Working with FX (part 1)

So now that we are getting to be experts at putting our songs together we can spend some time concentrating on getting everything to sound just the way we want it to. One of the easiest ways to do this is to add FX Processors to our instruments.

FX Processors are things that you attach to your instruments (Redrums, Subtractors, NN19s, etc.) that change the way they sound. Depending on what kind of music you are trying to make, FX can help your music to sound more exciting (slap!), smoother, or just more unique.

There are lots of different types of FX available to you in Reason. For now, let's just focus on two of them:

1. Reverb - Reverb makes things sound like they are in a big, echoey space like a hallway or a church. It can help instruments or vocals sound more "real", as if they were coming from a real musician playing in a hallway somewhere. To get an idea of what I'm talking about, let's listen to an example of an acapella vocal track that has a lot of reverb on it: link. The reverb processor in Reason is the RV7000. It looks like this:
2. Distortion - Distortion is that gritty, harsh sound that makes things sound more aggressive. It is most commonly heard on guitars in rock music, but it can be put on anything to give it a harder feel. In hip hop, distortion is sometimes used on synthesizers or drums to make them sound more raw and less clean. The distortion processor in Reason is called the Scream. It looks like this:
   

One important thing to keep in mind is that there is usually a knob or a setting that lets you control how much of an effect to put on an instrument. This knob is usually called "Dry/Wet". On the Scream it is called "Damage Control".

Assignment:
Today you're going to use the two types of FX we discussed above in a beat. This beat should include three instruments: a Redrum and two other instruments of your choice (only 1 Dr. Rex please).

1. Start a new Reason file.
2. Create a Redrum and spend 10 minutes making a basic beat.
3. Now create a Subtractor/NN19/etc. and load up a sound you like. Make a short melody (~4 bars) to go with your drums.
4. Now make sure that your Subtractor/NN19 is highlighted in the rack, then go to the Create menu and select the RV7000.
5. Listen to your beat. How does the instrument sound now? If there is too much reverb, turn the Dry/Wet knob towards Dry until you have just the right amount of echo.
   
6. Make create another Subtractor/NN19/etc. and add another few sounds.
7. Make sure that your Subtractor/NN19 is highlighted in the rack, then go to the Create menu and select the Scream.
   
8. For the last step, try putting a Scream, an RV7000 or both on your Redrum.
9. Save the beat to your folder as "(your name)_FX 1.rns"