STREAMDECK USERS? Sharing is caring.

[npinero1]

I am guessing a few of you might be using a Streamdeck, XL regular or mini. I am learning how to build a Reason profile but I thought this might be a good place to connect all Streamdeck users to discuss some of their best tips and share profiles.

Anyone interested?

[MuttReason]

I am guessing a few of you might be using a Streamdeck, XL regular or mini. I am learning how to build a Reason profile but I thought this might be a good place to connect all Streamdeck users to discuss some of their best tips and share profiles.

Anyone interested?

Sure. As per other thread, I’m in.

My experience: sorting out key bindings for Reason or any other program is the easy part. Literally 5 mins… just sit with the Reason manual listing all the keyboard shortcuts and tap in the ones I know I’ll use most. Super fast. Same wIth all other programs.

I spend far more time trying to find the right icons for each key. The icons need to have an immediate visual clue to remind me what the button does, but I also want all the 15 icons (I’m using the standard StreamDeck mk2) to have a consistent look and feel because, well, OK it’s an OCD thing…

So a question: has anyone found any icon libraries that are designed for a music DAW? There are libraries for a bunch of different creative apps including video editing, but I couldn’t find any for music production apps. I ended up hunting through thousands of different generic icon options to assemble a (sorta) consistent set for my Reason template, and even then it isn’t ideal (and I guarantee that an icon that kinda makes sense to me would leave other people baffled… )

[Faastwalker]

Off topic but is the Steam Deck any good? My son wants to get a gaming laptop. But he's only 12 so I'm thinking a Steam Deck might be a better idea for him.

[doze]

Off topic but is the Steam Deck any good? My son wants to get a gaming laptop. But he's only 12 so I'm thinking a Steam Deck might be a better idea for him.

Different things, they are talking Stream Deck, with is a quick launch OLED button pad.

And you are speaking of Steam Deck for gaming. 8)

[MuttReason]

And bang on cue…. This…

https://www.elgato.com/en/stream-deck-p ... uycbutzkks

Looks interesting. Could be lots of ways to use this with Reason and other DAWs.

[joeyluck]

And bang on cue…. This…

https://www.elgato.com/en/stream-deck-p ... uycbutzkks

Looks interesting. Could be lots of ways to use this with Reason and other DAWs.

Oh that looks cool!

Although I can't tell from the pictures and saw no mention about the stand in the quick start guide. Is it adjustable and/or removable?
Because that steep angle looks unpleasant to me.



And it only has 4 buttons... So either way, I might have to wait and see if they release an "XL+".

The Loopedeck controllers might also be worth considering if looking at something like the Streamdeck+

[crimsonwarlock]

Touch Portal can do sliders as well

[Bes]

so has anyone here tried loupedeck with reason?
i found this online and i'll have to find time to watch it later

[MuttReason]

Not thought about Loupedeck. Have to say, these little hardware controllers that emulate keystrokes and other commands are pretty dope. I’ve tried the iPad app equivalent and they’re great too but a) nothing beats a physical button IMO and b) these little gizmos take up very little desk space so they’re easy to tuck in next to a computer keyboard.

[joeyluck]

Not thought about Loupedeck. Have to say, these little hardware controllers that emulate keystrokes and other commands are pretty dope. I’ve tried the iPad app equivalent and they’re great too but a) nothing beats a physical button IMO and b) these little gizmos take up very little desk space so they’re easy to tuck in next to a computer keyboard.

Yeah I guess Loupedeck is a combo of physical buttons/knobs and a touch screen.

[Bes]

in the loupedeck video i linked above, you can clearly see the knobs in the software jumping a little to catch up after they realise information is coming from the loupedeck. its kind of a deal breaker for me cos i like to adjust in small increments a lot
for those who have a stream deck can you confirm this is something that device handles better or not?

[MuttReason]

in the loupedeck video i linked above, you can clearly see the knobs in the software jumping a little to catch up after they realise information is coming from the loupedeck. its kind of a deal breaker for me cos i like to adjust in small increments a lot
for those who have a stream deck can you confirm this is something that device handles better or not?

Only StreamDeck I own is buttons only (they’ve only just launched the one with knobs). The button response is instantaneous, it is no different to pressing a keystroke combination on the computer keyboard.

[Bes]

[selig]

I’ve come so close to getting a StreamDeck, but can’t decide between the smaller and bigger versions. And now there’s a new one with knobs, making the decision more difficult. Still leaning towards the 32 button version.

The LoupeDeck has knobs too, but too many unlabeled buttons for me. And the touch screen is not exactly what I’m looking for (not to mention the noticeable delay observed in the video - maybe because they are using MIDI?).

