REB ReFill Manual

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Reason Electric Bass ReFill Manual



Manual by Fredrik HylvanderPhoto by Johanna Hanno

The information in this document is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on the part of Propellerhead Software AB. The software described herein issubject to a License Agreement and may not be copied to any other media expect as specifically allowed in the License Agreement. No part of this publication may be copied, reproducedor otherwise transmitted or recorded, for any purpose, without prior written permission by Propellerhead Software AB.

Note: Trademarks referred to within the Reason product are the property of their respective trademark holders. None of these trademarks holders are affiliated with Propellerhead SoftwareAB or our products. The referrals to these trademarks do not in any way constitute trademark use. Nor does the use of these trademarks intend to explore the goodwill associated with thesetrademarks.

©2008 Propellerhead Software and its licensors. All specifications subject to change without notice. Reason and ReFill are trademarks of Propellerhead Software. All other commercialsymbols are protected trademarks and trade names of their respective holders. All rights reserved.



Reason Electric Bass

Reason Electric Bass ReFill Manual



REASON ELECTRIC BASS REFILL MANUAL2

Table of contents3 Getting started6 Introduction

8 The best of the best18 Hypersampling19 Using Reason Electric Bass41 ReFill folder index43 Credits



REASON ELECTRIC BASS REFILL MANUAL 3

Getting startedSystem requirements

Due to the size and complexity of Reason Electric Bass (henceforth re-ferred to as REB), this ReFill is not suited for low-end systems lacking the

processing power and memory required for using REB without hitchesand glitches.

The minimum system requirements for REB are as follows:

Windows:

Windows XP or Vista• Reason 4.0.1 or later• Intel P4 1.4 GHz / AMD Athlon XP

• 1 GB RAM• 1 GB free hard disk space (for the 16-bit ReFill versions)• 16-bit Windows compatible audio card• DVD drive

Mac OS:

• Mac OS X 10.4 or later• Reason 4.0.1 or later• Intel Mac• 1 GB RAM

• 1 GB free hard disk space (for the 16-bit ReFill versions)• DVD drive

The recommended system requirements for REB are as follows:

Windows:

• Windows XP or Vista• Reason 4.0.1 or later• Intel P4 2.4 GHz

• 2 GB RAM• 4 GB free hard disk space (for the 24-bit ReFill versions)• Low-latency ASIO compatible sound card• DVD drive• 4-octave MIDI keyboard with MIDI interface• Sustain pedal

Mac OS:

• Mac OS X 10.4 or later• Reason 4.0.1 or later

• Intel Mac• 2 GB RAM• 4 GB free hard disk space (for the 24-bit ReFill versions)• DVD drive• 4-octave MIDI keyboard with MIDI interface• Sustain pedal




DVD-ROM contents – overview

The REB ReFill comes on two separate DVDs - one containing the 24-bitversion and the other containing the 16-bit version. The file and folderstructure is exactly the same on both DVDs.

In the root directory of the DVD-ROM you will find the following:

D Reason Electric Bass.rfl (file)

D Reason Electric Bass Samples 1 -16.rfl (file)


OR:

D Reason Electric Bass.rfl (file)



The contents are identical, with one major exception: The sample formats- 16- and 24-bit, respectively. The two ReFills are 100% interchangeable,however they cannot co-exist in a location Reason is aware of, so if youplan on alternating between the two you must place the one you're notusing for the moment outside of your designated ReFill locations (moreon this in the following section, “Installation”).

ReadMe.rtf (file)

A “Read Me” document, containing important last minute notes about the

Reason Electric Bass DVD-ROM.

REB Documentation (folder)

Contains this Reason Electric Bass ReFill Manual and a Key Map in pdfformat.

REB Demo Material

Contains Reason version 4 demo songs (rps and wav) and demosequences (rns and wav).

REB Instrument Auditions

Contains audio snippets of a few bars of each bass instrument in wavformat.

Other Propellerhead products (folder)

Here you’ll find demo versions and info about additional products byPropellerhead Software.




Installation

Simply drag all three ReFill files of the DVD-ROM of your choice (the 24-bit versions or the 16-bit versions) to the folder where you keep your Re-Fills. That’s it!

! It’s important that you drag all three .rfl files to your com-puter. If any of the Reason Electric Bass Samples files should be missing in the folder on your computer, the factorypatches might not load.

Which one should I choose – 24 or 16 bits?

In order to determine which ReFill version to pick, you need to considerthe following questions:

• Is your computer powerful enough to handle 24 bits? (CPU speed,system bandwidth, RAM size, audio card…)

• Do you have any practical or creative need for the 24-bit format?

• Are you prepared to dedicate the disk space required for the 24-bitversion?• Are you concerned about workflow issues such as loading and brows-

ing time?

If the answer to two or more of the above questions is no, the choice iseasy - pick the 16-bit version. Conversely, if the answer to all four ques-tions is yes, opt for the 24-bit version. If you're still undecided, you maywant to consider this solution: Use the 16-bit version while you're com-posing, arranging and mixing, and once you're ready and set to render anaudio mixdown you can temporarily replace the 16-bit version with the24-bit version.

Since the above four questions are non-issues for offline rendering, whenReason works at whatever pace the computer can handle, this methodgives you the best of both worlds - efficiency, speed and power conserva-tion during the creative stage, and supreme audio quality at the mixdownstage.

! Note: As the 16-bit /24-bit REB ReFills are designed to be in-

terchangeable, all data except the sample bit rate is identicaland therefore the ReFills cannot co-exist in any locationwhere Reason scans for ReFills, such as the Reason pro-gram folder, the Desktop, or any additional folders you haveadded to the Locations pane in the Reason browser. If youplan on alternating between the two, the version not in usemust always be kept outside of Reason's jurisdiction!

If you have a computer with lots of power and bandwidth, you can safelygo for the big version, and enjoy the REB ReFill in 24 bits at all times!




Introduction

Reason Electric Bass ReFill is designed to be the ultimate source forelectric bass sounds for any type of contemporary music. The ReasonElectric Bass ReFill is also designed to be the most playable product evermade for people who want to lay down their own electric bass lines in amusic software. And the only product which provides real, world-classstudio-ready, production sounds - with Hypersampling control.

With the Reason Electric Bass ReFill we are solving difficult tasks like thehandling of alternate notes, hammer-ons, glissandos, slides, mutes, ghostnotes, fret noise etc. The Reason Electric Bass ReFill takes care of allthese issues and provides you with the ultimate production-ready electricbass library.

Total sound control

With the Reason Electric Bass Refill you have access to a selection ofsome of the finest electric bass instruments ever produced - capturedthrough parallel signal chains that include some of the true heavyweightsin the amp and microphone business.

Parallel signal chains make it possible to swiftly create a tailor made

sound and feel for your bass without possessing professional sound engi-neer skills.




Reason Electric Bass ReFill comes with a wide variety of Combinator Pre-set patches that allow you to pick a bass and then easily blend differentamp and mic combinations to change the total character of the sound.

There is also a selection of Combinator Style patches divided into differ-ent musical styles to make it easier to find the perfect sound for your pro-ductions.

By providing parallel signal chains and thus replicating a professional re-cording situation, REB lets you be both the musician and the engineer atthe same time. REB gives you all the control you would have in a profes-sional studio - with the added benefit of total recall of not only the mixersettings, but in fact the whole package; the bass, the amp, the micro-phones, the effects, everything exactly the way you left it. The illustrationbelow shows the various signal chains that are available in the Reason

Electric Bass ReFill. For more detailed info, see page 16.

Bridge Pickup

Ampeg Fliptop

Fender Showman

Neck Pickup

DI Box DI Box

DI Box

Fender Precision x 2

Gibson Les Paul

Stingray Fretless

Gibson EB0

Kay Hollowbody

Fender Jazz Bass

Rickenbacker 4001

Didrik M49

Subkick

Neumann U47

Coles 4038

AKG D12

Didrik M49

Shure SM57

Coles 4038




The best of the bestWith the emphasis on sonic and creative realism, it is vital that every com-ponent along the path from the bass guitar strings to your computer is thebest of the best - no weak links anywhere.

We therefore took the utmost care in assuring that the studio, the record-

ing gear, the instruments, and last but not least the talent involved, wastop notch across the board.

More than 25 years of experience of electric bass recording assures theabsolute best combinations of instruments, amp rigs, microphones, micpreamps, mixer and recording equipment.

Aces of basses

Our first goal was to gather a representative selection of fine electric bassmodels. We wanted a wide range of basses, with different character, tocover different musical styles. We therefore contacted one of the most re-

nowned session bass players in Sweden, Sven Lindvall, to see what hewould suggest. Sven took a tour around his studio and returned with theimpressive collection presented on the following pages. All instrumentsexcept for the Rickenbacker are owned by Sven.

