Hi all,
I`m kind of curious to know just how many of us out there are guilty of downloading something that they see on here or various other sites as its free for the taking? Rather than downloading something as they are going to definitely use or what they have been specifically looking for to use in their productions. I mean lets be fair over the years there has been a vast amount of VST`s & Samples etc for us all to choose from. Infact I think sometimes we have been kind of spoilt with the amounts shared to us. I admit I have been guilty of doing this in the past even though I am now alot stricter on myself now.
How about you?

 

hardly.

I just download because i can :P
Probably end up messing with them once or twice just to suss em all out, but thats about it..

I got my wii softmodded which has over 200 games on HDD and i dont even touch the thing.. but i do however download the latest games as they are released even though i have no intention of playing them.. its just "having them" that keeps me going.. that make sense to anyone? haha :P

 

Ralzy you have to read this thread http://audiosex.pro/index.php?/topic/54-too-many-vsts/

Can't say it changed my life or anything but it definitely clarified something that I was frustrated with but couldn't quite put into words...

Sounds like you've gotten a handle on it for yourself; I just recently had a 3Tb hard drive go on me, over half of which was sample libraries and such, and while I'll miss some of it, I must say that I also felt a sense of relief. I have many times in the past set out to accomplish a housecleaning like that and then got bogged down with "well, what if..."

So, to answer your question, no I haven't really used even a small fraction of what I've downloaded for any real purpose. I'm an electrician and, it's funny, when I'm working I'll have a need and then get the right tool to meet that need; when I'm dealing with making music it's quite the opposite: I'll get a new tool just because it looks sooo cool and then try to find a place to use it. Of course by that time I'm already distracted by the next shiny new toy lol.

It seems to be a rather relevant topic with the warez scene, thanks for bringing it up

 

I usually download until i find something that satisfies me in terms of functionality and user-friendliness....and
I have to admit that it took me a while, especially as during the last decade, things kept improving quickly, and
i reckon that's why most of us got this "downloading the latest apps" syndrome ..and yes i downloaded a shitload of things but just like
lampwiikk i didnt even use most of em for anything really meaningful
but nowadays, as softwares and other apps are getting better and better...some being not too far from "perfect", i have gradually
slowed down the pace at which i download and have almost settled with some soft indeed....but as i dont make money with them or
dont use them for anything serious, I have no intention of buying them! I use them more for educational purposes than anything else...

 

My approach is little different: I only download the things that i may find useful, test them straight and then i decide if leave them there or archive them on a Backup. I have to do so because my memory isn't unlimited. That's also one reason why i have slowed down with downloading unnecessary things. Usually i prefer software, synthesizers or plug-ins which are light and slim, without tons of additional stuff inside. I've found out that i'm far more creative when i use stuff with few samples and presets! Sometimes i even have to slim them down by removing unwanted stuff. I believe that this makes really fun with music: tweaking, create own sounds and experimenting.

 

Im 'over' the grabbing stage now. I have only been producing for just over 2yrs and used to grab shit loads and have installed everything to see what it did,even if it was to play for 5 mins.Then you get wiser as you learn and realize less is more and you dont need most of them so theres no point in my eyes.I am still a bit weak for certain sample packs but have loads i have not even listened to from when i started.I bought sylenth after finding i used it most as lets face it,if everyone used cracked stuff then there would be no new vst being produced. *yes*

 

I would not talk of "grab" and even less of "guilt".

We all like to try things out to see how they work and if they are any use to us, right? Why feel guilty about it?
I am a guitarist and every time (every single time) I walk into a music shop I try one guitar (or two, or three..). Not with the intention to buy of course.. I am not that loaded, unfortunately.

But trying things out gives me knowledge. I get to know what's what.. I can separate likes from dislikes and eventually, when I need to make a purchase, I know what to get.
With software can be the same. You download and try (you DO try out what you download, right?) this and that and by doing so you gain knowledge and understanding of all.
Guilty? Definitely not.

 

I think you are taking the 'guilty' word a bit out of the context it was meant JayAr. The point was at the start are you 'guilty' of downloading it just because you can and probably never using it i think. A vst collect-aholic if you will.. loooool I was but always tried them then realised what stuff aint worth even downloading or i simply didnt need *yes*

 

No i can´t say i use all that i´m download.
But i try everything and if it is a good thing i use it sometimes.
If it is a great thing i use it more often and if it is a superb thing i use it all the time.
But if it is crap i don´t use it at all but i´m saving it because one day i might need it.
Most likely i will never use it of course but what the hack i have it just in case.
Wonder if there is an vst collect-aholic rehab clinic somewhere? *no*
Hi my name is Guitarmaniac64 and i´m addicted to vst vsti and samples

 

@ JayAr
MrGold gets where I was coming from in using the term guilty maybe the wording may of came across with a different meaning by what I was saying but that is all I meant.

TBF I have collated more than enough and proberly more than I`m ever going to get round to using in the future. So my days of downloading for the sake of it are well & truly over.

Thanks to all for your views & thoughts

 

the next question is...Do you spend more time looking for plugs and samples than you do actually in your studio ?????

