Just a rant, but am I the only one that gets infuriated when a new software install overwrites ur presets? I go ballistic when I install a new Ableton or a new vst I use regularly and have set certain favorite default states.. and every time they are overwritten!! Uggghhh. Why can't debs just take note of a default preset and NOT touch it? This is especially true in Ableton because I have a TON of defaults for almost everything, EQ, Comp, reverb, u have it. It's so vast I forget which plugs I have set defaults for, I just now assume I already have a default set up. And of course, like the dumbass I always am, I completely forget this when a new version of software comes out and I update. Every. Fucking. Time.

 

wouldn't any of the projects you created using that starting template still have all of those settings? (minus anything you changed after starting the project, so the least complete would then be the best one to strip and re-save as template).

 

Last edited: Dec 14, 2021

I overcome that by planning for what would happen if my computer goes down. All my presets are backed up on a memory stick/ flash drive, as well as the entire hard drive backed up elsewhere.
On top of that, I am always encouraging other Windows users to use Shadow Defender (sandbox) which allows you to install/ test any software that can be undone merely by rebooting.

 

I find it a really useful tool.
But what can you do when an installed program asks reboot to be completed? In this case you cannot test it.

 

normally you can just override something like this, but then the sandboxie type install isn't usually possible either.

 

Mostly when software asks you to reboot, it will give you the option to reboot later. I take that option and run the software anyway. It may not function completely but it will give you an idea if it is a) safe and b) worth keeping.

 

It's not presets that I care about, most of my presets are given unique names so they can't be over-written, I'm talking about default presets. Like if I drop a compressor on a track, I want it set a certain way, to begin with, then I can make my adjustments. In Ableton and in many vsts, u can set this state as a default. But that matters none if u update and the newer version overwrites your default. If this were to happen to three, four vsts or plugs in Ableton, yeah ok, fine, but I would easily guess in Ableton alone it overwrites about 20 maybe default states of certain plugs I use regularly. FabFilter does this too, among many other plugins. My point is, is it so hard for devs to at least suggest leaving previous default plugin states alone when installing, like a checkbox "leave defaults as is"?

 

I understand what you're saying and I guess I must be lucky then, because I don't think I have ever used a default setting on ANY plugin I use.

 

I save a lot of "default" presets for things I use all the time. Like Logic channel EQ hi/lo, compressor, etc. They can be some of your biggest time savers just by them opening to where you always want to start out using them, even if they are not part of your template environment.

 

But that's the point, U can make your OWN defaults, overwriting the defaults created by the software originally. If I have a track in Ableton, I can simply double click an EQ8, and it's set the way I want it, as a default. I don't have to hunt down my specific EQ8 presets. I just click and go. Because I set EQ8 the way I like it, down to the nitty-gritty, and saved it as a default. But if I install an update to Ableton, it's overwritten and I have to set EQ8 defaults yet again. Now imagine doing this for the compressors, the reverbs, the delays...

 

EXACTLY what I'm talking about. I just make my own custom defaults.

 

This is the best option, I think, for this situation, though not entirely effective for more singular developers (Fab Filter and such). I haven't the foggiest idea how to implement this for Ableton, but I'm sure it's likely possible. Still, it would be great if we had the option at install to not overwrite defaults. Make so much sense.