know it was called a patch), I sort of knew what an EQ was for (though I completely sucked at using it), I knew that Scream4 added distortion and I knew that reverb sounded nice.

I didn't know how a compressor worked, so I didn't use it at all for the entire project. The only time I did use it was unknowingly in the "mastering stage". I'm not sure I would call it that since the only thing I did was to slap on some mastering preset in Izotope Ozone.

Despite all this I would say the album came out ok, simply because I had musical ideas and a vision for what I wanted to do with the project.
Those things are far more important than knowing about musical terms or technical stuff, at least imo.

[rcbuse]

What you guys are talking about.

Seriously, I often feel embarrassed reading these forums. I'm a Reason 9 user, but feel like I'm using it for the musical equivalent of banging rocks together.

Is there a case to be made for a beginners forum? One where people who do not know what "stems" "time shaping" "CV curves" "comp edit" "Automation curves" "saw waves" "sidechains" are?

One where we can ask about these things without feeling complete nincompoops?

Here are some good things to read that will take you deeper
https://www.propellerheads.se/blog/discovering-reason

[rcbuse]

What you guys are talking about.

Seriously, I often feel embarrassed reading these forums. I'm a Reason 9 user, but feel like I'm using it for the musical equivalent of banging rocks together.

Is there a case to be made for a beginners forum? One where people who do not know what "stems" "time shaping" "CV curves" "comp edit" "Automation curves" "saw waves" "sidechains" are?

One where we can ask about these things without feeling complete nincompoops?

Here are some good things to read that will take you deeper
https://www.propellerheads.se/blog/discovering-reason

I also can't recommend reading the operation manual enough. https://a.phcdn.se/Reason9/Manuals/Reas ... Manual.pdf It could very well be one of the best written manuals out there.

[EnochLight]

Is there a case to be made for a beginners forum? One where people who do not know what "stems" "time shaping" "CV curves" "comp edit" "Automation curves" "saw waves" "sidechains" are?

I strongly recommend watching Prop's own "Basic" video series - it's great for those starting out as well:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=P ... 87CD4601CD

[chimp_spanner]

And when all else fails, just ask us! No question is too basic. Everyone used Reason for the first time, once. So don't be shy about asking

[Kenni]

We actually had a discussion about making a section on the new site into a searchable dictionary. Like, a place elaborating on terms and so on.

This might actually be a good place to put what you're requesting, and even base the extension of such a dictionary on a Q&A function.

[theshoemaker]

We actually had a discussion about making a section on the new site into a searchable dictionary. Like, a place elaborating on terms and so on.

This might actually be a good place to put what you're requesting, and even base the extension of such a dictionary on a Q&A function.

I'd suggest a wiki, if not already onboard. This way, each user can contribute and we could start building more central places for topics and refer from the forum. I've seen this on several other forums.

This allows to structure content better, create usefull guides. I have seen a lot of threads, including one of mine, where the first post is used for stuff like this. Forum should be discussion. The first post can still show updates and link to the wiki. Or in your case to posts and news on the main site

[selig]

We actually had a discussion about making a section on the new site into a searchable dictionary. Like, a place elaborating on terms and so on.

This might actually be a good place to put what you're requesting, and even base the extension of such a dictionary on a Q&A function.

Yes, a ReasonTalk Reason/Music Glossary is something I feel would be helpful for many. Would be even more useful if folks could put links to the glossary in their post, so that when you read a word you're not familiar with you can click on it to read more.

[Carly(Poohbear)]

...

Yes, a ReasonTalk Reason/Music Glossary is something I feel would be helpful for many. Would be even more useful if folks could put links to the glossary in their post, so that when you read a word you're not familiar with you can click on it to read more.

Ideally that would have to be automated if not I don't think people would use it much, especially if you have just done a quick reply with 10 keywords, that would take time to link up.

If it is automated you will also need the option to turn that off, as if I was talking about something personal like an eye patch, the last thing I would want to see (one eye or not) is a link that takes you to a description of "A collection of parameter settings for ..........."

Overall I do think it would be a great idea, if it could be automated...

[HepCat]

It's not about the terminology it's about the tunes. Everything else will follow. By and large it's a need-to-know thing.