Fender Jazz Bass - 1968(played with the fingers)

One of the most recorded bassmodels of all times. This partic-ular instrument is in originalcondition with no parts ex-

changed.Pickups: two bipole pickupsconnected in parallel.

Strings: Ernie Ball Nickel RoundWound (a couple of monthsold).

Character: Very dynamic basswhich sounds very different de-pending on playing style and istherefore suited for a wide vari-ety of musical styles. Very directsound with lots of presence.

Famous users: Flea (Red HotChili Peppers), Geddy Lee(Rush), Leland Sklar, Jaco Pastorius.




Fender Precision - 1965(played with the fingers)

The Fender Precision bass wasthe first mass-produced electricbass model and is probably themost best-selling electric bass

of all times. The first “P-bass”shipped in 1951 and it’s stillbeing manufactured today.

The P-bass with flat woundstrings played with the fingersproduces the typical warm and“round” ‘60/’70 R’n’B andMotown sound.

This particular instrument wassampled played with fingers andthere is hardly any distortion in

the samples - not even in theloudest velocity layers.

Pickups: 2 single coil (1 pick-upfor 2 strings) that work like a humbucker.

Strings: Ernie Ball Flatwound for less overtones and more “round” tone.

Character: Very deep and warm sound with characteristic mid-range andonly a little high end.

Famous users: James Jameson (The Funk Brothers, Motown), Donald“Duck” Dunn (Stax), Pino Palladino.

Fender Precision - 1978(played with a pick)

This P-bass is very similar to the1965 P-bass described on theprevious page. The big differ-ence in sound mainly depends

on the round wound strings andthe fact that it’s played with apick. It also has a maple fretboard which gives it a harderand more transient tone.

Pickups: 2 single coil (1 pick-upfor 2 strings) that work like ahumbucker.

Strings: Ernie Ball RoundWound.

Character: The round woundstrings played with a pick makesthe sound very rich in overtones,perfect for rock, new wave andpunk music.

Famous users: Adam Clayton (U2), Geezer Butler (Black Sabbath), Sid Vi-cious (Sex Pistols).




Gibson EB-0 - 1972(played with the fingers)

The short scale EB-0 is one ofGibson’s most popular bassmodels and was manufacturedbetween 1959 and 1979. The

design is very similar to the pop-ular Gibson SG electric guitar.

Pickups: one EB humbucker.

Strings: Ernie Ball RoundWound.

Character: The EB-0 is re-nowned for its deep and fatsound. It’s very suitable for dis-torted sound.

Famous users: Jack Bruce

(Cream), Bill Wyman (RollingStones), Glen Cornick (JethroTull), Andy Fraser (Free), KimGordon (Sonic Youth).

Gibson Les Paul - 1969(played with the fingers)

An American medium scale basswith British sound manufacturedbetween ‘69 and ‘71. The bodyis made out of solid mahogany,

set 3-piece mahogany neck withrosewood fretboard. Due to itsheavy weight the Les Paul bassis more popular in the studiothan on stage.

The first Les Paul bass was alow-impedance instrumentwhich required a transformer toplay through standard amps. Theoutput impedance on this partic-ular instrument has been mod-

ded to suit standard amps,though. In the REB only the sig-nal from the neck pickup wassampled. On the other hand, it’sthe neck pickup that provides the characteristic Les Paul sound.

Pickups: Two humbucking pickups that were modded to high-impedance.The REB only uses the neck pickup.

Strings: Ernie Ball 5-string vintage round wound set (more than 10 yearsold). The thinnest string is not used.

Character: “Plunky” sound which sits right in the mix. A lot of mid and lowend with a distinctive attack. Sounds similar to a hollowbody bass.

Famous users: Suzie Quatro




Kay Hollowbody - 1963(played with a pick)

The Kay Hollowbody electricbasses were sold on mail orderin the US and were quite inex-pensive. Because of the low

price the Kay bass could befound almost anywhere in stu-dios across the US and has ap-peared on many recordings overthe years.

This model (in very good condi-tion) was chosen for the REB forits “dirty” and “muted” ‘60s”sound. It was played slightlymuted with a pick, and only withdown-strokes.

Pickups: Gibson Thunderbirdhumbucker.

Strings: Pyramid Gold Flat-wound.

Character: A “plunky”, hollow sound similar to that of the Les Paul bass.

Famous users: No-one that we know of by name but it has appeared onnumerous recordings.

Music Man StingRay 5- 5 string fretless - 2001(played with the fingers)

The MusicMan StingRay firstcame out in 1976 and was de-signed by Leo Fender. It was

one of the first production elec-tric basses with active electron-ics. It featured a 9V battery topower the built-in preamp andEQ. This particular instrument isa 5-string, fretless one and wassampled without the character-istic vibrato.

Pickups: MusicMan Humbuckeractive.

Strings: D'Addario StainlessFlatwound.

Character: The StingRay doesn’tproduce the traditional “fretless”sound but a more solid and “round” tone with fantastic frequency re-sponse. When you play chords on the StingRay the notes harmonize ex-tremely well together.

Famous users: Tony Levin, Mick Karn (Japan), Louis Johnson (BrothersJohnson), Pino Palladino.




Rickenbacker 4001- 1974(played with a pick)

Rickenbacker guitars andbasses have very unique designwhich make them easy to spot

wherever they appear. The verypopular 4001 model first cameout in 1961 and this particularred/white Rickenbacker 4001bass was manufactured in1974. It’s owned and played bySwedish bassist Stefan Fandén.

Pickups: one humbucker(bridge) and retrofitted with aToaster (neck).

Strings: Elixir .040-.095 Super

Light round wound withNanoweb coating.

Character: Rickenbacker basseshave a very distinctive tone with a rich frequency content - almost piano-like. The 4001 bass has a neck-through construction for really solid sus-tain.

Famous users: Chris Squire (Yes), Geddy Lee (Rush), Lemmy (Motör-head), Roger Glover (Deep Purple), Paul McCartney, Roger Waters (PinkFloyd).




The amp rigs

Ampeg B-15 S

Portaflex BassCombo

The Ampeg Portaflex"flip-top" bass ampbecame very popularin the ‘60s. This all-tube amp model hasbeen used on thou-sands of classic re-cordings and is stillone of the favorites inrecording studiosworld-wide.

This B-15 S Combohas a powerful 70watt RMS output fedinto a 15" bass reflexspeaker.

The powerful, warmand “vintage” sound makes the Ampeg bass amps mighty popular amongbass players and recording studios around the world.

FenderShowman“Black face” -64

The Fender Showmanis a very popular all-round amplifier de-

signed for use withelectric guitars,electric bass guitarsand keyboards.

The Fender Showmanrig has a warm “all-round” character witha lot of presence - butnot so much low endas the Ampeg B-15 S.The Showman can

also be forced to dis-tort quite easily whichis very nice in manysituations.

The 50 W RMS outputfrom the Showmanamp is fed to the two 12” elements in the cabinet.

Because of its character the Fender Showman rig was chosen as a nice“sonic counter-part” to the Ampeg rig.




The mics

The amp rigs were captured using a setup of tried and true microphonesincluding Neumann U47 FET, Didrik DeGeer M49, Coles 4038, ShureSM57, AKG D12 and Yamaha SKRM-100 Subkick.

The list below shows with which amp rig the mics were used.

AKG D12

Introduced in 1953, the AKG D12 was the world's first dynamic cardioidmic with a "unidirectional" design. It was based on new developments inmicrophone technology which extended the frequency response deeperinto the bass range. The transducer has a special "bass chamber" thatboosts the lower frequencies in the 60-120 Hz range giving it a full, roundbass end.

| Source | Microphone

Ampeg B-15 rig 1 x Neumann U47 FET

1 x Didrik De Geer M49

1 x Coles 4038

1 x Yamaha SKRM-100 Subkick

| Source | Microphone

Fender Showman rig 1 x Shure SM57

1 x Didrik De Geer M49

1 x AKG D12

1 x Coles 4038




Coles 4038

Also known as the “horse shoe” for its shape, the Coles 4038 is a modernclassic and studio favorite among ribbon microphones. Originally designedby BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) some 40 years ago and stillmanufactured today by Coles Electroacoustics.

Didrik De Geer M49Hand crafted tube microphone by Swedish inventor Didrik De Geer. Atrue “Rolls Royce” of microphones with only a handful built.

Neumann U47 FET

A true microphone classic, ideal for recording bass guitars. Originally avalve microphone which was later “upgraded” with a FET transistor due tolack of suitable valves. One of the most sought after microphones in pro-fessional studios.

