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Reaper is a robust, versatile and customisable audio utility. You should use Reaper for music creation and manufacturing, podcasts, voice-over, sound design, audiobooks, dwell efficiency, mixing for video, mastering, and way more.

In our free Reaper course, you’ll be taught the fundamentals of Reaper with Dave Bode, and on this lesson Dave will present you how you can obtain and set up Reaper.

The best way to Set up and Set Up Reaper for the First Time

Obtain and Set up Reaper

To get began, you possibly can head on over to reaper.fm and click on the Obtain Reaper hyperlink on the high of the web page after which choose your working system of alternative. I am utilizing Home windows, so I’ve bought the Home windows 64-bit model. Don’t fret if the model that you just see is older, Reaper is up to date on a regular basis and there is no means I may make a course like this and use the identical model that you just see whenever you obtain however don’t be concerned as a result of just about every thing goes to be precisely the identical.

Reaper Set up

The one factor that I’ll do in a different way than what you’ll do is I am selecting to do a Transportable Reaper set up. A transportable set up is a extremely helpful factor if you wish to experiment with Reaper or attempt some totally different settings and never alter your important set up. As I have already got a important Reaper set up, I’ll do a transportable set up, however you possibly can simply click on Subsequent on that display screen with out doing that.

The primary time Reaper runs, it is going to scan my system for VST and VST3 audio results. These are results that will have been beforehand put in to some default folders on the OS drive, and Reaper will seek for these and make these accessible within the results listing. If you do not have VST results, don’t be concerned, I’ll be speaking about results in additional element in an upcoming lesson.

Reaper Preferences

Subsequent, Reaper will ask if I need to choose my audio machine driver, and I will click on Sure. Reaper then opens up the preferences and takes me proper to the machine setting for my audio machine. In case you’re on a Mac, that is going to be a barely totally different expertise as a result of on a Mac, you arrange your audio machine in your audio and MIDI settings within the System Preferences, nevertheless it ought to be fairly simple to observe alongside.

The very first thing that I need to do is click on this audio system drop down and present you that there are a bunch of choices right here. Do not let this confuse you although, there are solely two which can be actually related. In case you have been utilizing an exterior audio machine, a USB audio machine or a Firewire audio machine, it is best to select ASIO.

ASIO stands for Audio Stream Enter/Output. And it is a excessive efficiency driver protocol that’s positively going to be what you need to use as a result of it provides you a decrease latency expertise. If you weren’t utilizing a USB or Firewire audio interface, and also you’re on Home windows, you will need the WASAPI possibility down on the backside. That is the Home windows audio system, and it is completely advantageous to make use of to observe alongside for this course.

As I’m utilizing an audio interface, I am going to decide on ASIO, after which within the Driver part I can choose my particular audio interface, as a result of I’ve used and am utilizing, a number of audio interfaces with my system, so I’ll choose the MOTU M sequence. I am at the moment utilizing the MOTU M4, it is an excellent unit.

Inputs and Outputs

Subsequent, I’ll configure my inputs and my outputs. By default, there is probably not something that it is advisable to change right here. Reaper mechanically selects the primary and second enter, when you have two inputs accessible, and the primary and second output. I occur to have extra inputs accessible, so I am going to decide on quantity 4, as a result of I’ve 4 analogue inputs and inputs 5 by means of 8 are literally digital loopback inputs, they usually’re probably not related for this course. So I’ll hold it to the primary 4 inputs.

On the output facet, I am additionally going to pick my final output in order that I’ve all 4 outputs accessible for Reaper, and I am good to go.

On this backside part there are some extra technical audio settings that you could be or might not have to tweak. I am not going to mess with these as a result of my machine driver is already set to 48 kHz or 48,000Hz as a pattern price, and it’s set to a buffer dimension of 128, which works for me. In case you’re uncertain of what to make use of, you possibly can arrange your audio machine to make use of 44,100 hertz as a pattern price and 512 as a buffer dimension.

Paths

When you’re taking a look at preferences, there are a couple of extra issues that I can go over that may make your life loads simpler as you progress ahead in Reaper. In case you click on on Paths, I’d suggest organising some default paths.

