The absolute most fun I've had in all these years was the whole UVI Falcon / East West game by R2R and the community. And in the middle of all that was the Best Service ENGINE dump. Trying to keep up with all those massive releases was insane but so worth it.

I also recently came across those old ancient East West rips, like the original StormDrum and Ra from eons ago that I think DISCOVER did, and didn't hesitate to delete them even though I was hording them like gold for all these years.

 

Last edited: Mar 18, 2023

I own everything that I use in my production system, and a lot of it is real hardware.

 

In the 'good old days' (97-98 or so) there was Bubba Zenetti's Wild Leech Ranch, and UseNet.. Bubba got all the Radium releases right away, but also used to have to constantly move his site/change security as they were cracking down like a motherfucker on audiowarez back then. He's the one who taught me how to use an .htaccess file haha.

The end of the 90s was an awesome time to be a music nerd with a modem and a Win 95/98 machine. Radium's first version of Cubase was pre-VST, blew me away coming from a legit Cakewalk setup. By 2001/2002, had an awesome job bought into Logic and a lot of my tools (I've still got my retail Absynth 1 box!).. But those early days were all Radium fueled, later some Oxygen and AIR stuff.. Could only do that for so long though, nowadays I own everything on my Mac, except the occasional sample library here and there.

 

Sadly plugins dont replace an SSL 4000 G or API console and the 100,000$ in outboard gear.
They also don't replace the PCM Digital 24 tracks multitrack tape reel recorders that have been used in Studios since 1981.

We have come so far on in the box mixing and summing. But you still need recording hardware.

 

Nebula does a good job, the new AlexB API GE+ stuff is the nearest thing to real API hardware.

 

Last edited: Mar 18, 2023

Radium had their own channel on IRC.

 

Last edited: Mar 18, 2023

I'd stopped downloading audio warez years ago and was doing everything in hardware, but a few years ago, I made the mistake of buying a Digitakt. "It'd be nice to have a few extra samples for this", I thought. So I checked out sister site.

Today, I still make music almost exclusively on hardware, but I've got about 4 Terabytes of samples and VST's that I'm hoarding 'just in case'. I do like trying them out, but the only software I use consistently is the free version of VCV Rack. Oh, and occasionally Scaler to find chord progressions.

 

You would be surprised. In third world countries there still are street vendors selling pirated movies, tv series on dvds, music on cds and likely software installs, too.

 

Eh... I do fine. It's not about gear (real or virtual). At least, not beyond some very basic minimal level most of us should be well beyond.

 

Anyone who actually have a "good" workflow with pirated software?

My process is:
1 try new plugins
2 finish what I find interesting and enjoy

 

I first learned about Warez in the late mid 90s from surfing the news groups. At first I was looking for info on video games for Mac & the original PlayStation. Then I stumbled onto a couple Audio Warez. That lead me to a particular News Group, & that lead me to a specific group on chat format. Then that lead to "DSP" then that finally lead to "DII" A superior Mac ONLY Warez group. I was so fortunate to be among that group of individuals. Professionals from every walk of life. From those who actually worked with the major companies like Digidesign, pro musicians & music makers. I even forged friendships with the main Krackerz of the day like SnapCase, TMZ & the extremely talented Coyote.
Back in those days for me it was more about the Warez than making music. I owned & operated my own recording studio. I recorded way more of other's music than my own. However I was on StudioVision Pro from Opcode back then and as the years progressed the app got funkier & funkier. I suffered through many crashes due to StudioVision Pro's lousy programming and Apple's horrible OS version 8.5 had me ready to throw my PowerPC 8500 out the window. Things got much better once I upgraded to the Macintosh PowerPC 9600 with its six nubus slots, OS 9.1 & at the time very powerful processor life started to Improve. However StudioVision Pro was in its last days as Opcode was acquired by Gibson Guitars. And that sinking ship finally fell to the bottom of the ocean never to be seen again. So I struggled to find a new sequencer app, I tried Cubase VST as I found a registration card laying around Mac at my local music store.
But it was Logic Pro version 4 that I finally settled on. It was rock solid and learning it was a joy. Now I could finally get through a project without my sequencer app freezing up my system, allowing for me to keep my ideas in my head until I laid them down!
In the end I eventually sold my Mac & all my analog outboard gear because I saw a new future coming on the horizon with the advent of VST.
Now today I'm more about the sound and I finish roughly 2 to 3 trax a day. I try to stay away from collecting gobs of software. I find what works for me and throw the rest away!

