Probably for the same reason they cracked The Drip™ and released it. Or others. Junk hiding behind DRM.

 

To be fair, in the case of Acustica, its not really "DSP", in the traditional sense. They have to maintain their framework, keeping it updated for OS updates etc, but otherwise, its easier for them to focus on the "sampling" and gui. They can spend less time agonizing over creating code from scratch. But it is true they release a ridiculous amount of plugins, while often times leaving bugs in older releases. I personally have not had crazy bug experiences with their software, but i know many have. Ive only had a couple issues, one of them being serious.

The same can be said for Crow Hill. Develop the framework, focus on the sampling.

The new AlexB stuff is awesome. Tim P and Cupwise updates and new products too! The holy trinity of Nebula, absolutely all crushing it. Tim Cupwise's C660 update is insane. Tim P's latest updates and new Neve all incredible. Giancarlo is a buffoon for ostracizing the third party devs. If they all held hands and worked together Acustica would be much bigger than they are. Instead of looking at them as competition, bring them on payroll, and give them the Acqua framework. oh well.

The plugins you mentioned are indeed pretty much toys. Even their larger releases are somewhat limited compared to the competition. However, their strings, winds, larger percussion lib's etc. String Murmurations, Gestures, are still great plugins. Even with their limitations, they sound great and when they fit in a track they can really elevate things.

 

Pardon me for not being on track with things, as I have a hard time following everything on this thread. Do you see the UAD scenario as a realistic one in the near future? I suppose them and Soundtoys present a somewhat holy grail of the most demanded "uncrackable" plugins, and well, it is safe to say that the team never shied away from a proper challenge.

 

That's fair but my "like Acustica" comment was not really about the entire paragraph, but moreso the last sentence. Unable to handle all the issues and deliver real support for the released products. That was probably the #1 complaint about Acustica's pre-R2R plugins. Several bad user experiences were illustrated in the first thread about it on here, with links to Gearspace threads of exactly that issue. Giancarlo even posted in the thread that updates to broken products were one of the important reasons people were paying for their products; while users here countered with the details of products left in limbo which were never fixed before creating yet more plugins. Never having to fix all of them because of R2R cracking them worked out better in his benefit than probably any other release by them, ever.

 

Since Acustica plugins are basically a Nebula rack with all the controls of a sampled library on the same GUI it should not be that hard to keep all working. But for the very same reason it's even easier to release a brand new sampling instead of fixing the previous one.

 

There is Bitwig.

 

That's far from legendary..

 

nobody really knows. i want to say its doubtful, i feel like if they could be done, they already would have been, but yah, who knows...

 

yah absolutely. it is quite ridiculous. Their amp / pedal plugin, Aero, is riddled with bugs and has been for a while. Of course you don't find the bugs until actually using the plugin for some time, and not during initial trial. Unlikely they will fix them, and instead will release "Aero Studio", a "different and new" plugin. Which is exactly what they just did with their suite Erin. Caused quite the stir on Gearspace.

Its one reason why i have stopped buying their plugins a while ago. I still buy one here and there, but am much more prudent in my purchasing decisions. Hell, with any dev really, but especially Acustica. With Acustica i consider it massively disrespectful to have a "free updates for life" policy, then turn around make a new UI or add some minor detail and call it a new plugin with a paid upgrade path. I understand the need for paid updates, sure, but don't have that be your policy and then play some game of semantics when you are questioned about it.

This is what i don't understand. It should be simple enough to fix. The fact they would have all these angry users off their backs if they just sat down and fixed everything, yet they continue to push new products and delay / ignore fixes is also mind-boggling to me.

 

soon ​

 

The feeling has gone, only you and I
It means nothing to me
This means nothing to me
Oh, Vienna

 

Last edited: Nov 15, 2025 at 8:12 AM

I don't think it's likely that UAD will be released anytime soon.
However, anything that is software or digital is also vulnerable.

UAD has certainly spent a lot of money and acquired a great deal of expertise to make their product
secure against teams like R2R and others. What is technically feasible is being done, by both sides.

Online activation: Most UAD products (e.g., bundles like UAD Ultimate or Musicians Collection) require online activation via the UAD account system. This happens during installation and only allows one simultaneous activation per license (e.g., on one computer).

iLok License Manager: For native plugins (UADx series, which run without DSP hardware), the iLok Manager from Pace Anti-Piracy is integrated. Licenses are stored as a cloud or local license file and can be activated on up to one device simultaneously. This provides additional protection against unauthorized copying.

EDIT: Thank You @moonlightfiasco, "Every single UAD product I own allows me to activate the licence on up to three devices."

 

Last edited: Nov 15, 2025 at 9:33 AM

I might be misreading what you are saying here but where are you getting the "up to one device" number from, because that isn't my experience of owning UAD at all. Every single UAD product I own allows me to activate the licence on up to three devices.

It did used to be just one I think, but customers complained about not being able to activate on their mobile rigs and UAD upped the number from one to three activations per licence.

 

Wait a second here. You're saying that UAD (and others like it) wont be released any time soon because of ILOK and Online activation?
We already have MANY such releases that include ILOK and online, challenge/response activation, pace AP, ect, etc... The criteria you're basing your opinion on is already conquered territory for most of the good release groups (you all know who you are ). There are reasons why, that we're not privy to, UAD stuff (and many others) haven't been released. The reasoning you state here is nonsensical given the current climate of the cracking scene.

 

Last edited: Nov 15, 2025 at 9:37 AM

You also tend to spout some pretty absurd nonsense here. In my opinion, you're always very hasty and presumptuous, and you like to twist people's words. So I'll spare you the discussion. You're claiming there are reasons why it hasn't been cracked yet. I even read somewhere that someone claimed groups like R2r were being paid by the manufacturer to keep it from being released. It hasn't been released yet because the copy protection is so sophisticated.

 

You read it somewhere. Then hells bells it must be true. Stick to your fake "AI" quotes because you have absolutely no leg to stand on here...

 

That's a bit unfair because although Crow Hill is small, Christian Henson has been doing this for decades with Spitfire so he knows what needs to be done to produce products efficiently, and knows the people who can get it done quickly. He's got the experience and connections other small producers don't have.

 

I had to tell someone else that I did not write that about one specific developer in reference to Acustica, and the same thing here. Even in your post, you recognize that such observations are frequently true and Crow Hill is somehow "different than other small producers". Not that you have convinced me it isn't the case for one small developer or another; but to me a small shop with the same sized catalog of McDSP or UA is a giant red flag as someone buying a plugin from them.

 

Every company has the right to invent, manufacture, and market something.
Your decision as a consumer is simply this: "Buy it or don't buy it!"