R13 (.1) Browser woes

[Arrant]

Hi all, I've been away from Reason a couple of years after the awful R12 launch, but decided to try it out again now that the upgrade to 13 was pretty cheap.
The browser remains my nemesis though.

For context I have 6 hard drives in my system totaling around 15 TB of storage, a ton of REs and around 1600 VST plugins. All my reason content is on a 500GB SSD, and no I don't want to move it to the default user library folder which is on a slower drive. I know exactly where I want the browser to be scanning, but there's no way to direct it there and blacklist everything else.

The new browser implementation hits me hard with the following negative effects:
1. In previous versions I had shortcuts to different project folders where my RNS files live. Since the new browser isn't used to open songs (just a default Windows file browser), you can't have shortcuts to project folders anymore.

2. All of my painstakingly assembled favorites lists (which all contained different categories of devices, not patches) are now blank. Thanks a lot for wiping my lists. I suppose I could use device tagging but that's a job I'll have to do all over again. When you have a large amount of VSTs, this is very time consuming.

3. I can't change patches on any Reason devices or rack extension before the browser has finished scanning. Which never happens, every time I start Reason the browser is blank even though my index file is in the gigabytes.
The only way I can reliably find my stuff is to browse for it through the "This PC"-folder at the bottom of the browser. I might as well use windows explorer for all the good it does me.

Quality assurance used to be top notch in Reason. Those were the days

[Loque]

Create tickets at RS or nothing changes...

[huggermugger]

Reason is dumbing down for "producers" who need to quickly find those seven patches that they use over and over, desperate to eliminate all the work and learning so they can be more, um, "creative".

[petecampbell]

For me to the Reason 13 Browser is A Significant Step Backwards!
The new floating browser slows down my workflow by like 90%"
I can't find anything anymore!

Dear Reason Studios Development Team,
I'm writing to express serious concerns about the new browser in Reason 13. After extensive testing and discussions with fellow users, I've compiled the key issues that make this update feel more like a downgrade:
Performance Problems
-Extreme Loading Times: Users are reporting load times of 10-25 minutes, which is completely unacceptable for a professional DAW
-Massive indexing time for large file collections (330GB/1.5 million files)
-The new floating browser window blocks critical screen real estate, especially problematic for users with smaller monitors
-Dramatically slows down workflow compared to the previous browser design
-Cannot easily show or access:
Subfolders on hard drive
Favorited VSTs
Custom tags
Dr. Rex slices
-Removes previous favorites system that many found essential


Request to Development Team
I urgently request an option to revert to the previous browser design restoration of key functionality from the old browser
Ability to customize or disable the new floating window

[Marc Swing]

Yes! i HATE the new browser with passion!!

I would like to have the option for a "legacy browser" so everybody can be happy....
The users who loves the new browser can use that one and the rest of us how hate the new one can use the legacy browser.

[Benedict]

Reason is dumbing down for "producers" who need to quickly find those seven patches that they use over and over, desperate to eliminate all the work and learning so they can be more, um, "creative".

Ha!
But sadly all too true. Everything in this world is busy doing that. Blindly running themselves over the cliff they are too arrogant to admit is real.

[w1pl0c]

+1

[Aosta]

Request to Development Team
I urgently request an option to revert to the previous browser design restoration of key functionality from the old browser
Ability to customize or disable the new floating window

This is the entire solution and has been from the start, make it optional. There are a ton of design programs where you can load custom workspaces to your own preferences because isn't that what we are doing? designing sound
Considering it's modular approach to the rack why shouldn't it be a modular interface to be placed or hidden when needed (mixer rack I'm still looking at you after all these years).

[chimp_spanner]

Reason is dumbing down for "producers" who need to quickly find those seven patches that they use over and over, desperate to eliminate all the work and learning so they can be more, um, "creative".

