Thoughts on Reaper

I wasn't talking about your sessions. I was speaking globally. I'm not sure how to respond to this other than to say that, all you have to do is go online and read interviews with various pro engineers who DO use plugins (comp, eq, reverb, whatever) during tracking (whether just for monitoring purposes or for actually printing those sounds). It's definitely not an LA thing or a Luna thing or whatever. These guys are out there. It's a brave new world.

Well it's not about what I think is cool so much as it is about what a lot of people, some pros included, simply are doing these days.

I hear you on the plugin compatibility issues. Like you said, a lot of folks are either tracking with plugins in their own studio or bringing their own computer. That said, no studio is going to have exactly every piece of hardware you would want either, so sometimes you have to compromise with what is available, be that hardware or plugins.

These compatibility issues are one of the reasons why I was advocating for a plug and play Elco approach in one of my previous posts in this thread.

I did a gig in Boston this last week, mixing audio on site for an immersive video exhibition and was a little surprised to see that Reaper was the DAW of choice for running all audio to the house. It makes sense though. It seems to be very stable. Licensing is easy. And you can download it and be up and running in no time if there's an emergency. So I guess I can vouch that there is a professional market for Reaper.

Also had an engineer friend tell me how Reaper was necessary for certain types of ambisonic mixing, for VR and Video Games...something about the routing and how it would be too expensive to buy the appropriate licensing for PT to do the same...IDK, I was barely following tbh, it was all a little over my head.

Anyway, I'm starting to learn Reaper so that on these remote gigs I'll always have a backup DAW (that doesn't require my iLok too). I don't really dig it so far, but whatevs, some people love it and I'm starting to understand why. To each their own. I'm very agnostic about all this. Personally couldn't give a shit if someone uses Reaper, Garage band, PT, Cubase etc.

As someone else said... I can see Reaper being the third "standard" behind PT and Logic. I've heard lots of stories of Reaper as backup in live situations and in studio situations. PT crashed? Fire up Reaper and let's get back to work. Heard that a few times.

Also... "ambisonic sound?" Sounds like something that's illegal to teach in Florida schools.

I know, I know, this video is from UA, and can certainly be viewed as made for marketing purposes, because it is. That said, UA also does a good job with these videos, as far as showing what Luna is capable of in real world scenarios. This video certainly helped to convince me to make the move to Luna.

This video shows a full 24 track tracking session, using Luna with DSP plugins (API Console Emulation, among others) used during tracking. Jacquie King is running the session. I post this video simply to show how this sort of "plugins during tracking" workflow approach works, and in a pro context, no less.

Even if you're using a different DAW than Luna, tracking with plugins can still help to provide a more finished sound as you go, provided that you can get the latency down low enough to work this way.

Anyway, you can watch the whole thing, if you like, though they don't really get to the initial tracking until 25 minutes in and then the meat of the video at about 43 minutes in. Overdubbing setup in the live room starts around the 59 minute mark and the overdubbing actually begins around 1:19.

www.youtube.com/live/qcBhhcatBjk?feature=share

I mean… what are you recording? For fast metal and punk. They just don’t have the gear I would need usually to do it analog unless they have still working stuff from 20-30 years ago like an ssl or bought an old live rack but who the hell knows if that stuff works? Where are the new gates, de-essers, and stable and flexible vca comps? The only gates left are Drawmer. Only de-essers are dbx, spl, and empirical labs. Stable and flexible VCA comps? We can list what’s still made and none of it’s common north of the fmr rnc and dbx 560. Limiters? Really only the art mxr 136 recreation dual limiter, 1176, and mastering gear are common. 1176 can vary and like a distressor is hell no unless the band wants to sound like plastic 2000s rock or metal.

like Toms. I want 1 gate and 1 limiter per tom mic and a flexible, clean to fat stereo comp for them. At least the gates for the monitoring mix.

Snare top? I want a another gate if it’s an sm57
snare bottom? I want a limiter and probably another gate.
and Sum them and then if it’s blasty, a leveling type compressor setting (no la2a like optos lol) or not blasty, slow attack and fast release. Dbx 160/560 most common thing and flexible depending on how hard you hit it but annoying transients.