Shure SM57

One of the most popular microphones in recording studios. The SM57 is adynamic microphone with a cardioid, directional pattern. It doesn’t requirephantom power and it’s very sensitive to direction. The SM57 is perfect forrecording loud sources such as drums and amp rigs.

Yamaha SKRM-100 Subkick

Consists of a 6.5" speaker shock-mounted into a 10" drum shell and re-verse-wired to an XLR jack to convert the speaker diaphragm into a mi-crophone diaphragm. The Subkick picks up the low-end that a normalmicrophone can't - from a bass guitar cabinet, for example.

The mic preamps and DI-boxes

Chandler TG2

The Chandler TG2 is a recreation of the EMI TG12428 preamp used inEMI/Abbey Road recording and mastering consoles in the late 60's andearly 70's. In our setup the TG2 was used together with the Didrik

DeGeer M49 tube microphone.

API 512C

The API 512C is a discrete mic/line preamp by the company AutomatedProcesses Inc. The API 512C was used together with the Shure SM57and Yamaha SKRM-100 Subkick microphones.

Avalon U5

A high-voltage DI-preamp by the company Avalon Design. The U5 wasused as DI-box when recording the REB basses.

Fairman TMA

A tube microphone preamp by Danish company Fairman. In our setup theFairman TMA was used together with the AKG D12 and Neumann U47microphones.

Fairman TRC MkII

A tube recording channel unit by Danish company Fairman. The TRC wasused as DI-box when recording the REB basses.

REDDI Tube Direct Box

Tube DI box by the company A Designs Audio. The REDDI was used asDI-box when recording the REB basses.




The signal chains

The basses and amp rigs were recorded using parallel signal chains fortotal sonic flexibility. The figures below show the signal chains for the twobass amp rigs. We used slightly different signal chains for basses withdouble pickups and single pickups.

The figure above shows the signal chains, including the mic preamps, for the six single-pickup basses. The pickup signal is split three-ways - two to the amps and one direct signal to Pro Tools.

For the two double-pickup basses we split the signal so that the neckpickup was routed to the Ampeg rig and the bridge pickup to the Fenderrig. The two signals were also split and sent directly to Pro Tools.

The figure above shows the signal chains, including the mic preamps, for the two double-pickup basses. The pickup signals are routed to separate amps and also split and routed directly to Pro Tools.

Ampeg Fliptop

Fender Showman

DI Box

Fender Precision x 2Gibson Les PaulStingray Fretless

Gibson EB0Kay Hollowbody

Didrik M49

Subkick

Coles 4038

AKG D12

Didrik M49

Shure SM57

Fairman TMA

SSL 9000

SSL 9000

Chandler TG2

Chandler TG2

Fairman TMA

API 512C

API 512C

Coles 4038

Neumann U47

Pro Tools

Fairman TMA

Pro Tools

SSL 9000

SSL 9000

Chandler TG2

Chandler TG2

Fairman TMA

API 512C

API 512C

Bridge Pickup

Ampeg Fliptop

Fender Showman

Neck Pickup

DI Box

Fender Jazz BassRickenbacker 4001

DI Box

Didrik M49

Subkick

Neumann U47

Coles 4038

AKG D12

Didrik M49

Shure SM57

Coles 4038




As you can see, we ended up with quite a lot of signals - nine from eachsingle-pickup bass and ten from each double-pickup bass! The samplesfrom all these signal chains can now be freely selected and blended sim-ply by choosing the corresponding set of NN-XT samples in our ready-made Combinator Templates patches. The sample sets are sorted in fold-ers divided into separate amp and mic configurations for each bass model.

Most of the Combinator factory presets combine signals from both amp

rigs in each preset. Since the sonic characteristics of the Fender and Am-peg amp rigs are quite different, possibilities arise to blend signals fromboth rigs and produce very nice-sounding and unique bass sounds.

All instruments, with their different amp and mic configurations, weresampled in several velocity layers and with different playing techniquessuch as hammer-ons, glissandos, alternate notes, slides etc. to form themost complete, dynamic and “live” electric bass instruments ever made forcomputers.

The studio

Reason Electric Bass was recorded at Mandarine Studios in Stockholm.The Mandarine Studios is a modern state of the art recording facility

equipped with an SSL 9000 console and an outstanding array of out-board gear. The recording equipment consists of a Pro Tools HD system.

The people

D Sven Lindvall, bass playerSven is one of Scandinavia’s most well renowned and sought afterbass players and has worked with numerous Scandinavian and inter-national pop and rock artists over the years.

D Niklas Flyckt, engineerNiklas is one of Sweden’s most respected engineers and has re-

corded and mixed some of the most famous artists in the world.




HypersamplingMultisampling is the established standard for digital representation of an-alog instruments. While it has been refined somewhat over the years, mul-tisampling still has a few shortcomings:

• The dynamic resolution is often too limited, failing to capture the sub-

tle nuances between the steps.• Typically, a single microphone (or, at best, a merged signal from multi-

ple microphones) is used, leaving the recording distance, ambienceand character set in stone.

• You usually get only one sample per “velocity span”, while a real in-strument sounds slightly different for every pluck, stroke or beat (evenwhen played at a static velocity level)

• Instruments can be played with countless approaches and techniques,yet multisampling typically only offers the basic archetypes. At best,you get a couple of velocity layers, but these only represent a tinyfraction of all the sound variations you can get out of an analog instru-

ment.So, how could we bring something fresh to the table?

The answer: Hypersampling. We like to refer to it as multi-dimensionalsampling, because it gives you complete control over many aspects of in-strument reproduction that used to be out of reach for the end user.

What is Hypersampling?

D Multiple velocity levelsFor capturing the full dynamic range of each instrument.

D Multiple microphones and signal chainsFor capturing, controlling and blending the characters of various ampsand mics.

D Multiple same-velocity samplesAlternation between similar sounding samples, for a more realisticperformance.

D Multiple variation samplingCapturing the different playing techniques, sound attributes andnoises that make the instrument come alive.




Using Reason Electric Bass

Reason Electric Bass has been designed with a broad spectrum of musi-cal styles in mind, and has multiple entry points to accommodate the dif-

ferent needs of different user categories. Here is a brief summary of theREB contents:

• Preset Basses - Combinator patches based on each of the eightbasses form the heart of REB. The Combinator patches are stored inseparate subfolders for each of the basses.

• Producer Basses - virtual “signature basses” created by professionalmusic producers.

• Style Basses - Combinator patches designed to serve as “quickstart”platforms for various musical styles.

• Template Patches - “Build your own bass sound” templates.• Separate Mics - these NN-XT patches of individual instruments and

signal chains are the building blocks of the Preset and Style patches.• Effect Patches - effect patches tailor-made for electric basses.

• Demo Songs (rps) - ready-made demo songs that show how the REBbasses can be use in a context with other instruments.

• Demo Sequences (rns) - Reason song files that show how you caneasily build up bass lines using the different attributes of the REB.

The Bass Patches folder

Inside this folder are five subfolders. Four of them contain Combinatorpatches - Preset, Style, Producer and Template. The fifth folder, SeparateMics, contains the NN-XT patches that the Combinator patches are builtfrom.

q A complete folder index can be found on page 41.

D Preset Basses contains Combinator patches representingthe eight featured basses, in 2-3 variations with differentcombinations of signal chains.The Preset Basses consist of Combinator patches based on each ofthe eight recorded basses of REB. The Preset Bass patches arestored in separate subfolders for each of the basses. The signalchains (amp+mic) combinations are indicated in the patch name. Inmost cases several signal chains are mixed and blended to create re-ally heavy bass sounds. These basses also represent an ideal startingpoint for making up user patches.

D Producer Basses contains Combinator patches exclusivelymade by professional music producers.Combinator patches with specific routing and effects all according tothe creative choices and preferences of the designers.




D Style Basses contains Combinator patches organized by music style.The Style Basses consist of Combinator patches based on differentmusical styles or on styles of artists/bands or songs. In most casesseveral signal chains are mixed and blended to achieve really charac-teristic bass sounds.

D Template Patches contains different “build your own bass”

templates, with signal chain configuration variations.This is the virtual bass shop where you go when you want to replaceindividual sets of bass samples in the ready-made template, or whenyou want to build your own basses from scratch. The intended modeof use is to load up a Template Patch and then select NN-XT patchesfor each instrument from the Separate Mics folder.

D Separate Mics (NN-XT) - this subfolder contains folders foreach of the eight featured basses, with subfolders for each signal chain. Each signal chain subfolder contains three setsof samples: regular sustained notes, hammer-ons and glissando notes.

This is the virtual bass shop where you can hand pick different sets ofsamples and build your own custom basses, either entirely fromscratch or by using the Template Kits.

The Effect Patches folder

Scream 4, RV7000 and Combinator effect patches

Scream 4 distortion, RV7000 reverb and Combinator effect patches in-cluding various effect devices. Classic bass effects as well as custom-made ones.

