VST stands for Virtual Studio Technology. There are three types of VST plug-ins:

• VST instruments: These plug-ins generate audio and are either virtual synthesizers or samplers. Many VST instruments emulate the appearance and sound of famous hardware synthesizers. Popular VSP instruments include Massive, FM8, Absynth, Sylenth 1, Reaktor, Gladiator, Vanguard, and Omnisphere.
• VST effects: Effects process audio instead of generating it. VST effects function like hardware audio processors, like reverbs and phasers.
• VST MIDI effects:MIDI plug-ins process MIDI messages and send MIDI data to other VST instruments and hardware.

By default, Reason 9.5/10 and Reason Essentials 9.5/10 look for installed VST (2.4, 64-bit) plugins in the following locations: Under Windows: C: Program Files VSTplugins C: Program Files Steinberg VSTplugins C: Program Files Common Files Steinberg VST2 Under Mac OS: Library/Audio/Plug-ins/VST /Library/Audio/Plug-ins/VST It's also possible to add your own custom locations to the 'search list' if you like. Native Instruments. Native Instruments has done a remarkable job by releasing KOMPLETE START.

VST Plug-ins

• Reason currently supports VST2 and VST 2.4 plug-ins. The other thing to check is that the folder where the plug-in resides is added to the scan list. Plug-in has been disabled or could not be loaded Once you’ve confirmed that your plug-in is compatible, the next thing to check is that it didn’t get disabled.
• A VST plugin is a software-based audio effect or a virtual instrument intended for use in a host program that supports Virtual Studio Technology. Most digital audio workstations nowadays can load VST and VST3 plugins. VST plugins are used to expand a virtual music studio, much like how hardware effects and instruments are utilized in a real studio.

VST plug-ins can be used within a digital audio workstation, in programs like Pro Tools and Logic. They’re frequently used to emulate hardware outboard gear such as compressors, expanders, equalizers, and maximizers. You'll frequently find these distributed to emulate certain models of hardware; there's some for vintage compressors, and you'll frequently find effects that emulate vintage hardware (both in instrumental and stompbox-like effects).

Think of VST plug-ins as really affordable ways to make your home studio sound like a really expensive commercial operation.

Best Vst Plugins For Reason

VSTi Plug-ins

Aside from VST plug-ins, you'll also find VST-instrument or VSTi plug-ins. These can emulate really cool, but expensive, hardware (like Hammond B3 and Nord Electro). The quality of these VSTi plug-ins can vary from acceptable to really poor; it all depends on the quality of your system resources (RAM and scratch space on your hard drive, for example), and how well-sampled the instrument is. You also want to make sure that your VSTi plug-in offers true polyphonic content, meaning you can make life-like chords that don’t sound too artificial.

Quality

There are thousands of plug-ins available. Some only take a few hours to produce and are free, but the quality is terrible. Some are made by huge companies and sound amazing, but are expensive. VST plug-in developers try to recreate the sound as closely as possible, but the original instrument is probably always going to sound better than the plug-in. You might be trying to get the rich, full-bodied sound of an organ, for example, but who owns an organ? No one has access to every type of instrument, so a plug-in will have to do. The good news is that VST plug-in technology is improving, so quality can only get better with time.

VST Plug-in Standard

Created by Steinberg, a German musical software and equipment company, the VST plug-in standard is the audio plug-in standard that allows third-party developers to make VST plug-ins. Users can download VST plug-ins on Mac OS X, Windows, and Linux. The vast majority of VST plug-ins are available on Windows. Apple’s Audio Units are standard on Mac OS X (it’s actually considered a competing technology), and Linux lacks commercial popularity, therefore few developers create VST plug-ins for the operating system.

Where to Find VST Plug-ins

There are thousands of VST plug-ins available, both commercially and as freeware. The Internet is flooded with free VST plug-ins. Home Music Production and Bedroom Producers Blog have robust lists of VST plug-in recommendations, and Splice and Plugin Boutique also offer a ton of free plug-ins.

VST in Reason is something people have been requested a lot of times. It has been stated back in the days that Propellerhead will not integrate the VST format. Nor are there any plans regarding integrating VSTs in the Digital Audio Workstation called Reason (yes, we can call it a DAW). At some point in time when Reason 6.5 got released the program got its own unique platform for external plugins. Which is a great step forward. Most of the external plugins as Rack Extensions work seamless in the workflow of the program itself. While this has been there for quite some time there is still an outcry for VST support in Reason. For those who really want to use VST support in Reason, this topic might be for you. Since we'll be diving right in to it. We'll also discuss the different downsides with this setups and different 'work flow issues' you may need to be aware of.

VST since Reason 9.5

While this is quite fresh, vst will be supported since Propellerhead Reason 9.5. The whole rack interface contains a VST Host, and you can seamless drag and drop VST intstruments and plugins in to the reason rack as of the latest version.

VST the old Method

Before diving in to it, there is always the option of 'Rewire'. Rewire is a protocol which allows other DAWs (that do support VST) to run reason in the background. In this case the other DAW is the host and Reason just hangs in there in the back ground. For a complete list of daws that support the Rewire protocol you can check the wikipedia list.

