Reason 14 probably won’t cross off every item on Reason users’ wish lists. But it sure tackles a lot: a new Track Panel and workflow, tons of improvements to the sequencer, Dark Mode, automatic import tempo detection, and more. Plus, since every Reason update really needs a device, this one gets the RV-9 Reverb Station.
Here’s a quick look. I’m testing the beta shortly, but haven’t gotten to do that yet.
Above/top: new Reason 14 Track Panel view, traditional horizontal sequencer view that expands to full display size, plus Reason-style device view on the left.
The really big news here is that your arrangement and editing functions finally get a first-class home, and the sequencer gets the kinds of features you know from other DAWs.
Ever since the first Reason sequencer, those facilities have often felt like they were tacked-on — the Rack was and is amazing, but if you’re accustomed to other DAWs, Reason’s approach can seem cramped. The sidetrack into Record and its subsequent reintegration didn’t help matters either.
So now you get a proper Track Panel. And it feels very Reason-native — “fundamentally new,” yes, but rooted in Reason’s existing interface paradigms and with a friendly graphical device navigator, too. Plus, it feels the folks in Stockholm know we don’t all own vertical display monitors. (Some of you do! I literally just saw someone snap a studio with a lovely portrait display running — you guessed it, Reason. But, uh, yeah.)
And about that sequencer:
- Track folders
- Looped clips (“finally” feels like an understatement!)
- Velocity handles and other piano roll editing improvements — I’ll dive into these in detail soon
Other features:
- Dark Mode Mixer that changes with your OS/application
- MIDI note chase
- Automatic tempo detection for imported audio
- Updated Rack Extension SDK that improves on the interface (I’ll dig into that, too, figuring no one else will!)
- 900 new drum samples and an expanded Factory Sound Bank (50 new Europa patches, which is great — that thing is seriously underestimated. And 20 new impulse responses for RV7000! Where’s my Ford Transit van…)
Yes, this continues the evolution of DAWs to be more like other DAWs, but when it comes to some of this stuff (MIDI chase, tempo detection, inspectors for regions) I’m 100% okay with that. We can innovate elsewhere.
Plus, there’s a nice, new reverb, finally giving you a sequel to the classic RV7000 MkII. (Had to look this up — that was 2015, Reason 8.3.) The MkII update added convolution, whereas the RV-9 combines algorithmic and convolution reverbs with multiple modes. And it has surprises, like a Granular mode.
I especially appreciate the extras here: proper low and high damping controls, predelay with beat sync, modulation, a ducking module, a parametric EQ, and a shimmer with options of octave up or down, fifth, and fourth. That brings together some of the best of other tools.
More info and beta signup (waitlist only for now):
https://www.reasonstudios.com/new-in-14
I’ll be honest — every time I open Reason, I have a good time. I just lost some pleasant hours to this recently, and it’s like an instant antidepressant/creative block remover — Reason is one of those tools that helps you unwind even when you’re stuck elsewhere. I keep rediscovering old devices, and the workflow with Rack Extensions is often so much better than plug-ins, even with some of the same tools duplicated. It’s always been the track stuff that slows me down, and while you can run the Reason Rack as a plug-in, it just isn’t the same. So a version of Reason where you might finish tracks? I’m interested.