99-50$ - spoiled with goodies already, GAS anyway...

[marQs]

So, two 25$ coupons and another 2-for-99 deal active but - as probably many of us - I have way more than I need. A huge number of UA titles plus PA Mega plus still many more, let alone the Cubase stock plugins which really became very very good over the last decade.

I'm leaning on adding:

Avalon VT-737 but already have SSL 400E, VoxBox, 88RS, API Vision, Century plus all channel strip offers from Plugin Alliance.

Culture Vulture with Soundtoys' Decapitator, Devil Loc Deluxe and Radiator, UA Moog Filter XL, 1176 variations without compression, PAs' Vertigo VSM-3, Looptrotter Sa2rate, The OVEN (and even some more options) in the list.

Manley VariMu while having so many great bus compressors of different tastes already - Capitol Mastering Comp, Fairchildren, 33609, Fatso, AMEK Mastering Comp, elysia alpha and more.

Sonnox Inflator as addition to the Oxford Limiter (the enhance slider does something very similar to my ears), Precision Maximizer and more.

Alternatively I've started the demos of Sonnox Envolution, Neve 2254 E and 1084 (which all have one or more equivalents in my folder already).

Re-reading this post, I can't see any reason to justify even the smallest expense of course but some of the named titles are simply iconic and could never before been catched at such a low rate (at least for long time users, not the spark-spoiled-cheapo-UA-newcomers ), but: from experience I know that especially UA plugins are getting better the longer I use/know them, something that hardly happens with other vendors' offers.

Do you people in similar situations think I'm really missing a chance if I don't pick up two of the named titles?

I know, it's me to decide but would love to hear your thoughts and suggestions anyway!

 

[marQs]

Just to complete my monologue: I ended up buying licenses for none of the plugins above

Gave myself 3 hours to check them on various sources just to find I'm not halfway through all the stuff installed! Found excellent stuff I've hardly ever used, mostly Plugin Alliance' titles from the mega bundle. That's the thing with subs - you'll get it all, end up with using/exploring/knowing some, save really checking out all the rest for a later point in time to get work actually done and simply forget about most. It's completely insane. I'm probably 3-month-full-time away from having learned exploiting the core potential of tools available.

I somewhat miss the times when tools came at a price, were carefully chosen, evaluated and learned (!)

Today I'm proactively flushed with options, on occasion I play around with this and that and from time to time I might find a specific setting in a specific plugin where it excels while the truth is that I'd do all well with using 1176s, LA-2As, maybe two different tastes of reverb, the SSL-E channel strip, ATR-102 & A800 (those two are indispensable really) and a few stock plugins. However, there are more plugins I use frequently just because they allow me to do something really quick - not allowing anything flow-breaking creeping into the process.

Guess some sort of similar experience are not news to many of you

For anything listed in my inital post I've found something that already does the job well. To satisfy the gear lust and nonetheless add something to my saturated tool box I've came to buy two plugins that were not in my focus at all: KORG SDD3000 and the AMS DMX. Not that I'd missed any variation of delays but I was immediately taken with both for their character and the beauty of 'being there' without any hussle. My first ever fx device I've used as a kid was a pink bucketbrigade stomp box from Ibanez - that's 37 years ago (oh, holy crap, I'm old!). The psychedelic factor of that three-knob-thing occupied a place in my mind other people had to use drugs to fill with

So, I'll finish talking here as we're on the UAD forum and not in a self-help group for anonymus sound addicts. Plus I'll think about finishing my PA sub and just keep what I actually use.

Happy new year!

 

[kcatthedog2]

Not getting vari mu, might be a mistake: just sayin !

 

[Deif]

I didn’t purposely buy any plugins this year. I bought Ultimate 12 just to see if the $249 Sweetwater glitch would work. They had 36 month financing

 

[marQs]

Not getting vari mu, might be a mistake: just sayin !

It‘s a masterpiece for sure but FC 670, Capitol, API 2500, 33609 are as well

 

[kcatthedog2]

It‘s a masterpiece for sure but FC 670, Capitol, API 2500, 33609 are as well

No offence, I get you are joking, but they are all different comp emulations: do you buy by type or by need?

I found that the VM did something special on the 2 bus that was unlike other comps. Anyway, I’d suggest, respectfully, that you spend more time demoing vm, but ymmv !

happy new year (almost) !

 

[marQs]

Wouldn't argue with with VM doing special things at all! However, I just stop buying anything right now for the reasons listed above.

Too many tools I never had the time for working myself through from alpha to omega, to put it bluntly it feels like I'd need a second life for that. The good thing is that actual audio work has kept me from. Too much to do within reasonable time, I tend to find effective solutions/methods for my clients music and not to make them pay for my personal education