Reasonfreaks

[stavrozi]

Hi all,

i have created a reason song (.rns file) on a mac. Now i'm trying to load it to a PC but i got the "Bad Format" error.

I've read a couple of posts where people claim that by simply adding the .rns extention will work. Unfortunately, it's not working for me!!!

Do you have any other ideas???

thanks,
S

PS: Can somebody try to open the file on a PC and let me know if it works? The file is available at:
http://www.clsp.jhu.edu/people/stavros/reason/track01.rns

[gentleg]

BAD FORMAT

[zimulator]

Guess this means the file is screwed dude... Sorry, but there's no way to get them back that I know of. Was it a file made on Reason 1.0? That version seems to make bad format files about one every 5 or 6 saves in my experience. Always best to keep the song file open once saved, then try to open it again (ctrl/apple & "O") before you close it. That way, if it is a bad format you will know and will have the song still on the screen. Then you can move one knob a bit to make it have a change, then save it again and repeat to be safe.

Annoying, but there you go.

[stavrozi]

I was able to load the mac made rns file to my PC!!!

Mac made rns files contain a header (Mac filetype information), and the file cannot be loaded in the Windows version of Reason.

To understand the difference open any mac and PC made rns file using any text editor (but DO NOT save it) . You will see that the mac file contains a header (which is usually 128 characters/bytes long) then the string "Propellerheads Reason Song File" and then binary data. The PC file starts right away with the "Propellerheads...." string.

The rns file is a binary file and by simply using a text editor (notepad, or vi in unix) to delete the header won't work. You have to strip the header (which is usually 128 characters/bytes long) using binary read/write functions.

I wrote a tool in C that strips the header and creates a new file that can be loaded in the Windows version of Reason.
You can download it from:
http://www.clsp.jhu.edu/people/stavros/reason/drcut.c

No more "Bad Format" ,
S

[zimulator]

DUDE!

Haven't tried it out, (I'm Mac only...) but that really sounds like a great piece of work you did there for the community man - thanks for sharing it!

[xenophobe51]

[butchmanring]

Great work Stavrozi. Generations of Reason collaborators are gonna love you man.
I'm a Mac user too, so no need on this end, but rockin' for everyone else.

B

[zimulator]

Just made this a sticky post so it can help anyone out who's looking! BTW, Starvozi, I notice it's up on a university server right now... My experience of these links is that they are all good - until you leave the college - when they usually stop working! Any chance you could put it up using this site as well:- www.ripway.com - it's a free hosting site we use here for small files so that we can distribute them easily...

You should probably email it to the Propellerheads too!

Great work man... You'll never need to worry about getting an overdraft on your karma account!

[fuzzrhythm]

this is very nice indeed. I'm working with a buddy on some stuff, and of course I have a Mac and he has a PC.

one question, though. HOW do I impliment this wonderful tool? I click the link, and recognize the language (from high school...long since forgotten) but how do I use it?

[stavrozi]

one question, though. HOW do I impliment this wonderful tool? I click the link, and recognize the language (from high school...long since forgotten) but how do I use it?

There is a much easier way to strip the header from the rns file.
You need a simple program called "Hex Workshop" that you can get it at
http://www.bpsoft.com/downloads/

Open the rns file, and on the right panel select from the beggining of the file up to the beggining of the string "Propellerheads Reason Song File". Then simply cut (Edit->Cut or Ctrl+X) this segment and save it. That's all!

For sanity check place the curson at beggining of the "Propellerheads Reason Song File" string. At the lower right corner look for "Offset 00000080". This number is in hexademical; in decimal means 128.

stavros

[liquidfx]

ive had this problem....just left click the .rns file in windows> "open with...">Reason.

make sure you check the "always accociate this file with...." box.

should work fine!


ps: i ahd the same problem because i didn't add the ".rns" extension when i tranferred from mac to PC. macs don't have extensions like PCs do, because they are hidden on OSX. maybe all you need to do is add ".rns" to the file name!

[simplyme]

Just make sure .rns is at the end of the file name on your mac. If it isn't. Type it at the end. Mac will ask you if you want to add extension. Click ok and thats it. No needed programs!!! I have mac laptop osx10 tiger and win xp for home. Reason 3.05 on mac reason 3.04 on win

[wdurst75]

I have encountered a similar problem. I used to use Reason on a PC but switched to a Mac and wanted to open all my old songs on the new Mac. I get the media error message for the songs as well as for some of my refills. Are the refills OS based?? So my refills I used for my PC wont work on a Mac??? or do I need to do something like what you are talking about here. I have almost 100gigs of all sorts and types of refills that I've collected via downloading/sharing etc ...so I dont have the original CD/DVD -rom they would have come on. Is it possible to make them work on my Mac,which is by the way an Intel machine! Which Im sure poses another problem in and of itself!

Thanks for any help!!

[butchmanring]

Nah refills are not OS based mate. Should be fine.