# What are your “can’t live without” UAD-2 plugins?



## jononotbono (Oct 31, 2019)

So I’ve finally got myself a UA Apollo Twin X and love it so much. Went for the Quad version so that should be ok until I add an Octocard Satellite when needed.

I’m curious what UAD-2 plugins everyone uses and what they can’t live without. There’s so much choice and so much amazing stuff it’s a bit overwhelming really.

All I know I’m very happy to finally have access to UAD-2 plugins and have a couple of Unity X Preamps (even just to plug a Guitar in and use the Guitar emulators).


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## Bear Market (Oct 31, 2019)

I'm with you on being overwhelmed by the plugin line-up. So many choices. I have only scratched the surface, but have quite frequently used the Lex 224, the Fatso, and the SPL Twin Tube (which I find really livens up my CSS shorts).


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## ThomasL (Oct 31, 2019)

Ok, been a UAD-junkie for the past 12 years so there is a heap of plugins I "can't" live without 

The reverbs... 224, 480, 250, Ocean Way and Capitol Chambers. Just wow! Those and Altiverb is much all the reverbs I ever use.

The tapes, Studer + Ampex, don't get me started...

Neve 1073. Put this in the Unison slot and you're ready for any mic. My wife is threatening me with a divorce if I sell the Apollo because of this single plugin. She loves it, and luckily, me too 

In the more exotic department I really like the Cyclosonic Panner and the Cooper Time Cube. Can't get those effects otherwise.

A big plus for one of my last purchases, Softube Vocoder! It's brilliant!

OH! Don't forget the bass amps, Ampeg and GK! On the guitar side I've completely fallen in love with Fuchs Train II. I can get any tone out of that one.

Compressor-wise I can't recommend the Distressor enough, or the SSL Mix Bus or the 33609 and let's not forget the API2500.

And lastly, Precision K-Stereo, just mmmmm...

Oh, I REALLY AM a junkie...


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## ThomasL (Oct 31, 2019)

I'll just add, the Precision Channel Strip and the Reflection Engine that are "free" are really great, don't overlook them! I would gladly pay €99 for Reflection Engine alone.


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## jononotbono (Oct 31, 2019)

Thanks so much! I’ll look into all of them! Very exciting times!


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## Virtuoso (Oct 31, 2019)

I've had UA stuff for over 12 years and own almost every plugin.

Wait until they do a 4 for $399 sale to grab the expensive ones. Ocean Way, Ampex, Lexicon 480 and Capitol Chambers would be my top picks, along with the EL8 Distressor. Some of the older plugins still sound very good - like the EMT 140 Plate, Neve 33609 and Dimension D (Studio D) chorus.

Don't waste your money on the Brainworx, SPL, Eventide or Softube plugins - most are available natively and they are often much cheaper (and more upgradable) than the UA versions.


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## jononotbono (Oct 31, 2019)

I’ll definitely be checking out these. Heard Ocean Way is supposed to be amazing.

The studio I work in has 19” racks of the Dimension D, and a Neve 33609 so I am going to love A/Bing the plugin versions! 

How many satellites do you think is a sensible number to ensure not running out of DSP?


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## Virtuoso (Oct 31, 2019)

Ocean Way is my #1 - it's excellent for taking a totally dry sound and putting it in a realistic acoustic and there's nothing quite like it available natively.

I use a Satellite Octo along with two Apollos (an x8 and a Quad) and never run out of DSP, but it totally depends on what you're running. The older plugins tend to be quite efficient but the newer ones can be major DSP hogs.


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## jacobthestupendous (Oct 31, 2019)

Don't forget, too, you can demo the full version of any plug for two weeks. (And I've heard that those demo periods reset when there's a new version of the software)


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## Virtuoso (Oct 31, 2019)

The demos usually reset when you buy a new plugin, but not necessarily with software updates.


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## jononotbono (Oct 31, 2019)

Virtuoso said:


> Ocean Way is my #1 - it's excellent for taking a totally dry sound and putting it in a realistic acoustic and there's nothing quite like it available natively.
> 
> I use a Satellite Octo along with two Apollos (an x8 and a Quad) and never run out of DSP, but it totally depends on what you're running. The older plugins tend to be quite efficient but the newer ones can be major DSP hogs.



Makes sense. I've been wanting to run decent reverbs away from the master computer and for blending samples from different devs for a long time so this is going to be superb!


I've always wanted to try out the Shadow Hills Mastering Compressor so that is also on my list 



jacobthestupendous said:


> Don't forget, too, you can demo the full version of any plug for two weeks. (And I've heard that those demo periods reset when there's a new version of the software)



Ah yes. I've heard these plugins are like digital heroin. A nice 14 days sample period which is just long enough to get you addicted to the stuff and makes you realize that without each demoed plug, life as we know it will end!


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## Virtuoso (Oct 31, 2019)

jononotbono said:


> I've always wanted to try out the Shadow Hills Mastering Compressor so that is also on my list


That one is available natively from Plugin-Alliance - I would hold out for a sale as they often do deep discounts on their plugins. It also has external sidechain functionality which is missing from the UA platform.

Plugin-Alliance are doing their best to move people to their new subscription model, so I wouldn't be suprised if they stopped developing their UA plugins. UA have also started restricting use of their coupons on some PA plugins, which doesn't bode well for their ongoing relationship.