Kicks? Man another leveler if it’s blasty and drummer can’t keep volume or slow attack, fast release. Again dbx 160/560 common thing but annoying transients. I need a surgical parametric eq for this. That is mandatory.

overheads? I want a stereo limiter (or 1 ms linked vcas at the slowest) if he’s a snare basher and 2 de-essers if they’re condensers for crashes if he’s a cymbal basher. Maybe 2 keyed transient designers to take down cymbal rides. Where’s the replacements for the bss dpr 402? Thing is perfect for this and controlling the drummer via overheads in his headphone mix.

Imagine..? Oh no. It was exactly that! 100%. 

The way that shop operated, my buddy had the space and I had the recording gear. We were both guitar players and so there was this ridiculously obnoxious collection of guitar junk.

Didn't keep a crazy amount of outboard up there but we had sounds for days... at least 2, often 3 drum kits floating through... Hammond & piano. That kinda thing. That's what people came for. That and the room itself. It wasn't a purpose built studio, more of an environment with a collection of gear.

The guys response, on that session was really puzzling to us. He was seriously deflated & instantly bummed. Which stood out because for one thing, and these guys were no exception but they toured the place. We talked on the phone. They presumably knew what they were walking into & what we had and didn't have. 

Somewhere on that one, expectations on both sides weren't completely aligned.

No. We're completely bound by the software. As soon as we take money out of someone's hands for "services" we're bound by the software. 

Mr Graves can I give you a pile of money to record my thing or mix my thing? Sure sounds great!

Doesn't matter what kinda label you or I want to put on it... take the Steve Albini stance... oh well I'm not actually a producer. Soon as that line has been crossed we're tied down and have to work within the system. Some sorta system. There are expectations. 

In the grand scheme of things while I'm probably closer to your first scenario. One man shop but not really a "commercial shop" for hire. Yet the basic rules of engagement are the same... 

Daily driver here is Logic. Not because its my favorite but because the circles I travel in? Everyone is using it. Can't beat 'em join 'em. Compatibility wins. So it doesn't matter if I'm working out of my own spot... a big studio with big rooms & big desks or even getting mix work from someone that tracked at home? Plug in a drive and go. Boom. Done. 

And yes indeed at some & many points on many projects... artists end up working on bits & pieces in their own home studio. They don't need to be in a fancy room with neve & 47 klones... to pay for that. They have their own at home & can work off the clock & low pressure.

Now obviously we can all consolidate tracks, bounce... import & export files. Create submixes & stems. At this point DAW to DAW cross compatibility isn't much of a thing. Not like it was 10-15 years ago. But it sure is nice, in any of those scenarios to be able to plug in a drive and skip all that nonsense. 

And at that point preference, to me is largely about what the rest of the team is using. Be a team player. Don't be an island, or at least if you are going to be an island? Realize that & accept that you're going to have to bend to everyone else. The rest of the world isn't going to bend to you. 

Good friend of mine is running Luna whenever he can. Some projects its simply not an option & so he also has PT. Is what it is. 

At this point IMO, simply based on asking incoming work what they're using Reaper is still an island. Way more people on Ableton & even S1... PT & Logic at the top. I'll get maybe one thing from a reaper user for 10 of everything else. Obviously not a very scientific observation but its what I got. 

Haha. Totally! But the “being civil about it” is key.

New Reaper feature I discovered. Taking literally any plug-in parameter and adding it as a “knob” on the mixer channel. Wow.

Are there other DAWs that can do that? I know Logic and S1 can’t.

Nope. Whatever you want.

It’s pretty sweet. And easy. Just pick from the list of plug-in parameters. For example I added decay time on and HPF on my reverbs as a knob on each of their FX channels. Two knobs sitting right in the channel strip.

You can also automate ANY parameter in a plug as well.  The only downside is that the plugs typically name the internal parameters weird things so you have to experiment with them sometimes to figure out what is what. 

Reaper is indeed incredibly stable; at least in my experience.  It's been in use continually here for 5 or 6 years.  I've yet to have any issues with it in regards to its stability.  Not once.  

On the other hand, maybe all modern DAWs are that stable; no idea.  I was using Logic for a few years prior to Reaper, and at that time (2015-2016ish) I did have recurring stability issues with Logic.  

Side note: I'm starting to think that choice of DAW is like choice of religion.  It's a very personal choice, and I am not trying to change anyone's belief system.  Just sharing experiences is all.


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