

I like the illusion.Quarmat wrote: ↑16 May 2023They said: 'Reason is the rack'. And one mounts the stuff on the rack by fixing it in some way, and the most obvious way is screws. I really like Objekt's design and obviously a skeuomorphic structure like his doesn't make sense for it to have screws, however other instruments and effects that have all the appearance of a rack device should have screws or some kind of visible attachment. I am also very sorry to see that in the back the power cables have long since disappeared.
Reason is the only skeuomorphic software that works visually and has also made a name for itself by virtue of its emulation (also visual) of a real rack. I don't understand the shift towards a more anonymous style which, quoting Mattias in the Combi 2 livestream, 'breaks the illusion'. Fortunately talented designers like Ekss continue with screws and power cords. I wish RS would also retrace their steps in this regard.
I totally agree with both of you. Starting with Reason 1 and then go with Live suite at a time I wasn’t anymore in love with Propellerhead choices. I can say native Live devices are great sounding but boring to use / program. Even Wavetable with its extended view. Boring. Except for great VST such as Repro or Reaktor Racks, I’m all with Reason devices (via RRP since v12, thanks to HD). Since now we are spoiled with synths and FXs, I only use / buy devices which have great skeuomorphic UI and adopt the « HW illusion ». I can’t make mine a device overwiseQuarmat wrote: ↑17 May 2023As a Reason user for more than 20 years, I can say that the design, the colours, the font used for the name and knob labels, the back with fans, heatsinks, power cords, QC stickers and serial numbers make each of the Reason devices (especially those from the first 10 years) true icons with TONS of personality. As Selig rightly said, in other DAWs the stock devices are anonymous and all the same. Whereas in Reason they are tangible, recognisable, unmistakable presences. For me this is a huge fun factor: sometimes I open the rack just to look at the devices. From my point of view, they are rock stars. A t-shirt with Thor's logo or a cap with ReDrum's logo have a wearability that no other DAW can boast. And that's something RS should capitalise on, beyond the pack of goodies for Reason's 20, which I've been using for self-produced merchandise.
Well i think Ableton and RRP is a match made in heaven.Ahornberg wrote: ↑17 May 2023IMO the Reason Rack is mostly about eye-candy (the same goes for VCV Rack). When I compare both to Ableton stock devices or Bitwig Grid, I really enjoy the look of Reason (and VCV) Rack.
On the other hand, I feel that systems with non-skeuomorphic designs (like Ableton and Bitwig) are easier to understand in the first place.
But my eyes want to have fun, so I enjoy the Reason Rack (and of course VCV).
♥ ♥ ♥crimsonwarlock wrote: ↑17 May 2023A rack is a rack, with screws or withoutTake a look at Yoad Nevo's studio
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It looks much better with rack rails ! Even without the screws. I wonder why they went with the « void » option
Yoad Nevo is a regular guest on the SonicState podcast. If you Google for the rest of his studio, it gets even better
There is, IMO, a fine line between “unused screen real estate” and “cluttered UIs”. Similarly there is a fine line between the idea of “white/negative space” and “wasted space” in any design.Timmy Crowne wrote: ↑18 May 2023I love the screws (and the vents, and the fans and serial numbers), but as my projects have grown in size I’ve begun to feel the weight of unused screen real estate. The skeuomorphism is warm and welcoming but it doesn’t scale very well IMO.
Given the amount of time and pain that was involved in the recent HD update I can't imagine they'll be very keen to do any more graphics work for a while so I think they'll be staying with the rack pretty much forever!joeyluck wrote: ↑19 May 2023I imagine the Reason rack could behave the same as Kontakt—whereas Reason Studios would do away with the metal rack rails and the individual rack width would be dictated by the widest device in that rack, just like it is in the Kontakt rack. Benefit of Reason is if you are very particular, you could always put any extra wide GUIs into their own racks to avoid empty space in other racks. And then there could be an option to 'restrict all GUIs to standard size', which might just mean that those wider GUIs will look out of proportion / small when doing so...
Another suggestion I have made a few times is pop-out windows for REs, which could also have the option for more flexibility in UI dimensions. So you would see the standard width in the rack, and could access that same UI in a window, but could also access a wider, maybe more advance UI in the pop-out window as well, which wouldn't be restricted by the rack's width.
I’ve used Kontakt for decades now and never seen this, but then realized I never liked running multiple instruments in one window for the most part. I guess that’s ONE way around eliminating unused space…
I believe that skeuomorphism and design/layout are intrinsically linked in Reason. In the case of ReBirth, the design was intuitive because all elements were conveniently placed on a single screen. During Reason's early years, the projects were manageable due to the limited device options and computing resources available at the time.
This. That's why I'm glad I have PX7. But this will be maybe broken from time to time and again and again until the rack is Ableton Live.bxbrkrz wrote: ↑19 May 2023Screwing things up.
When they started mixing up flat and 3D within each other was when the immersion was breaking apart for me. It's a visual confusion. I believe this 'liberty' started with the screws debacle. You break your own rules. Then anything goes. Tintin fighting with Dracula and Spiderman. “Human sacrifice! Dogs and cats living together! Mass hysteria!”
In that respect, VCV is quite better and good at handling large projects. Too bad RS doesn’t provide RE devs multiple sizes. It’s been suggested here for years so it won’t see the light of the day before a long time if ever.Timmy Crowne wrote: ↑19 May 2023I believe that skeuomorphism and design/layout are intrinsically linked in Reason. In the case of ReBirth, the design was intuitive because all elements were conveniently placed on a single screen. During Reason's early years, the projects were manageable due to the limited device options and computing resources available at the time.
However, with the advancement of technology, we can now incorporate hundreds of devices into a project. This poses a challenge, particularly for those engaged in generative work like myself. It is not uncommon for me to require additional LFOs, envelope generators, or CV shapers, and the only solution is to add another device that occupies a significant portion of the rack, even when collapsed. Unfortunately, there is no option to completely hide these devices. The concept of half-rack devices was a step in the right direction, but I believe there is a missed opportunity in the form of quarter-rack devices for simpler functions as mentioned earlier..
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