The Reason RV7000 device, which is available in all versions of Reason (Intro, Standard and Suite), is not only a high quality reverb processor, it also contains a zero-latency Convolution algorithm. This can be used for processing IR files for cabinet speaker simulation. It contains interesting features for tweaking the sound even further which makes the RV7000 a rather unique device.

Default settings

Simply drag a RV7000 into the Reason rack and drop an impulse response file on top of it. That’s all you need to do to turn the RV7000 in a speaker cabinet simulator.

The RV7000 offers a lot more parameters we can use to further tweak the sounds. So let’s explore these…

HF Damp

HF Damp dampens the high end. This should not affect the tone of you speaker cabinet IR because these upper highs probably don’t exist (or are unnoticeably low in volume) in most IRs for cabinet simulation. You can turn it all the way to the right, on maximum, just to make sure these upper highs will be filtered.

HI EQ

This is a treble control, might be helpful to make the sound warmer (turn left) or brighter (turn right).

Decay

The default setting is fine. Shortening the decay might remove some low end, tightens up the sound, and might also remove the room ambience. Try it yourself, might be useful.

Length

The Length does almost the same thing as Decay but it’s minimal setting goes beyond what Decay is capable of. You’ll notice that if you set it very low, for example at 2%, the low end gets lowered in volume and room ambiences are removed from the signal.

Length shortens the file abruptly though, so you might also need to adjust the Decay to smooth things at a bit.

Tip: To fully understand what Length is doing, load a reverb impulse into RV7000, put the Decay to maximum and set the Length to something like 2%. You will notice that the right edge of the decay is rather steep. By setting the Length a little higher and decreasing the Decay parameter you can smooth out the decay, make it more natural sounding. But don’t be afraid to experiment, trust your ears and imagination 🙂

Size

Size shifts the pitch of the IR in semitone steps. It sounds like resampling the IR (without aliasing artefacts) and is useful when combined with HI EQ and the EQ Section (see below).

LF Damp

LF Damp removes some of the low end from the signal. But like HF Damp in most cases the frequency range of the LF Damp lays outside the range of a cabinet IR. So in most cases you won’t hear any differences between the two extremes left and right. Only when using a super bass heavy cabinet filter IR this parameter might be useful.

Predelay

Predelay is super useful for reverbs but for speaker cabinet IRs? Not really. You might want to turn the Predelay below 0 and hear how the attack get removed which often creates a dull wooly tone.

Creative use: the higher you set the Predelay the more the sound will be delayed. So if you want to make the guitar track sound more layback this parameter can do the trick 🙂

EQ Section

The EQ Section can be super helpful for adding or lowering the low end and adding or lowering another part of the frequency range. Simple yet effective!

Stereo Mode

The RV7000 offers a bunch of Stereo Modes. If your are using a mono IR set it to Mono. But for stereo IRs there are many Modes available which all sound different.

The RV7000 processes a stereo signal as a summed, mono signal except for the only true stereo Mode: Parallel Mode. Even when using a mono IR on a stereo signal this will be processed as a true stereo signal (dual mono, so not summed, the IR is applied independently to left and right).

Here’s an example I’ve created using a mono IR from Celestion. The guitar signal with a stereo panner applied to it goes into the RV7000. You can hear that only the Parallel Mode processes both left and right channels independently:

For the other Modes the left and right channels are summed as mono signal before they are processed. But only when using a stereo IR the stereo effect can be noticed though.

There are a couple of Modes for which the stereo width can be set to 100%, 75%, 50% or 25%. Also interesting are the Mid/Side modes. These Modes will pan from Mid to Side or the other way around in Slow or Fast ways. It changes the stereo depth of the IR. Super interesting!

To sum it all up:

• Use the Mono Mode for mono IRs on mono inputs.
• Use the Parallel Mode for processing a stereo input using either a mono or stereo IR.
• Use the Stereo or Mid/Side Modes in combination with stereo IRs on mono inputs.

Note: because both channels are summed in most Modes they are louder than the Parallel Mode.

I think I’ve covered it all. If not, let me know!