First, arrange a default path to save lots of new initiatives. For me, that’s my transportable drive after which a folder known as. Reaper Saves. This fashion each time you hit Save in Reaper, it should save on this location.

I am not going to set a default render path as a result of if I go away this empty, it should render my challenge within the present challenge listing, which I do know might be in a subfolder within the Reaper Saves folder.

Nevertheless, I’m going to set a default recording path and I have already got a folder arrange known as Reaper Media. That is in case, for no matter cause, if I begin recording and I haven’t got a challenge saved, I do know the place that audio file goes to be if I want it later. Which is unlikely nevertheless it’s good to arrange now.

After which I’ll click on the examine field Retailer All Peak Caches or Reapeaks in an Alternate Path. By default, whenever you insert audio recordsdata into Reaper it creates somewhat Reapeak file and places that proper subsequent to the audio file, wherever it’s in your arduous drive. That Reapeak file represents the wave kind that you just see within Reaper and that drives me nuts as a result of it makes my recordsdata bloated – if I pull in 10 recordsdata I’ve 20 recordsdata as a substitute due to all these wave recordsdata.

As an alternative, I wish to set a folder for all of my peak recordsdata so any time I import audio recordsdata, it’s going to tug all of these peak recordsdata in that Reapeaks folder.

Venture Settings

The subsequent space that I wanna present you is in Project. One factor that I’d suggest is that you just examine the choice to have Reaper immediate to save lots of on a brand new challenge. With this feature enabled, any time you create a brand new challenge, Reaper will provide you with a dialogue field and I’d suggest that you just simply save no matter you’re doing.

Even if you happen to’re simply opening up Reaper to fiddle or experiment you could have a report of that and that means if you happen to provide you with some superb thought, you could have it saved.

Down on the backside of the web page there are a number of choices having to do with challenge saving. You may hold a number of variations of your challenge, you possibly can hold a time stamped backup, you possibly can hold your undo histories. You you possibly can discover what all of these issues do within the Reaper handbook.

Nevertheless, the one factor that I’d suggest that you just do is allow autosave or a timestamped backup and you’ve got choices for that as properly. You may choose the frequency at which a timestamped backup is created. By default, that is quarter-hour, I’d suggest dropping this to five minutes as a result of you will get loads of stuff executed in quarter-hour. To ensure that this to work, it is advisable to choose both save to timestamped file in challenge listing, which can create a timestamped backup subsequent to your save file, wherever that’s. Or you can even allow save to timestamped file in extra listing, so you possibly can, for instance, put it on one other drive after which you could have a security system in place the place you could have an alternate location with an autosave of your challenge.

You may as well choose when to create this timestamp backup or this autosave. By default, it is chosen to When Not Recording however you possibly can select when stopped or Any Time. If it is Any Time you might have a problem if you find yourself recording and it might trigger an interruption there. So, both when not recording or when stopped might be the best choice.

A Reaper Set up Light Nag…

Once you’re executed in settings, Reaper will provide you with somewhat nag display screen saying hey, Reaper isn’t free ,it is a paid product. In case you use it for greater than 60 days you’re required to purchase a license. Reaper is a superb worth at $60 for a private license, that ought to cowl most individuals, until you’re making some huge cash, and you then want a professional license for Reaper.

One Final Setting: Venture Settings

There’s yet one more setting that I feel is actually helpful to point out you and that’s in Venture Settings, which you will get to if you happen to click on the I with a circle round it. When you’re in Venture Settings, jump over to the Media tab and I’d suggest that you just sort in one thing like Audio Information into the Path field on the high. This fashion each time you create a challenge, you save your challenge, and also you begin recording in Reaper, it is going to create a sub folder wherever you could have your challenge saved and all of these audio recordsdata will go into that folder. It makes file administration a lot simpler. Then hit Save as Default Venture Settings and also you’re able to get began along with your Reaper set up!

About This Web page

This web page was written by Marie Gardiner from the transcript of a course by David Bode. Dave is an knowledgeable on video and audio manufacturing. Marie is a author, creator, and photographer. The web page was edited by Gonzalo Angulo. Gonzalo is an editor, author and illustrator.