The Sequencer Material folder

A collection of demo songs for various genres is found here. There arealso a couple of demo sequences that show how bass lines could be con-structed using the various attributes in REB.

Demo Songs

Reason song files (.rps) featuring complete arrangements: Combinators,loaded with sounds, and all routing ready-made - mixer, effects, EQ, com-pression, various tweaks - everything fine tuned for a particular musicstyle.

Demo Sequences

Here you’ll find a number of Reason demo sequences (.rns) that showhow you could easily build up bass lines using the different attributes inthe REB. The Demo Sequences show, for example, how you can start byrecording the bass notes on one Note Lane and then continue adding

variations, fret noise, slides and various attributes on additional NoteLanes to bring the bass line “to life”.




Playing Reason Electric Bass

To take full advantage of the REB Combinator patches there are somethings that need to be explained about the keyboard layout, sample map-ping and playing technique etc. The REB takes Hypersampling to a newlevel by introducing key switches for alternating sample sets and playingtechniques. By using the Mod, FX & Noise keys while playing the regularbass notes you will truly reach new levels in realism!

Keyboard layout for Combinator patches

The Preset Basses, Style Basses, Producer Basses and all CombinatorTemplate patches are mapped according to the keyboard layout in the fig-ure below.

Keys C0-C#1 are used for FX, fret noise and for modifying the sound.Keys D1-C4 play back the regular bass notes whereas keys D4-C7 playback the D1-C4 note range using alternate notes. Both the regular D1-C4 notes and the D4-C7 notes make use of release samples - samplesthat trig from key releases - to add even more realism. Keys C#7-G7 areused for additional slides.

FX & Noise

The FX & Noise section of the keyboard, keys C0-B1, is used to producevarious types of slide effect sounds and fret noise.

D Slides

The slides on keys C0-E0 are the characteristic “wroom” sound gen-erated when playing full neck slides. There are five slide variations,with different directions and speed.

D Fret noiseFret noise is the different types of noise that appear when you moveyour fingers on the fret board from one position to another. The fretnoise sample selection is controlled by velocity.

D GhostGhost notes are the sound that occurs when damping a string. Thereis one ghost note per string (E, A, D, G) and there are also several ve-

locity layers.

FX & Noise

H a m m e r - O n

ModSlides GhostFret Original Notes

Modifiers & Notes

Alternate NotesAdditional

Slides

C0 C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7

G l i s s a n d o

U p - d o w n

U p - d o w n f a s t

D o w n f a s t

G h o s t G

G h o s t A

F r e t n o i s e

F r e t n o i s e

D o w n

U p

G h o s t E

G h o s t D

F r e t n o i s e

FX & Noise

H a m m e r - O n

ModSlides GhostFret Original Not

C0 C1 C2

G l i s s a n d o

U p - d o w n

U p - d o w n f a s t

D o w n f a s t

G h o s t G

G h o s t A

F r e t n o i s e

F r e t n o i s e

D o w n

U p

G h o s t E

G h o s t D

F r e t n o i s e




Mod & Original notes

The Mod keys C1-C#1 are used to introduce Hammer-on and Glissandosamples (see below). Keys D1-C4 are used for playing back the originalbass note samples.

D Sustained notesThese are the regular bass note samples. The notes of each of the in-struments were sampled very tightly in the note range and with sev-eral velocity layers to guarantee authentic playback.

D Hammer-onHammer-on is the thinner sound you get when you quickly press astring against the fretboard with your fret hand without plucking thestring with your other hand. The Hammer-On (C1) key works as an al-ternating switch, enabling you to switch between regular sustainedplucked notes and hammer-on notes when playing in the D1-C4 andD4-C7 ranges. The hammer-on notes also use several velocity layers.

q Hammer-ons are perfect for altering the tone slightly for amore “live” feel when playing bass lines.

D GlissandoGlissando is the sound you get when you slide the finger on the fretboard from one fret to another while the string is still sounding. TheGlissando key (C#1) works as an alternating switch. By pressing theGlissando key while playing notes in the D1-C4 and D4-C7 ranges, awhole note glissando is introduced for every played note. The direc-tion of the glissando is from down a whole note up to the played note.The Glissando notes also use several velocity layers.

D Release samplesThe release samples are the sound that occur when you release thestring with the fret hand and at the same time damp the string withthe other hand. In all factory Combinator patches there are releasesamples for every note. The release samples have been very carefullyprogrammed to faithfully reproduce the behavior in various playingtechniques. The release samples use several velocity layers.

H a m m e r - O n

Mod Original Notes

Modifiers

C1 C2 C3 C4

G l i s s a n d o




Alternate notes

Keys D4-C7 play back the D1-C4 note range using alternate samples.Like with the original notes the Mod keys C1-C#1 can be used to intro-duce Hammer-on and Glissando samples instead. In all factory Combina-

tor patches there are also release samples for the alternate notes.D Same note repeats

By using a sustain pedal with your master keyboard you can simulate“tied note repeats”. By pressing the sustain pedal and playing thesame note alternating between the “original notes” keys (D1-C4) andthe “alternate notes” keys (D4-C7) you’ll get the effect of repeatedlyplaying the same note without dampening in between. For example, ifyou want to play the lowest D note in a tied fashion, press the sustainpedal and play the D1 and D4 keys alternately.

q To avoid overlapping notes when playing at fast tempos andusing the sustain pedal, try playing short, staccato-likenotes. You could also dampen the notes slightly using theMod Wheel (see ‘Mod Wheel’ in the next column).

Additional slides

Within the key range C#7-G7 you’ll find additional full neck slides.

Performance Controllers

D Pitch BendThe pitch bend range is set to +/- 2 semitones in all patches by de-fault.

D Mod WheelBy using the Mod Wheel on your master keyboard you can simulatedamped notes (strings) in the original and alternate note ranges. Theamount of damping is controlled with the Mod Wheel. Note that on theStingRay Fretless bass the Mod Wheel controls vibrato instead.

D AftertouchIn all factory Combinator patches, Channel Pressure (Aftertouch) con-trols vibrato.

s & Notes

Alternate Notes

C5 C6 C7

NotesAdditional

Slides

C6 C7




Sequencer recording tips

Since the REB offers all these great tools for modifying and bringing lifeto your bass lines, it could probably be a little tricky to record everything inone take. A very convenient working method when recording REB bassesin the Reason version 4 main sequencer is to first record the actual bassnotes on one lane in the track. Then, add Modifiers (glissandos and ham-mer-ons), ghost notes and fret noises on additional lanes to “authenticate”

the bass line. This way it will be much easier to get the effects and noisesin their correct positions and also much easier to edit the bass track after-wards.

q Check out the demos in the Sequencer Material folder to seehow the bass tracks are built up!

The Combinator Panel

The Combinator patches in the Bass Patches folder use a uniform Com-binator panel design, with similar parameter assignments, to make it easyto tweak the sounds. This is what the panel looks like:.

D Rotaries 1 and 2Rotaries 1 and 2 are not supposed to be tweaked since they are as-signed to the key switching functionality which selects hammer-onand glissando notes - thus the crossed-over hand symbol. The keyswitching should instead be controlled from the C1-C#1 keys on themaster keyboard.

D Rotary 3In the Preset patches Rotary 3 controls the EQ setting - from flat to

rich.

D Rotary 4Rotary 4 controls compression amount in Preset patches with single-pickup basses. In patches featuring double-pickup basses Rotary 4controls the neck/bridge pickup signal blending.

D Buttons 1-4In the Preset patches Button 1 is unassigned and can be assigned bythe user. Button 2 controls Compression On/Off, Button 3 controlsSub or Mid Boost and Button 4 controls Compression reaction time(Off = Slow, On = Fast).




The Preset Basses

There are 2-3 Preset Bass Combinator patches for each instrumentmodel. Each patch can feature several signal chains (amp+mic) that youcould blend using the 14:2 Mixer in the Combinator and, for the double-pickup basses, Rotary 4 on the Combinator panel. The (F) or (P) after thebass model name indicates whether the instrument was played with thefingers or with a pick.

q It’s also possible to replace the default signal chains withothers by loading other sets of NN-XT samples. This is described in detail on page 33 and page 36.

The Preset Basses are the following:

| Bass | Name | Comments

FenderJazz (F)

Jazz N&B A|M49+F|SM57 The M49 with its open sound blendsnaturally with the narrow bandwidthSM57 in this patch.

Jazz N&B DI+A|M49+F|D12 This is an all-round patch which in-cludes the DI and AKG D12 mic onthe bridge pickup and the nice fullfrequency Didrik M49 on the neckpickup. With Blend control.

