AdamWathan's Reaper Customizations for Pro Tools Users
- Thread starter AdamWathan
- Start date
John_C
formerly Skeksis268
If you copy the entire roaming/reaper folder and use it to replace the one from another install and then install sws then everything works perfect (at least it did for me from windows 7 to xp). However i think watching the videos really helps understanding so perhaps it's not a great idea to post one
There are massive downsides. For example, how using time selection mode can you just hit record and start recording, then finish recording whenever you feel like it? Time Selection Auto Punch mode only punches in over a time selection, so you need to have a time selection created for it to work properly. If you DON'T have a time selection, it ignores your Input Monitoring setting and monitors input the entire time, even over top of stuff that's already on the track.
It's ONLY use is if you are punching in over a predefined area of time since that's what it's for... You can't really use it to record a track from scratch since there is nothing to punch in :/ And you can't manually punch in either. You can't just punch in, you have to have a punch out point defined as well. Imagine you are recording a drummer, he messes up after the first chorus, you want to punch him in so he can finish the song. You can't. You would have to zoom in, start the time selection, zoom alllll the way out and extend the time selection to some arbitrary point later in the song, then punch in over that whole section :/ Easier to just use regular record mode and hit play, then hit record when you want to punch in, or use my punch in macros that allows you to start the punch in via key command, but you need to be using my project template for that to work :/ Punching in manually in Reaper SUCKS.
I need to be able to punch in WITHOUT punching out, and to be able to do it manually via key command on the fly, so I just stick with normal record mode 99% of the time and am just careful to always punch in BEFORE the actual part I need so my punch ins aren't late :/ Or I use the punch in macros I created.
The big drawbacks to Reaper's take system are the automatic splitting of takes and no take lanes which makes takes super super unorganized. Try punching in several takes that aren't the same length... Watch this vid:
http://screencast.com/t/NmVhMGYwNDAt
I originally didn't understand how it could be better either and I thought it was fine but Logic for example deals with takes MUCH better, and I definitely prefer the Pro Tools way to the Reaper way. About 1 out of every 10 threads on the Reaper Forum is "What the hell is going on with my takes?!"It's ugly ugly ugly ugly man!
thanks for the reply!
as for the takes, well that makes perfect sense, although i guess it's pretty dependent on your recording situation.
i have to disagree about the time selection auto punch thing.
fact is, you can just hit record, and it will start recording REGARDLESS of the time selection. i can't count the times where i still had a time selection going somewhere around like 4 mins in the song, and hit record from the start of the song to record e.g. another rhythm guitar take. it initially appears as if it'S not recording anything, but it is. just change the time selection mid recording and it's all good.
time selection auto punch technically records everything from the start of the transport bar, but only SHOWS the part in the time selection. you can drag and extend that section as well, without limits (obviously not past the start of the recording or the end of it).
i'm not sure how it behaves if you hit record without doing a time selection before that, but i assume that you can just do it mid-recording and it'll record just fine.
as for just punching in, well as i said it doesn't matter. you don't even have to zoom all the way in, just roughly define the start of the time selection where you want to punch in, and give it any amount of lenght, doesn't matter. just record the guy as long as you wish, even if it's not showing you that it recorded him past the time selection, it did! just drag the section to the right, done.
digitaldeath
Member
digitaldeath
Member
John_C
formerly Skeksis268
I've found a (slightly) alternative punch in method that means you don't need Adams default project. Graphically it sucks but functionally it's fine.
In time selection autopunch mode (could be made part of record command)
record
use "time selection: set start point" and "time selection: set end point" to punch in and out
You could then use the command I posted earlier (modified to replace the pt record with the normal reaper record) to reset it to punch in again.
In time selection autopunch mode (could be made part of record command)
record
use "time selection: set start point" and "time selection: set end point" to punch in and out
You could then use the command I posted earlier (modified to replace the pt record with the normal reaper record) to reset it to punch in again.
Yes except the rhythm guitar player WON'T BE ABLE TO HEAR HIMSELF PLAYING because the input monitoring won't occur until the time selection. I would look pretty unprofessional if I tried to make my clients record without being able to hear themselves.
I know. That's why I use time selection auto punch for my hackjob quick punch mode workaround.
Yes but with no time selection, Reaper will ALWAYS monitor the track media while recording EVEN in Tape Style Monitoring mode. So if you are recording over a bad take, the talent will hear the bad take in their headphones WHILE trying to record the new take. Recipe for disaster.
It does matter because you want input monitoring to start at a specific point and you don't want to have to draw a time selection alllllll the way to 7 minutes into the song so the guy can finish recording the whole track AND HEAR HIMSELF IN THE HEADPHONES WHILE HE'S DOING IT....
