Advanced Patterns With Reason's Alligator Gater / Filter

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Alligator is one of Reason's coolest tools for making unique, wild sounds. It's a multi-band gater, with the ability to apply per-band processing for incredible rhythmic sounds. But Alligator also has one glaring flaw: by default, there are only a set number of onboard gate patterns to choose from.

Until you look under the hood!

It actually turns out that there is unlimited power awaiting you with Alligator. You just need to tap into its CV gates. Watch this video to see three different ways of harnessing this power, from beginner to advanced.

The three ways of creating your own patterns in Alligator

The first way to create a pattern in alligator is simply to use CV from an old school reason device, like the Matrix. Draw connect the gate out of the matrix to the gate in of the Alligator, and voila, you've got your own custom sequence!

The second way is to use one of Reason's players that includes CV, like Reason's drum sequencer. This is probably the most user-friendly method of programming complex patterns, given all of the drum sequencer's built-in flexibility. You can also try using other players, you just need to make sure the have CV out.

My favorite trick is to side chain alligator to your drums to have it trigger the gates on chords and pads. It creates the most richly evolving sounds that change perfectly as your beat evolves! If you're not sure how to do this, check out this tutorial on how to use side chain in Reason.

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Advanced Patterns With Reason's Alligator Gater / Filter

The three ways of creating your own patterns in Alligator

From a Frustrated Producer in a Ragtag Bedroom Studio to Major Placements on TV Earning $1,000s!

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