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Reason Free: What You Actually Get — And What I Made With It

Reason Studios has opened up a new way to get into the Reason ecosystem with Reason Free, a free version of the Reason Rack that you can load directly inside the DAW you already use.


Whether you’ve never used Reason before, used it years ago, or just want access to some of its devices without committing to the full version, this is a pretty substantial starting point.


For my latest video, I wanted to do more than run through a list of features. I loaded Reason Free inside Ableton Live and challenged myself to build a beat using the included instruments, effects, Players and utilities.


This video was sponsored by Reason Studios and LANDR, but the opinions and workflow shown are my own.


Watch The Full Reason Free Video:



What Is Reason Free?


Reason Free gives you a selection of devices from the larger Reason ecosystem packaged inside the Reason Rack Plugin.


That distinction is important: you don't have to switch DAWs or completely change your workflow to use it. I used Ableton Live for the video, but the Rack can live inside a supported DAW alongside the other tools you're already using.


The free version includes 15 devices, covering instruments, effects, MIDI tools and utilities.


And this isn't just a collection of stripped-down devices created specifically for a free product. Several of these are Reason devices I've used for years.


Some of the Standout Devices


On the instrument side, you get Europa, Kong Drum Designer, ID8 and Monotone Bass Synthesizer.


Europa is an extremely capable wavetable synthesizer, while Kong gives you a pad-based drum-production environment that will feel familiar if you've spent time working with hardware drum machines or MPC-style workflows.


ID8 is much simpler, but that's part of its usefulness. Sometimes you just need to pull up a piano, organ or another basic sound quickly and get an idea down.


Then there's Monotone. I've used Monotone for bass sounds in plenty of my own tracks, so seeing it included here immediately stood out to me.


The effects are equally interesting. You get devices including The Echo, Audiomatic Retro Transformer, RV7000 MkII, Scream 4 and the MClass Maximizer.


Scream 4 in particular remains one of my favorite Reason devices. It's known as a distortion unit, but there are plenty of ways to use it beyond simply destroying a sound.


Building a Beat With Reason Free


The real test for me was whether I could actually make something with these limitations rather than just demonstrate the devices individually.


So that's what I did.


I built the beat primarily with Reason Free, using the included instruments and effects throughout the session. I also deliberately tried some devices and routing techniques that I don't normally rely on.


Kong handled the drums, and I found myself using it in some interesting ways despite not having spent a huge amount of time with it in the past.


I used Monotone for bass and incorporated Europa into the production as well. I also experimented with combinations of Reason effects to shape individual sounds rather than reaching for my usual third-party plugins.


One of the more interesting parts of the process was using Pulsar, Reason's dual LFO, to create movement. I routed an LFO into Europa and used it to slowly move a sound across the stereo field.


That's one of the things I've always liked about Reason: once you start treating the Rack as a modular environment instead of simply loading presets, you can get pretty creative with how devices interact.


Scales & Chords and MIDI Out


Reason Free also includes Scales & Chords, one of Reason's Player MIDI effects.


This gives you another way to quickly develop musical ideas, but it doesn't necessarily have to stop with Reason instruments.


In the video, I demonstrate how I could use Reason's MIDI capabilities alongside another instrument in Ableton. That opens up some interesting possibilities if you want Reason to become part of your existing setup rather than the entire setup.


The Rack is Still the Secret Weapon


Utilities might not be the most exciting thing to put on a feature list, but they're a huge part of what makes Reason different.


You get devices including the Combinator, Pulsar, Spider Audio Merger & Splitter and Spider CV Merger & Splitter.


The Combinator is particularly important because you can combine devices into more elaborate patches, map controls and save those creations.


That means Reason Free isn't limited to whatever presets you start with. You can build your own combinations and save them for later.


For one sound in the beat, for example, I used a Combinator patch incorporating Europa and Scream 4, followed by additional processing with The Echo and RV7000. Pulsar then added modulation to give the sound movement.


Can You Actually Mix With It?


I also wanted to see how far I could take the beat using Reason's included processing.


My master chain incorporated compression, EQ, Scream 4 and limiting with the MClass Maximizer. I was able to get the track into the general territory I wanted while staying primarily inside the Reason Rack.


For transparency, I did use iZotope Tonal Balance Control at the end to check the overall tonal balance and Insight for metering. Those were finishing and monitoring tools rather than the foundation of the beat or mix.


The point wasn't to argue that Reason Free should replace an established mixing or mastering setup.


It was to see how much of a finished production I could create with the free Rack itself.

The answer was: quite a bit.


Who Is Reason Free For?


I think there are two especially obvious groups.


The first is someone who has never used Reason. There's now a way to experience the Rack workflow and some genuinely useful Reason devices without buying anything first.


The second is former Reason users.


If it's been years since you worked with Reason, the software and the way it integrates with other DAWs has changed considerably. You don't necessarily have to move your production workflow back into the Reason DAW to start using Reason devices again.


You can bring the Rack into the environment you're already comfortable with.


There's also room to expand beyond what's included. Reason supports Rack Extensions, including additional free and paid options, so Reason Free can become a starting point rather than a closed system.


Final Thoughts


I came away impressed with how much is actually included.


Devices like Scream 4, Europa and Monotone aren't things I'd dismiss simply because they're being offered as part of a free package. I've used these tools in real productions, and having access to them without purchasing the complete Reason package makes Reason Free an interesting option even if you already have a well-established DAW setup.


More importantly, making the beat forced me to explore parts of Reason that I hadn't used much before.


And that's usually where these kinds of limitations become interesting.


Instead of reaching for the same plugins and following the same workflow, you have to figure out what you can do with what's sitting in front of you.


Watch the full video above to hear the finished beat and see exactly how I built it using Reason Free.


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