Yeah except again, he can't hear himself while he's recording if it's outside of the time selection. And if there is NO time selection, then he can hear himself the whole time, but ALSO hear the take underneath the whole time.
Dude, I KNOW that it records everything even if the time selection isn't there. The point is, INPUT MONITORING is broken in that mode when there is no time selection, and when there is a time selection, input monitoring only works inside the time selection (which is how it should work, but makes it useless for punching in with no predefined punch out point.
Look, this explains every reason it sucks:
http://www.adamwathan.com/reaper/whyautopunchmodesucks.swf
Just trust me on this if you can't understand the problems, I am not a novice Reaper user, I know the program inside and out and I know that your solution is no good for me. I need to be able to punch in only with no punch out and I need Reaper to save the data from before the punch in as well, like Quick Punch mode in Pro Tools.
THIS Feature Request is what we actually need: http://forum.cockos.com/project.php?issueid=2497
Reaper should record secretly in the background the whole time in regular Record Mode, just like it does in Time Selection mode when there's a time selection. This would allow MANUAL punching in and out SEVERAL times in one pass, while still keeping the hidden audio.
Sorry man this doesn't work properly. When you set the start point, you also need to set the end point WAY late in the project at the same time. Otherwise input monitoring won't work properly and you will hear all media that is on the track after the punch in point, even though you should ONLY hear what is being newly recorded. Reaper monitors the old media still because there's no actual time selection created.
Here this explains the problem with an example: http://www.adamwathan.com/reaper/forskeksis.swf
I started with your method originally and then realized that punching in needed to create a time selection from the punch point until the end of the song, otherwise you couldn't monitor properly, which I why I needed to save that super late time selection. Annoying but necessary.
Go vote for this PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD:
http://forum.cockos.com/project.php?issueid=2497
Well cut/copy/paste only apply to items in the arrange window, that's just how it works. As far as I know it's impossible to copy markers and tempo markers. You can create a region and then insert a copy of that region somewhere else and it will copy EVERYTHING in the region, but it moves everything around to make space for it:
http://www.adamwathan.com/reaper/digitaldeath-copymarkers.swf
Yeah here it is, it's no different really than the one in the zip, I just made the colors slightly brighter. These are NOT the Pro Tools colors now though, the Pro Tools shades are the darker ones I posted originally.
http://www.adamwathan.com/reaper/PTBright.SWSColor
John_C
formerly Skeksis268
Thanks, hadn't considered the monitoring. It's no big deal for me to be using the default project or to save a time selection in a current project anyhow. Already voted for that, saw it earlier while browsing feature requests. Thanks for the vid, putting me right once again
Thanks, hadn't considered the monitoring. It's no big deal for me to be using the default project or to save a time selection in a current project anyhow. Already voted for that, saw it earlier while browsing feature requests. Thanks for the vid, putting me right once again
Haha well not trying to "put you right" my friend, just saving you the annoyance of discovering later on that it doesn't work properly, trust me I went down exactly the same path a couple months ago when I came back to Reaper full time and tried to get things working properly!
Quick Punch mode is picking up steam fast though so hopefully I can get the devs to implement it soon. In the newest prerelease (3.52) there are actually about 6 new fixes/features that I was directly responsible for
so hopefully I can keep that trend going!
John_C
formerly Skeksis268
^^
haha yeah you do seem to be becoming a driving force with the feature requests. Reaper is finally coming around to being a decent tool for professional work now, which is great
haha yeah you do seem to be becoming a driving force with the feature requests. Reaper is finally coming around to being a decent tool for professional work now, which is great
digitaldeath
Member
digitaldeath
Member
Cheers for the video Adam. Yeah, I suppose I should have explained.
Often I might want to completely rearrange a song's structure, no problem once everything's done to a click and I can suitably crossfade etc.
Eg. I want to move an entire section (say chorus) to an earlier place in the project, your vid shows copying the region (with a ripple-editing on side-effect). I'm not in front of Reaper at the mo, but is it possible to cut and paste this region?
FloridaRolf
W.A.T.
Well you can drag regions around to rearrange the whole song structure quite effectively. You can't actually cut it and paste it, but if you drag it somewhere else you get the exact same effect. Region rearranging is like a permanent ripple mode thing so if you drag a region somewhere else, the place where it was before closes up and Reaper makes room for it wherever you drop it by sliding the other stuff around it to a new place.
digitaldeath
Member
digitaldeath
Member
Any help with this would be appreciated. I just like how the PT click cuts through everything.
Which click sound in PT do you use specifically? There's a ton of different preset click sounds in the Click plugin and even more in TL Metro!
I haven't actually hooked up my Profire 2626 in like a week but next time I set up in the studio I'll bounce out whatever you'd like. There's another testament to Reaper, I can do all my editing from bed using onboard sound no problem, which is why I haven't stepped foot in the studio in days