Also wondering if there will be a bigger “plus” version in the future with four knobs and more buttons? Still can’t decide if the knobs are going to be useful to me or not…
Either way, glad to be reminded of this, time to look into it again and decide if it’s in my future or not!

[joeyluck]

I’ve come so close to getting a StreamDeck, but can’t decide between the smaller and bigger versions. And now there’s a new one with knobs, making the decision more difficult. Still leaning towards the 32 button version.

The LoupeDeck has knobs too, but too many unlabeled buttons for me. And the touch screen is not exactly what I’m looking for (not to mention the noticeable delay observed in the video - maybe because they are using MIDI?).

Also wondering if there will be a bigger “plus” version in the future with four knobs and more buttons? Still can’t decide if the knobs are going to be useful to me or not…
Either way, glad to be reminded of this, time to look into it again and decide if it’s in my future or not!

Same here. I might be interested in something like an XL+. Although for me, the angle of the StreamDeck+ looks unpleasant and I don't think it can be adjusted. The angle might be alright for buttons, but less so for knobs? Difficult to tell.

[MuttReason]

I’ve come so close to getting a StreamDeck, but can’t decide between the smaller and bigger versions. And now there’s a new one with knobs, making the decision more difficult. Still leaning towards the 32 button version.

The LoupeDeck has knobs too, but too many unlabeled buttons for me. And the touch screen is not exactly what I’m looking for (not to mention the noticeable delay observed in the video - maybe because they are using MIDI?).

Also wondering if there will be a bigger “plus” version in the future with four knobs and more buttons? Still can’t decide if the knobs are going to be useful to me or not…
Either way, glad to be reminded of this, time to look into it again and decide if it’s in my future or not!

Same here. I might be interested in something like an XL+. Although for me, the angle of the StreamDeck+ looks unpleasant and I don't think it can be adjusted. The angle might be alright for buttons, but less so for knobs? Difficult to tell.

FWIW I debated whether to go for the standard (now Mk2) StreamDeck or the XL and in the end went for the former... and I'm glad I did.

Two reasons why.

First, I found out that 15 buttons on the standard StreamDeck is actually quite a lot. Between the easy-to-remember keystrokes on the computer keyboard (the Function keys for Reason DAW rack/seq/mixer etc, Tab to flip the rack etc) and the more complicated-to-remember (eg vertical lane zoom in the sequencer keystroke combo) that I've mapped to the StreamDeck, I had plenty of options for simple one-button shortcuts. I probably COULD fill up all the buttons on the XL, but I wouldn't need to. Of course, YMMV and all depends on personal use cases but for me, 15 buttons is good.

Second, the standard Mk2 is pretty small. It tucks in neatly at the left-hand end of my computer keyboard which means I've got simple muscle memory... right hand on mouse, left hand moving between keyboard and StreamDeck in a single movement. Pretty instinctive now. The XL is quite a lot bigger (from what I can tell from photos at least) and wouldn't tuck into the same space.

To Joeyluck's point about the angle... It is fixed when mounted in the little stand it comes in, but that works fine for me because of where I place it on the desk. However, you can remove the StreamDeck from its stand and place it flat on the desk (might need to raise it slightly to allow clearance for the USB cable port in the back, haven't checked) so there's the option of placing it at a different angle if you can work out how to balance it without the stand. Key thing though is that it's removable from the stand (unlike the Mk1 which was a single moulded unit) so clearly design so there's alternative options.

[joeyluck]

Same here. I might be interested in something like an XL+. Although for me, the angle of the StreamDeck+ looks unpleasant and I don't think it can be adjusted. The angle might be alright for buttons, but less so for knobs? Difficult to tell.

FWIW I debated whether to go for the standard (now Mk2) StreamDeck or the XL and in the end went for the former... and I'm glad I did.

Two reasons why.

First, I found out that 15 buttons on the standard StreamDeck is actually quite a lot. Between the easy-to-remember keystrokes on the computer keyboard (the Function keys for Reason DAW rack/seq/mixer etc, Tab to flip the rack etc) and the more complicated-to-remember (eg vertical lane zoom in the sequencer keystroke combo) that I've mapped to the StreamDeck, I had plenty of options for simple one-button shortcuts. I probably COULD fill up all the buttons on the XL, but I wouldn't need to. Of course, YMMV and all depends on personal use cases but for me, 15 buttons is good.

Second, the standard Mk2 is pretty small. It tucks in neatly at the left-hand end of my computer keyboard which means I've got simple muscle memory... right hand on mouse, left hand moving between keyboard and StreamDeck in a single movement. Pretty instinctive now. The XL is quite a lot bigger (from what I can tell from photos at least) and wouldn't tuck into the same space.

