CSistine

8 hours ago, TheSteven said:

 I'm thinking of possible picking up NEOLD U2A. Don't really need yet another LA2A mutation, but still I'm considering it.

I agree, this is an interesting one and if I would not have to pay additional taxes (as you?) or had a voucher I probably picked this one! Though as you, I have too many optical compressors already!

Also, I have to admit that I already own quite a lot of PA stuff. And I don't like some of the newer ones (some are quite cpu hungrig).

If I look at their plugin updates though, as a Windows user I am really disappointed! The last 4 years they almost only worked for MacApple! Not that I am one of those that claim constant updates, no, I am happy if a plugin works as it should, but some of their older ones could gain with a larger UI (or resizing) and some need efficiency improvement!

These are my 2 cents!

Currently they don't have any plugin that I would pay $37.50 (inc tax) for!

Frankly, usually I purchased at low prices and with vouchers from PA, but it was only some kind of deal picking, I didn't really need those plugins! I wouldn't have more than 100 of their plugins, if the prices were/are above $30 (inc 25% VAT). In the case of above $30 prices maybe I would have purchased only 5 ones. So in the end it's been a big business for PA anyway, because 100 * $18 (my average) is much more than 5 * $100!

5 hours ago, Fleer said:

Neoverb is totally worth that. 

Really, you like it? I prefer more traditional reverbs like Lexicon, Exponential Audio, ... But YMMV!

Also Neoverb is quite a cpu hug compared to other reverbs!

58 minutes ago, Soundwise said:

Interesting! I find PA's plugins to be highly CPU efficient.  A little less so compared to NF, ToneBoosters (v2 and v3, which are now free), and, of course, Overloud. My guess is that bx_cleansweap was one of their first plugins and still has a lot of legacy amateurish code.

I think conversely, i.e. they let a younger, amateurish person do the newest changes! No joking aside! Frankly I see that the usage of almost all newer framework libraries causes too much inefficiency! Sadly this development has begun long ago and it consumes more power than the hardware improvements deliver!

And yes, ToneBoosters are still on top regarding efficiency, even their newest plugin versions! Also Tokyo Dawn Labs, Melda, eaReckon, TBProAudio are on top of my efficiency list. It is interesting that these are all providers with user-friendly authorization, by chance?

1 hour ago, CSistine said:

The absolute winner was the British NEQ-1972! I fear with the new version that's not longer true!

I've tested the new version and I have to admit that the increase of the consumption is not that much (about +50%). Compared to other providers it is still the most efficient EQ plugin (of my list) in respect to LP/HP.

Yesterday I was doing a comparison on LP/HP cpu usage with all of my EQs and Strips (at least the ones I use). The absolute winner was the British NEQ-1972! I fear with the new version that's not longer true!

By the way the worst was PAs bx_cleansweep (I was surprised)!

One important thing keeps me away from diving deeper into IK's eco system: They don't support offline activation no longer!

I had several issues in the past. The cheeky answers of their support said that it does not work for "current" products, although a) those were older products and b) the description for offline activation is still present on their site!

Together with other issues (installation, authorization) I think, regrettably this company cannot be recommened! ?

2 hours ago, Brian Walton said:

They had one of the better licensing programs in the business before in terms of not treating paid customers as criminals.

Yes, I like X3 authorization! I am not a criminal (and not a Berliner ?), so for me an X3 license type is adequate!

For only $9 a month BandLab can subscribe me as loyal customer! Or for only $100 a year! ?

2 hours ago, Brian Lawler said:

One caveat, and someone correct me if I am wrong (or it does not always apply):  When I did a batch resave of a K5 or K6 library in K7, it could no longer be loaded in K5 or K6- you get an error message.  I was following old advice on batch saving everything for faster loading, but don't do it if you have projects using older Kontakt versions that you want to open again.

This has been ever true! So you have to do the batch resave always with the oldest version that you will that works! In your case do it with K5, then it works in K5-K7 without issues.

39 minutes ago, kitekrazy said:

I still prefer to use Kontakt 6 because it's easy on the eyes.

... and it starts in half the time than K7!

Don't like it! Like almost all installation managers it has 100% focus on online installation! Meh! I hope it is still possible to install by the old way!

The 2nd thing I wonder is why they ask you to close your "door" during installation! ?

If someone is interested in getting Comeback Kid, write me a PM! The first one will get my redeem code.

It seems there is still the monthly re-activation (a hassle for offline freaks)! Meh, I stay with Platinum!