There is a lot to say about this type of set up. Since in theory you will need 2 different programs to make use of it. Where Reason is used as a Synth (since in rewire mode you connect directly to the Rack while sending midi data to different devices). At the same time you using the other DAW to make music with. This may sound fine as it is. But there are some major drawbacks to this workflow.
- the user needs to have full understanding working with 2 DAWs
- the reason file needs to be saved as well as the song file. If you want to reload the session you need 2 files. One for the DAW, the other for Reason. I am not 100% sure if this is still the case, but it used to work that way.
- memory load (since your running 2 programs next to each other)
- cpu load might become an issue
- latency might become an issue

At some extend, if there is no real other alternative to get VST working with Reason. Then this might eventually be the only real solid solution there is. Sure, there are issues. But I never said this would be easy.

VST with Midi Out

Since Reason 7 there is a new way to control a VST (where VST stands for Virtual Studio Technology). In this version you have a Midi Out in Reason to control an external VST program. While original Midi Out was implemented to control external hardware, yet it works perfect to control VST instruments that allow it. And this the catch: Not every VST allows this. And not every 'setup' (eg: hardware) allows this to happen. There are a few requirements for this to work. And I know there is Mac OS. I don't own a Mac, there for I cannot make any conclusion on how this works on a Mac.

Minimum requirements for this VST method:
- A Program to Loop the Midi (in this case I am using loopMidi)
- A VST that runs as stand alone
- Minimum Reason version: Reason 7
- multiple Audio Cards that support VST (not required, I will get back to this)

LoopMidi

The idea behind loop midi is to use this as a 'midi bridge' between Reason and the VST. In this case it allows you to control multiple VST instruments at the same time (while using multiple midi loop interfaces). After installing to program loop midi, you will need to set up a Midi interface. Just to keep things simple, give it a solid name that would define what you are using it for.

Midi Out in Reason 7

For the next step, you will need an instrument called Midi Out. This can be added inside the Rack. The only important thing is to select the proper Midi Out channel. In my case it is a setting called 'Reason Midi Out'. Because this is the midi port I created inside loopMidi.

Reason 10 Vst Plugins Folder

Midi Input VST

Here is the 'tricky' part. Since not every VST instrument will work the same. The most important parts are:
- The VST instrument needs a stand alone version of the plugin (not every VST has this, but most instruments from Native Instruments work as a stand alone version. #1)
- The VST needs to accept a Custom Midi Port.
- Per VST the workflow may be different

As an example, I will show a screenshot from Native Instruments Massive on how the Midi Port configuration may look like:

As far as most native instrument I have tested, these will have a similar set up. Under the menu 'file' there is a setting called 'Audio and Midi' settings. This will display the above picture after selecting the Midi Tab. When done so, make sure the Midi Port you are using in loopMidi is turned 'on' (by default, it is turned off!). When done so, you can go back to reason. Select the Midi Out, and play notes. This even works with the on screen piano.

Multiple Audio Cards

Can Reason Use Vst Plugins Vst

In case you want to play the VST as is, you can stop here. Since it should already be working as it is. However, sometimes you may need to 'sample' the input from the VST to another track. Jasper from therSitez has presented an awesome video which displays this method. It comes down to have the Audio Output from the VST going through a specific audio port. Next you create an audio track. There you will select the same audio channel as input. Hit record... and you are all set to go. At this point in time I can't display any images regarding this technique because the laptop I am writing on does not have multiple audio card, my desktop does. Since I have already tested this workflow, I therefor can confirm that it works. Only disadvantage with the audio cards: they need to work with Asio4All. Other wise... it is going to be a no-go.

VST Samples in Reason

Some VST instrument have data libraries where the sound sources are RAW wave files. I know that for instance Battery has this, same goes for AbSynth 4. At some point you are able to use the sound source from different VST and load these up directly inside an NN-XT. Or Kong. I depends if they sound proper enough, and if the VST instrument is using raw sample data by default. In most cases, this is not the case. But I thought I would just add this option to the list of ways to get VST sounds inside the Reason Rack.

There is also the method to record every single note from a VST inside a DAW that supports it, export the sound as a Wav File and import those back inside the NN-XT. While this workflow is really time consuming, I can say I have done this method once using Legacy Cell in the past. There for I know... it is a real time consuming job to export it, load it up, layer it and so. This method also has some limitations to it (since your only using raw souns). But I am just saying, it can be done.

For now, this kind of sums up my chain of thoughts when it comes to using VST instruments in Reason. Have a good evening!

1. This is based on experimenting with VSTs from Native Instruments like Monark, Reaktor 6, AbSynth 4 and Massive

VST in Reason is something people have been requested a lot of times. It has been stated back in the days that Propellerhead will not integrate the VST format. Nor are there any plans regarding integrating VSTs in the Digital Audio Workstation called Reason (yes, we can call it a DAW). At some point in time when Reason 6.5 got released the program got its own unique platform for external plugins. Which is a great step forward. Most of the external plugins as Rack Extensions work seamless in the workflow of the program itself. While this has been there for quite some time there is still an outcry for VST support in Reason. For those who really want to use VST support in Reason, this topic might be for you. Since we'll be diving right in to it. We'll also discuss the different downsides with this setups and different 'work flow issues' you may need to be aware of.