I like being able to find and use things quickly. I don't have a lot of time to write these days, so when I do I prefer not to spend it making things from scratch that exist somewhere already. I think there's an expectation that being a musician these days means you *have* to be a producer, sound designer and all around synthesis wizard. Some people are just good at guitar, or lyricism, or whatever. I've got nothing against making it easier for those people to realise their ideas.

As for it being floating, personally I'm kiiinda getting used to it, although it's a bit of a pain in the AU as it's not resizable. So it really just dominates your screen space. Not sure if there's a route back from this design choice though given that the device palette lives where the browser used to and is very much its own/separate thing.

[PhillipOrdonez]

The fact it’s floating is only a problem if you want to keep the browser open at all times. Once you realise the browser is meant to be closed when not in use, the problem disappears and the browser is freaking awesome now. A huge upgrade from before imo.

[jam-s]

Request to Development Team
I urgently request an option to revert to the previous browser design restoration of key functionality from the old browser
Ability to customize or disable the new floating window

This is the entire solution and has been from the start, make it optional. There are a ton of design programs where you can load custom workspaces to your own preferences because isn't that what we are doing? designing sound
Considering it's modular approach to the rack why shouldn't it be a modular interface to be placed or hidden when needed (mixer rack I'm still looking at you after all these years).

I think that ship has sailed. RS might implement some more improvements to the browser, but they won't go back to the old design or even have it as an option as that would complicate the UI.

[East Island]

I had to get used to the new browser. Now with the user tags it works better. Maybe they could have kept the option with the "old" browser.

For the many samples I now use Rando VST plugin next to it.
Very nice. https://monkeyc.audio/pages/rando_dl1

I see Reason as an evolution and still think it is a best DAW for me!

[Arrant]

Ok so I think it's done scanning and now things work better regarding my problem 3, which was the worst one.
It only took a few days, I hope it won't have to rescan if I add a refill or create some patches or something.

Next step is to get used to the new browser and tag some patches. Easy peasy right, just select a bunch of patches and assign...WAIT you think you can select more than one patch at a time? You're wrong I'm afraid. Another forever project...

[selig]

Reason is dumbing down for "producers" who need to quickly find those seven patches that they use over and over, desperate to eliminate all the work and learning so they can be more, um, "creative".

I would disagree - Those that used the same seven patches over and over (sounds like an Eno approach) made favorites of those patches. And RS removed those favorites, so I can’t see how they are catering to those producers at all in that sense. If anything they are actively working against them…

Not sure how much you learn when searching for useful files, or why making things easier is a bad thing. Sounds like you are someone who doesn’t think those of us who use presets or have a small collection of “go to” patches are real “producers”?

I personally would LOVE to make music with less work and learning - I don’t want to work/learn computers or file systems, I want to work/learn MUSIC.

[joeyluck]

Ok so I think it's done scanning and now things work better regarding my problem 3, which was the worst one.
It only took a few days, I hope it won't have to rescan if I add a refill or create some patches or something.

Next step is to get used to the new browser and tag some patches. Easy peasy right, just select a bunch of patches and assign...WAIT you think you can select more than one patch at a time? You're wrong I'm afraid. Another forever project...

It does a quick rescan each time you start Reason to look for changes, which depending on the content added should be fairly quick, and certainly won't take as long as indexing the first time. Maybe compare it to doing a first scan of VSTs and then adding VSTs after that.

Also worth mentioning the new feature to rescan shortcut locations, by right-clicking and choosing to rescan. This can be used if ever there is a time it feels like something new is missing, maybe something was added during a session. And rest assured, using that option will only redo the quick rescan to look for changes and won't redo the entire indexing—that still requires deleting the index file. So just FYI in case anybody finds themselves feeling like they need to do a quick rescan and are hesitant to use that option—it won't take forever like a full re-indexing.

And not sure if I'm understanding your comment about tagging. I can definitely select and edit multiple items and can add tags direct from the context menu, or enter into Edit Info from the context menu.

[Arrant]

Next step is to get used to the new browser and tag some patches. Easy peasy right, just select a bunch of patches and assign...WAIT you think you can select more than one patch at a time? You're wrong I'm afraid. Another forever project...

