Supported MIDI keyboards and control surfaces

What is Remote?

Remote is a protocol for handling communication between control surfaces (MIDI keyboards, remote control devices, etc.) and software applications (e.g. Reason). It handles everything from delivering MIDI note data from a keyboard to the application to using knobs, faders and buttons on a control surface for tweaking synth parameters in the application, controlling transport, etc. Remote also supports two-way communication, in order to make use of motor faders, dynamic displays and LED indicators. The Remote protocol was introduced with Reason 3.0, which provides Remote support for a large number of control surfaces. Support for new control surfaces can be added at any time, in many cases by the control surface manufacturers or even by users.

 

While software audio applications can be immensely powerful, there's no doubt that physical hands-on control of parameters, transport and other functions is superior to clicking and dragging with a mouse. One of the goals of Remote is to provide a very tight integration between the control surface and the application — the control surface should feel like a natural part of the application rather than a separate, external device.

 

Historically, control surfaces have required quite complicated setup procedures — the user needed to program the control surface so that the knobs and faders sent the correct MIDI messages, switch between different templates on a control surface or set up manually which parameters should be controlled in the application. If you use a Remote-supported control surface with Reason, all you need to do is connect the control surface and set it up once and for all, typically by selecting a single factory preset — no programming or understanding of MIDI messages is required. In many cases, the Remote system can even identify the control surface and set things up automatically. After that, the control surface is ready for use. All knobs and sliders will automatically and dynamically be mapped to sensible parameters in Reason; the user never needs to switch presets or re-program controls on the surface.

 

As described above, all control surface items will automatically be mapped to control sensible parameters in the application. However, you can also choose to override these mappings for individual parameters, to tailor your setup for the project or situation. For example, you could have one slider always control the master level of the main mixer, assign some keys to transport control, have the foot pedal step through patch changes, and so on.

 

With Remote, you can have any number of control surfaces connected. You can choose whether they should control the same device or different devices.

 

Remote supports two-way communication, for motor faders, dynamic displays, indicators, etc. For example, a control surface with dynamic displays can show which devices and parameters are controlled at the moment, along with the parameter values. This makes the integration between the hardware and the software even tighter — with the right control surface you can play a live gig with Reason without needing to look at the computer screen at all!

 

If there's a Remote map for your control surface installed (either by you or built into Reason), you can use the "Auto-Detect" feature in Reason's preference to automatically set up your control surface. See the matrix below for the full list of control surfaces. Please note that even if your control surface isn't listed here, or if it doesn't have a Remote map, you can still set it up with Reason. Simply add it as a generic control surface in the Reason preferences by clicking Add and selecting <Other> as the manufacturer.

 

The following control surfaces are supported by Remote in the latest version of Reason. If a control surface is not listed here, we recommend contacting the manufacturer asking about Reason Remote support. Please note that if your control surface is not listed here, you can still set it up as a generic controller or keyboard in Reason's preferences.