Reason is an amazing program!
Although one is limited to the gear built in, with exploration and a good knowledge of music production, it can be pushed to create fantastic sounds.
I don't touch the reason sound banks at all. Instead, I program the synths to get the sounds I'm after and rely on 3rd party drum samples. I often delve into rewiring the rack modules and use the combinator to combine sounds.
Another technique I use is to program a sound in reason, export it as a wav into my audio editor, tweak it, then import it back into Reason.
I found the interface in Reason 4 to be too fiddly. Everyone loves having new kit, but trying to learn a synth like Thor is pointless until simpler synths like Malstrom have been rinsed. The Arpeggitor is excellent, but the same effect can be achieved with deft sequencing or the Matrix unit. I'm not a fan of shuffle in my music, so the Regroove mixer is of no use to me.
I've stuck to Reason 3 after testing Reason 4. Reason 3 is simple to use and well featured. I have taught many people to use Reason as part of my work. Once they have understood the concept of a rack, usually within an hour they have good sounding tracks underway.
Cubase is not the easiest program to learn or use. It does offer greater flexibility than Reason.
I stand firmly by Reaper (
http://www.cockos.com/reaper) which is donationware. It offers the same kind of flexibility and features as Cubase, which includes Rewire & VST support, audio recording, bussing and time stretching. It has a simpler and more customisable interface, and is akin to Reason 3's sequencer.
Ultimately, as mentioned above, you need to find a set of programs that have a simple and comfortable work flow, yet that offer good features and flexability. I find that many free programs now have excellent features. Kjaerhus Classic Series plugins (
http://www.kjaerhusaudio.com/classic-series.php) and Luxonix LFX-1310 Multi Effect (
http://www.luxonix.com/home/en/products.html?id=lfx1310) are two great examples.
Another simple DAW you may wish to check out in place of Cubase is Mackie Tracktion (
http://www.mackie.com/products/tracktion3/).
FL Studio (Fruity Loops) is also well worth considering as the things that can be achieved with the built in synths and effects are stunning! (
http://www.flstudio.com/)
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