 

Me too dude...im in the same ball park.theres only so much you can use well.best to know what you use inside out than have 200 that you use for 5 minutes.then its worth putting your hand in ypour pocket if it becomes more than just a hobby

 

Yes I`m total agreement with that *yes*

Dam right
If you get somewhere with your music don`t forget about these developers whos products have helped you get to where you are. Its very easy to lose sight of those who may have helped you when your on the up

 

Hya,
Being an inexperienced hobbyist, download has been the key factor to start sitting and lay down few ideas.
I can’t see how I could spend my time without some apps.
The more these plugs have started to populate my drives more the challenge and my level of awareness have increased.
I’m less keen on samples. I’ m more da kitchen type.
I suppose, for the moment my whole thing is too tight to feel overwhelmed by anything

 

i download moar than what i ac2lly uze but most of what i pick n choose n collect also gets utilized by a few of my friends who are too lazy to do it themselves so its OK i guess.

 

For me the answers is 50/50... Better descriptions would help. Also posting old material with different or no info adds to the mix.

There are also those who post material without the needed key, crack or serial rendering everything useless.

That's my 2 cents...

 

for me the downlodwar was like a addiction!
to get the latest plugins/updates and sample libraries.and at the point when i was spending/wasting more time to
collect and download stuff then making musik i stoped that shit.i reinstalled windows and throw 1 tb of sample libraries into
the thrash can.i picked up a smale colletion of my favorite plugins and reinstalled them.
that was like fresh air to my workflow! cheers

hi calcatian !!
greetings long time no see mate

 

downloading has been a learning experience for me, because when I started I knew next-to-nothing. I was mainly into getting textbooks and tutorials etc.

Then when I started on samples and vsts, yea I went a lil overboard but quickly pulled back once I figured out what they actually did instead of downloading based on other people's opinions and the number of views on the post.

The problem with gaining too many vsts in a short amount of time is that you become overwhelmed with the choices in workflow, and your brain just can't keep up.
Once my brain caught up to all the stuff I was able to see what was useful to me and what wasn't, what was higher quality and faster etc.

The question that really helps is "will this improve the music drastically?" . That will help when facing a potential download of the next vintage emulation eq, if you're beginning like I am.

 

yep, it takes time to decide which is best then junk the rest.

You tend to think that this new eq is gonna sound better but it doesn't work like that, it's a combination of ergonomics, flexibility and results over a vast array of sonic material.

I tend to only download synth presets and look at clever effect routing tutorials. Then it all comes down to making as many songs as possible.

 

When I first got back into this, I started with what I knew (ReBirth BABY - YEAH!) and found it very limiting for the current vision. Then after making an acquaintance at work I was introduced to FL Studio and the world of VST. Once I was able to build a machine powerful enough to run what I considered a minimum, I gave it a shot and quickly decided that building a better machine was in order and I lost my fucking mind! Lets just say that even with my collection of 'art films' I still hadn't personally come to grasp a concept beyond the triple digit gigabyte and today that might as well be a small temporary storage peripheral used to transport between studios.

Though I will say when I started out I made a megalist of the various utilities, effects, and instruments I might possibly need on this journey including research into specific product lines; I try to keep everything well organized down to category and function. As I need a type of utility, effect, or instrument I then call them up and audition them for the part. Usually I'll find a reason to give most of them a second chance because one company's build of plugin may not be suited for certain applications in my production, but show's potential in another.

There have been MANY times I found myself disappointed by the hype. Take the Waves product line for example, I have uninstalled and deleted from my system everything I had, and I had everything! 1) my system just couldn't handle running more than one DX plugin at a time. 2) I found VSTs even at the mid-level ($15 to $30 per plugin range) that out performed most of the 'Grammy award winning' Waves collection. Be it my lack of ability to apply them or my systems lack of resources; they just didn't fit into my work. However there are a few within their ranks that once my system is blessed with an upgrade I will DEMAND they join the team, but the number is so few that I could easily afford them on my own AND WILL BE WILLING TO MAKE THAT PURCHASE, AT THAT TIME, BECAUSE I WAS ABLE TO TRY THEM FIRST. Another episode of great expectations was with iZotope, though the experience wasn't as extreme, it was still a wake up call about the reality of hype & hope vs. getting the job done right. I DO NOT LOOK AT MUSIC NO ONE DOES (unless you're on LSD)! I don't need heavy handed graphic analysis constantly running sucking my processor like a leech all because the developer wants to look cool!

Then there are times when I'm simply torn asunder because two product lines each have their own unique appeal for whatever reason and I struggle for a long time trying to decide which is the one to go with because I find it simply ridiculous to have both of them around because they were 'free' when my intention is to actually make a legitimate allegiance to a product and become financially invested in its developer. This was the case with two of the 'Hyper-Sampled' drum utilities. Both very fine products and worthy of their cost each in their own rite but I eventually went with the one that offered, in my personal opinion, more realism and a chance to learn more depth to producing drum tracks. I also wanted a product and company that I knew I was going to be with for years to come that offered a wide range of expansion and addon ability, not to mention the man behind the board during the recording of the sample set has long been someone I deeply respected for their prowess in their craft.

A part of me wants to grab, grab, grab, grab - hoard, hoard, hoard; then I remember that I'm simply doing the same thing I did when I bought my mixer or audio interface - I'm shopping! Yeah, these are 'in-home trials' of indefinite length but everything, JUST LIKE the music I'm producing, must level out in the end. Overload on one side and you just might get a convenient effect for the moment; but if you do the whole mix that way it sounds like shit. So I try to look at it like drum compression. I'm reducing for the sake of maximization.