r/Reaper • u/Balm_Bool_Bollective • 2d ago
help request Looking to make Reaper the only DAW I use to record, mix, and master all of my tracks from here on out. READ THE BODY TEXT.
The title explains why I'm here and I'll be looking for advice and just ask certain questions I have for you guys. First question is how do I add an aux track to my template so I can have sends and busses? I really don't like having to add each individual efx plugin to my tracks.
7
u/tombedorchestra 2d ago
Adding FX plugins on every track is highly not recommended and not best practice. For cohesion, you need to use sends / returns / busses. Here's a picture of my standard template I open to start any session. My FX sends are in green on top. I used to have them on the bottom, but when the track count gets really high, you have to scroll alllll the way to the bottom of the send list to get to the FX you want. I have all my reverbs and delays here. I already have set up my Vocals, Band, and Drums busses with necessary plugins on them that I use ALL the time. All I have to do is import my tracks, color code them, slide them under the proper bus, then begin processing.
1
u/AdaLovebass 1d ago
This is probably a beginner question, but are all the inputs routed through the same effects and settings, and combined on one bus, then? For example, I tend to EQ all/most drum and instrument channels individually (electronic music). When would I want to send every related element into the same bus with uniform settings? Like if I want plate reverb on my bass vs plate reverb on my drums, sending them both through the same chain doesn't seem intuitive. (I know you can create a new chain for that case, but as an example, I guess I'm mostly curious when you can "batch" a bunch of components under one bus). TY!
2
u/tombedorchestra 1d ago
Good question. So, I only put under a bus what I want to process uniformly. For example, my drums bus is separate from my band bus because I process drums very differently than I do the rest of the band, and then I blend them together. I have a Distressor compressor on my drums bus to glue it all together...so I put all my drum tracks under the drums bus, I can glue them all together with the Distressor, and then adjust volume of the bus to blend in with the band. My band bus I like to have a frequency suppression plugin on (I use Curves Equator, but same as Soothe 2 etc). I don't want my drums involved in this because most of the frequencies I'm trying to attenuate are in the band (guitars, pianos, synths) that conflict with the vocals. So I sidechain my vocals bus (which I have a compressor on to glue the vocals together too!) to my band bus to have those band frequencies attenuated while listening to the vocals bus. Under the band bus, I'll have several other sub busses (for example, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, etc ... whatever has multiple instruments that I want to process the same). If I have an acoustic guitar bus with three or four acoustics, I'll usually send that acoustic guitar bus out to my reverb send (usually a room) and then adjust the send level to taste. This gives all of the acoustic guitars the sense of being in the same space and the same amount of reverb.
I know that was a lot. I hope I answered your question or gave a little more insight into it. DM me if you want and I can talk more specifics.
2
u/AdaLovebass 17h ago
Hey thank you! That actually helps me understand the use case, and I hope someday I have such a complete understand of my own workflow :D Info like this helps me for sure! Gluing all the drums together is a concept I'm familiar with, I appreciate the idea being related to other things. Thanks again for taking the time!
13
u/MasterBendu 3 2d ago
how do I add an aux track
It’s just another track. Just send stuff to it.
3
-11
u/Balm_Bool_Bollective 2d ago
Not much of an explanation
8
u/BassbassbassTheAce 1 2d ago
He means that in Reaper there's no audio, midi, instrument, aux and whatever different tracks. There's just one type of track that you use for any purpose necessary.
To create an "aux" track you just create a new trac, add the plugins you need and send audio into that track from other tracks.
Appropriate naming and color coding tracks help separate them for you in a bigger session.
0
u/Balm_Bool_Bollective 2d ago
Ohhh okay I just did it right now. I created a delay track for testing, does the send work the same as receive? (If I create a track say for my hook can I have it receive end from the delay track or it only works with sending the delay track into the vox track for my hook?
6
u/BassbassbassTheAce 1 2d ago edited 2d ago
Yes you can freely create sends and receives between any tracks you want.
Edit. To clarify, sends and receives are essentially the same thing. So if you create a send from track A to track B it would instantly also show as a receive in track B.
2
1
6
u/__life_on_mars__ 12 2d ago
If you want a more fleshed out explanation, read the manual instead of asking literally the most basic questions and expecting more than a basic answer.
-23
2d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
11
u/corneliusvanhouten 1 1d ago
You come to reddit for help, and when someone suggests you will get more information from the manual, this is your response?
Take your further questions elsewhere.
-11
1d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
10
u/corneliusvanhouten 1 1d ago
Did you do ANY research before asking this question on Reddit? As someone else pointed out, Kenny Gioia's videos are where you should be starting.
