$23 DDMF PluginDoctor Cross-platform Plug-in Analyzer

[Moon OverSea]

DDMF PluginDoctor Cross-platform Plug-in Analyzer

$23

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/PluginDoctor--ddmf-plugindoctor-cross-platform-plug-in-analyzer

[El Diablo]

I wonder... Does this install with a valid windows certification?

[Brian Lawler]

7 hours ago, El Diablo said:

I wonder... Does this install with a valid windows certification?

YES!  My older version did not, but the latest one (2.2.5) has a unified Windows installer that is MS certified.

[telecode 101]

hmm.. do i need this ? i was always curious about all those alias plugin guys and what they are up to.

[Brian Walton]

35 minutes ago, telecode 101 said:

hmm.. do i need this ? i was always curious about all those alias plugin guys and what they are up to.

$23 to tell you all your plugins sound the same and you wasted thousands of dollars.  😁

 

I've avoided buying something like this because I tend to think there is more to plugins than EQ curves, etc.  And aliasing is pretty over-rated.  If it is bad enough for you to hear it that is fine for me to avoid the plugin, but I don't need some nerd plugin telling me not to use something that even I can't hear something might be aliasing.  

[Starship Krupa]

54 minutes ago, Brian Walton said:

I've avoided buying something like this because I tend to think there is more to plugins than EQ curves, etc.  And aliasing is pretty over-rated.  If it is bad enough for you to hear it that is fine for me to avoid the plugin, but I don't need some nerd plugin telling me not to use something that even I can't hear something might be aliasing.

The use that I've found for it is to compare EQ and compression curves between various plug-ins. Out of curiosity, as a signal processing geek myself.

It is interesting to take "emulations" from different manufacturers and set their controls similarly and then observe what they are actually doing. The variation between the half dozen "Pultec" emulations I have with all set up with the same settings was....quite interesting.

It showed me that there are plug-ins with their own "bypass" switches where the signal is still being altered even when the bypass is engaged. It showed me that MCompressor, rather than the smooth curve I was expecting, actually has a bit of character.

As far as whatever value it might have for musical production, sometimes I want to try using processors other than the ones I'm used to, and PD can help give an idea of how to set up the new ones to behave similarly to the old ones.

It probably has little to offer the "trust your ears to tell you when your knob twiddling has produced a hit" crew.

[Heath Row]

2 hours ago, telecode 101 said:

hmm.. do i need this ? i was always curious about all those alias plugin guys and what they are up to.

Good God man, this be the spawn of the Devil himself, it's believers and followers, the minions of Hell.

Steer thyself clear, believe and trust in the God given, thine  

Thou needeth nothing more.

[telecode 101]

31 minutes ago, Starship Krupa said:

as a signal processing geek myself.

 

yeah .this was one of the reasons for me. I am technical and a these days a bit interested in what these plugins really do to the audio signal. but no plans to get involved in aliasing discussions.

[El Diablo]

1 hour ago, Starship Krupa said:

1 hour ago, Starship Krupa said:

 "trust your ears to tell you when your knob twiddling has produced a hit"

 

Your ears are only good for a limited time...as you get older, the worst they work.

[TheSteven]

5 hours ago, Brian Walton said:

$23 to tell you all your plugins sound the same and you wasted thousands of dollars.  😁

I've avoided buying something like this because I tend to think there is more to plugins than EQ curves, etc.  And aliasing is pretty over-rated.  If it is bad enough for you to hear it that is fine for me to avoid the plugin, but I don't need some nerd plugin telling me not to use something that even I can't hear something might be aliasing.  

I too trust my ears and if I don't like the way a plugin sounds I don't care who recommends it. 

Re PID I've used it to verify what I was hearing more than just see the pretty curves, etc..  We all need a reality check now & then.

So many plugin developers/vendors make these grandiose claims and have their snakeoil salesmen masquerading as recording/mixing engineers demoing their products:
"and as I turn the #### knob you can hear the added #### on the ####, OMG that's so sweet!" and I'm hearing nothing or nothing close to what their describing.
Am I missing something or it another emperor's new clothes scenario?  Plugin Doctor can show you what's actually happening.

Running a plugin through Plugin Doctor can be an education.   How soft is that compressor/limiter soft knee? How come when I twist knob C, knob A's settings seem to change?  Is this bus compressor muddying up my low end or is it something else? etc..
It can show you exactly what a plugin is doing, sometimes better that the documentation.

You also see all kinds of shenanigans - popular plugins that just don't do what they claim, but have a very vocal following.   

Having said all the above - while I do use it, I don't use it often. It's just another tool that has it's uses but AFAIC at $23 it's a no brainer.

 

[Moon OverSea]

Yes,  some time it can help you to decide whether to buy a new plugin or not, or it could tell you the simple secret why it has clear or more heavey sound after the effection, what can improve your understanding about mixing.

Basically all plugins are designed based sound waves and caculated with signals ->transformed to datas to resolve. 

Many 'new' plugins just make the multi-function into ones, make some train of functions or make some specific resolving methods into the plugin, and it will defenitly make your work time saving it do what you just need. But you can also meet the requirement with basic ones or more working trannels.

Edited November 28, 2023 by Moon OverSea

[kitekrazy]

11 hours ago, El Diablo said:

Your ears are only good for a limited time...as you get older, the worst they work.

Never mind that as you get older those 4K resolutions demands that you sit really close to see.

[kitekrazy]

13 hours ago, heath row said:

Good God man, this be the spawn of the Devil himself, it's believers and followers, the minions of Hell.

Steer thyself clear, believe and trust in the God given, thine  

Thou needeth nothing more.

I feel that way when people auto tune everything to death. 

[Starship Krupa]

If you've never spent 10 minutes fine tuning a compressor only to discover that the compressor was either a: bypassed or b: on a channel other than the one you thought you were working on, then your ears are trustworthy enough that PD has little to offer you.