# Logic vs Reaper: what's the biggest thing that comes to mind?



## Ivan M. (Dec 29, 2020)

Considering getting Logic so curious about the advantages and dissadvantages


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## Kent (Dec 29, 2020)

What do you use a DAW for?


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## blinkofani (Dec 29, 2020)

I think the main difference would depend if you already have a good collection of VIs and FXs because you’ve been working with any DAW for a good number of years. The quality and number of those for the price is crazy for the price in the case of LogicPro. If it’s no concern for you, I’d say try both since they have demo versions available. Don’t know much about Reaper but from what I read here and elsewhere is it’s a great app but you need to put more time finetuning it/customizing it to have a well working environnment.


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## Ivan M. (Dec 29, 2020)

kmaster said:


> What do you use a DAW for?


I use Reaper for composing, production and mixing. But that's irrelevant here, I'm interested in what other people find better in Logic.


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## Dewdman42 (Dec 29, 2020)

do we really need this thread? 

Reaper is free to try, pretty much indefinitately...and very very cheap to buy. Might as well just try it out. IMHO, LogicPro is leaps and bounds better then Reaper, I own both and never use Reaper. LogicPro is worth every penny of the $199 it costs...and so far, Apple has updated it numerous times since I bought it and never charged a penny. LogicPro includes numerous EXCELLENT instruments and plugins and IMHO is the best GUI of all the DAW's. All DAW's have pros and cons and it will always come down to what you prefer and we've seen those pros and cons blasted on the forums ad infintum for years now, the information is already out there. Reaper is probably the most flexible with many powerful features but I find its GUI intolerable...and not just cosmetically...from a simple usability standpoint it sucks according to me. Logic is the opposite in terms of usability.


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## el-bo (Dec 29, 2020)

Ivan M. said:


> I use Reaper for composing, production and mixing. But that's irrelevant here, I'm interested in what other people find better in Logic.



What's your itch? What are you missing? What about Logic, from an outside view, has piqued your interest?


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## robgb (Dec 29, 2020)

Ivan M. said:


> I use Reaper for composing, production and mixing. But that's irrelevant here, I'm interested in what other people find better in Logic.


I came FROM Logic to Studio One to Reaper. Overall they're all great DAWs. The only thing I find better in Logic are the multitude of instruments that come with the DAW. Not that I ever used any of them, but still.

Other than that, I can't think of a single reason why I would want to use Logic.


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## Fox (Dec 29, 2020)

For $200 Logic Pro seems like a no-brainer to at least try out and see if it's for you or not. Just really depends how curious you are and how much time you have on your hands (that you want to use learning another DAW).

What does it do better than Reaper? I have no idea, since I have never tried reaper (other than briefly experimenting with a demo). Logic certainly seemed easier to understand up front, but if you already have significant time with Reaper, I can't see that being a factor for you. Logic comes with great plugins and instruments (the most famous of which is probably the Alchemy synth), but you may have all the plugins and instruments you need. 

I love the work flow of Logic, but I think that is very individualistic, so you just have to try it and see.


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## Ivan M. (Dec 29, 2020)

el-bo said:


> What's your itch? What are you missing? What about Logic, from an outside view, has piqued your interest?


Well just curious because apple is known for their user experience, so I assume they worked it out well for Logic. Maybe it's more convenient, in which case I would be interested


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## Ivan M. (Dec 29, 2020)

robgb said:


> I came FROM Logic to Studio One to Reaper. Overall they're all great DAWs. The only thing I find better in Logic are the multitude of instruments that come with the DAW. Not that I ever used any of them, but still.
> 
> Other than that, I can't think of a single reason why I would want to use Logic.


Is midi editing better in Reaper? I use mostly midi


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## robgb (Dec 29, 2020)

Ivan M. said:


> Is midi editing better in Reaper? I use mostly midi


You will hear different claims, but in my opinion the midi editing in Reaper is the best there is. The other difference between Logic and Reaper is, I guess, that Logic is probably more intuitive out of the box. They have set ways of doing things and you do them that way or you don't do them at all. Reaper is far more flexible and offers a multitude of solutions, many of them created by their user base in the form of action scripts. If you can't find a way to do something, go to the forum and ask and chances are someone will generously create a script that will fulfill your need.