_(The last UA coupon I got had this in the small print "*Coupon cannot be used on Shadow Hills Mastering Compressor, Diezel Herbert Amplifier, Brainworx bx_digital V3 EQ Collection, SPL® Vitalizer MK2-T, SPL® TwinTube Processor, or the elysia• mpressor.")_


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## jononotbono (Oct 31, 2019)

Virtuoso said:


> That one is available natively from Plugin-Alliance - I would hold out for a sale as they often do deep discounts on their plugins. It also has external sidechain functionality which is missing from the UA platform.
> 
> Plugin-Alliance are doing their best to move people to their new subscription model, so I wouldn't be suprised if they stopped developing their UA plugins. UA have also started restricting use of their coupons on some PA plugins, which doesn't bode well for their ongoing relationship.
> 
> _(The last UA coupon I got had this in the small print "*Coupon cannot be used on Shadow Hills Mastering Compressor, Diezel Herbert Amplifier, Brainworx bx_digital V3 EQ Collection, SPL® Vitalizer MK2-T, SPL® TwinTube Processor, or the elysia• mpressor.")_



Ok, I don't use anything from Plugin Alliance. Maybe I should look at it at some point but I was hoping to have the Apollo (and whatever else I add) do the DSP lifting and limit native plugin use (until I figure out what my next master computer is going to be). 

Are the native versions just as good as the UA versions?


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## Virtuoso (Oct 31, 2019)

jononotbono said:


> Are the native versions just as good as the UA versions?


Developers tend to say it's the same code so they should be identical, but some UA plugins upsample internally (to 96KHz I think) so bear that in mind if you do a direct AB comparison. However, native versions can sometimes have more functionality (eg sidechain support), better UIs (retina/HiDPi support), and cheaper upgrades to newer versions.


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## re-peat (Nov 1, 2019)

Virtuoso said:


> Ocean Way is my #1 - it's excellent for taking a totally dry sound and putting it in a realistic acoustic and there's nothing quite like it available natively.


There is. Ircam SPAT. Much more powerful than Ocean Way it is too. Perhaps it's because I have SPAT that I wasn't all that impressed with UAD's Ocean Way. Demoed it extensively, never heard any reason to buy it. It was the first time, I felt, that UAD had released something closer to a gadget rather than a serious tool. 

But I'm very much alone with that opinion, I know. Ocean Way is a favourite for many among the UAD users.

_


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## jononotbono (Nov 1, 2019)

re-peat said:


> There is. Ircam SPAT. Much more powerful than Ocean Way it is too. Perhaps it's because I have SPAT that I wasn't all that impressed with UAD's Ocean Way. Demoed it extensively, never heard any reason to buy it. It was the first time, I felt, that UAD had released something closer to a gadget rather than a serious tool.
> 
> But I'm very much alone with that opinion, I know. Ocean Way is a favourite for many among the UAD users.
> 
> _



Interesting that you think Ocean Way is closer to a "gadget" than a serious tool. I've not used it yet (and last night I actually just got an artist endorsement from UA via the studio I work at which has just given me 365 days of every UA plugin which is very generous of them - so can now demo Ocean Way and everything else rather extensively). I'm going to look for videos on Ircam SPAT. Thanks.


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## jononotbono (Nov 1, 2019)

I’ve just asked a very good mix engineer I work with about Spat. He said it wipes the floor with Ocean Way. So, that’s that then. Another thing to add to the never ending list.


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## Ashermusic (Nov 1, 2019)

The great thing is that you can demo them all. So demo them and make up your own mind. I have a lot of them and I like them a lot, but if they all went away tomorrow I could make do with others or for that matter, mostly just what comes with Logic Pro.


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## jononotbono (Nov 1, 2019)

Ashermusic said:


> The great thing is that you can demo them all. So demo them and make up your own mind. I have a lot of them and I like them a lot, but if they all went away tomorrow I could make do with others or for that matter, mostly just what comes with Logic Pro.



Yeah absolutely. It wasn’t until last night that I suddenly could try them all for so long which is amazing and I started this thread thinking I’d only have 14 days trial with each so I didn’t want to waste them etc.

I’m going to start with what everyone has listed in this thread because there’s just so much choice and it’s a good starting point.


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## Markus Kohlprath (Nov 1, 2019)

re-peat said:


> There is. Ircam SPAT. Much more powerful than Ocean Way it is too. Perhaps it's because I have SPAT that I wasn't all that impressed with UAD's Ocean Way. Demoed it extensively, never heard any reason to buy it. It was the first time, I felt, that UAD had released something closer to a gadget rather than a serious tool.
> 
> But I'm very much alone with that opinion, I know. Ocean Way is a favourite for many among the UAD users.
> 
> _


Unfortunately not anymore. The SPAT v3 Plug in is discontinued and cannot be purchased anymore. They cannot even provide an additional license for the dongle which they did for me the last two years in order to use it on a slave. Only SPAT Revolution which is a completely different beast as far as I know can be purchased.


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## oedipusdaedalus (Nov 3, 2019)

Luke, Remember also that each time you purchase a plugin, it resets your other demos so you can try them all again. 

My picks:
EMT 140 and 250, Ocean Way, Studio D, UA 610, LA 2A


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