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Why Does Waves Keep Harassing Me?

This is why I stopped buying Waves. I have Reaper on PC and I had to clear my plugin cache and re-scan all my plugins everytime I got a new plugin in (with iLok kicking and screaming all the way). 90% of the time I needed to contact their tech support and get them to connect to my PC. Reaper and WavesCentral is not a happy marriage.
If they got rid of Waves central and sorted things out with Reaper, I might reconsider, but at the moment, no more Waves plugins.
 
Hey I agree there, make a lot of noise about it, because i agree it's lame! Just trying to keep the facts straight so that you or others can avoid giving money to waves to get around this annoyance. Yo don't have to pay. Though in that moment, that was probably the fastest way to get your studio operational again, and I feel your pain completely. When it happened to me a couple years ago and I wasted several hours tracking it down and reinstalling everything and it wasn't that bad once I did that and knew what to do, but it took me a while, a few hours, just to figure out what to do and I was mad as hell about it. Honestly I avoid waves plugins now. I have a couple that I really like, the SSL 4000 pack in particular, but whenever i can, I chose a different product from a different company because their license policies suck. There was a time when waves was the thing everyone needed to have, but now there are many many equally good or sometimes better alternatives...I do like the SSL4000 and some of the abbey roads stuff, but most of the other staple plugins that many people installed years ago and haven't changed a bit since then, we are having to jump through scary and careful hoops to avoid paying a subscription for them...and that is annoying as hell, I do not disagree with you at all, and in many cases, perhaps costly if you don't have time to work it out and avoid the problem. Might as well consider other products from other providers rather then deal with that.
 
I was trying to work out if the company was 'punishing' those who have never bought into the WUP.

-DJ
I never bought into WUP either and I guess I was indeed one who was punished this time. :)

Dewdman42 wrote: "I assure you, when you ran the Berzerk installer, there is a little dialog box that popped open and said something about whether you want "ALL" updated."

And I assure you that never happened when I installed Berzerk on Friday or the free One Knob plugin today! Same view as Daniel indicated. This is probably why we are reading conflicting comments from different people. Consistency is lacking as well. Another point to add: When I offline installed the v9 plugins again, I could not get Abbey Road plates to register correctly in Logic, no matter what I did..including running AU Reg. "Not a licensed plugin". Today, after I installed the One Knob Wetter plugin, I tried initiating AR again in Plugin Manager... and it worked. No reason as to why it didn't work then worked. Waves is aware of my concerns... as if that will do any good. Still say their approach is ridiculously complicated, whether I've eventually restored everything successfully or not. So thankful for your help though.
 
I assure you, when you ran the Berzerk installer, there is a little dialog box that popped open and said something about whether you want "ALL" updated. And listen, for years now people have been stung by this dialog box, because the word "ALL" could easily be mis-interpreted to mean you want all updates for just that particular plugin you are in the process of installing. What it actually means, and is not worded very well AT ALL, is do you want all your waves plugins updated. Then it systematically updates all your plugins regardless of whether you have the license for the newer versions or not. Totally lame, I agree, but still...all you have to do is make sure to not click OK when that dialog is presented to you while you run the plugin installer for the newer thing.

Listen I agree completely, Waves has a ridiculously over-complicated installation process, and yes its over complicated because they want us to only get updates, even simple version updates that bring no new features...by subscribing to an update plan. I also got stung by this exact thing a couple years ago and had to reinstall everything and I was annoyed as hell. But I can say now, it wasn't that bad once I figured out how to avoid clicking OK on that one question. If they have removed that dialog from the V11 process, that is not good, but I recently did install a V11 thing and I didn't lose any of my V10 or V9 things at all. And I'm confident it was because I did not click OK on that box like I did in the past. After that, if you did, then you will need to uninstall the V10 or V11 versions of the plugins you own V9 license for, and then use the legacy installation procedure to reinstall them.

It didn't attempt to upgrade my plugins. It just removed them.

-DJ
 
Some of that is due to Apple requiring you to log out and back in for plugins to be recognized by logicpro.
 
Some of that is due to Apple requiring you to log out and back in for plugins to be recognized by logicpro.
:) Good try...but nope. I did everything from rebooting the computer, shutting down the computer opening and closing Logic, running AU Reg.reinstalling the plates yet again etc., but nothing worked until after I installed the new plugin this morning, then immediate success with Abbey Road plates. Mysterious, yes? :)
 
I found my Berzerk free plugin coupon in the spam folder. Just installed it. You're right I was not presented with a dialog asking me about updating all, but the install worked fine and none of my V9 plugins were removed or deactivated. So... great for me. No idea why it behaved like it did for some others, but I do think waves has made their installation process entirely too complicated.
 
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I emailed Waves and asked if they have any internal complaint procedure. This is a normal thing in many companies, you can escalate a complaint and get an official response. It is fair for both parties, and basic customer service communication.

Needless to say, the email went unanswered. Having met some people in the industry, it was probably my priviledge that it was even opened - if it was.

Anyway, after thinking for a day, Im quite cool with it, and Im suggesting a new approach to Waves: they should be seen as the embodiment of the music industry, and a ”crash course” in it. The crash course has a price tag of 240$, and the lesson taught is probably worth it. Waves sort of teaches you what the industry also is about, and shows all the pretentious a-holes who have found themselves there too. All newbies starting out, should by Waves plugins, and enroll in this ”lesson”, its a cheap price, and totally worth it, if you get it early in career.
 
Can they do that? Aren't they supposed to close every ticket?

