Plug Ins

Not trying to state the obvious here, but plug ins are horrible. They never do what they say they are going to do, and they definately do not sound like the products they say they are replicating. You can not replicate the sound of a Fairchild compressor with a plug in. You can not make your sm58 sound like a U87 with a plug in. These plug ins always sound super thin and ruin your mix, stick with the real boxes. Spend more time recording it right, and dont try to fix a song with plug ins.

[dolivas]

Have to agree with this as well. A lot of times you spend more time working on your sound in the damn DAW than on the actual instrument/voice/amp etc. itself. There are no shortcuts to making good music rathen than a good ear and a tough work ethic.

[dagosto]

I am a self diagnosed plug-in addict (I have well over 500 effects and instrument) so I feel the need to chime in here. It is true that you cannot recreate an analog relic with some new fangled software. I think maybe the reason why many people end up hating plugs is because they expect them to do this. I don't believe plug-ins will unwaveringly ruin your mix though. Like anything in the art of recording "it is not the tools blah blah blah."

I hate them. I find the sound flat and dimensionless.

I think maybe the reason why many people end up hating plugs is because they expect them to do this.

They are often marketed as such, and people typically fall for the marketing ploy. Especially when it promises to offer a shortcut, such as "spend $500 instead of $5000, and get the same sound!" People buy into it that because they want to.

[silenced]

gotta admit, i love plugins - just so convenient

but got to agree, they are overhyped - models marketed as exact replicas don't produce the exact same sound waves when you analyze the output

but why don't they work as promised? i think it's just marketing a little head of the technology (or maybe invested in more heavily than the technology by the software producers?). the technology can and will work. it may not make your sm58 sound like a um87 (if you don't capture the nuance, it's not there to caresse - as if a plugin could give a massage)

and yet, plugins work for me - and i think they work for 99% of the people out there who are trying to make great recordings. you just have to keep your expectations realistic. is the plugin of a vintage synth going to sound exactly like the vintage synth? maybe not. does it sound really really good and can you make awesome music with it instead of making constant trips to the repair shop? yes, the plugin works, you can make a record with it.

pick a setup:
(1) 4 track, sm58, boss multieffect pedal w/drum machine
(2) apple logic express or cakewalk sonar, behringer b1, tascam us-224

umm, i'll go with #2 all day long

and over time, we're going to see plugins that - although they cannot refute the laws of physics - will 100% replicate the original sounds (and some current plugins are obviously much, much closer than others - some are almost 100%)

[dagosto]

You can do things with plug-ins that you could never do outboard as well. For example Reversinator. This is probably my favorite effect in the world, hord or soft. So ridiculously simple yet so awesome.

[Chaorta]

I'm on the fence. I prefer hardware to software...but one of my most used tools is Waldorf D-Filter, a plugin.

[smopo24]

plug ins are ok; they can make the things sound all crazy-fied!

Yeah i would love to have the real hardware, but most of us don't have the oportunity to own it or even use it on regular basis. Some plugins can offer a decent alternative. I remember those Bombfactory plugins sounding really good.
Its nice to be able to recall all of youir settings too.
There are advantages to both.
The most important thing with plugins is to be aware of phase issues that can arrise from latency. Use software with delay compensation.

[Nubus]

yeah the bad part about plug-ins is when you think you can just throw up a bunch of mics and capture a bunch of tracks then fix it all with plugins in the mix. no way in hell is that a productive way to record. you will end up fighting with your processor and waste your time.

you HAVE to get the best possible tones when you track and use plugins minimally to fix.

the fun starts next when you completely transform your sounds into crazy insane things and plugin instruments to create, not try and repair