Stock Plugins | Are they any good?

[kitekrazy]

"The real question is: are you good enough to use stock plugins?"

Sometimes these are embarrassing.   It's like seeing a kid who can really play his Squire Strat and you know some chords that you play on your LP. 

I think Live users seem to use built in stuff the most.   Youtube is full of videos using the 3xOsc.  I have so many toys for Reason but so many people cranked out stuff using Reason 4,5.

 

[Zargg]

I'm  a creature of habit, so Console 1 (with most compatible plugins for it, both UAD and Softube) is my main mixing "system". Beyond that, I mostly use 3rd party plugins I know how to  get a decent sound (I'm after) quickly.

I always use stock compressors for side-chaining though.

All the best.

[Starship Krupa]

6 hours ago, Paul Young said:

"The real question is: are you good enough to use stock plugins?"

Sometimes these are embarrassing.   It's like seeing a kid who can really play his Squire Strat and you know some chords that you play on your LP. 

Tough but fair.

I think I can get satisfying mix results using only the plug-ins that come with a DAW (with the exception of reverb, I don't like having to use anything but Phoenix/Nimbus or MTurboreverble). Throw in the Meldaproduction FreeFX bundle and I'm well into comfy territory.

It also can depend on how good the stock plug-ins are. I use the QuadCurve EQ in ProChannel more than any other EQ. If the DAW is Cakewalk, the Percussion and Vocal multi-FX pack a pretty good wallop. Mixcraft go the route of partnering with ToneBoosters for their suite of plug-ins, so of course those are pretty capable.

My preferred FX don't usually sound that much better inherently, but they have UI's that I like better and often offer shortcuts and features that reduce the amount of fiddling I have to do (Trackspacer, MDrumleveler, MAutoalign, etc.). I like the Sonitus suite that comes with Cakewalk sound and function-wise, but I don't like the tiny plain jane GUI's so I never use them. I also do mid/side processing on buses, which is usually missing from stock FX.

I think of a good chef: plunk them and their ingredients down in almost any kitchen, and as long a there's at least one decently sharp or micro-serrated knife they'll be able to come up with a good meal. But at home or work, they'll have invested in more and better tools that make the process easier, faster, and more enjoyable. Good mixer, blender, food processor, juicer, cutlery, pans, large cutting board, etc. My life in the kitchen became much more fun once a friend turned me onto the joys of thrift store Revere Ware and Pyrex. I also keep my own Victorinox and Henckels chef's knives shaving sharp.

Edited July 2, 2022 by Starship Krupa

[Gswitz]

Maybe.  Good chefs do tend to have nicely stocked kitchens. No two the same. 

[Wibbles]

12 hours ago, Paul Young said:

"The real question is: are you good enough to use stock plugins?"

No. I can never work out where the music is supposed to go.

[Wookiee]

In a Sound on sound leader column Paul White the editor wrote about this topic.

He said two basic things,

One just because the GUI is basic it does not mean the DSP under it is poor, it probably means that they have spent more time & money getting it right.

Two if you can write DSP for a DAW then you probably know how to write it for plugin's. 

Personally I use very few 3rd party EQ or compression plugin's. It would be nice to be able to have more than one instance of the Quadcurve EQ.

[bitflipper]

21 hours ago, Paul Young said:

"The real question is: are you good enough to use stock plugins?"

Sometimes these are embarrassing.   It's like seeing a kid who can really play his Squire Strat and you know some chords that you play on your LP.

Well-said, Paul.  Ever seen the video of Dave Grohl playing a pink Hello Kitty drum kit? Anyone who claims you can't make a great record with only stock tools just doesn't know what they're doing. Every time I hear the phrase "musical compressor" I just want to gag.

[Jesse Screed]

 

 

[Starship Krupa]

17 hours ago, Wibbles said:

No. I can never work out where the music is supposed to go.

I think the question here is "have you been bad enough to be plugged into the stocks?"

[kitekrazy]

9 hours ago, bitflipper said:

Well-said, Paul.  Ever seen the video of Dave Grohl playing a pink Hello Kitty drum kit? Anyone who claims you can't make a great record with only stock tools just doesn't know what they're doing. Every time I hear the phrase "musical compressor" I just want to gag.

Whats not to like with a Hello Kitty Drumset? Pretty badass if you ask me.

I never understood why the call something a "musical" eq or compressor.  I want to try a non musical one. 

There no end to gimmicks in marketing when it comes to reinventing the wheel.

[bitflipper]

Thanks for adding that link. I said "Dave Grohl" but it was actually Mike Portnoy that I was thinking of, and I was just too lazy to look up the video.

There was another example in the back of my mind that I couldn't recall the details of, and that was someone relating a story of Eric Clapton picking up a random budget guitar at a music store and playing it. When asked what it sounded like, the storyteller said "like Eric Clapton". Maybe you can fact-check that anecdote as well. Given my leaky memory, it could have actually been Steve Vai, Jeff Beck or Carlos Santana.