Jazz N&B DI+A|Sub+A|U47+F|Coles+F|D12

A big patch with many channels.Both pickups are represented in DIas well as two mics each. The Sub-kick and D12 gives the lower end aboost and the U47 and Coles repre-sent the high end. Blend to taste.

FenderPrecision (F)

P Bass F A|M49 A single mic patch with the DidrikM49 mic that captures the instru-ment and amp in full glory.

P Bass FDI+A|Coles+F|Coles

DI and one Coles mic each on theamps. The sound of the Coles isunique and can really be heard here.

FenderPrecision (P)

P Bass P A|M49+F|D12 The M49 captures the nuances ofthe instrument through the Ampegperfectly, while the grittier FenderShowman is represented by the D12.The two are very well balanced in thispatch.

P Bass P DI+A|U47+F|Coles The fat combination Ampeg - U47 isbalanced with the Showman - Coleswith a touch of DI. Makes for a versa-tile patch to take you a long way.

Gibson EB-0 EB-0 A|Coles The Coles mic is positioned on a few

feet distance and thus capturessome of the room ambience. It goesvery nicely with this full body Gibsonbass. Set the Compressor to Fastmode and adjust the Comp Amountto get a bit of distortion.

EB-0 A|Sub+A|U47+F|Coles The EB-0 has a lot of low end to be-gin with and the Subkick makes iteven more dangerous. So be careful.

EB-0 DI+A|Coles+A|U47 DI plus the Ampeg amp only, leavingthe somewhat distorting Showmanout of the game. Deep and clean.





The Producer Basses

The Producer Basses folder features an assortment of Combinatorpatches created by professional music producers. The Producer Bassesare the following:

GibsonLes Paul (F)

Les PaulA|U47+F|Coles+F|SM57

The U47 is round and full, the SM57more hollow sounding and the Colesgive some of the room for character.

Les PaulDI+A|Sub+A|U47+F|Coles

This patch is a little bit of everything.Listen for example to the Subkick inisolation. There is hardly any attack,

while the Coles is lively and dynamic.The DI is there for presence control.

Les Paul F|D12 Les Paul single mic patch. The com-bination Showman - D12 is perfectfor this bass.

KayHollowbody (P)

Kay DI+A|M49+F|M49 The DI in combination with the twoM49 gives a true representation ofthis instrument. Open and dynamic.

KayDI+A|Sub+A|U47+F|D12

A fat version of the Hollowbody. Alittle bit of EQ and a little bit com-pression is all. The rest is the micro-

phones doing the job.

Kay F|M49 This is a single mic patch with theopen and beautiful handmade DidrikM49. It works very well on this basswith it's significant mid range sound.

Rickenbacker(P)

Rickenbacker N&BA|U47+F|M49

There is a significant difference be-tween the two pickups and with theBlend Control you can dial in the per-fect sound for your track.

Rickenbacker N&BDI+A|Sub+A|U47+F|Coles

The low end Subkick adds to the fat-ness of this Rickenbacker preset.

Force is the word that comes tomind.


StingRayFretless (F)

FretlessA|Coles+A|M49+A|U47

All Ampeg. Together these micscover all “basses”.

Fretless A|U47 One mic only. Simple, but still so per-fect.

Fretless

DI+A|Sub+A|U47+F|D12

With this setup the bass is very

tweakable. DI for presence, Ampeg-Subkick for bottom and Showman-D12 for a dirtier sound.

| Name | Comments

Flatpack Producer [EB-0] The user can select between amp model andmic levels for Coles and M49.

Flatpack Producer [P Bass Finger] The user can select between amp model andmic levels for Coles/M49 and add DI chain FX.

Griffin Producer [EB-0] Signal chain select ion: Ampeg+U47 and/orShowman+M49. DI signal level and Tone can beadjusted in all variations.

Griffin Producer [Fretless] Signal chain selection: Ampeg+U47 and/orShowman+Coles. DI signal level and Tone canbe adjusted in all variations.

Griffin Producer [Hollowbody] Signal chain selection: Ampeg+U47 and/or

Showman+Coles+Fender+U47. DI signal leveland Tone can be adjusted in all variations.





The Style Basses

The Style Basses folder houses a wide range of Combinator bass patchesbased on different musical styles or on styles of artists/bands or songs. Inmany cases the patch name might give you a hint of what the patchsounds like - if not, check the descriptions in the table below:

Griffin Producer [Jazz Bass] Signal chain selection: DI (bridge+neck) and/orAmpeg+M49+Showman+M49. Neck/Bridgeblend and Tone can be adjusted in all variations.

Griffin Producer [Les Paul] Signal chain selection: Ampeg+U47 and/orShowman+Coles. DI signal level and Tone canbe adjusted in all variations.

Griffin Producer [P Bass Finger] Signal chain selection: Ampeg+U47 and/orShowman+Coles+Showman+SM57. DI signallevel and Tone can be adjusted in all variations.

Griffin Producer [P Bass Pick] Signal chain selection: Ampeg+U47 and/orShowman+M49+Showman+SM57. DI signallevel and Tone can be adjusted in all variations.

Griffin Producer [Rickenbacker] Signal chain selection: DI (bridge+neck) and/orAmpeg+M49+Showman+M49. Neck/Bridgeblend and Tone can be adjusted in all variations.

| Name | Comments

|Name

|Comments

1. Precision Flats [P Bass Finger] A basic Precision sound with carefullydefined controls for flexibility.

2. Precision Roundwound [P Bass Pick] Another basic Precision sound withcarefully defined controls for flexibility.

3. Round Gibson [EB-0] Pop bass sound.

4. Sergeant 1 [P Bass Finger ] A Paul McCar tney/Beatles basssound.

5. Pop Ambience [Les Paul] Pop bass sound.

6. Old Folks [ Hollowbody] A patch which mimics the bass soundin Young Folks by Swedish band Peter,Bjorn & John.

7. Sergeant 2 [P Bass Finger] Beatles - Day in the Life.

8. New Wave Maby [Jazz Bass] Graham Maby - Joe Jackson.

9. Low Rick [Rickenbacker] Pop bass sound.

10. The Brit [P Bass Finger] Alex James (Blur) - Girls & Boys.

11. French 60s [Hollowbody] Serge Gainsbourg and Air.

12. Ballad Bass [Fretless] Fretless, smooth chorus and some de-lay. Good for slow emotional songs.

13. New Romantic [Fretless] Mick Karn (Japan) - Quiet Life.




14. Leather Coat [Jazz Bass] Pop bass sound.

15. Gibson-FlipTop H3 Bass Shift [EB-0] Pop bass sound with a touch of pitchshifting.

16. Gibson-Showman H3 Bass Shift [EB-0] Pop bass sound with a touch of pitchshifting.

17. Love [EB-0] Peter Hook (Joy Division) - Love willtear us apart.

18. Chorus Wash [P Bass Pick] A Pop/New Romantic bass sound.

19. Chorus Fretless [Fret less] A nice fretless bass where pitch shift-ing has been used to create the choruseffect.

20. P Romance [P Bass Pick] Pop/New Romantic bass sound.

21. American Standard 60 [Hollowbody] A bass patch aiming to mimic the pop/rock sound of the 1960s. Typical refer-ence song is “Knockin' On Heavens

Door”.

22. American Standard 70 [Jazz Bass] A bass patch with references from the1970s. Typically Lynyrd Skynyrd andThe Band etc.

23. American Standard 80 [EB-0] Another "imitate an era" bass patch.This time the 80s. Typically Springs-teen.

24. American Standard 90 [Les Paul] This is the 90s. Typically REM.

25. Stone Age [P Bass Finger] Queens of the Stone Age - No-oneKnows.

26. Anthem Rock [Rickenbacker] Radiohead - Nat ional Anthem.

| Name | Comments

27. Ampeg Flip-Top Mush [Jazz Bass] A punky rock sound.

28. Cool as Kim Deal [P Bass Pick] Kim Deal, bass player from The Pixies.The reference is from The Dandy War-hols’ song I wish I could have a girl ascool as Kim Deal.

29. Grungy Gibson [EB-0] Rock bass sound.30. Clawfinger [EB-0] Typical bass sound of Swedish band

Clawfinger.

31. Fascinating Street [Rickenbacker] The Cure - Fascination Street.

32. Rock Foot [P Bass Pick] Kasabian - Club Foot. A song that isdominated by a bass riff with thissound.

33. Chili Magic [P Bass Finger] Red Hot Chil i Peppers - S ir PsychoSexy (on Blood Sugar Sex Magic).

34. Maiden Solo Option [Jazz Bass] Typical Iron Maiden bass sound.

35. Rawk Bass [P Bass Pick] A distorted bass for heavier t racks.

36. Motorbass [Rickenbacker] Lemmy of Motorhead has a classicRickenbacker sound. He uses only theneck pickup (to give his bass soundbetter definition) and turns all the toneand volume knobs on the bass up full.On the amplifiers, he turns the bassand treble off and the midrange up allthe way, with the volume and presenceup to the 3:00 position. The result is abiting midrange sound which is some-what distorted but not blurry.

| Name | Comments




37. PJ Trio [Fretless] A patch designed after PJ Harvey’sbassist Steve Vaughn who played onPJ Harvey’s first two albums. He playsa StingRay Fretless with a pick andsome distortion on a Trace Elliot amp.