The downside of this is that it's not as satisfying out of the box as Logic is. Reaper sometimes takes work to wrap your head around. But once you do, I suspect you'll never turn back.


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## el-bo (Dec 29, 2020)

Ivan M. said:


> Well just curious because apple is known for their user experience, so I assume they worked it out well for Logic. Maybe it's more convenient, in which case I would be interested


I've been using Logic since the PC days, but I still don't know how I'd sell it to you. I suppose, even if you were only interested in Alchemy and Scultpure it might still be worth the current RRP (Buy the synths, get the DAW free  )

There are some things that annoy me about Logic, but I'm happy to work around them and to supplement with other DAW.

If you were a beginner, i'd say logic f'sure. As someone who has experience elsewhere, you still might find that the convergence (Or perhaps, lack thereof) of all it's many elements works to inspire you. And if it inspires you then what more could you ask for?

I guess it just feels like home, to me. Not too helpful, I know.

Anyway, you can always try it for yourself 









Logic Pro - Free Trial


Logic Pro is a complete professional recording studio on the Mac. Try it now with a free 90-day trial.



www.apple.com





And watch out for SkillShare deals. Some YouTubers offer 2 months of free subscription, for new users:



https://www.skillshare.com/browse/logic-pro-x



-------

A good course, here:



-------

And there are great tutorials, here. If you cant be bothered to sign up, you can watch five videos a day, for free:









Logic Pro Course Library


Learn all of today's popular software for Mac & Windows. Watch videos showing production tips & tricks. View Industry-leading Artists at work in top studios. Real Video, Real Pros, Real Education




www.macprovideo.com


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## Ivan M. (Dec 29, 2020)

el-bo said:


> I've been using Logic since the PC days, but I still don't know how I'd sell it to you. I suppose, even if you were only interested in Alchemy and Scultpure it might still be worth the current RRP (Buy the synths, get the DAW free  )
> 
> There are some things that annoy me about Logic, but I'm happy to work around them and to supplement with other DAW.
> 
> ...




Great, thanks!


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## A.G (Dec 29, 2020)

Hi,
I use Logic & Cubase since v1 (it was at the beginning of 90s).
Here are some of the top Logic features which make me love this DAW:
• Unique MIDI Environment which allows you to create all sort of Pre & Post MIDI processing.
In fact it is a mega MIDI constructor embedded into a DAW which offers you tons of useful MIDI objects which can be routed to various Virtual or External Instruments (most is powered by key commands etc). Unfortunately today Logic users do not understand the Environment power or how to use it.
_I'll post a special topic with advanced Logic enviro tools examples soon..._

• The Factory MIDI FX plugins are designed very well and the Scripter MIDI FX is another way to create custom plugins which are not offered by Apple.

• The Logic Factory Instruments are the best offered by a DAW.


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## Richard Wilkinson (Dec 29, 2020)

Single biggest difference for me is Reaper's phenomenal export functions. Stems, alt mixes, several regions etc with a single click. I prefer and predominantly use logic, but Reaper's export chops make it a winner for sound design sessions with dozens of regions.


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## Ivan M. (Dec 29, 2020)

A.G said:


> Hi,
> I use Logic & Cubase since v1 (it was at the beginning of 90s).
> Here are some of the top Logic features which make me love this DAW:
> • Unique MIDI Environment which allows you to create all sort of Pre & Post MIDI processing.
> ...



Just looked into it, seems awesome!


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## Toecutter (Dec 29, 2020)

robgb said:


> You will hear different claims, but in my opinion the midi editing in Reaper is the best there is. The other difference between Logic and Reaper is, I guess, that Logic is probably more intuitive out of the box. They have set ways of doing things and you do them that way or you don't do them at all. Reaper is far more flexible and offers a multitude of solutions, many of them created by their user base in the form of action scripts. If you can't find a way to do something, go to the forum and ask and chances are someone will generously create a script that will fulfill your need.
> 
> The downside of this is that it's not as satisfying out of the box as Logic is. Reaper sometimes takes work to wrap your head around. But once you do, I suspect you'll never turn back.


