hi,
i can't decide between live and reason. i'm into hip hop, chill out and elctronica, but i don't know which software is best suited for my needs. any recommendations?
i was also wondering about the compatibility, which file formats are supported?
and which software has the bigger sampler/ loop library?

thanks a lot,

(p)

Hey Money,
Live & Reason are different beasts, and each has their strengths. Both do completely different, and very similar, things. The best option, if you can afford it, is to buy both. You can Rewire Reason to Live. Some points to consider:

1-Live is more of a traditional multitrack sequencer, plus some. It has full VST & MIDI support, so you can add software instruments and effects. Plus, Live is great for working with loops to create grooves. It is compatible with WAV files, so you can drop just about anything in there. It also includes a sampler and drum machine to get you going.

2-Reason is a self contained soft synth workstation. You can play any of the many instruments included, and record as MIDI data. You can also take advantage of the included sampler & drum machine as well.

It really comes down to what type of music you want to record. If you need to record any live input at all, such as vocals, instruments, etc., you need Live. Reason doesn't support external input. However if all you want is to record MIDI data and send to internal instruments, Reason may suit your purposes. While Live can handle VSTi instruments, they do not come with the program, you have to purchase them seperately. Reason comes with LOADS of instruments to play. I am very happy with the Grand Piano, Rhodes, Whurlitzer, strings and brass sounds I've implemented in Live.

Give us some more detailed examples of what you want to record, and we'll try to help you further.

Derek

Sorry, I meant to say I'm happy with the Grand, Rhodes, etc etc sounds in REASON, not Live. Those are instruments I rec'd with Reason or got for free.

hi derek,
thanks for your advice. i'm not into recording any external instruments at all, i just want to create some dope drum loops to make some hiphop instrumentals and maybe some chill out grooves.
so i guess from what i read reason would be better. which of the two has a larger library of loops or samples i can use? as there're both pretty expensive, i won't have the money to buy any new software for some time, as i'm a student.
for me it would come down to which product will offer me most in the hiphop direction.

or would you, for that purpose recommend a totally different software?

thanks,

(p)

Go with Reason for sure. Then when you are ready to record, say you rapping to your beats, then use Live 4.0 and you'd be set.
endless

Don't know about Live, but one of the neatest things about Reason is the large and very supportive online community of Reason users brought together by the Reason website, www.propellerheads.se. People post their compositions that you can download as Reason files and see just how they did it. People are constantly posting ReFills (compressed collections of their patches) and Propellerheads has been very generous with the patches that they include with the program or give away, like their Rhodes ReFill. I have about 2 GB of ReFills I've downloaded (totally legally) through the Propellerheads website and a lot of it is really good. Sounds to me like you'd be working primarily with the REX loop player- plenty of loops available for free and a LOT more available for not a lot of money.
I heartily reccommend Reason, especially as an entry into the world of DAWs.
Good Luck.

hello everybody,

i´m new in this forum - greetings to everybody! i´d also suggest reason. i´m using it since 2001. and it was perfect for me. it´s a cool toy, made for lonely nights when your band just splitted up... and you don´t need anything else no more
i´d say get it.