Reason 13 is GREAT and I can't recommend it

In this video, I explain why I think Reason 13 is a great update. Unfortunately, I still can't recommend it to *most* people. I've got an idea of what @ReasonStudios could do it make it better. I'd love to hear what you think!

00:00 - Introduction
01:12 - What's great about Reason 13
12:26 - Problems I have with Reason and why I struggle to recommend it to certain people
22:47 - How I think Reason Studios should change their business model in order to stay competitive

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[sys.tm]

I only got 13 this week as a free upgrade from 12 so haven't spent enough time with it. But as a lifelong reason user who has tried most other DAWs, nothing compares to the amount of freedom of creativity Reason enables.

[PaulOrtiz]

I say this as somewhat of a Reason fanboy but I still maintain there are no hard barriers to making music in Reason. A lot of things people wanna see from other DAWs are like, nice/impressive/whatever. But the actual business of composing, recording and editing notes and audio...you can do that, right now. I've made what I consider some of my best music in Reason despite having access to basically every other DAW.

That said, I am in the process of moving mostly over to Cubase 13 Pro. 13 Reason versions in and I'm still waiting to be able to hear long notes without having to play the note-on message (note chase). Still waiting for some kind of means to organise my tracks (folders). Still waiting for user definable hotkeys. More colours. A dark mixer. Re-pitch time stretch mode. Audio pitch envelopes. MIDI note feedback on arrow selection + nudging. Punch in. I absolutely do not underestimate the work that goes into software development, but if we've waited literally years to get option/alt+click to collapse/expand all device vendors, I really don't know how much longer I'd have to wait to get these other things, especially if I don't even know if they're a priority to RS.

I do hope that what they've done here is lay the groundwork for more significant changes in the future. It wouldn't make sense to implement X, Y and Z only to then change the sequencer layout/workflow and create more work for themselves. And I believe there was some hinting at that in their recent BTS video.

And I will end by saying I'm still using Reason to compose. For certain styles of music, it's pretty hard to beat IMO. But for bigger projects where I need those kinds of industry standard QoL features that just aren't being requested by RS's focus groups...makes no sense to wait for em.

[ChrisJones-htzn]

I don't care what anybody else thinks about Reason, I create music faster than any other DAW with Reason and ideas are realised much easier. I absolutely love Reason.

[aunbowics]

i've been waiting for your opinion.
you can say that again. i can't recommend reason13 either, but i still love reason.

[MaestroRetardo]

Wasn't the main selling point of Reason 11 that the Browser was fully improved? They're selling that again as a main selling point only 2 versions later? What the...!?
Sequencer Upgrade is another selling point on this upgrade...all they did was move the Edit Options from above the Piano Roll to the side of the Piano Roll. What the...!?
Another selling point is "It looks good". Looks the same as Reason 12 to me. What the...!?
Added Rack Extensions...those have nothing to do with Reason 13 update, hard pass. I'm sure they all can be used in Reason 12. What the...!?

[carlosp.]

No way I pay 200 for upgrading from 12 to 13, for a delay, a synth I don’t need and a browser update that should be free because it finally became what it was supposed to be in first place in Reason 12. 99$ max

[chocomalk]

Fl studio just released an update with a similar stereo tool, a new synth and more stuff than I care to list, not to mention the 20 other updates in the last few years. There is more stuff in the last update than the last two versions of Reason.
Plus they got rid of fav lists for external VSTs and their thumbnails making it way slower for me, I don't search with tags very often.
I'll stick with 12 for now lol

[halfnhalf]

Reason has gone from a second-rate DAW to borderline irrelevant. As a plugin, it's cool but as a DAW it can't compete with the likes of Ableton Live, FL Studio, Cubase, Studio One or even Bitwig and Tracktion Waveform. New devices just don't cut it. It's not 2008 anymore. The aforementioned companies seem to add major quality of life improvements with each iteration. Reason adds a Poly synth like we don't have 500 synth plugins already. Reason has lost me because they consistently overprice and under deliver. If Bitwig doesn't get their s**t together, and start listening to user feedback, they'll be next.

