Refill Poll (What do you look for in a ReFill?)

[dustiraw]

Hey Guys,

Not too active on the board but an extremely active Reason user since version 3 and as an experienced sound designer always wanted to pull the trigger on developing ReFills but never was too sure where the interest was.... (sorry for the long-winded intro, skip the next paragraph if needed)

Now with Reasons' new model, they seem to be releasing mini-packs every few days so since the interest has hopefully been renewed I want to focus on developing refills. More as a way to get my name, brand, and site in front of more people than a main or even side source of income. As someone who designs mainly using synthesizers, the question was always what synth is used and presets needed most but these new refills don't focus on one particular device and cover a broad scope if not all devices included in reason. That's a blessing because with my ADD that I refuse to treat I'm great with focusing on concepts/themes but end up creating presets for a wide range of devices, usually not focusing exclusively on one device for the job.

[*]With all of that said, to the avid Reason user what justifies a full-fledged Reason ReFill? Already being registered as a developer I wanted to get cracking, upload some free ReFills for download on the reason store before any paid ones, and hopefully slip myself Into the rotation of free mini-packs for reason subscribers as I'm confident that quality is not a question as I out a lot of careful time and skill into anything I create and end up releasing, refining it almost too much.

Just FYI I lose interest when I'm creating something I've heard a million times before so my work is less “bread and butter” content and more complex and the “unheard”.

So are you guys more into a pack with a bunch of combinator patches, individual presets, or (what I plan on doing) both?

Also, what devices seem to be lacking either in included content or available patches so I can focus on those first?

Again, sorry for the long-winded intro and thank you for any responses, feedback is greatly needed and I know you guys are where it's at in terms of the reason base!

[DaveyG]

It's years since I bought a refill. I hate that I can't rearrange the contents and that the Reason browser is so inadequate. I either need a proper refill librarian that will allow me to categorise/tag stuff how I want or I need an updated refill unpacker. The original one still partially works but does work for many of the newer devices. I have well over 300 refills, some free, some paid, and there is no consistency. Some are ordered by genre, some are ordered by device and some are ordered by madness.

I believe the new soundpacks are not refills so can be rearranged by the end user. That makes them much more attractive to me. Something to bear in mind.

[MannequinRaces]

Click bait, there’s no poll here.

[dustiraw]

Click bait, there’s no poll here.

My apologies, up now!

[dustiraw]

It's years since I bought a refill. I hate that I can't rearrange the contents and that the Reason browser is so inadequate. I either need a proper refill librarian that will allow me to categorise/tag stuff how I want or I need an updated refill unpacker. The original one still partially works but does work for many of the newer devices. I have well over 300 refills, some free, some paid, and there is no consistency. Some are ordered by genre, some are ordered by device and some are ordered by madness.

I believe the new soundpacks are not refills so can be rearranged by the end user. That makes them much more attractive to me. Something to bear in mind.

Thank you for the reply/info! VERY good to know! That all makes a lot of sense. So, do you think the newer packs are not in traditional ReFill format just for the sake for the Reason Companions mini packs or is this the new trend, are refills long gone? RIP if so lol

[DaveyG]

It's years since I bought a refill. I hate that I can't rearrange the contents and that the Reason browser is so inadequate. I either need a proper refill librarian that will allow me to categorise/tag stuff how I want or I need an updated refill unpacker. The original one still partially works but does work for many of the newer devices. I have well over 300 refills, some free, some paid, and there is no consistency. Some are ordered by genre, some are ordered by device and some are ordered by madness.

I believe the new soundpacks are not refills so can be rearranged by the end user. That makes them much more attractive to me. Something to bear in mind.

Thank you for the reply/info! VERY good to know! That all makes a lot of sense. So, do you think the newer packs are not in traditional ReFill format just for the sake for the Reason Companions mini packs or is this the new trend, are refills long gone? RIP if so lol

I don't think that refills ae going to go away, I just think that refills don't offer much to the buyer or to the seller. The buyer gets a single lump of stuff that can't be split up or rearranged and the Refill format does not offer any real protection to the seller regarding copying and piracy. Elsewhere on this forum you'll find a discussion of what should and should not be included in sound packs, and in particular whether there should be some demo songs included. We'll never all agree on the same thing but at least with a sound pack you are free to delete or archive the parts of it that you will never use or bulk copy the patches for the instrument you do use and put them into your own directory structure.

[MannequinRaces]

Click bait, there’s no poll here.

My apologies, up now!

Thanks for adding one!

[MannequinRaces]

I voted instrument and combinator patches.

[dustiraw]

Thank you for the reply/info! VERY good to know! That all makes a lot of sense. So, do you think the newer packs are not in traditional ReFill format just for the sake for the Reason Companions mini packs or is this the new trend, are refills long gone? RIP if so lol

I don't think that refills ae going to go away, I just think that refills don't offer much to the buyer or to the seller. The buyer gets a single lump of stuff that can't be split up or rearranged and the Refill format does not offer any real protection to the seller regarding copying and piracy. Elsewhere on this forum you'll find a discussion of what should and should not be included in sound packs, and in particular whether there should be some demo songs included. We'll never all agree on the same thing but at least with a sound pack you are free to delete or archive the parts of it that you will never use or bulk copy the patches for the instrument you do use and put them into your own directory structure.

Extremely valid point! As I did not really mention, when using samples I'm always use my own original samples, like a drum kit for example, would be a shame to rack users not to be able to use them or separate them as they please.

[*]A link to the thread you mentioned would be extremely helpful but ill try to find it on my own.

Thanks again!

[dustiraw]

I voted instrument and combinator patches.

Thanks! have any particular favorites or combinations?

I've always wondered if most users use combinator refills/patches as 1 instrument/efrect or do most get their feet wet reprogramming. I'm sure it's one or the other for most users.

[pushedbutton]

Can't vote cos I don't see it that way.
My answer would be 'something I can't fudge together with stock devices in a combinator'.