My editor friend that I respect a lot is an ex-PT addict and swears by Reaper for audio work. I always had the impression that midi in Reaper was an afterthought but your post got me intrigued. Any resources you recommend?


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## anp27 (Dec 29, 2020)

Dewdman42 said:


> Reaper is free to try



So is Logic.


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## Trash Panda (Dec 29, 2020)

Most of the difference boils down to which group of ravenous fans do you want to join? Appholes or Reapbags?


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## A.G (Dec 29, 2020)

To be honest, all new DAWs like Reaper, Studio One etc., are based on the Cubase, Logic and Cakewalk colossuses. A few people here know what were the Cubase "Mixer Maps" and Emagic/Logic "SoundDiver".


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## blinkofani (Dec 29, 2020)

It’s always a dangerous game when you try a new DAW and you’re used to another one because you try to reproduce the workflow of the one you know in the new one you’re trying out. I only have my own experience to rely on but I always say that usually you’ll know rather fast if you like an app and if it works for you.

Long time ago I had the chance to try MOTU Performer, Cubase and Micro Logic 2.0 and while I could see the other ones being powerful programs, when I tried Logic everything made sense. I didn’t have to look much at the manuel(only way to learn a program at the time) as everything was in the right place, so to speak, so I stuck to it since then and now when I have to do an edit or arrange something I don’t even have to wonder how to do it, I just do it. And when I talk to people about DAWs they have the same feeling when they find the program that works “right” with their brain, be it Cubase, Reaper or FL Studio...


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## Ivan M. (Dec 30, 2020)

robgb said:


> Reaper sometimes takes work to wrap your head around


Actually, I think reaper might be the simplest of daws  (as far as I've seen) because it's based around simple building blocks, some of which are: actions, most processing done through fx, items define the data, dead simple routing. It doesn't attempt to wrap inderlying principles into higher level concepts with fancy names, like other daws do and, arguably, make things more awkward. 

However, other daws can feel more convenient if you stay within their intended usage. I'm demoing Logic now, and it just feels way more comfortable, I don't know why, guess some well designed UX stuff there, but simply feels better. Though, I still need to create a track with it to get the full impression, like I did with S1. 

And I hate that stupid gray background in Logic, whoever thought that was a good color should get a pie in the face. :D Can't find it in maresources.plist, I need it darker


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## Artemi (Dec 30, 2020)

Hello!
The different instruments that comes with logic are really cool to jam on, but if you have your own set of plugins maybe you wont need them.

On the second thought I think once you'll find out how many custom actions, cycle actions are there in reaper there is no turning back indeed. 

I still can't use ableton just because many of the default shortcuts are uncheangable. 
The only thing I would want in reaper is some kind of clip support like in ableton. that would be cool jam some loops in realtime, kind a hard to do it right now...


Also I think that I've changed lots of default reaper settings because it was not suited to my workflow, gonna find out what different functions do. (like turning off cc64 sustain pedal on stop playback)
But still you just can imagine this daw as a continuation of yourself, unbelievable..

you can download additional sws scripts of functions that you'll want from the reaper itself, right inside the daw


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## blinkofani (Dec 30, 2020)

Ivan M. said:


> Actually, I think reaper might be the simplest of daws  (as far as I've seen) because it's based around simple building blocks, some of which are: actions, most processing done through fx, items define the data, dead simple routing. It doesn't attempt to wrap inderlying principles into higher level concepts with fancy names, like other daws do and, arguably, make things more awkward.
> 
> However, other daws can feel more convenient if you stay within their intended usage. I'm demoing Logic now, and it just feels way more comfortable, I don't know why, guess some well designed UX stuff there, but simply feels better. Though, I still need to create a track with it to get the full impression, like I did with S1.
> 
> And I hate that stupid gray background in Logic, whoever thought that was a good color should get a pie in the face. :D Can't find it in maresources.plist, I need it darker


I’ll save you a couple of years of learning editing in Logic. Make sure you have the Marquee Tool(+ sign) as your Command tool(secondary tool) in the Tracks area and also have the Fade tool enabled in Prefs/Editing. There’s dozens of things you can do with that tool alone in the Tracks area. Once you know a couple of predefined shortcuts there, you’ll hardly ever have to select a tool for any edit. Go check a couple of YT videos about the Marquee tool in Logic.

