Trying to see what this is all about for the first time, looking in Reaktor Factory Library and I mostly seem to have a collection of things with some presets that I either can't get to make a noise at all (ie Blue matrix) or things that won't stop making a noise (ie Metaphysical function)
 
I have just asked the internet for  the manual, so yes I can and will RTFM, but before I get too far into that, is this how it's meant to be or is there something wrong with my installation? 

Reaktor is probably the deepest and most challenging vst's out there, due to the wide array of thing that can be built with it.  In standalone Reaktor, you need to press the start playback button (top middle of the screen, left of tempo) to get Blue Matrix to play.  All of the Sequenced Instruments and Groove Boxes work this way.  Some instruments need to be played with a keyboard, and others like Metaphysical function, and the other Sound Generators, drone on and on forever, as intended.  Reading the manual will help, also try utube for an introduction to Reaktor.  Be patient, it will take a while to get the hang of it. 

shawker
Reaktor is probably the deepest and most challenging vst's out there, due to the wide array of thing that can be built with it.  In standalone Reaktor, you need to press the start playback button (top middle of the screen, left of tempo) to get Blue Matrix to play.  All of the Sequenced Instruments and Groove Boxes work this way.  Some instruments need to be played with a keyboard, and others like Metaphysical function, and the other Sound Generators, drone on and on forever, as intended.  Reading the manual will help, also try utube for an introduction to Reaktor.  Be patient, it will take a while to get the hang of it. 

OK, I had it open as a vst within Sonar and the play button is not there. As you say in standalone version it is, so at least I wasn't going mad when I couldn't find it. 
 
What I have learned so far then is that I have some vst's that don't work within Sonar and some vst's that do what they want to and I can't tell them when to STFU and that this is intended behaviour. I'm not sure that I have enough patience to ever get my head around that particular concept tbh.
 
Thanks for replying.
 
 
 
 

Reaktor works fine in Sonar but it's a really weird concept. Just find a ready made patch to play

paulo
 
 
OK, I had it open as a vst within Sonar and the play button is not there. As you say in standalone version it is, so at least I wasn't going mad when I couldn't find it. 
 
What I have learned so far then is that I have some vst's that don't work within Sonar and some vst's that do what they want to and I can't tell them when to STFU and that this is intended behaviour. I'm not sure that I have enough patience to ever get my head around that particular concept tbh.
 
 

If you're in Sonar then use the Sonar play button. Reaktor works fine in Sonar, you just have to know how to use it.

Reaktor is great, but really a weird beast sometimes.

rsinger

paulo
 
 
OK, I had it open as a vst within Sonar and the play button is not there. As you say in standalone version it is, so at least I wasn't going mad when I couldn't find it. 
 
 

If you're in Sonar then use the Sonar play button. Reaktor works fine in Sonar, you just have to know how to use it.

Yeah, I figured that much out now, but that only seems to work for me when in record mode, which is not much help when I'm just trying to audition things and see what the presets are etc before committing to anything Not a big deal when Reaktor is  the only track so far, but within an existing project when everything else is also playing it's a bit distracting to say the least. I guess I can always mute the other tracks or just solo the reaktor one, but it's not ideal IMO. When something feels like you have to fight with it every time  just to do something that should be simple it just ruins the mood for me.

I think each and every Reaktor ensemble should be thought of as a new instrument or effect rather than as a patch. So much is possible. some ensembles are impenetrable and some are straight forward,

If an ensemble acts in a certain way its because it was programed that way, its helpful to think of Reaktor as a platform rather than as an instrument.

Glyn Barnes
I think each and every Reaktor ensemble should be thought of as a new instrument or effect rather than as a patch. So much is possible. some ensembles are impenetrable and some are straight forward,

If an ensemble acts in a certain way its because it was programed that way, its helpful to think of Reaktor as a platform rather than as an instrument.

Yes, I do consider them that way, I was referring to the presets within some of the ensembles. Not being able to simply try them out with a project without the project playing seems ridiculous and counterintuitive to me and I still can't get my head around the fact that some sounds once selected seem to have no way of stopping them from making a noise. That really doesn't take very long at all to do my head in. 
 
Some of it is interesting, but some seems to me to be a case of just being different for the sake of being different. I can't see those getting a lot of use from me.

paulo
 
Some of it is interesting, but some seems to me to be a case of just being different for the sake of being different. I can't see those getting a lot of use from me.

Even more so if you go to the users content on the NI website There is a lot of good stuff there but in many cases getting an idea of what it does and how to use it is a major challenge. Remember some things are effects and need an audio in, not instruments.