38. Swagger Bass [Jazz Bass] Chris Edwards - Kasabian - Reason is

Treason.39. Killer Gibson [ EB-0] The Killers - Somebody Told Me.

40. Hollow Punk [Hollowbody] Fuzz is the name of the game here. Butswitch the distortion off and you'll havea wonderful mellow sound.

41. Soul Les Paul [Les Paul] RnB/Soul bass sound.

42. 70's Ace Bass [P Bass Finger] A patched designed after the basssound on Ace’s How Long Has ThisBeen Going On.

43. Hammer-Only [Hollowbody] RnB/Soul bass sound.

44. Pusher Bass [P Bass Finger] Curtis Mayfield - Pusherman.

45. Bowery Ballroom [Les Paul] RnB/Soul bass sound.

46. Roomy Flats [P Bass Finger] RnB/Soul bass sound.

47. Funkmasters II [Jazz Bass] A “Funkmaster Flash” Funk/Discobass sound.

48. Disco Wah [P Bass Finger] Funk sound with Auto wah.

49. Bootsy's Luv Wah [Jazz Bass] A typical Bootsy Collins sound.

50. Bernard's Axe [P Bass Finger] Anything from Chic and "We Are Fam-

ily" by Sister Sledge.

| Name | Comments

51. Kay Mouth Bass [Hollowbody] A patch that uses the formant fil ter inThor for vocal-like wow-effects.

52. Rock That [P Bass Finger ] Bill Laswell (H Hancock) - Rockit .

53. Reggae Police [Hol lowbody] The Police - Driven To Tears.

54. Easy Dub [ P Bass Finger] Easy Star - DubSide.

55. EarthMover [ Jazz Bass] A reggae bass designed to give the“Earth” sound.

56. Bass of Jah [Jazz Bass] Jah Wobble.

57. Subby Dub [P Bass Finger] Reggae bass with a sine wave blendedin.

58. Elektrik [EB-0] Electronica bass sound.

59. Fender 303 [P Bass Pick] Fatboy Slim - Everybody Needs a 303.

60. Just Deal With The Clicks [P Bass F] BT - Madskills, or Smashmouth.

61. Spacecake [ P Bass Pick] Electronic style.

62. 4pusher [Rickenbacker] Squarepusher - Squarepusher Theme.

63. Metal Cloud [P Bass Finger] Electronic style .

64. Reverb Cloud [EB-0] Electronic style.

65. Beatbox Partner [Hollowbody] A bass with time-synced delay.

66. Release Bits [Hollowbody] A Nine Inch Nails style bass sound.

| Name | Comments




Naming conventions

Preset Basses

The Preset Basses use a naming convention with the following syntax:

Instrument Model (Pickups) Amp|Mic+...+Amp|Mic

The title represents the bass model (and pickups for double pickup mod-

els) and the signal chains used in the Combinator patch.

The following abbreviations are used:

D Bass model:Jazz = Fender Jazz (played with the fingers)P Bass F = Fender Precision (played with the fingers)P Bass P = Fender Precision (played with a pick)EB-0 = Gibson EB-0 (played with the fingers)Les Paul = Gibson Les Paul (played with the fingers)Kay = Kay Hollowbody (played with a pick)Rickenbacker = Rickenbacker 4001 (played with a pick)

Fretless = StingRay Fretless (played with the fingers)D Pickup (only for double pickup basses)

N = Neck pickupB = Bridge pickup

D AmpA = Ampeg B-15 S Portaflex Bass ComboF = Fender Showman

D Mic Sub = Yamaha SKRM-100 SubkickU47 = Neumann U47Coles = Coles 4038M49 = Didrik De Geer M49D12 = AKG D12SM57 = Shure SM57DI = Direct Input (no mic used)

Example:

The Preset Bass file name

Jazz N&B DI+A|Sub+A|U47+F|Coles+F|D12.cmb

tells us that the instrument is a Fender Jazz bass sampled using both theneck and bridge pickups. There are five different signal chains used: di-rect signal, Ampeg amp with Yamaha Subkick mic, Ampeg amp with Neu-mann U47 mic, Fender Showman amp with Coles 4038 mic and FenderShowman amp with AKG D12 mic. The signal chains are mixed andblended.

Producer Basses

The Producer Basses use a naming convention with the following syntax:

Producer Name [Instrument model]

Style Basses

There is no strict naming convention for the Style Basses. In some casesthe patch name indicates the bass sound character in one way or another.All Style Basses also ends with the instrument model within brackets. An

example:12. Ballad Bass [Fretless]




NN-XT patches

NN-XT sample sets placed in the subfolders in the Separate Mics folderuse the following syntax:

N_BB(-B)_TTT_(P)AM.sxt

which translates as follows:

N: number of the sample set in the subfolder. Can be 1, 2 or 3.

BB(-B): Bass model. JZ=Fender Jazz, PB-F=Fender Precision (finger),PB-P=Fender Precision (pick), EB=Gibson EB-0, LP=Gibson Les Paul,Kay= Kay Hollowbody, RB=Rickenbacker 4001, FL= StingRay fretless.

TTT: Type of samples in the sample set. SUS=regular sustained notes,HON=hammer-on notes, GLS=glissando notes.

(P): pickup type on double pickup basses. N=neck and B=bridge.

A: Amp model.A=Ampeg B-15 S Portaflex Bass ComboF=Fender Showman

M: Mic model. DI=Direct Input (no mic), C=Coles 4038, M=Didrik DeGeer M49, S=Yamaha Subkick, U=Neumann U47, D=AKG D12,S=Shure SM57.

! Note that mic model “S” could be either Subkick or ShureSM57 depending on the amp model combination. In the AScombination (with the Ampeg amp) the S always means Sub-kick and in the FS combination (with the Fender Showmanamp) the S always means SM57.

Example:

The NN-XT Patch name

3 JZ GLS BFS.sxt

tells us that the instrument is a Fender Jazz bass (JZ), the sample set con-sists of glissando notes (GLS) and the signal chain is from the bridgepickup via the Fender Showman amp to the Shure SM57 mic (BFS).

Another example:The NN-XT Patch name

1 FL SUS AS.sxt

tells us that the instrument is a StingRay fretless bass (FL), the sampleset consists of regular sustained notes (SUS) and the signal chain is fromthe pickup via the Ampeg amp to the Subkick mic (AS).




Samples

Individual samples intended for use with the NN-XT can be found in the“Reason Electric Bass Samples 1” and “Reason Electric Bass Samples 2”ReFill folders. The samples from each of the bass instruments are dividedinto separate subfolders according to the following example:

• Fender Jazz (F): bass model and playing style (F=Finger/P=Pick)• D Fret Noise: fret noise samples• D Gene: full neck slides in different directions and speeds• D Glissandos: whole note glissandos for every sampled note• D Hammer-Ons: hammer-ons for every sampled note• D Release Samples: releasing strings on the fret board• D Sustained Notes: regular sustained plucked notes

The samples in the subfolders use a naming convention with the followingsyntax:

BBS_TTT_N(N)_(Vv)_(EE)_(P)AM(f)(f)f.aif

This translates as follows:

BB: Bass model. JZ=Fender Jazz, PR=Fender Precision, EB=GibsonEB-0, LP=Gibson Les Paul, KH=Kay Hollowbody, RB=Rickenbacker4001, FL= StingRay fretless.

S: Playing style. F=fingers, P=pick

TTT: Type of samples. FRT=fret noise, GEN=Genes (full neck slides),GST=ghost notes (the pluck sound from a damped string), GLS= wholenote glissando (from down a whole note up to played note), HON=ham-mer-on notes, REL= release notes (from releasing the strings on the fretboard), SUS=regular sustained notes.

NN: Sampled note, or “NP” (no pitch) or sample number for Genes.

(Vv): Velocity layer

(EE): Edit number (for internal R&D purposes only)

(P): pickup type on double pickup basses. N=neck and B=bridge.

A; Amp model. A=Ampeg B-15 S, F=Fender Showman

M: Mic model. C=Coles 4038, M=Didrik De Geer M49, S=Yamaha Sub-kick, U=Neumann U47, D=AKG D12, S=Shure SM57.

