REAPER

Digital audio workstation by Cockos

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REAPER

Developer(s)	Cockos
Initial release	August 23, 2006; 17 years ago (2006-08-23)

Stable release	7.15 / April 17, 2024; 10 days ago (2024-04-17)

Written in	C, C++, Assembly language
Operating system	Windows XP and newer macOS 10.5 and newer Linux
Platform	32-bit x86 (Windows, macOS, Linux) x64 (Windows, macOS, Linux) ARMv7 (Linux) ARM64 (macOS Big Sur or later with Apple silicon platform and Linux)
Type	Digital audio workstation and MIDI sequencer
License	Proprietary
Website	www.reaper.fm

REAPER (Rapid Environment for Audio Production, Engineering, and Recording) is a digital audio workstation and MIDI sequencer application created by Cockos. The current version is available for Microsoft Windows (XP and newer), macOS (10.5 and newer), and Linux.^[1]^[2] REAPER acts as a host to most industry-standard plug-in formats (such as VST and AU) and can import all commonly used media formats, including video. REAPER and its included plug-ins are available in 32-bit and 64-bit format.

Licensing

REAPER provides a free, fully functional 60-day evaluation period. For further use two licenses are available—commercial and discounted. They are identical in features and differ only in price and target audience, with the discount license being offered for private use, schools and small businesses. Any paid license includes the current version with all of its future updates and a free upgrade to the next major version and all of its subsequent updates, when they are released. Any license is valid for all configurations (x64 and x86) and allows for multiple installations, as long as it is being run on one computer at a time.^[3]

Customization

Users can customize REAPER with the use of ReaScript, which lets users edit, run and debug scripts within REAPER, for the use of user-created themes and functionality extensions.

ReaScript can be used to create anything from advanced macros to full-featured REAPER extensions. ReaScripts can be written in EEL2 (JSFX/Jesusonic script), Lua and Python.^[4] SWS / S&M is a popular, open-source extension to REAPER, providing workflow enhancements and advanced tempo/groove manipulation functionality.^[5]

ReaClassical provides a full open source environment for doing classical music editing, including source-destination editing, multitrack track-group editing and a two-lane crossfade editor.^[6]

REAPER's interface can be customized with user-built themes. Each previous versions default theme is included with REAPER and theming allows for complete overhauls of the GUI. REAPER has been translated into multiple languages and downloadable language packs are available. Users as well as developers can create language packs for REAPER.^[7]

Included software and plug-ins

REAPER comes with a variety of commonly used audio production effects. They include tools such as ReaEQ, ReaVerb, ReaGate, ReaDelay, ReaPitch and ReaComp. The included Rea-plug-ins are also available as a separate download for users of other DAWs, as the ReaPlugs VST FX Suite.^[8]

Also included are hundreds of JSFX plug-ins^[9] ranging from standard effects to specific applications for MIDI and audio. JSFX scripts are editable text files,^[10] which when loaded into REAPER (exactly like a VST or other plug-in) become full-featured plugins ranging from simple audio effects (e.g delay, distortion, compression) to instruments (synths, samplers) and other special purpose tools (drum triggering and surround panning).

REAPER's only instruments are ReaSynth, ReaSynDr & ReaSamplomatic 5000. ReaSynth is a basic synth with wave shape, ADSR Envelope & Portamento. ReaSynDr has 4 drum samples, a kick, snare, blip & tick. ReaSamplomatic 5000 is a sampler.

REAPER includes no third-party software, but is fully compatible with all versions of the VST standard (currently VST2 and VST3). It can also run AU plugins (on macOS), CLAP plug-ins, DX plugins (on Windows) and LV2 plugins,^[11] and thus works with the vast majority of both free and commercial plug-ins available. REAPER x64 can also run 32-bit plug-ins alongside 64-bit processes.^[9] As of version 5.97, REAPER supports ARA 2 plugins.^[12]

Video editing

While not a dedicated video editor, REAPER can be used to cut and trim video files and to edit or replace the audio within. Common video effects such as fades, wipes and cross-fades are available. REAPER aligns video files in a project as it would to an audio track, and the video data of the file can be viewed in a separate video window while working on the project.^[13]

Control surface support

REAPER has built-in support for:

BCF2000 – Behringer's motorized faders control surface, USB/MIDI^[14]
TranzPort – Frontier Design Group's wireless transport control^[15]
AlphaTrack – Frontier Design Group's AlphaTrack control surface^[16]
FaderPort – Presonus' FaderPort control surface^[17]
Baby HUI – Mackie's Baby HUI control surface^[18]
MCU – Mackie's "Mackie Control Universal" control surface^[19]

Version history

First public release – December 23, 2005^[20] as freeware^[21]
1.0 – August 23, 2006^[22] as shareware
2.0 – October 10, 2007
- 2.43 – July 30, 2008: Beta Mac OS X and Windows x64 support^[23]
- 2.56 – March 2, 2009: Finalized Mac OS X and Windows x64 ports^[23]
3.0 – May 22, 2009
4.0 – August 3, 2011
- Work on Linux support began^[24]
5.0 – August 12, 2015
- Beta-quality Linux support^[1]^[2]
- Support for VST3 plugins
- 5.20 - May 17, 2016: MIDI notation editor
- 5.93 - July 17, 2018: First public Linux builds released^[25]
6.0 – December 3, 2019
- 6.71 - November 28, 2022: Support for CLAP plugins
7.0 - October 16, 2023

References

^ ^a ^b "REAPER 5: An Exhaustive Review". 4 November 2015.
^ ^a ^b "Reaper Audio Software Is Coming To Linux". Phoronix.
^ "REAPER | Purchase". Retrieved 6 July 2023.
^ "REAPER | ReaScript". reaper.fm. Retrieved 2017-01-29.
^ "SWS / S&M Extension". www.sws-extension.org. Retrieved 2017-01-29.
^ "Classical Editing Tools for REAPER". chmaha.github.io. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
^ "REAPER | Language Packs". www.reaper.fm. Retrieved 2017-01-29.
^ "REAPER | ReaPlugs". www.reaper.fm. Retrieved 2017-01-31.
^ ^a ^b "REAPER | About". www.reaper.fm. Retrieved 2017-07-24.
^ "REAPER | JSFX Programming". reaper.fm. Retrieved 2017-07-24.
^ "REAPER | About". www.reaper.fm. Retrieved 2022-11-29.
^ "Streamlined workflow: Melodyne and Reaper now communicate via ARA 2". Rekkerd. 2019-02-22. Retrieved 2019-02-22.
^ "REAPER 5: An Exhaustive Review". ExtremRaym. 2015-11-04. Retrieved 2017-02-06.
^ "Behringer - BCF2000". Behringer.com. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
^ "Frontier Design Group". Frontierdesign.com. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
^ "Frontier Design Group". Frontierdesign.com. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
^ "PreSonus - FaderPort". Presonus.com. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
^ "Mackie - Baby HUI". Mackie.com. Archived from the original on 7 January 2015. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
^ Marketing Dept. "Mackie - Mackie Control Universal Pro". Mackie.com. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
^ "REAPER | Old Versions". Reaper.fm. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
^ "REAPER : Latest news". Archived from the original on June 15, 2006. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
^ "REAPER | Old Versions". Reaper.fm. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
^ ^a ^b "REAPER | Old Versions". www.reaper.fm.
^ "Linux port of reaper/swell - Cockos Incorporated Forums". forum.cockos.com.
^ "REAPER | Old Versions". www.reaper.fm.