Ppl trying to be too exquisite without good cause, brings about music with no soul, i.e. genres with "Intelligent" prefixed to them (read: "Cerebral").

[Kenni]

Or maybe it's just about people wanting somewhere to easily find out what specific terms means, nothing more.

[HepCat]

Oh yeah, okay, l'm in the same boat, l could do with a beginner's forum, but the catch 22 of that is, you'd need pros to visit the beginners forum to dish out the advice and so we're back to the original problem - interacting with pros, and therefore l just use the forums as is. Often Google too. Tbh YouTube is effectively my least favourite recourse because the talkover is always too low to hear.

[C//AZM]

Feel free to interrupt a conversation and ask. Because sometimes it's obvious that one can look up "soft knee", but some phrases aren't easy to look up.

[Kenni]

I feel a wiki would totally solve this issue. So, I'll put up a wiki later tonight that people can contribute to.

[Creativemind]

I remember when I was starting out I didn't even know a combinator patch could open up and let me see what was inside. Mind blown.

Yeah I remember when I was starting in 2012 not knowing you could open up the Dr.Octo.Rex lol! again - mind blown when someone showed me. Then even more wowed when he showed me that you can click the Select Slice By Midi and see each hit in the wave display area highlighted as it hits.

[Dante]

1. "stems" . Individual audio tracks exported from your software - eg so you can take them to a professional mixing house that uses a different software
2. "time shaping" . Dunno. Might be like time stretching(?)
3. "CV curves" . CV = control voltage - a control system invented in the early years of synthesis
4. "comp edit" . A way of putting together the best parts of multiple takes. EG vocalist sings the chorus good on take 1 but the verse better on take 2. Combine the good verse with the good chorus.
5. "Automation curves" A way of automating things like volume
6. "saw waves" the shape of a soundwave with odd harmonics - like trumpets or violins. As opposed to square waves (even harmonics?) which is more like a wind instrument sound.
7. "sidechains" using the output of one track (eg kick drum) to control the amount of compression on other tracks

[MannequinRaces]

I'd suggest a wiki, if not already onboard. This way, each user can contribute and we could start building more central places for topics and refer from the forum. I've seen this on several other forums.

This allows to structure content better, create usefull guides. I have seen a lot of threads, including one of mine, where the first post is used for stuff like this. Forum should be discussion. The first post can still show updates and link to the wiki. Or in your case to posts and news on the main site

+1

[Exowildebeest]

8. "rack" . More potent form of crack.
9. "latency" . Peeing your pants when too focused on mixing. See "latency compensation".
10. "latency compensation" . Adult diapers.
11. "FM" . Short for Freaking Mad, as in 'freaking mad modulation'.
12. "Modulation" . Writing lyrics in solitary confinement.
13. "Giles" . A short aluminium rod inserted into a compressor rod input for extended gain.

[Creativemind]

Just to add from what the poster Dante above has said:-

"Stems" - also known as 'audio renders' of tracks. So you can play a midi synth track and bounce it to audio and it now becomes an audio clip, or audio render or stem.

I've never heard of "Time Shaping" either. There's an effect you can use called, "Transient Shaper" if that's what you mean?

"Comp Edit" - this is the mode that enables you to take multiple audio takes you have created and make them into one audio take from the various parts. So you can construct one vocal take from say 4 takes by going into Comp Mode and constructing a new take from the best bits of the 4 takes.

"Saw Wave/s" - this is one of the 5 main waves that synthesizers use in their oscillators. Saw, Triangle, Square, Pulse and Sine Wave. A Square wave is just a Pulse wave which is completely even so it's completely square. A sine wave is the purest tone you can have in audio production.

"Sidechain Compression" - this is a type of effect you can use where you use one signal to activate the compressor on another signal. A technique quite commonly used in dance music is to take a pad and have it sidechained by a kick drum, so the pad "ducks" every time the kick drum hits so it creates a pulsing effect. Another sidechain technique is to use it on a bass so that the bass ducks every time the kick drum hits thus separating the bass and kick frequencies in your mix.

I also recommend watching all the Wickimedia videos on You Tube.

[chimp_spanner]

Call it Rackipedia