VST and using Reason Rewire

Reason Rewire is a protocol which allows other DAWs (that do support VST) to run reason in the background. In this case the other DAW is the host and Reason just hangs in there in the back ground. For a complete list of daws that support the Rewire protocol you can check the wikipedia list.

There is a lot to say about this type of set up. Since in theory you will need 2 different programs to make use of it. Where Reason is used as a Synth (since in rewire mode you connect directly to the Rack while sending midi data to different devices). At the same time you using the other DAW to make music with. This may sound fine as it is. But there are some major drawbacks to this workflow.
- the user needs to have full understanding working with 2 DAWs
- the reason file needs to be saved as well as the song file. If you want to reload the session you need 2 files. One for the DAW, the other for Reason. I am not 100% sure if this is still the case, but it used to work that way.
- memory load (since your running 2 programs next to each other)
- cpu load might become an issue
- latency might become an issue

At some extend, if there is no real other alternative to get VST instruments working with Reason. Then this might eventually be the only real solid solution there is. Sure, there are issues. But I never said this would be easy.

VST instruments and Midi Out in Reason

VST (Virtual Studio Technology) instruments can be controlled since Reason 7. Since this version you have a Midi Out in Reason to control an external VST program. While original Midi Out was implemented to control external hardware, yet it works perfect to control VST instruments that allow it. And this the catch: Not every instrument allows this. And not every 'setup' (eg: hardware) allows this to happen. There are a few requirements for this to work. And I know there is Mac OS. I don't own a Mac, there for I cannot make any conclusion on how this works on a Mac.

Minimum requirements for this VST method:
- A Program to Loop the Midi (in this case I am using loopMidi)
- A VST that runs as stand alone
- Minimum Reason version: Reason 7
- multiple Audio Cards that support VST (not required, I will get back to this)

LoopMidi

Reason 10 Vst

The idea behind loop midi is to use this as a 'midi bridge' between Reason and the VST. In this case it allows you to control multiple VST instruments at the same time (while using multiple midi loop interfaces). After installing to program loop midi, you will need to set up a Midi interface. Just to keep things simple, give it a solid name that would define what you are using it for.

Midi Out in Reason 7

For the next step, you will need an instrument called Midi Out. This can be added inside the Rack. The only important thing is to select the proper Midi Out channel. In my case it is a setting called 'Reason Midi Out'. Because this is the midi port I created inside loopMidi.

Midi Input VST

Here is the 'tricky' part. Not every VST instrument will work the same. The most important parts are:
- The VST instrument needs a stand alone version of the plugin (not every VST has this, but most instruments from Native Instruments work as a stand alone version. #1)
- The VST needs to accept a Custom Midi Port.
- Per VST the workflow may be different

As an example, I will show a screenshot from Native Instruments Massive on how the Midi Port configuration may look like:

As far as most native instrument I have tested, these will have a similar set up. Under the menu 'file' there is a setting called 'Audio and Midi' settings. This will display the above picture after selecting the Midi Tab. When done so, make sure the Midi Port you are using in loopMidi is turned 'on' (by default, it is turned off!). When done so, you can go back to reason. Select the Midi Out, and play notes. This even works with the on screen piano.

Multiple Audio Cards

In case you want to play the VST as is, you can stop here. Since it should already be working as it is. However, sometimes you may need to 'sample' the input from the VST to another track. Jasper from therSitez has presented an awesome video which displays this method. It comes down to have the Audio Output from the VST going through a specific audio port. Next you create an audio track. There you will select the same audio channel as input. Hit record... and you are all set to go. At this point in time I can't display any images regarding this technique because the laptop I am writing on does not have multiple audio card, my desktop does. Since I have already tested this workflow, I therefor can confirm that it works. Only disadvantage with the audio cards: they need to work with Asio4All. Other wise... it is going to be a no-go.

VST Samples in Reason

Free Reason Plugins

Some VST instrument have data libraries where the sound sources are RAW wave files. I know that for instance Battery has this, same goes for AbSynth 4. At some point you are able to use the sound source from different VST and load these up directly inside an NN-XT. Or Kong. I depends if they sound proper enough, and if the VST instrument is using raw sample data by default. In most cases, this is not the case. But I thought I would just add this option to the list of ways to get VST sounds inside the Reason Rack.

There is also the method to record every single note from a VST inside a DAW that supports it, export the sound as a Wav File and import those back inside the NN-XT. While this workflow is really time consuming, I can say I have done this method once using Legacy Cell in the past. There for I know... it is a real time consuming job to export it, load it up, layer it and so. This method also has some limitations to it (since your only using raw souns). But I am just saying, it can be done.

For now, this kind of sums up my chain of thoughts when it comes to using VST instruments in Reason. Have a good evening!

Free Vst Plugins Downloads

1. This is based on experimenting with VSTs from Native Instruments like Monark, Reaktor 6, AbSynth 4 and Massive

Can Reason Use Vst Plugins Plugin