[outerdarkness]

I used to teach Reason at a college.... but their customer service was horrific. They did not care at all about their customers and were absolutely no help when we had issues. For instance, we had purchased a multi-pack license which contained 10 licenses. The rub is rack extensions did not work with the multi-pack version. And when we asked about an upgrade path so we could get rack extensions their reply was there is none.... so to get access to rack extensions we would have to re-purchase Reason at full price. WTF?! We complained and they did not care.... so we stopped teaching Reason and took it out of our program.... Does Reason still save their audio files into the Reason song file? If so, that is crap. I love Reason but hate.... I detest the people that run the company.

[reasonexperts]

As a Reason / Ableton user myself I can only say this:

Reason has always been always a few steps behind the competition and therefor every update will have a mixed bag of feelings.

Especially the new sequencer workflow got me frustrated at first. Now I kind of adapted to the concept (because I am partially a potato and I have no idea what I am doing... so that makes perfect sense for me).

The click areas you mentioned, yes... that is spot on. I sometimes scream at my screen like 'wtf man'. Then I grow up again, and start clicking on the proper spot. I am still abit surprised that this wasn't mentioned during the beta test phase (or addressed). But this comes simply because the sequencer of Reason Pre 13 simply didn't have this issue at all.

After some weeks I somehow got used to things as they are now. But I guess ReasonStudios already gets a lot of feedback related to this update. So they can address issues with patches / updates for Reason 13 now. At least lets hope.

Anyway, awesome constructive critism. I am somewhere on the same lines as you mentioned. I adapted to be handicapped.

[compteprivefr]

The new browser is so frustrating its ALWAYS IN THE WAY! I dunno why they did this and trapped it in the reason window, and they dont let you dock it like it used to be at all anymore. Even in reason standalone you have to constantly manage the browser size and position while you're browsing through patches. Overtime, this becomes absolutely INFURIATING. What a completely baffling decision i dont get it.

[Ebbelboiz]

I feel like the new browser in an extra window and the fact that they decided to split the song area and the sequencer edit area into two seperate windows have both seriously slowed down my workflow in Reason and now I'm just like "why did I spend money for a slower and more cluttered workflow and user interface"? I'm honestly just about to go back to version 12, because I can definitely do without the new devices. It's not like they bring anything new to the table that I can't get with a third-party VST anyway.

[sockeye]

Upgrading from 11 to 13 worked out good for me. Initially, the $200 price tag had me raising an eyebrow until I compared it to similar plugins from 3rd parties. Most of the stuff on Plugin Boutique can easily cost $99 ea. There is value here, but I think it gets lost in the QoL focus of things that should be free like hi-res (normal) graphics. All that aside, Reason was smart to make the rack a plugin. The rack makes their DAW both unique yet awkward to use. It's an inspiring experience, for sure, and I may try to create something from start to finish, but the rack plugin is becoming a handy companion in almost all of my projects. Between the Reason Rack and Komplete 14 Ultimate + Maschine inside bitwig, I can make anything.

[absurdyellowdog]

100% agree everything in standalone should be a plugin. Thats how I used it years ago before Record. Would make my workflow with Protools ideal.

[RegYoungBeats]

I'm confused with the comment at 30:30. The Reason Rack plugin is available inside of other DAWs. You can use the instruments AND effects inside of Ableton just fine. Did I misunderstand the comment?

[machoman]

They use to have that with ReWire to be able to open stand alone with a different DAW. But for some magical reason they got rid of it 😂

[KordTaylor]

👏🏻 I agree. It’s unfortunate as I remember when they started and they were such a great team. But yeah.

[ohnoitsaninja]

"I think reason should change their business model:
I've been thinking this since reason 5 and it hasn't changed.. I'm genuinely surprised it's still in business

[EBMZEQUENZER]

Hey now, nice to see you back : I quit reason and never upgraded from 11 to 13
and a reason is the browser driving me absolutely bunkers, among other s**t like pricing
REASON may R.I.P. I will use 11 as a plugin and nothing more ....
Cheers 🥂

[leestanford]

I haven't even thought about reason since I switched to Bitwig a few years ago. Sometimes I open the rack just for nostalgia and maybe the RV7000 reverb for the awesome gate, but that's about it.