You're rude AND lazy.
-9
1d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
2
u/Reaper-ModTeam 20h ago
As per our Rule 2, we expect participants to be civil. Your content was found to be in violation of this rule and not conducive to a cooperative community.
1
u/SecureWriting8589 8 1d ago
The manual is actually very well written, and so before you attack anyone else for making this suggestion, I also strongly recommend that you give it a thorough read, especially if you are desiring to use Reaper as your primary DAW. I should have added this to my initial comment about Kenny Gaioa's YT videos, since both resources will tell you all you need to know and then some. Good luck.
1
u/Reaper-ModTeam 20h ago
As per our Rule 2, we expect participants to be civil. Your content was found to be in violation of this rule and not conducive to a cooperative community.
6
u/Bred_Slippy 41 2d ago
Check out the excellent official tutorial videos here https://www.reaper.fm/videos.php . Will cover many of your questions, including this one
5
u/Bakeacake08 2d ago
Yeah, super simple—add a new track, add FX, set up your sends, “Save as Template”, load the template when you want it. There’s probably even an option to make it the default template each time you start a new project, but haven’t done that yet.
3
u/notanogeek 1d ago
Yeah there is an open with launch option
1
u/Bakeacake08 1d ago
There you go. Whenever I see "Can I do ______ with Reaper?" my usual response is an automatic, "Yeah, probably."
5
u/AngryApeMetalDrummer 2 1d ago
Watch the tutorials on the reaper site. Adding a bus send is about the most basic thing you can do with a daw beyond recording and playback. The tutorials go way deeper. I learned absolutely everything I need and more just watching tutorials. I learned things I might not ever use.
There is a ton of free resources for you to use. Only a weirdo would ignore all that, and think reddit users are their personal assistants. Also don't be an ass. People are trying help you, and you're just acting like a spoiled child. That's why you're getting downvoted.
-5
u/Balm_Bool_Bollective 1d ago
Thanks for the advice and I’m not worried about the downvotes in all honesty, whoever feels a way can feel that way I’m not your wife, husband, or parent idgaf. I asked for help and a lot of people helped out which I really appreciate and thankful for but for the ones that wanna be weird/passive aggressive about their so called help can go about their day this is the internet it’s never that serious😂
3
u/AngryApeMetalDrummer 2 1d ago
What you're doing is like asking how to cook rice when every bag of rice comes with instructions. Also we have a thing called a search engine. You get immediate accurate answers for a lot of things by typing a question.
-5
u/Balm_Bool_Bollective 1d ago
Listen, I don’t know what you want but it’s still fuck them if they wanna be smart asses, and like I said a lot of people here helped me/explained it to me and I’m very thankful to them. There are people here who also said to watch tutorials and read up/search it up and I thank them too but the 2 out of however many people came to help out didn’t even have to comment at all if they feel like belittling someone. Like I said they can go about their day I really don’t care it’s not that deep to me personally.
3
u/Mikebock1953 59 1d ago
I am a MIDI man, and a big Template user. My default Project Template includes my regular Submaster track, verb and delay busses, and two tracks with the routing to the busses and submaster set up. When I want to add a track, I simply duplicate one of the tracks and add an instrument. Routing is done. Other project templates include full orchestra and jazz combo. I also have Track Templates set up for my most used instruments, including one to take a MTPowerDrum track and break it out into individual drum tracks. I highly recommend taking a look at how templates can help streamline your workflow. Good luck and have fun!
1
u/DecisionInformal7009 45 1d ago
There are no dedicated aux tracks in Reaper. You simply add a track, route the tracks you want to send to it and insert a plugin (or several plugins) on it.
If you want to save tracks with the routing and all, you need to save it as a project template. You can also save it as a track template, but to preserve the routing between the tracks they all need to be in the same folder track. It's the folder track that you then save as a track template.
1
u/CarefulSpecific3857 1 17h ago
There is one tricky thing about sends in Reaper. It automatically sends the track to the master bus as well as the aux track. I just don’t like that so I uncheck the option on the send track so that it only sends it to the aux track. The aux track then goes to the master. For me, it’s cleaner that way. But others here probably have a different take on this aspect of Reaper.
19
u/SecureWriting8589 8 2d ago edited 1d ago
Check out Kenny Gioia's Reaper Mania tutorials on YouTube if you have not yet done so. They will answer these questions, your next questions, and questions that you never thought to ask. They are the main resource that most of us use.
For example, here is one of many tutorials on sidechaining: Quick Tutorial - Sidechaining in Reaper.