Can someone help me? I've thought one Platinum for life-time is enough!  ?

1 hour ago, Vernon Barnes said:

I passed on the Pianet T intro sale. I have several Pianet sample libraries and none of them really float my boat, but I tried the demo and was hooked and bought it in this sale.

Yes, their Pianet T is exceptional! I purchased it in the intro sale and really like it. It sounds real like back in the 80s!

13 hours ago, PavlovsCat said:

Let's keep this civil.  When you post your opinion on the forum -- or in social media -- you're putting it out there for discussion and for others to comment.

That's also my opinion.

22 minutes ago, PavlovsCat said:

I used to share that perspective,  but after accumulating so many Kontakt Player libraries, I greatly prefer Player libraries. It's far easier to maintain a large collection of sample libraries with Native Access -- it's not even close in comparing it to managing a collection of 100+ libraries manually (I've been a Kontakt user since the early days). You'd need to watch emails for updates from all of those developers...it's simply incredibly inefficient, a complete mess and requires immensely more time and energy to manage. 

On a related note, the convenience of clicking on a banner as opposed to searching for a file seems inconsequential on paper, but I'm sure NI's user experience lead figured out it that most users will be more inclined to choose a Player library with a banner due to the difference. I actually wish that wasn't the case and that the user could choose to have their favorite libraries appear as a banner, but NI uses this as an incentive to drive developers to use their Player. 

I don't agree at all! This is only true if you install the libraries only on one pc! As soon as you want to install them on more than one system it takes much more effort to use Native Access! And don't forget that NA does not give you a chance to rollback! No backup!  Also your insinuation to updates is irritating, because we all know that libraries have rarely updates! Believe me, I have also hundreds of libraries, but I prefer to manage them myself, it's much more efficient! Just the time you lose to do updates on NA itself is wasted! But YMMV!

1 hour ago, mibby said:

@Greg Schlaepfer I may be in the minority here, but it would be nice to have a filter on the website so we could tell which packs work with the free Kontakt Player.  As it is, you have to go into each of the m to see.

It's quite the opposite for me, I prefer the ones that are NOT for Kontakt Player! They are easier to install, without NA!

34 minutes ago, mibby said:

One Product Manager to rule them all...

One that can also do OFFLINE installation! ?

I almost never use monophonic synths, prefer guitar for monophonic voices! ?

I wonder whether it is worth to get TDR Infrasonic and TDR Ultrasonic for common mixing tasks (Oh man, I have so many plugins!). Isn't it sufficient to use something like bx_cleansweep Pro on single tracks to get rid of frequencies outside of the useful range? I use low-end cutback a lot on tracks and reverbs to get cleaner mixes and to give room for the bass, so what's the advantage of TDR Infrasonic?

What do you think?  How do you perform these tasks?

Ooh, I'll wait! I am allergic against Plugin Managers! ? Almost sure they bring new hassles to installation! But YMMV!

6 hours ago, Jason Neudorf said:

it'd be nice to have some sort of accepted classification

I understand your idea. But IMHO it's quite impossible, because it depends a lot of what someone is using it for (music genre, own presets vs. factory, bass/melodies/lead/chords ...). It's the same with comparing DAWs, there are no universal favorites!

Several times I was surprised with a synth when I was using a preset that I thought is awful in the first moment. When I had chosen the fitting octave position and purpose (rhythmic/melodic/accompanion...) it suddenly sounded great! ?

1 hour ago, John Maar said:

Fast forward to the USB dongle. I have one. It has NEVER worked reliably and now, on my new laptop, isn't recognized at all.

I wonder what may have caused this, I never had problems with my 2 iLok dongles. Also very easy if your system is offline!

1 hour ago, John Maar said:

But, I have NEVER had a single problem with plugins that support licensing to my PC/laptop. Authorizing plugins via the app is super simple.

Currently I am replacing one system. I am glad that I have quite a lot of authorizations on my iLok, is super simple to transfer! ? With many vendors it is elaborate to do re-authorization (machine-auth) on the new pc! The best ones are like Klanghelm (no authorization quirk!), but surprisingly Plugin Alliance did also work very easy (I used offline authorization! One file for all my plugins!). IMHO the worst are the ones that require the installation of a Management software first. Also with machine authorizations I've had trouble that auth servers were no more available or had changed their logic (e.g. CbB)!

I have never pirated software and thus I don't understand why a lot of companies punish the loyal customers with authorization hassles. I think setting up the new system I had used minimum a third of the time for non-dongle authorization (days!).