! Note that mic model “S” could be either Subkick or Shure

SM57 depending on the amp model combination. In the AScombination (with the Ampeg amp) the S always means Sub-kick and in the FS combination (with the Fender Showmanamp) the S always means SM57.

! If the (P)AM abbreviation is replaced by the letters “MST”(bridge) or “NLR” (neck) in the sample name, it indicates thatthe sample is from the DI (Direct Input) signal.

(f)(f)f: File number (for internal R&D purposes only).

Example:

The sample namePRP_GST_G2_V4_8_FS413.aif

tells us that the sample is from a Fender Precision bass played with a pick(PRP). It’s a ghost note (GST) with the pitch G2 (G2) and velocity layer 4(V4). The signal chain is from the pickup via the Fender Showman amp tothe SM57 mic (FS).

Another example:

The sample name

EBF_GEN_1_MST339.aif

tells us that the sample is from a Gibson EB0 played with the fingers(EBF). It’s Gene no. 1 and the signal is directly from the pickup (MST).




Building your own basses

To make it easier to build your own custom designed basses we have pre-pared a number of “empty” Combinator template patches - one for eachbass model. Empty in the sense that the Combinators only contain inter-connected empty devices - but no samples. You’ll then have to import thesample sets yourself. This opens up the possibility of creating your owntotally unique-sounding basses. For example, you could create patches

with samples from different signal chains or even from different basses ifyou like. Below are some basic examples on how to build up your ownbass sound.

Using the Assigned Controls templates

The Assigned Controls templates are Combinator patches that consist ofnine or ten groups of NN-XT devices, and some other devices. Thesenine/ten groups of devices are interconnected to a 14:2 mixer and alsomapped to controls in the Combinator device.

Each group of NN-XT devices represent one signal chain (amp+mic). Thethree NN-XT devices in each group are intended to accommodate threedifferent types of sample sets: sustained samples (SUS), hammer-onsamples (HON) and glissando (GLS) samples. The Hammer-On and Glis-sando key switches described on page 22 are mapped to control thesedifferent types of sample sets when loaded in this Combinator template.

The intention with these Assigned Controls template patches is that you

load the bass samples sets you like in one group of NN-XT devices andthen delete the remaining groups before saving your Combinator patch.Of course you could use more groups if you want to blend several basssounds in a layered fashion.

Here is the basic principle for building a bass sound using an AssignedControls Combinator template:

1. Select Create|Instrument from the menu.

2. Select the P Bass Pick - Empty All Mics.cmb Combinatorpatch in the Bass Patches/Template Patches/Empty As- signed Controls folder.

3. Click the Show Devices button on the Combinator panel.

An Equalizer, a Compressor, a 14:2 Mixer and nine groups containingone 6:2 Mixer, three NN-XT, one PEQ-2 and a Spider Audio deviceshow up. At the bottom, there’s also a Thor device for handling the keyswitching functionality. These nine groups of devices are designed toaccommodate the samples for one signal chain (amp+mic) each.

Each signal chain group can be loaded with three different sets ofbass samples.




4. Click the Browse Patch button on the topmost NN-XT device.

5. Select the 1 PB-P SUS DI.sxt patch in the Bass Patches/Sep-

arate Mics/Fender Precision (P)/DI folder and click OK.

6. Continue by loading the two remaining HON and GLS NN-XT sample sets into the other NN-XT devices in the group.Feel free to experiment by loading other sample sets into the NN-XTdevices! If you like, you could dig even deeper by opening each NN-XT Remote Editor and replacing individual samples and/or tweakingthe NN-XT synth parameters.

7. Select and delete the empty groups of NN-XT, PEQ-2 and6:2 Mixer devices.

8. Save your Combinator patch with a new name.

Using the Pickup Blend Control templates

These templates are designed with double pickup basses like the FenderJazz bass and Rickenbacker 4001 in mind. They feature an assignedpickup blend control on the Combinator panel. However, you could ofcourse use these templates to blend two single pickup basses as well! It’sall up to you.

Normally, you would probably only want to blend two pickups/signal

chains but the templates can handle up to ten signal chains if necessary.

The templates also feature other assigned controls as well as key switch-ing functions for hammer-on and glissando notes. Proceed as follows tocreate a double pickup/signal chain blend patch:

1. Select Create|Instrument from the menu.

2. Select the Fender Jazz - Empty Pickup Blend Control.cmbCombinator patch in the Bass Patches/Template Patches/Pickup Blend Control folder.

3. Click the Show Devices button on the Combinator panel.

An Equalizer, a Compressor, a 14:2 Mixer and ten groups containingone 6:2 Mixer, three NN-XT, two PEQ-2 and a Spider Audio deviceshow up. At the bottom, there’s also a Thor device for handling the keyswitching functionality.

The ten groups of NN-XTs PEQ-2s and 6:2 Mixer are arranged in twosections of five groups. The five topmost groups are intended to beused for neck pickup signal chains (using the Ampeg rig) and thelower five groups for bridge pickup signal (chains using the Fenderrig).

C C




4. Click the Browse Patch button on the topmost NN-XT device,in the DI Neck group.

5. Select the 1 JZ SUS NDI.sxt patch in the Bass Patches/Sepa-rate Mics/Fender Jazz/DI 1 (Neck) folder and click OK.

6. Load the 2 JZ HON NDI.sxt and 3 JZ GLS NDI.sxt sample setsin the other two NN-XT devices respectively.

7. Load the Fender Jazz DI 2 (Bridge) sample sets in the NN-XTdevices of the DI Bridge group.

Now, we have two complete sample sets, the Fender Jazz DI 1 (Neck) andthe Fender Jazz DI 2 (Bridge) in two separate signal chain groups in theCombinator template. By turning Rotary 4 (NECK - BRIDGE) on the Com-binator panel we can blend the sounds of the two sample sets, thus simu-lating neck and bridge pickup blending.

q You could choose any sample set and load into any group ofNN-XT devices. Just bear in mind that the NECK - BRIDGEblend control blends signals from the five topmost groupswith signals from the five groups at the bottom of the Combi-nator template. In other words, loading sample sets only inthe five topmost OR bottom groups will make the NECK -BRIDGE blend control work only like a volume knob.

Using the Unassigned Controls templates

The Unassigned Controls templates are basically the same type of Com-binator templates as the Assigned Controllers templates described above,with the exception that they haven’t any Combinator panel controls as-signed. These controls can be freely assigned by the user. The key switchfunctionality controlling hammer-on and glissando notes from the key-board are assigned also in these template patches, though.

Using the Unassigned Without Key Switching template

Due to the lack of the key switch functionality, this template is designedfor handling regular sustained (SUS) sample sets only. This template isless complex than the ones described above and can be used when youwant to quickly create a basic bass patch.

The template houses ten groups containing one NN-XT device, one PEQ-2 Equalizer and one 6:2 Mixer.

As with the previous templates, the idea is that you load a set of SUSsamples into the NN-XT of the selected group and then delete the de-

vices in the remaining empty groups before saving.The template doesn’t feature any assigned controls - these can be freelyassigned by the user.

M dif i f t t h Adj ti l t l l




Modifying factory patches

Another way of building your own patches is to modify existing factorypatches. For example, you could open a Preset Bass patch and replaceany of the NN-XT sample sets with sample sets from another instrument,signal chain or even sample set type.

Let’s say you want to replace a Glissando sample set with an additionalHammer-on sample set instead. No problem, you can freely load any sam-ple set into any NN-XT device. You’re not limited to using the sampletypes indicated on the device panel - feel free to experiment!

However, remember that if you replace sample types (glissando/hammer-on), the Mod keys C1-C#1 might not work the way they’re intended.

If you want to dig a little deeper into the factory patches and change pa-rameter ranges or even alter controller assignments you can do that aswell. Below are some examples on how to do some basic parameter ad- justments and alterations.

Adjusting sample set levels

If you want to adjust the sample set (SUS, HON, GLS and REL) levels in aCombinator patch you can easily do that according to the following:

1. Open the factory Combinator patch of your choice.

2. Click the Show Devices button on the Combinator panel and scroll down to the NN-XT device groups.

3. Click on the triangle to the left on each of the MicroMix de-vices to expand them.

4 On the MicroMix devices you can adjust the levels of the sep 3 Click the triangle to the left on the topmost NN XT device to




4. On the MicroMix devices you can adjust the levels of the sep-arate sample types by adjusting the corresponding Levelknobs.

In the figure above, we’ve increased the levels of all release (REL)

samples in the Ampeg+M49 signal chain in the factory Combinatorpatch.

