Leeplusplus wrote: Fri Jan 16, 2026 10:47 am

Kniferide wrote: Comping in Reaper has always been good but all the new Lanes stuff is great.

I messed with this for a whole afternoon and something about it is not tracking in my brain. What's the main benefit for you over using the take system?

You use the comping lane to edit and cut your takes, but instead of having takes stacked in a track, takes are now in their own lanes. If you don't use lanes, you need to edit and comp all takes at the same time, which I always found annoying and stopped using takes to do the dumbest thing, like create a new track for each take and create a comping track. This makes everything work so much better and makes using takes worthwhile, as lanes. You can then slice pieces of takes you want to make a comp with, which appear in the comping lane. You can then hide the take lanes and just show the comping lane, with all the slices in tact, if you wanted to adjust them in the comping lane.

cakes wrote: Fri Jan 16, 2026 3:18 pm

Leeplusplus wrote: Fri Jan 16, 2026 10:47 am

Kniferide wrote: Comping in Reaper has always been good but all the new Lanes stuff is great.

I messed with this for a whole afternoon and something about it is not tracking in my brain. What's the main benefit for you over using the take system?

You use the comping lane to edit and cut your takes, but instead of having takes stacked in a track, takes are now in their own lanes. If you don't use lanes, you need to edit and comp all takes at the same time, which I always found annoying and stopped using takes to do the dumbest thing, like create a new track for each take and create a comping track. This makes everything work so much better and makes using takes worthwhile, as lanes. You can then slice pieces of takes you want to make a comp with, which appear in the comping lane. You can then hide the take lanes and just show the comping lane, with all the slices in tact, if you wanted to adjust them in the comping lane.

It basically works like it always has but with more features. You can still do it the old way if you like that better.

You have been able to see takes in lanes (not by default but you can turn it on) for a pretty long time but now (maybe v4 or 5?) it is treated a little more like they are treated a little more separate and it is easier to see what you are working on. The Comp lane is what is new. You used to see all the takes in lanes and just clicked to choose what was the active take at any given time. Now you can create a comp lane (more many comp lanes for multiple comps) that kinda edits your active takes into a track. you can choose what lane, or comp lane is actually playing. It just has more flexibility. Sometimes if I'm recording guitar stuff or vocals I will just create a track for record and a track for "Keepers" and just kinda do it like nondestructive punches because that is how I did it like 15 years ago and old habits... The new brush tool for "painting" parts of takes into your comp is fast and easy for a dirty first run.

The Kenny vid on it demonstrates it well.

Some of us were just talking about how we don't like channel strip plugins, but this looks interesting for those that do:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iViQXryVORE

cakes wrote: Tue Feb 17, 2026 9:57 am Some of us were just talking about how we don't like channel strip plugins, but this looks interesting for those that do:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iViQXryVORE

I forgot about the Tukan FX. They are all actually pretty good and a nice add on to the REA and JS Fx for budget minded people. LIttle strip looks kinda cool. I did a thing the other day to keep me focused. I populated a Streamdeck page with 14 plugins and am trying to ONLY use a plugin I can launch with the Streamdeck while mixing. So far it does everything I could ever need (other than instruments and beatmaking stuff.) I actually is sort of Channel Strip focused because there are a lot of tools on a strip. Here is the list of what is at my fingers:

Brainworks Neve and SSL E, Slate VMR (purely for the 1176 and channel saturator, sometimes the Neve eq), Nectar, Ozone, ProQ4, Pulsar Neumann 3 Band EQ ( It try to use this more than ProQ if I can get away with it), TDR Kotelnikov (Best transparent Comp maybe), Kazrog True Dynamic (for not transparent Comp) Unfairchild (only ever gets put on drums, but it always gets put on drums), Cherry Audio Stardust Tape echo, Valhalla Delay, Valhalla Classic Reverb, Devious Machines Duck

The Izotope plugs are kinda cheating because I could prob get away with just those most of the time but this gives me a little diversity while still tightening the reins. It's been kinda refreshing way to work.

Installing Tukan is worthwhile. This isn't the only channel strip, this is just a new one that integrates really well into Reaper's UI. He's also got analog summers that are really cool. His Distressor clone is really nice (looks like he's got a new one in this latest package, too). There's a ton more Tukan plugins that basically cover everything you would need. You install them through The Reaper extensions, so it's unique in that way.

You could install Tukan and airwindows, and have no need for any other plugins. Throw on top some AnalogObsession if you want. But what's the fun in that?

I love the Distreasure and I used it for a Destressor plugin until I picked up the Kiive XTComp, which just takes the Distressor to another level.

cakes wrote: Tue Feb 17, 2026 2:39 pm Installing Tukan is worthwhile. This isn't the only channel strip, this is just a new one that integrates really well into Reaper's UI. He's also got analog summers that are really cool. His Distressor clone is really nice (looks like he's got a new one in this latest package, too). There's a ton more Tukan plugins that basically cover everything you would need. You install them through The Reaper extensions, so it's unique in that way.

You could install Tukan and airwindows, and have no need for any other plugins. Throw on top some AnalogObsession if you want. But what's the fun in that?

I love the Distreasure and I used it for a Destressor plugin until I picked up the Kiive XTComp, which just takes the Distressor to another level.

Yeah, for a while I was installing the Tukan stuff every time I installed Reaper along side SWS and a few other extensions/scripts and just kinda considered it part of a Reaper install. Just kinda forgot about them. I'll check out the Kiive comp. The only Destressor plugin I've liked so far is the UA and I'm trying to kick UA to the curb permanently for being archaic and bad at what they do. This Kiive looks pretty cool. Destressor in Mid Side seems like fun idea.