And not sure if I'm understanding your comment about tagging. I can definitely select and edit multiple items and can add tags direct from the context menu, or enter into Edit Info from the context menu.

Thanks Joey. I just read in the manual that it should indeed be possible, but normal multiple select with shift/ctrl (Windows standard) does not work from the top browser level.
The only way I can select multiple patches is to go into the context menu and "edit info" first. Strange, but at least I can get the job done.

EDIT: Oh wait, I can select multiple if I open the browser "unfocused", but not if I open it from a device's patch browser which I did before. I guess that makes a certain sense, but it had me fooled.

[soroc sosta]

I kindly request to use some of your verbiage, to send in a request to RS!
This new browser is workflow quicksand

For me to the Reason 13 Browser is A Significant Step Backwards!
The new floating browser slows down my workflow by like 90%"
I can't find anything anymore!

Dear Reason Studios Development Team,
I'm writing to express serious concerns about the new browser in Reason 13. After extensive testing and discussions with fellow users, I've compiled the key issues that make this update feel more like a downgrade:
Performance Problems
-Extreme Loading Times: Users are reporting load times of 10-25 minutes, which is completely unacceptable for a professional DAW
-Massive indexing time for large file collections (330GB/1.5 million files)
-The new floating browser window blocks critical screen real estate, especially problematic for users with smaller monitors
-Dramatically slows down workflow compared to the previous browser design
-Cannot easily show or access:
Subfolders on hard drive
Favorited VSTs
Custom tags
Dr. Rex slices
-Removes previous favorites system that many found essential


Request to Development Team
I urgently request an option to revert to the previous browser design restoration of key functionality from the old browser
Ability to customize or disable the new floating window

[soroc sosta]

...I've been using the Windows browser :-/

[Mataya]

If only I can remove the "All Locations" folder from the browser. Each time I open the browser I have to wait rescan of that "location". I wan to load a redrum, select a sample from my samples folder somewhere and go. Why o why I can't do that?

M

[Spasy]

Same here.. it's the only Reason I'm still "stuck" on Reason 12. I'm about to create a ticket soon. I appreciate the innovation but I wish I could just attach it on the side

[Ottostrom]

The fact it’s floating is only a problem if you want to keep the browser open at all times. Once you realise the browser is meant to be closed when not in use, the problem disappears and the browser is freaking awesome now. A huge upgrade from before imo.

I haven't tried R13 yet but this is also what I'm wondering when I see these posts about the browser being in the way. Do you have to keep it open? Isn't the point to just find a patch/sample and then do something with it

[PhillipOrdonez]

The fact it’s floating is only a problem if you want to keep the browser open at all times. Once you realise the browser is meant to be closed when not in use, the problem disappears and the browser is freaking awesome now. A huge upgrade from before imo.

I haven't tried R13 yet but this is also what I'm wondering when I see these posts about the browser being in the way. Do you have to keep it open? Isn't the point to just find a patch/sample and then do something with it

Yup! Exactly, thank you. Yo are supposed to keep it closed and only invoke it whenever needed and you close it immediately after. The folk complaining about it don’t make a lot of sense to me. Why are they so upset? Who knows… I’m on 13 and the browser is cool. The entire program is so much better than before, and the browser functionality is brilliant. Patches are created upon selecting, and it all can be done with just the keyboard! No need to grab a mouse to create either patches or devices ( you do need the mouse to drag samples, but the browser disappears as soon as you drag anything from it so whatever it is you need to be able to see can be then seen!). It’s well thought out!

[Heigen5]

The browser opens with F9 key and closes too, - my method when I want to browse sounds.

[Whoopdee]

Not using R13 until they make the browser dock-able and bring back the classic color coding. It's a big gray mess, absolutely kills my workflow, which is the opposite of what they claim.

[ortxedys]

My issue with the browser is that if you add a file it has to index it. Both logic and ableton pop up the same file right away.