5. Repeat the procedure for the remaining MicroMix devices inthe Combinator patch.

Adjusting Pitch Bend range

In all factory patches the pitch bend range is set to +/- 2 semitones bydefault. You can change this by doing the following:


2. Click the Show Devices button on the Combinator panel and scroll down to the first group of NN-XT devices.

3. Click the triangle to the left on the topmost NN-XT device toexpand the device. Then, click the Remote Editor button onthe NN-XT device to bring up the NN-XT Editor panel.

4. Select all sample zones by pressing [Command]/[Ctrl]-[A].

All Sample Zones become high-lighted (dark blue) and the LEDsaround the knobs light up.

5 Scroll down to the Pitch Bend Range parameter on the NN- 3 Click the triangle to the left on the topmost NN-XT device to




5. Scroll down to the Pitch Bend Range parameter on the NN-XT panel and change it to desired value.

6. Repeat the procedure for the remaining NN-XT devices in thepatch so the Pitch Bend range is the same for all sample sets.

Assigning Vibrato to Mod Wheel

If you want the Mod Wheel to control Vibrato instead of Damping, here’swhat you should do:


2. Click the Show Devices button on the Combinator panel and scroll down to the first group of NN-XT devices.

3. Click the triangle to the left on the topmost NN-XT device toexpand the device. Then, set the Freq parameter to max.

4. click the Remote Editor button on the NN-XT device to bring

up the NN-XT Editor panel.

5. Select the first four sample zones, containing sustainednotes (SUS), by scrolling and shift-clicking in the SampleGroup areas.

The selected Sample Zones become high-lighted (dark blue). The re-lease samples, named REL, should not be selected.

6. Click the W buttons on the LFO 1 AMT and LFO 1 RATE pa- Sustain Pedal simulation




6. Click the W buttons on the LFO 1 AMT and LFO 1 RATE parameters in the Modulation section.

7. Repeat the procedure from step 3 and onwards for the re-maining NN-XT devices in the patch.

8. Finally, bring up the Combinator Programmer and deselectthe Amp Env Decay parameter from the Mod Wheel for allNN-XT devices in the Device list.

Select one NN-XT device at a time in the Device list to the left, clickon the small triangle in the Modulation Routing list to the right andchoose No Target for the Amp Env Decay parameter. Repeat the pro-cedure for the remaining NN-XT devices in the Device list.

Sustain Pedal simulation

One function that might be useful if there is no sustain pedal present, is toassign longer release time to a Combinator button. Button 1 on the Com-binator panel is not assigned in the Preset Bass patches. Therefore, let’suse that button for this purpose.

There are two steps involved in this “sustain pedal simulation” setup: to in-crease the release time, and to mute the release samples that sound on

each key off. The release samples are automatically muted when using asustain pedal but in this case we're going to increase the Amp Releaseparameter in the NN-XTs and therefore we will need to manually mute therelease samples.

You will most likely find it sufficient to make this tweak in the NN-XTscontaining the sustained (SUS) notes, so that’s what we will do in this ex-ample:


2. Click the Show Programmer and Show Devices buttons onthe Combinator panel.

3. Locate and select the topmost sub-mixer, named ‘DI Neck’, in 6. Assign ‘Amp Env Rel’ to ‘Button 1’ in the Modulation Routing




3. Locate and select the topmost sub mixer, named DI Neck , inthe Device list in the Combinator Programmer.

4. Assign ‘Channel 4 Mute’ to ‘Button 1’ in the ModulationRouting section.

Click on the small triangle in the Modulation Routing list to the rightand choose Channel 4 Mute for the Button 1 source. Since all Re-lease samples in the first signal chain are routed to Channel 4 of the

DI Neck sub-mixer, these will now be muted when you press Button 1on the Combinator panel.

5. Locate and select the topmost NN-XT device containing sus-tain (SUS) samples in the Device list. It’s named ‘1 Sus-tained’.

6. Assign Amp Env Rel to Button 1 in the Modulation Routing section.

Click on the small triangles in the Modulation Routing list to the rightand choose Button 1 as Source and Amp Env Rel as Target. Then, setthe Min value to 0 and Max to between 10 and 14.

7. Repeat the procedure from step 3 and onwards for the rest ofthe signal chains by selecting the corresponding sub-mixersand NN-XT devices containing SUS samples in the Devicelist.Now, when pressing Button 1 on the Combinator panel the releasewill be longer for all SUS samples, but not long enough to obscure theindividual notes.

qIf you want to play “same note repeats” with long release (asdescribed on page 23), the trick is to hold all notes up untilre-triggering, i.e to play in a staccato fashion. Doing so willalso allow you to change pitch (note) without getting blurryresults.

ReFill folder index Producer Basses (Combinator patches)




ReFill folder indexBelow is a complete overview of the folder structure. Individual patchesand samples are not listed, only the folder/subfolder tree.

! “D” indicates folder/subfolder

• D Reason Electric Bass

• D Bass Patches• D Preset Basses (Combinator patches)• D Producer Basses (Combinator patches)• D Style Basses (Combinator patches)• D Template Patches (Combinator patches)• D Separate Mics (NN-XT)• D Effect Patches• D Scream 4 and Combinator effect patches• D Sequencer Material• Full Demo Tracks (rps)

• Demo Songs (rns)

Bass Patches

Preset Basses (Combinator patches)

• D Fender Jazz (Finger)• D Fender Precision (Finger)• D Fender Precision (Pick)• D Gibson EB-0 (Finger)• D Gibson Les Paul (Finger)

• D Kay Hollowbody (Pick)• D Rickenbacker (Pick)• D StingRay Fretless (Finger)

oduce asses (Co b ato patc es)

Style Basses (Combinator patches)

Template Patches (Combinator patches)

• D Assigned Controls

• D Pickup Blend Control• D Unassigned Controls• D Unassigned Without Key Switching

Separate Mics (NN-XT patches)

The folder and file structure is basically the same for all basses. The dou-ble-pickup basses have one extra folder for the second DI signals, though.The (F) or (P) after the bass name indicates how the instrument wasplayed, with the fingers or with a pick.

The structure for a double-pickup bass is according to the following ex-

ample:• D Fender Jazz (F)• D DI 1 (Neck)• D DI 2 (Bridge)• D Ampeg-Coles (Neck)• D Ampeg-M49 (Neck)• D Ampeg-Subkick (Neck)• D Ampeg-U47 (Neck)• D Fender-Coles (Bridge)• D Fender-D12 (Bridge)

• D Fender- M49 (Bridge)• D Fender-SM57 (Bridge)

The structure for a single-pickup bass is according to the following exam- Reason Electric Bass Samples 1




g p p g gple:

• D Fender Precision (F)• D DI• D Ampeg-Coles• D Ampeg-M49• D Ampeg-Subkick

• D Ampeg-U47• D Fender-Coles• D Fender-D12• D Fender- M49• D Fender-SM57

Effect Patches

Scream 4, RV7000 and Combinator effect patches

Sequencer MaterialDemo Songs (rps)

Demo Sequences (rns)

Reason Electric Bass Samples 1

The Reason Electric Bass Samples 1 contain all samples for the FenderJazz, Fender Precision (Finger and Pick) and the Gibson EB-0. The folderand file structure is the same for all basses according to the following ex-ample:

• D Fender Jazz (F)• D Fret Noise

• D Slides• D Ghost Notes• D Glissandos• D Hammer-Ons• D Release Samples• D Sustained Notes

Reason Electric Bass Samples 2

The Reason Electric Bass Samples 2 contain all samples for the GibsonLes Paul, Kay Hollowbody, Rickenbacker and StingRay Fretless. Thefolder and file structure is the same for all basses according the exampleabove.

Credits




CreditsThe Reason Electric Bass ReFill was developed and produced byPropellerhead Software.

All basses recorded at Mandarine Studios, Stockholm

Producer and project manager: Kristoffer Wallman

Recording engineer: Niklas FlycktBass player and connoisseur: Sven Lindvall

Rickenbacker bass player: Stefan Fandén

Sampling consultant: Per Larsson, SampleTekk

Editing and programming: Peter Jubel, Loui Westin, Kristoffer Wallmanand Attila Cederbygd.

Graphics: Andreas Karperyd

Combinator patch programming: J Chris Griffin, Ian Duncan, Simon Price,Kurt Kurasaki, Sven Lindvall, Jocke Skog, Johan Skugge,

Magnus Frykberg, Ludvig Carlson and Anders Ljung.Demo Sequences: Sven Lindvall, Martin Jonsson, Attila Cederbygd,Kurt Kurasaki, Rick Silvestri and Ludvig Carlson.

Demo Songs: Brian Lebarton, J Chris Griffin, Jocke Skog andJosh Mobley.

Thanks to: Bosse Person, Anders Bagge, Pontus Winnberg,Christian Karlsson, Hans Backenrot and all the beta testers.

REB ReFill Manual

Documents

Transcript of REB ReFill Manual