Making sounds wider in Reason 5

alanrigbeey · 25th July 2011

I've recently started using reason 5 for some synth sounds, but they all sound very mono compared to my massive sounds.

Any tips for increasing stereo width in Reason? The stereo imager seems crap!

rockerbruce · 25th July 2011

chorus

Roboticefx · 25th July 2011

You could layer synths with slight variations in tuning, octave, or waveforms...use delay and even a little reverb between them...there's a lot of different ways. It's best to experiment with the instruments, but you could also look on the PH website for free refills that might do the trick. Are you looking for a wide pad sound or something?

Monsieur_R · 25th July 2011

If you have another DAW use rewire and process the sounds in there. For example: delay the Left channel a few milliseconds (which is like a chorus essentially).

I always had more like widening sounds when I took them out of Reason than within.

MACH4 · 25th July 2011

Do it manually

Llitsor · 25th July 2011

The stereo imager isn't too bad.. But it isn't made to do what I think you were expecting it to do.. It's more of a subtle spacial thing. It won't do anything dramatic.

A trick I use sometimes, if any distortion is involved, is to say, instead of putting the synth sound through a single scream 4 unit. Put it through 2, in parallel with each other (synth out L, to scream 1, synth out R to scream 2,).
Although Scream 4 is stereo, treating it as a mono, or dual mono in this case, is better. Because you can pan each one hard left, and hard right. The 2 screams need to be using largely the same preset, BUT, you change some of the individual settings on one of them very slightly. The fact each channel is slightly different, and hard panned makes quite a dramatic difference with regards to width.

Worth a shot, even if the synth sound didn't need any distortion, as you can use one of the more subtle distortion preset, like tape or tube etc.

drloop · 25th July 2011

If you like big sounds with a lot of FX, go and explore the combinator patches.

25th July 2011	#1
alanrigbeey Gear nut Joined: Oct 2010 Posts: 110 Thread Starter	Making sounds wider in Reason 5 I've recently started using reason 5 for some synth sounds, but they all sound very mono compared to my massive sounds. Any tips for increasing stereo width in Reason? The stereo imager seems crap!

25th July 2011	#4
Monsieur_R Gear maniac Joined: Jan 2011 Posts: 205	If you have another DAW use rewire and process the sounds in there. For example: delay the Left channel a few milliseconds (which is like a chorus essentially). I always had more like widening sounds when I took them out of Reason than within. __________________ http://soundcloud.com/monsieur_r

25th July 2011	#7
drloop Gear nut Joined: Jan 2010 Posts: 112	If you like big sounds with a lot of FX, go and explore the combinator patches. __________________ Thinkingmachine @ facebook http://www.facebook.com/Thinkingmachine and here http://thinkingmachine.se/

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25th July 2011	#2
rockerbruce Gear maniac Joined: Apr 2009 Posts: 208	chorus

25th July 2011	#3
Roboticefx Gear Head Joined: Jul 2011 Posts: 44	You could layer synths with slight variations in tuning, octave, or waveforms...use delay and even a little reverb between them...there's a lot of different ways. It's best to experiment with the instruments, but you could also look on the PH website for free refills that might do the trick. Are you looking for a wide pad sound or something?

25th July 2011	#5
MACH4 3 + infractions, forum membership suspended. Joined: Jun 2011 Posts: 278	Do it manually

25th July 2011	#6
Llitsor Lives for gear Joined: Aug 2009 Location: UK Posts: 1,570	The stereo imager isn't too bad.. But it isn't made to do what I think you were expecting it to do.. It's more of a subtle spacial thing. It won't do anything dramatic. A trick I use sometimes, if any distortion is involved, is to say, instead of putting the synth sound through a single scream 4 unit. Put it through 2, in parallel with each other (synth out L, to scream 1, synth out R to scream 2,). Although Scream 4 is stereo, treating it as a mono, or dual mono in this case, is better. Because you can pan each one hard left, and hard right. The 2 screams need to be using largely the same preset, BUT, you change some of the individual settings on one of them very slightly. The fact each channel is slightly different, and hard panned makes quite a dramatic difference with regards to width. Worth a shot, even if the synth sound didn't need any distortion, as you can use one of the more subtle distortion preset, like tape or tube etc.