Soundwise

IK Multimedia make excellent software products. They don't force any of us to buy what they have to offer, they constantly run promotions with insane discounts, they give users/buyers JamPoints for further discounts, which can be used towards hardware products. Sometimes they also offer free shipping. And last, but not least - they constantly work on creating new great products and improving the existing ones. Their business model might not please everyone, but as long as it works for them and enables them to deliver goodies - I'm going to support them with my money.

It's hard to say. Should you try processing any UJAM Guitar instrument with your normal guitar plugins or, God forbid, with your outboard guitar gear, you might find yourself hard pressed to think it bears any resemblance with normal real guitar or a good guitar library. Having said that, I must admit that Sparkle outperforms new NI guitar libraries (Session Guitarist series) in terms of consistency. Don't take my word for it, here's an example of Sparkle 2 VS NI Session Guitarist. The latter sounds like each chord is recorded with a different instrument. Guitars.mp3 TL;DR It is worth $19 if you do a lot guitar mockups.

UAD plugin manager can start updating right in the middle of your session. Also, UAD native plugins occasionally loose connection to iLok Cloud Session, making you go through a bunch of unnecessary hoops to simply open your project. I don't think they do something special that other plugins are not capable of. Yes, the processing results are great, the tone is pleasing, but I'd describe it as marginally better than that of competing products, if at all. Demo them first.

There is a free ToneX pack with 66 AC30 and 65 Deluxe Reverb captures: https://tonejunkiestore.com/tone-x-free-pack-sign-up

The only Softube plugin I'm not ready to give up is Celestion Speaker Shaper (granted, room is turned off). Just for the sake of convenience. All other plugins by this company that I own or have tried don't come close to competing products in terms of ... well, every aspect, from tone (aka processing results) to CPU optimization (AS IF!).

Might be useful to watch this video before you buy the plugin.

It can be activated to built-in devices. Mine is tied to built-in webcam, and I've been offered to use built-in audio as well. Besides that, now users can easily loose one device and use another.

I don't need another Silk, but Antares Choir freebie looks interesting. Any first hand experience with it? Anyone?

I tried the new version and was shocked by the difference between the older RV4 models vs the newer Headrush ones. The older stuff is so full and detailed in every aspect, I can't believe I'm playing my guitar using virtual gear. The newer amps, however, feel very generic, OKAY at best. Definitely, not what I expected from the product with this kind of pedigree. During installation process, I noticed VST3 and AAX versions being installed.

There is one thing that turns me away from Softube products - load time. Particularly, AmpRoom is so slow on initial load and so bulky on each UI opening, that it makes me steer away from their plugins. Fortunately, this does not apply to every plugin they make. Just make sure to demo their stuff before buying.

If quickly snapping your favorite IR after amped signal is your thing - go with any free IR loader. However, if you are never satisfied with a single IR or tired of going through your collection of IRs to pick the right one, or, worst case scenario, overwhelmed with endless IR picking and matching - get WoS by Two-notes or Celestion Speaker Shaper by Softube. They simplify an otherwise complicated IR setup process and can become a huge time-saver.

Since you are looking for something easy, try Filmora.

If you need to be creative - flexible libraries to the rescue, and if you need a time saver - just use whatever preset or patch you like. And even though NI Drummer libs are meant to be time savers (at least, in my book), you can still go a long way adjusting mixer settings with built-in effects and/or route each channel to your DAW and process it individually. By saying "you" I mean any user, of course.

Thanks for the tip! Here's the video with Cory's custom presets:

With the Synthwave Drums bundle you get both: The Modern 80’s Drum Kit for Halionsonic and Halion The brand new Claps Vault - POP with fully customizable claps for any modern production from Pop, Synthwave, Trap, R’n’B. The Claps Vault - POP comes both as a Halionsonic library AND as individual clap samples in Wav format. https://domsigalas.sellfy.store/p/synthwave-drums-bundle-by-dom-sigalas/

AFAIK, what is great about BFD3 drums is that they are meticulously sampled, don't have round robins for the same level of velocity, and use neighbor samples to simulate round robins, which essentially means, that you can program your drums, using your mouse or computer keyboard, or pattern editor and not worry about humanizing velocities afterward.

This made me chuckle.

I was on the verge of buying it, quite excited and inspired by online demos. Fortunately, I decided to test it before paying and was disappointed with some oscillating background artifacts (not sure if it's a correct way of describing it), audible at the signal decay. FWIW, I don't mind the overall tone feel a bit artificial, which is the case here, as it stands out in a good way in an otherwise traditional color palette.

Can be cheaper at Thomann. Check your price: https://www.thomann.de/intl/fxpansion_bfd_3_download.htm At Plugin Boutique you can it along with a FREE copy of Drum Synth, MELLOW 2, Dawesome LOVE, VISION 4X Lite or LA-2A Compressor: https://www.pluginboutique.com/product/1-Instruments/64-Virtual-Instrument/848-BFD-3 JRR sweetens the deal with Free INSPIRATA Lite reverb: https://www.jrrshop.com/bfd-drums-bfd

https://www.bfddrums.com/

I'd love to hear your opinion on NI drums, like Abbey Road Drummers and Session Drummer.

I think, SSD5 cost me around $50, and I recall seeing extensions for $29 at JRR, but that was long ago.

They should work with your EZKyes 1. Just make sure to check system requirements for each library.