Reason Studios Plus (+) Subscription Service Pros and Cons

Reason + Pros and Cons

After hearing about Reaosn+ I had no desire to give it a try and for good Reason(s)… pun intended.

1. Reason + Doesn’t offer anything I need. I either own the cool stuff or have something better in VST/AU etc.
2. Demo versions are available for anything I’d like to try
3. I’m over the Splice subscription model.

But they offered a 30 Day free trial…So I took them up on the offer. Might as well right?

Now upon opening Reason+, the interface is decent looking. It’s similar to that of Splice, but you don’t have the ability to preview packs without physically clicking on them and loading them up on a different page. This annoying, but something I’m sure they’ll tweak/fix along the way.

Now, I don’t remember if they’re upgrading the sound packs weekly or biweekly but depending on when you get in there’s a lot of good sound packs that are being offered from sound designers like Kickbackcouture DNA Labs Software and various others.

How I Feel About Reason + Presets

Initially, I thought these presets would be wav files only. We can get those anywhere, the real benefits the fact that these designers share their ‘preset patches’ as well as their ‘project files’. Not everyone shares their project files, but some do and that is really beneficial to someone who’s new to reason or new to making music as a whole.

Having the project file in front of you not only allows you to see how the demo song is structured but also allows you to see how the preset file has been tweaked to set into the mix. There’s a huge difference between having someone’s preset and having that preset mixed in the track. Often times the preset does not sound 100% the same the way it does in the mix so having that project file extremely beneficial. I wish everyone was required to provide one.

On top of being updated with new presets and sounds for stock units, you’ll also full access to everything Reason Studios has to offer (I don’t think recycles included). This means any Reason Branded rack extension you could possibly want, you’ll have access to ie: Pattern Mutator, Algorithm Friktion…etc as well as any presets the designers create for them.

Reason + Pros and Cons

Pros

• New presets
• Project files (some project files)
• Low cost
• Lost of inspiration
• Up to date software
• Access to Reason Studios Rack Extension (Reason Branded)
• NO CAP ON DOWNLOADS

Cons

• Auditioning the sound packs is not as swift as it could be
• Genres of packs/sounds are limited
• Some sounds aren’t designed in/with Reason and you can tell, I hope that changes.
• Gets pricey over time
• No access to 3rd party Rack Extensions

Reason+ is still new so most of my complaints are superficial and easily fixed.

Do I Recommend Reason +

In short absolutely, especially if you’re a person who thrives off new sounds. I believe at its current price point, it’s a steal and I hope they don’t increase the price for a while, but we all know things change.

How Could Reason + Improve?

• Better interface
• Sound audition (mentioned above)
• More Project Files
• More sounds (everyone wants more)
• Offering more designed sounds vs exported waves from other apps

That’s all I have so far. This list may increase or decrease as time goes on.

Overall Hopes For Reason + and Reason Studios

I hope that Reason+ (Plus) is successful. I would love for it to flourish especially after being on the lifestream with Reason Studios. The team seemed very passionate about the product/patch although there were a lot of unhappy customers, the team…they seem to believe in it.

As a business owner, I understand that in order to bring people features the people want you must have some type of income generator outside of the DAW’s initial sales. Yes, they do sell rack extensions, but when you open the doors to a world full of 3rd party plugin users how many extensions are needed? The Rack extension opened a market, it was a smart move, but we third-party guys very little in the RE store that we need. Especially if you were smart enough to jump on the SUITE EDITION!

Reason + vs Splice Pricing Plan

Reason+ is 19.99 a month or $99.50/Year. They do run deals and give prior Reason owners discounts, keep your eyes on your email.

Splice, unlike Reason+ has a tier pricing system, where x amount of $ allows you x amount of downloads. Not but, but not Reason.

At the time of this posting Reason has NO CAP on how much you can download in your subscription Window.

Overall Thoughts of Reason Studios & Their Subscription Option

To sum this up, I believe Reason+ (Plus) is the perfect income generator I just hope Reason Studios thinks about their core users and implements a lot of the updates that we’ve been asking for (for 15+ years).