 

Yes I do, and I feel very proud to be in a position to finally start bringing in some income from using Warez and using that money to slowly but surely purchase what I use.

 

....Well I dont "produce" with plugins, I mix with plugins. I use my voice to produce when I tell my guitarist what sounds good or not. I actually PRODUCE with him what sounds good or sing parts I think sound good for him to play. Then I use warez plugins to MIX what is recorded. On a forum like this can we at least use proper terms?

 

Last edited: Mar 18, 2023

@BiG Pluck what is your workflow?

 

Whatever hits me. I'm a Funk Bassist so it could be a funky bassline, I also kick Drums so it could be a Funky tight drum track, sometimes a really nice chord progression gets me going.
A lot of times I get inspired after installing a new plugin. I tend to use some of madbuzzin's technique when working with my Guitarist. I used to do the same with my keyboardist back in the 90s.
Sometimes I'll hear a beat or a melody or some rhythm and then I'm sparked.
I really have no one way of workflow.

 

My first PC was 286 from 1990, with 2.400 bit/s modem, no internet, just BBS.
My first audio editor was Steinberg WaveLab 5.0.1b around 2004 but I still learn about mastering, and I am dissatisfied with most of my past work.
I just introduced some new quality procedures 5-6 days ago... So a master I did a week ago looks deprecated to me now.

 

I hear ya, been collecting for years ( personal nostalgia).
What all this software is was a sold dream of "in the box" which is complete BS.

Notice every time a "Pro" Protools producer shows up you will see behind him a $200,000 mixing console with another $150,000 in outboard gear.

Hardware is how you produce and record audio NOT SOFTWARE. This aspect of mixing in the box is still childish compared to the 1970's Mixing consoles quality. Yes we have decent recording interfaces these days and yes you can be a one man record and mix band, but the nostalgia of music making is over and it has been for many years.

Once we went to "get the sample from previous song and pop that in here" aka "Dua Lip Syncha" and many other fools claiming to be "Music Artists" this whole "Rock N Roll" business was finished.

The whole music industry has been using Digital Multi track recording since 1983, yet this was not available to the masses until at least mid 2005's. All the music you have heard from the major Studios since 1983 has been Digital PCM multi track recorded on analog tape.


The Sony Digital PCM recorders from 1983 and up were the main Multitrack recorders used in major studios.
All the stems you have seen around many of those "HD" are nothing more than playback copies of the Digital PCM recorded 2" reel masters.

So Surprise no major Studio has used "Analog Recording" since 1983 if they were using the Sony Multitrack decks.
The signal path is analog console into Digital PCM tape recorders and this was up all the way to the 2000's.

All of these "bedroom" daw "experts" have been completely fooled.

Final note I will leave this youtube video showing exactly what a "Band" sounds like when you remove the tracks from the $170,000 SSL 4000G console and the $150,000 in outboard gear that this album got. This is what "Music Bands" actually sound like in the Studio it has no relevance to the final product you consume and this is why this particular band does not want any of their stems to be released as the "magic" would be broken into mediocre status.

So in the end the HARDWARE is the difference between you and them as in 2023 information is milliseconds away.

 

Last edited: Apr 14, 2023

Started out with trackers waaaay back in the Amiga days (89-92) and yep we had audiowarez back then too albeit the DAWs were somewhat more basic.

Moved on later to a legit Cubase with cracked plugins on XP which was a fuckin mare for audio/driver issues constantly. Moved to MacOS in 2010 with Logic and later onto Ableton.

Pretty much 100% legit for all my audio software nowadays and I generally just download sample packs and soundbanks as I've bought waaaaaay too many plugins over the years to really need anything else now (plus can't be arsed learning any more new synths)

I've done loads of hardware over the years as well but now all in the box.

 

Radium, H2O. I’ve been around as well like most of y’all! I’ve produced a couple of singles for clients during the years but I can count them on two maybe 3 hands.

I started out producing with warez since the beginning of the warez era. And although I used to chase a career as a professional, (family)life got the best of me and now I make music to keep my sanity and occasionally (not more than once a year), I make a few bucks out of mto’s hobby. I make a decent amount of money these days with my regular day job. So just for the sake of the possibility of getting ‘pro’ clients in the studio and me just wanting to have a clean conscious, I’ve bought all the software I use. I also still download the warez because I’m addicted to collect and also because I’m afraid that devs leave me hanging with abandon warez.