[kennywtelejazz]

I get annoyed sometimes  with a lot of the extra choices and learning curves many of the third party plugs I bought on sale seem to bring to the table  . It is nice to have some of these things but in the heat of the moment when the Muse is holding my hand and sending me inspiration I have to resist the temptation to delve into the wonderful world of 3 rd party GUI's ...My Muse is a fickle bitch ...she will leave to room if I focus on anything other than her .? 

Kenny

[kitekrazy]

On 7/3/2022 at 2:49 PM, kennywtelejazz said:

I get annoyed sometimes  with a lot of the extra choices and learning curves many of the third party plugs I bought on sale seem to bring to the table  . It is nice to have some of these things but in the heat of the moment when the Muse is holding my hand and sending me inspiration I have to resist the temptation to delve into the wonderful world of 3 rd party GUI's ...My Muse is a fickle bitch ...she will leave to room if I focus on anything other than her .? 

Kenny

 I think of the professionals who are Pro Tools users.  There are superior DAWs out there but to them time is money.   It's the same with paid amateur bands, Every bass or guitar player has to show their collection.  BTW this happens in churches as well.   Then when you go see legendary acts they use the same instrument and don't waste time trying to get the tone they want.   

 DAW users are into the headstock syndrome in a different way.

[kitekrazy]

Everyone wants the project files. 

[Tim Smith]

I tried to use some plugins a few days ago and discovered my SSD clone brought on a few licensing issues.

Even Sonarworks failed to work. I'm supposed to locate the registration numbers for it.

Oh well. What can one do? It's just a part of the process sometimes.

[Starship Krupa]

On 7/2/2022 at 6:00 PM, Paul Young said:

Whats not to like with a Hello Kitty Drumset?

Maybe it's a crutch, but I'm pretty attached to using a snare on the backbeat.

On 7/3/2022 at 2:49 PM, kennywtelejazz said:

I get annoyed sometimes  with a lot of the extra choices and learning curves many of the third party plugs I bought on sale seem to bring to the table 

Right now I'm in the process of building a new (new to me, it's all used parts that are higher spec than my current rig) DAW computer, and rather than throwing every mixing plug-in that I've acquired over the past few years on to it, I'm slowly adding only the ones I want to focus on. So much stuff I've installed just because it was free for the downloading or came in a bundle.

[bitflipper]

I have fewer plugins today than I had ten years ago, and I could lose half the ones I still have and not miss them. 

The only category that continues to grow, albeit much more more slowly than in the past: sample libraries. But it's been years since the last time an acquisition truly inspired me to be creative. 

[Tim Smith]

On 7/5/2022 at 1:20 PM, Paul Young said:

Everyone wants the project files. 

This reminds me of the Arturia's collection of symphonic sounds. Many of these sounds are very convincing. If this is an included plugin inside of FL all the better.

It seems there are little gems in some of these DAWs,. I updated Mixcraft last night and had forgotten there are some nice little plugins and instruments in it.

I'm on the fence with sample libraries. I have enough of them now to make decent music, so why look at more of them? It seems like an endless money pit. Everyone comes out with another library the following year . NI just came out with something else.They all do. I admit to a fixation with them, but I can't possibly use all of them or learn all of them in my lifetime.

I like having plugins set up by type rather than brand. That way I can better look though the massive pile I have and make a decision. There are a lot of them I seldom ever use.

 

[kitekrazy]

15 minutes ago, Tim Smith said:

This reminds me of the Arturia's collection of symphonic sounds. Many of these sounds are very convincing. If this is an included plugin inside of FL all the better.

It seems there are little gems in some of these DAWs,. I updated Mixcraft last night and had forgotten there are some nice little plugins and instruments in it.

I'm on the fence with sample libraries. I have enough of them now to make decent music, so why look at more of them? It seems like an endless money pit. Everyone comes out with another library the following year . NI just came out with something else.They all do. I admit to a fixation with them, but I can't possibly use all of them or learn all of them in my lifetime.

I like having plugins set up by type rather than brand. That way I can better look though the massive pile I have and make a decision. There are a lot of them I seldom ever use.

 

 It's very plain and requires enhancements.  I'm hoping to see the project files.  Most of your 3 Osc synths like Spire and Sylenth  make nice string sounds. I've seen some trance tutorials where they make a few adjustments from the init patch.

They have contest in the FL forum using certain plugins.

[kitekrazy]

4 hours ago, bitflipper said:

I have fewer plugins today than I had ten years ago, and I could lose half the ones I still have and not miss them. 

The only category that continues to grow, albeit much more more slowly than in the past: sample libraries. But it's been years since the last time an acquisition truly inspired me to be creative. 

I'm less persuaded to buy them because they are bloated and then you have to figure in having the disk space.