In the Audio Track editor(not the audio file editor, 2 quite different things), make the Command tool the Flex tool since in the lower part of the pane the pointer transforms in the Marquee tool automatically. On a flexed region(just press Command and click to initiate the transients analysis), making a selection with the Marquee tool creates flex markers so you then bring the cursor in the upper section and press Command. The Flex tool will transform into an hand and you’ll move audio like butter.

In a couple of weeks, when you think you know a lot about Logic, remember this, you don’t know anything about Logic yet...


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## Ivan M. (Jan 4, 2022)

I ended up buying Logic some time ago, and it's generally comfortable, I like the eye candy and a well designed interface (the reason to leave reaper). But some things are odd, mostly midi editing and navigation and region selection (it doesn't deselect other regions when you click within selection). Negative project start has issues with tempo, it will move regions to negative, but not tempo points. Why negative - because sometimes I want to start at measure 1 (e.g. reading a score), but have some preparation and space before it. It also doesn't import midi properly because of this. And I really miss middle click to move the editor view.

I both love and hate Reaper. It's really fast for basic midi editing and routing and track management is perfect, but it's just plain ugly! And click zones are tiny. And when you miss the click zone (trying to resize), it will grab the track to move it, and you can't escape, you have to drop. But you don't know where you dragged it from, because you tried to resize quickly and pulled across the whole screen.

It's like sand and small rocks in your shoe. You can walk, you can even run, but it's uncomfortable and you just want to get rid of it. I'm not really satisfied with neither. Will probably have to try FLStudio and Cubase at some point and see how it goes. Or just accept the sad fact that most software UX sucks.

EDIT: just tried them out, flstudio and cubase are a big NO for me, especially cubase, it just looks so wrong, and is so tiring on the eyes. I'll just stick with Reaper and Logic, they are good enough


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## rudi (Jan 5, 2022)

@Ivan M. I don't know if this would help, but there are some Logic Pro like themes for REAPER.
I use this donation-ware theme (the amount you choose to donate is up-to-you):






I Logic - Cockos Incorporated Forums


I Logic REAPER Color Themes and Icon Sets



forum.cockos.com











The same guy has also released a free version:



REAPER | Resources


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## Christian64 (Jan 5, 2022)

Reaper is fantastic...very customisable...


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## Guavadude (Jan 10, 2022)

Don’t use negative bars in Logic. It doesn’t work, as you’ve found out. Just use bar 3 as your downbeat so you have two bars of countoff. Then in prefs set the sequence start offset so that bar 3 starts at 01:00:00, if you need to compose to tight lengths like a :30 or :60. 

It’s knowing stuff like this that makes any DAW more enjoyable.


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## MexicanBreed (Jan 10, 2022)

Artemi said:


> Hello!
> The different instruments that comes with logic are really cool to jam on, but if you have your own set of plugins maybe you wont need them.
> 
> On the second thought I think once you'll find out how many custom actions, cycle actions are there in reaper there is no turning back indeed.
> ...



Hi, Ive never tried this myself but it may be of interest to you.
Playtime for Reaper






This is from the developer: 
"Playtime is a VST instrument for the Digital Audio Workstation REAPER and works in *REAPER only*. It is designed to make loop-based music production in REAPER easier and much more fun. In particular, it offers a Session View loosely inspired by the one in Ableton Live. That means it enables you to play loops in a very intuitive way - just by triggering them using your MIDI controller or the graphical user interface."

He has also developed Realearn, and that one is a game changer.


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## Artemi (Jan 10, 2022)

MexicanBreed said:


> Hi, Ive never tried this myself but it may be of interest to you.
> Playtime for Reaper
> 
> 
> ...


Hello!

I've tried this one, it doesn't felt the same way Ableton does.
I'm using maschine software in reaper now, it fits much better but requires some additional hardware.


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