General
The popular Swedish company, Propellerhead, has expanded their Reason line up with the release of their Reason 9.5 production software. Thanks to its ease of use and integrated functionality, this package has been getting lots of attention since the release of the very first version back in 2000. You'll find that the time stretcher in the sequencer portion of the software has been improved in version 9.5. If you fancy travelling around in new worlds of interesting sounds, then you're sure to be pleased with the 1000 new sounds in this release! The software has also been given a makeover, and now you can choose a visual theme to suit your mood and style.
Players in Reason 9.5
While Reason 9.5 of course has regular bug fixes and small new things here and there, the new Players really take front and centre in this release. These new types of racks aren't geared toward virtual instruments, but rather MIDI data (the notes you play). The Dual Arpeggiator has a pattern mode for creating polyrhythmic patterns, which opens up the possibilities for making mock-ups on the fly, almost like you're playing the keyboard. The Note Echo feature is a MIDI delay that allows you to change the strength and the pitch at the start of the echo, for instance. Scales & Chords is a fun new feature too; you indicate the key (e.g. C major) and the effect makes sure everything stays neatly within that key.
The story of Reason
There are tons of DAW packages out there with all of the possibilities you could imagine. It's not always easy to find your way, but Reason offers a ready-made way: the Reason way. It's a total solution that gives you all kinds of virtual synthesizers and effects that you can then combine. Simply put, Reason makes it possible to turn your musical ideas into a complete mixed finished product, without you having to add extra products to the process. Propellerhead has been successfully promoting this formula since December of 2000, when the first version of Reason came out.
VST support
As well as new sounds, Reason has also been given updated ReFills. Reason-users everywhere have expressed a wish for VST support, and the software designers have finally complied in version 9.5. With it, you can gain access to an immense library of software that is free as well as commercial. Professionals have been working with these virtual instruments for years, and now you can too!