If they can hijack your projects and force you to pay a ransom, then what is an unanswered email compared to that. Even if it was a nice email asking about complaint procedure. They can probably come into your house too, take stuff of your fridge, and p*ss on the toilet floor. Afterall, they are Waves. I have stared to worship them already as my new masters.
 
If they can hijack your projects and force you to pay a ransom, then what is an unanswered email compared to that. Even if it was a nice email asking about complaint procedure. They can probably come into your house too, take stuff of your fridge, and p*ss on the toilet floor. Afterall, they are Waves. I have stared to worship them already as my new masters.

Come into your house!? That sounds like a nightmare clause of an end user agreement. Better double check it doesn’t also give them permission to turn you into a human centipede that compresses audio.

*TV reference*
 
I have the best cheeses ready for them and first class wine. All conveniently on middle shelf of fridge. They dont need a key, they can kick in the door and arrive any time they want. Also, cigs can be thrown on floor, and no need to clean afterwards. Afterall, its my priviledge.
 
I have the best cheeses ready for them and first class wine. All conveniently on middle shelf of fridge. They dont need a key, they can kick in the door and arrive any time they want. Also, cigs can be thrown on floor, and no need to clean afterwards. Afterall, its my priviledge.
What is funny is the irony of the plugin being called berserk
 
So I got a reply now from waves, 6 days later, to my first ticket. Which I made in frustration. In other words, after chat suggested I email Waves support, it took them 6 days to reply.

Ticket and reply in next post.
 
On Mon, 2 Dec at 1:21 AM xxxx wrote:
Thanks guys for deleting my plugins just when Ive booked a studio for mastering. Snap, like that half of my Waves plugins (V9) were gone when I installed the free berzerk and a newly bough VU meter plugin (which I bought). I installed them via new Waves central and it cleaned up my other pluygins which are on my channel strips and master output. I bought for thousands from you, and this was not a nice way to deal with a customer. And it was deliberate.So can you please sort it out so I get my plugins back. I need to cancel my mastering appoinment. Thanks!! How much money do you want for that will 10.000 USD be ok?
—-

Hi xxxx,

Sorry for the late response. Seems like there was a technical issue with this ticket.
I would like to offer my personal assistance in this case to get your system back up and running as soon as possible.
Please download Waves Team Viewer from This Link
Call +1- 865-909-9200. Extension 4148
(or use extension 1 if I’m not at my desk).
The VIP line : +1-865-909-9268
You can also reply with your phone number, country code and a good time to call (EST), when you are at your system.
If you prefer to call us at a later time, Please specify your ticket number: 664305

——-

Hi again xxxx,

In case you wish to try some steps on your own, I think that you system had some older V9 plugins that cannot co-exist with V10 or V11. I suggest to uninstall your V9 plugins and reinstall them again. Follow these instructions:

First, uninstall:
  1. Launch Waves Central.
  2. Go to the Settings page in the bottom left corner.
  3. Under Maintenance, look for Uninstall and click the drop-down menu.
  4. Checkmark the V9 entry.
  5. Delete any V9 WaveShell files you find in the following locations (if exists, the waveshell files will end with 9.xx):
    • Mac HD > Library > Audio > Plugins > Components
    • Mac HD > Library > Audio > Plugins > VST
    • Mac HD > Library > Audio > Plugins > VST3
    • Mac HD > Library > Application Support > Digidesign > Plugins
        • Mac HD > Library > Application Support > Avid > Audio > Plug-Ins
        • Mac HD > Library > Audio > Plugins > WPAPI

    • Once uninstalled, Install V9.92 following the steps below:
      1. Quit any host application.
      2. Download the v.9.92 Offline Installer for Windows\ https://www.waves.com/dlrdr?id=central-offline-v9-92-mac (<b><u>Mac</u></b>)
      3. Unzip the folder to your desktop.
      4. Launch Waves Central and click on the Offline Installer page.
      5. Under Install From an Offline Installer, click Browse.
      6. When prompted, highlight the Waves- 24.5.18 folder on your desktop and click Select folder/Open.
      7. Checkmark the products you wish to install.
      8. Click Install.
      You might need to rescan the plug-ins in Logic Pro X.
      Please follow the steps in the Logic Pro X Rescan article.

      *Important note - For V9 plugins, make sure to do Step
    • #5 as follows:
      Go to Macintosh HD > Applications > Waves > Waveshells V9 and run the Waves AU Reg Utility V9.
      Again as mentioned, you are also welcome to call and I will assist you remotely.

      Please download Waves Team Viewer from This Link

    • Call +1- 865-909-9200. Extension 4148
      (or use extension 1 if I’m not at my desk).

    • You can also reply with your phone number, country code and a good time to call (EST), when you are at your system.
    • If you prefer to call us at a later time, Please specify your ticket number: 664305
 
In case you wish to try some steps on your own, I think that you system had some older V9 plugins that cannot co-exist with V10 or V11.


F#$K waves. this is why i keep losing the v.9 plugins after reinstalling v10/v11 plugins due to errors with my DAW authorizing them. It's such a damn shame because their plugins are useful, and often well made, and are obviously good enough to last a long time. This nickel and dime approach for treating updates like an extended warranty is annoying. Waves are forever gone from my system.
 
While I am obviously familiar with frustration, :) the only comment I will make about communications with any developer is to try to avoid making accusations or employing sarcasm or even being argumentative when contacting them. Negative approaches are simply not conducive to fostering a good relationship with any Tech Support staff member. Basically, IMHO, it's always a good idea to approach others as we would like to be approached as well.
As for Waves, when I contacted their Tech Support last week I did receive the first response within two days, the person there was most helpful and he made sure all was restored and well again before we closed my request. So in spite of any frustration, I would say I was pleased with the support provided...both here and via Waves.
 
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