I tried Pendulate and didn’t like it personally, then I had trouble getting the Generate demo to work.
(I do like their Invigorate compressor though!)
cc00
1366
its xmas sales time!!!
post what you’re planning on getting.
for me:
there is no other option than this insane sale
1 Like
I’m checking madrona labs for a sale daily.
xcc
1368
They had a sale over Black Friday but it seems to be done.
Keep eyes peeled for potential physical space in 2023!! 
1 Like
smutek
1370
I’ve been wanting to get the SoundToys plugins for a few years now and last night I finally took advantage of SoundToys annual end of year sale with 50% off of sales and upgrades.
SoundToys 5 comes with 21 plugins, and I just purchased it last night, so I still have a lot to dig into, but so far I’m enjoying making racks to process the kick and stereo output from my TR8S.
The sale ends on January 5th if anyone is interested.
ps. The plugins use iLok for copy protection but do not require a dongle. If you do purchase, consider updating iLok License Manager first as I ran into some problems with the install that were rectified once I updated iLok License Manager to its current version.
3 Likes
cc00
1371
got these on blackfriday sale. insane purchase, couldn’t reccomend more!! bit pricey at retail, so the 50% off is a no brainer
5 Likes
I had a 2010 MacPro that was running Mojave. You need a new graphics card that supports metal. There’s a list here of cards that are compatible:
I’d personally recommend getting one that let’s you still have the boot screen. I had one that didn’t for a bit and it is really annoying if you ever need to do troubleshooting as is typical with old machines.
Then you need to run the DosDude patch as @alanholding mentions. It’s a little involved but just take your time.
Needlepoint by unfiltered audio is impressive to say the least!
2 Likes
SoundToys make my favorite plugins ever, but I feel that buying their stuff in 2022 is investing in a dead company which is just going to keep dragging these old plugins along for forever.
I would be totally Ok with that if it didn’t take 14 years to implement VST3 compatibility or if their GUIs wouldn’t need a retina-update since 2015.
6 Likes
Ben_F
1375
I’m a big fan of soundtoys but they needs to work on new stuff
Do you know any company that could be the « new soundtoys » with the same DNA ?
2 Likes
I’m a Soundtoys fan but I think I’d be just as happy only using the Arturia FX collection alongside the couple of Valhalla effects I own
2 Likes
LLK
1377
Frankly I feel like a lot of plugin manufacturers have incredible “complete” offerings now, Arturia, iZotope, Fabfilter, Audiodamage are the first few I can think of because It’s those I use the most alongside Soundtoys but there must be other good ones.
Edit: Where Arturia really compares is most notably on their pricing where it’s relatively cheap all things considered to purchase the whole suite of plugins, probably a very similar pricerange to the Soundtoys complete suite.
Obviously there’s absolutely no need to “commit” to one plugin maker for everything but if UI consistancy and wanting to not bother wondering what to use out of a wide array of similar plugins from different manufacturers are both an issue, I can see the appeal.
1 Like
n9n9n9
1378
This all triggers an “ideal build” impulse in me. Here’s a slightly edited list of what I found looking through my project files for the past year.
Delays: Valhalla, Pulsar Modular Lunar Lander, Primaltap (don’t sleep on it)
Reverbs: Seventh Heaven Pro, ReLab LX480, Strymon Bluesky
Filters: Arturia MS20 (#1 with a bullet), vcv-vst fx running the Wasp filter, Volcano 3
Channel Strips; Softube British Class A, Kush Blyss
Tape Sim: Softube Tape, Softube Dirty Tape, Echoboy (set to 0 delay, 100% wet)
Pitch: Eventide Micropitch
Saturation: Kush REDD, Pulsar Modular P42
Looper: Augustus Loop
Looking at this makes me feel like I wish that I could have a dime on the dollar back for all the other plugins that I own. For effects I really don’t feel like anything is missing here regarding what I like and use.
observations:
- I think that Strymon Bluesky + Seventh Heaven are going to end up being the two reverbs that I use. I should probably sell a lot of reverbs.
- I think that Arturia’s effects are improving in quality - I really do not like the older generations at all. The two most recent are pretty excellent sounding to my ears.
- I wish there were more engaged and higher quality reviewing / reporting on effects. SO MANY effect plugins released offer nothing over cheaper, existing or DAW-built in effects except UI.
- Bitwig’s (I don’t know about other DAWS, really) built in effects are excellent across the board and with the modulation system, grid and grouping/remote control system I find that I need fewer and fewer thingd from third parties. Given this, I think I could probably cut this list down to maybe five total 3rd parties and not really miss much.
7 Likes
Looking at this makes me feel like I wish that I could have a dime on the dollar back for all the other plugins that I own. For effects I really don’t feel like anything is missing here regarding what I like and use.
I had that realization some time ago, and shifted my typical production process accordingly. For me, it turns out it’s not inspiring to look into folders of possible plugins in my DAW, or to try out a buncha similar plugs on a mix. I mean, sure, it suggests possibilities, but I can’t prove it has ever led to a better musical result. Having a smaller number of quality options with useful GUIs that I know in and out works out way better, for me. My list in 2022 was as follows:
- Delays: Valhalla Delay, Ubermod
- Reverbs: anything Valhalla (typically vintage verb tho)
- EQs: DMG Equilibrium, Fabfilter
- PItch: Melodyne
- Compressor: DMG Track Comp 2
- Limiter: Fabfilter Pro-L
- Distortion/saturation: Unfiltered Dent 2, Indent 2
- Other: DSM v3, Oeksound Soothe 2, iZotope RX
In a couple instances, I know there are some options that might “technically” be “better,” or at least capable of slightly “better” results (e.g. DMG Limitless is a superb brickwall limiter), but I’ve stuck with the above since they’re quicker and more intuitive to use and the “better” plugs are not all that much “better” in sound. If it’s a paying client and I have the time to geek out on tweaking settings, then that’s a different story…
5 Likes
For anyone using ableton live - I became I huge fan of the romb reverb from fors.
Not sounding exactly like the Alesis XXX-verb series, but close enough for me.
8 Likes
i’ve been thinking about this lately, and i have had a shift in perspective with this. i was constantly in rush of learning about the newest x plugin and wondering how that would affect my production, and realized i should think about plugins the same way i think about other pieces of gear. if a dx7 or a 90s alesis reverb is valuable to me because it sounds good, then i can think of older plugs the same way. as long as they work and sound good, they have a place.
7 Likes
I absolutely agree with you.
The problem is that software needs to be updated, so as I stated before about SoundToys:
5 Likes
yeah that makes sense. in my experience I haven’t run into any walls with the plugins not working despite being outdated.
1 Like
LLK
1384
They’re definitely tiring to look at on HiDpi display, either blurry or stupidly small, that Soundtoys hasn’t managed to move things to scalable UI in 2022 is really upsetting.
The fundamental difference with hardware gear is that if it still works it still works. Right now for me in some contexts, Soundtoys plugins were actually better in 2010 than they are now because they were made with 2010 displays in mind.
I’m ok with it, I deal with the blurry UI on a daily basis and I don’t feel a need to have anything new and shiny, but for such a big company relative to plugin market, I find the lack of updates kind of disappointing compared to even one man shops like AD who remade almost his entire set of UIs recently to make them manageable with newer screens.
8 Likes