To Joeyluck's point about the angle... It is fixed when mounted in the little stand it comes in, but that works fine for me because of where I place it on the desk. However, you can remove the StreamDeck from its stand and place it flat on the desk (might need to raise it slightly to allow clearance for the USB cable port in the back, haven't checked) so there's the option of placing it at a different angle if you can work out how to balance it without the stand. Key thing though is that it's removable from the stand (unlike the Mk1 which was a single moulded unit) so clearly design so there's alternative options.

OK cool. Thanks! I may just wait and see if they carry it at Best Buy or Gamestop and then check it out there. I feel like the angle might bug me more for the knobs than the buttons.

[jam-s]

Key thing though is that it's removable from the stand (unlike the Mk1 which was a single moulded unit) so clearly design so there's alternative options.

I've got the MK1 standard and it comes with an adjustable stand that can also be removed. so in this regard it's even more versatile then the MK2 version. A possible negative is that the USB cable of the MK1 is not detachable.

Also you can have multiple pages of buttons so imho 15 is quite enough and the XL would be overkill.

[Faastwalker]

Off topic but is the Steam Deck any good? My son wants to get a gaming laptop. But he's only 12 so I'm thinking a Steam Deck might be a better idea for him.

Different things, they are talking Stream Deck, with is a quick launch OLED button pad.

And you are speaking of Steam Deck for gaming. 8)

Ah! I was a bit more 'off topic' than I imagined!!

[selig]

Also you can have multiple pages of buttons so imho 15 is quite enough and the XL would be overkill.

I wondered about that so I started to try to layout 15 vs 32 functions (in a graphics app) just to see how it may ‘feel’. Turns out I have way more than 32 functions I’d like to have available at a time so even with a 32 button version I’d need multiple pages - would love to keep from having to menu dive as much as possible, and it looks like the XL is edging out the smaller version. Also, with 8 buttons across the device you can get all the transport functions in a single row (and something ‘bothers’ me about having an odd number of buttons!).

[joeyluck]

Can a button on the Streamdeck send a key command and also serve as a page flip?

So say I assign a buttons to View Rack, Mixer, Sequencer. And then when pressing the Sequencer button, it would not only bring up the Sequencer in Reason, but also a page of shortcuts assigned that are more specific to the Sequencer. Is that possible?

[MuttReason]

Can a button on the Streamdeck send a key command and also serve as a page flip?

So say I assign a buttons to View Rack, Mixer, Sequencer. And then when pressing the Sequencer button, it would not only bring up the Sequencer in Reason, but also a page of shortcuts assigned that are more specific to the Sequencer. Is that possible?

I don’t think so. It basically emulates any keystroke combination you can do in a computer keyboard. It does other stuff as well (eg sends MIDI CC) but I only use the keystroke emulation.

I don’t *think* there is a way of doing what you describe in a single combination of keystrokes from the computer keyboard.

I may be wrong though. I know there are more advanced scripting options for the StreamDeck (emulating keystrokes is the most basic function it does) but I’ve not got into that.

[jam-s]

Can a button on the Streamdeck send a key command and also serve as a page flip?

So say I assign a buttons to View Rack, Mixer, Sequencer. And then when pressing the Sequencer button, it would not only bring up the Sequencer in Reason, but also a page of shortcuts assigned that are more specific to the Sequencer. Is that possible?

I have to check, but it might be possible using multi-actions.

EDIT: I've just tested this and yes multi actions can do this.

[selig]

Can a button on the Streamdeck send a key command and also serve as a page flip?

So say I assign a buttons to View Rack, Mixer, Sequencer. And then when pressing the Sequencer button, it would not only bring up the Sequencer in Reason, but also a page of shortcuts assigned that are more specific to the Sequencer. Is that possible?

I have to check, but it might be possible using multi-actions.

EDIT: I've just tested this and yes multi actions can do this.

Funny, I had just watched this video on pages with StreamDeck and was going to say the same thing - pretty cool!

[joeyluck]

Can a button on the Streamdeck send a key command and also serve as a page flip?

So say I assign a buttons to View Rack, Mixer, Sequencer. And then when pressing the Sequencer button, it would not only bring up the Sequencer in Reason, but also a page of shortcuts assigned that are more specific to the Sequencer. Is that possible?

I have to check, but it might be possible using multi-actions.

EDIT: I've just tested this and yes multi actions can do this.

That's awesome! Thanks for checking!

I think that's how I would set it up...

My view buttons would always be in the same spot on every page, and each one would would switch the view in Reason and pull up the shortcuts more specific to that view. And I suppose with 32 buttons of the XL, I'd probably have a few other repeats of course.

Not sure if I would need the more common ones on buttons...or how long it would take me to use the Streamdeck for things like save, copy, paste, etc. Hard to break that muscle memory. But then it just means more available buttons! Lol

I'm definitely going to consider this. I might still wait to see where the 'plus' line goes.