Hey Guys.

I'm currently on UAD Spark Subscription 3 Month Paid Trial Period of a Dollar Per Month That Ends Feb 27.
After that it then goes to $20 Per Month.

UAD Are Great Plugs, one of the best in the industry, but However, The thing I don't like about Spark it requires a iLok License Manager and to be online using UA Connect with Native UAD Plug-Ins.

So with that, I'm leading towards Plugin Alliance Subscription Base that requires NO iLok License Manager.

So with that, what your all opinion and thoughts that are really important to me of these Subscription Base Companies of which one you would chose and why.

Thank You All For You Input.

Rob

 

TBH It depends on what you like or dislike about the sound of the plugins. And which plug-ins you use most.
In my opinion, there are some UAD plug-ins that are much more tastefully designed than those from other manufacturers.

API 2500 is such an example. PA's interpretation is not bad, but compared to UAD? Nah! At least in this example, UAD wipes the floor with PA. You won't find this definition in low and high end with the one from PA. On the other hand there are many PA plugins that are very good.

I never liked Slate. Not a single processor. I can't put into words exactly why, but it has to do with the design of the overtone spectrum. Somehow the plugins sound too hyped to me. I can hear blindly when someone inserts a slate plugin. It sounds kind of plastic.

But it's all about YOUR taste... not mine.

 

PA. Most Plugins for the money. Quality.

Think Slate meanwhile is overrated. They are good, but the Service on updating plugins, releasing new ones and stuff is horrible. They take more care of shooting fancy videos. had them. only use VMR anymore with the stock plugins. liked the earth and air modules though.

SSL has 2-3 nice ones. rest is more about the name, but nothing you haven't with the others.

If you want a sub, i think PA is the one to go to these days.

 

Thx Man, You make very good points here.

However, The UAD Required iLok and the Online UA Connect doesn't bother you to use there Plugs?

Maybe Im looking into that this isn't a Big Deal after all of iLok and the Online UA Connect.

Thats why it is very important to me to make a rational Decision.

 

Vs. Stock DAW plugins

 

PA has very useful analytical tools. That would also be something to consider imo.

But I would agree with Sinus in that UAD plugin have the edge (to my taste) in regards of the sound quality and representation. It is not a cost effective solution but it is definitely a good sounding one. I use and buy mine sparsely. I also do own a UAD Interface so the usefulness is multiplied.

 

Slate : i don't like his business model (and the way he captured Nebula consoles for "his" consoles) and some plugins sound (like FGX messy transients)

Both nice to me (almost same price) :
PA MEGA L plan : nice sound/choice for the money
SSL : same

You can try both for free (workflow, sound)

 

an iLock + a subscription is a two resasons no-go for me.
I'm considering buying Soundtoys because I really enjoyed working with Filterfreak, Echoboy or PanMan,
but the iLock thing pisses me off, I already have dongles everywhere.
$20/months is too much unless you need a specific plugin which cannot be found anywhere else.



off topic: about this, difference between UAD plugins and having their DSP extension ?
I'd be glad to hear about any user experience

 

Im glad im not alone..iLock thing pisses me off, I already have dongles everywhere.

 

@georgedalaras4 wtf?

 

I own both PA and UAD and to say the truth, on most plugins, the difference is too subtle to tell but on some, you can push the parameters to the metal on UAD and not on PA. And it's always nice to have a DSP card (although old) that can run a whole bunch of plugins so you can keep your CPU for Diva, Zebra and other hungry VSTi.
I don't own Slate so i won't comment on these.

 

Can someone explain the ilok hate to me? I've used a plugin suite that uses it for over a year now and never had any issues. Switched the licensing over to my new machine very easily too. When you say you already have dongles everywhere what do you mean? I don't have any dongles it's all internal, just sign in and et voila.

 

I thought the USB drive had to be plugged in order for your plugins to work, isn't it the case anymore ?
you can use your plugins without the USB-Drive plugged-in ?

dongles are multi USB-C to USB-C /USB-A /Ethernet ports extension, it allows you to have more ports available.
between the audio interface, the DSP racks, the hard drives for the libraries and sessions, if you add another request for a port in order
to be able to use your plugins, it's not practical.

I'll check this usb thing, because, AFAIK, Thomann was still stating that for soundtoys activation one need an usb iLock (and an account ) Edit: not anymore, just online activation. sounds good.

 

Last edited: Mar 5, 2023

Nope had Soundtoys bundle on Mac for year and a bit now, no USB required whatsoever. Works fine with no internet connection as well once initially setup which was done in about 3 clicks. Maybe people just aren't aware they've changed how they work. Even UAD now doing the same with some of their plugins. All my ports are available

Edit re your last bit about needing an account I did need to make a free ilok account which was also very straightforward, can't remember exactly how it works but when I bought Soundtoys it gave me a serial to enter into ilok to certify it. Just downloaded the Soundtoys installer and signed into ilok put the code in and they were all authorised. I was surprised how easy it was as had heard negative things about ilok prior as well.

 

Personally, I dont mind ilok. It might have sucked years ago but I have well over 200+ licenses on my ilok account, no dongle, and I agree with @TatoHead it's about as easy and straight forward as you're going to get. I like it because I don't have to keep up with serials or weird authentication protocols. Everything is in one place, automatically authenticates everything I have on it and I can work with it offline (for non-UAD plugins). Whats not to like?

That said, I'm not of fan of the way UAD is using it to be honest. I own most of their plugins and have been testing their native versions the past week. While its nice to be able to use some of them without fear of maxing dsp on my Apollo, I really dislike this UA Connect app. It's clunky, makes loading plugins slow, and generally just dumb. I wish they would stop fucking around and instead of wasting their time trying to "protect" their plugins, they'd invest more time improving the user experience.

 

So do the UAD ones not work like Soundtoys and you have to have an internet connection to use them? If so I'm glad you said as was on the verge of getting the new bundle thinking I'd be able to use same way as Soundytoys i.e install, activate and bosh all done. On another note what do you think of the ones you have tested?

 

Yep, That's the thing that bugs me about UAD and there UA Connect app..Im normally offline during recording a secession, There be times In a new secession I sometimes forget that Im offline when I Drag a UA Plugin in S1 Timeline a Windows Pop Ups (UA Connect app) Saying, no Internet Connection, You must be connected to the Internet to Run UA Plugins.. UAD,Get Rid Of It..errrrrr.....

 

Wow that is really bad, hopefully they'll eventually change but seeing as they've just restructured their sales strategy I'd guess it won't be for quite some time.

 

I've had a read on the UAD website and it seems the latest bundles can be used offline once activated online

 

Really depends on the plugins. Keep in mind theres a handful that overlap as well, as in they are on UA's platform as well as PA's. Then there are a bunch of others that are not. Like mentioned above, the API2500 plugin is one where UA's is clearly better in my opinion, and its funny because the PA iteration is brand spanking new. You might assume their newer emulation would benefit from more recent tech, but in this instance at least, not the case. Its all subjective of course, someone might prefer the PA emulation of the 2500, which brings me back to my original point, it really depends on you and which plugins are going to be your most used. And to reach that conclusion, thats you spending time demoing BOTH, and drawing your own conclusions. On the bright side, you honestly cant go wrong with EITHER. Both are amazing suites of plugins. But if the ilok is an issue for you, then you may already have your answer.

Edit:
FWIW, you can activate the UA spark stuff via "iLok Cloud", OR on a physical iLok key. If you choose the cloud method, at that point, its essentially the same thing as PA's activation method, only that PA uses their own cloud for your activations. Both still periodically require internet connections and activation.