The Waves Update Plan scam

[fairlyclose]

I have
Bass Slapper
Flow Motion FM Synth
IR1 Convolution Reverb
Reel ADT
SuperTap Native

which can be updated for $50 There is no chance I could sell them for enough to cover that update fee plus the 5% on the possible never actually used full price. There is no chance at all I will buy anything from Waves again when there are alternatives with better transfer policies and just as good products. If they did not require the WUP before resale they might have another long term customer. But then again the actual price of their plugins is so cheap that secondhand is unlikely to be so attractive as to draw in a buyer who otherwise would not get a Waves product

[alextim]

I like the waves, but their update plan makes me refuse and go the other way.

[plexuss]

[snip] There is no chance at all I will buy anything from Waves again when there are alternatives with better transfer policies and just as good products. If they did not require the WUP before resale they might have another long term customer. But then again the actual price of their plugins is so cheap that secondhand is unlikely to be so attractive as to draw in a buyer who otherwise would not get a Waves product

Same here. I have a most of the H- stuff, Classic Studio, CLA Comp, most of the Abbey Road stuff, a couple producer bundles and some assorted separate stuff. I haven't bought any Waves products since after getting the last of what I wanted in the $25 sales and the transfer fee imposition. I'm simply not intrested in Waves anymore and I guess I'll keep what I have because like you, with all the costs of WUP and transfer, it's not worth it. Good way to lose customers. I wonder what the net gain/loss has been for them.

[Tj Shredder]

Unlike Avid’s ProTools which tend to break on every OS upgrade, my version 9 Waves plugins work like on the day I purchased them. As the main target of Waves is ProTools users who seemingly have no problem with Avids subscriptions, WUP works well for Waves. It isn’t aimed at cost aware KVR members, to the contrary, the ProTools professionals help with their WUP fees to allow for all those no brainer deals, they pay for it... I am more grateful than moving away. Their authorization mechanisms got better over the years btw...

[Rickskii]

Not sure if this has already been said (it’s a long thread) but if Waves introduced a monthly small fee which kept your plugins updated (say $5 a month) I may go for that. As it is I have loads of waves stuff I don’t want to use and will currently buy nothing new form them.

[fairlyclose]

Not sure if this has already been said (it’s a long thread) but if Waves introduced a monthly small fee which kept your plugins updated (say $5 a month) I may go for that. As it is I have loads of waves stuff I don’t want to use and will currently buy nothing new form them.

the thing for me is "what update?" All of my waves stuff works fine - I have no need for any updates unless I am selling. So the update is not a necessary functional update or a feature improvement update, it is a proxy fee for license transfers

[jochicago]

Not sure if this has already been said (it’s a long thread) but if Waves introduced a monthly small fee which kept your plugins updated (say $5 a month) I may go for that. As it is I have loads of waves stuff I don’t want to use and will currently buy nothing new form them.

the thing for me is "what update?" All of my waves stuff works fine - I have no need for any updates unless I am selling. So the update is not a necessary functional update or a feature improvement update, it is a proxy fee for license transfers

Most plugins are fairly old and never get any updates so there's nothing to miss.

As you said, WUP is only needed when selling your plugins (because it's mandatory), or when you are changing computers/OS and may be struggling to install your plugins on the new computer (for latest version and support). Otherwise there's really no point in staying WUPed.

[ramseysounds]

So I updated all version 9 10 and 11 yesterday as I'm getting a new PC with brand new Windows install, just to make my life easier. All plugs downloaded and activated in about 20 minutes on current PC, flawless install.

[AfriendofZ]

I've got a bunch of Waves plugins I bought 2 years ago that have gone through 2 major versions(9-11) with no new features, just a couple fixes. (On Windows so the Catalina update doesn't affect me).

Currently asking $200 just so I can have version 11? Waves has been completely uninstalled and I'll just take it as a learning lesson going forward. This is why everything goes on sale for $29, they easily make it back with WUP.

[superscan]

I have Mercury, Abbey Roads Collection, SSL and Inspire. The $200ish I pay every 14-18 months is covered by new plug-ins added to all but the Abbey Roads bundles and OS support. I've been able to use the voucher a few times too. If you don't have a significant investment / resale fees now may be prohibitive for some. If I wasn't getting 5+ new plugins I would be questioning the value.

[pandashake]

In the 10 years I've been using Waves plugins, I've WUPed twice, and when I've done that, I've only done it when they put it on sale. I've definitely spent a LOT more on DAW upgrades during that 10 year period, so to have a set of tools I know and use daily, it's worth it to me. This year I paid $160 for updating and got three new plugins, and all the updates to UIs since v9 out of the deal.

[W23]

I don’t think any of us are happy with paying for updates, but it’s important to remember that they aren’t mandatory. However, Apple and Logic sure make you do it after certain updates, and that is total BS. I don’t know who to be mad about over that one: Waves or Apple?

[marzelli]

Didn't know waves promised lifetime free updates for everyone. Didn't know you buy plugins for things they might become and not for what they are at the time buying. Didn't know the guys at waves work for free and have no costs to cover. Didn't know the updates were mandatory. You always learn new stuff on kvr

[fese]

Don’t on many waves plugins (mainly because I don’t like the virtual knob acceleration feeling) and thus don’t plan to WUP them, but what I find impressive that they continue supporting even their oldest plugins (some probably from the nineties) and you have session compatibility. Not many companies who do that (native instruments anyone? Dropping support left and right) and for those who rely on plugins for professional work, it’s probably more important that the next hot shit from an upcoming indie developer who might not be around anymore in a few years (and whose plugins are often more expensive than the waves stuff nowadays
If that’s not worth a fee for you, fine, no harm done.

[MogwaiBoy]

Don’t on many waves plugins (mainly because I don’t like the virtual knob acceleration feeling) and thus don’t plan to WUP them, but what I find impressive that they continue supporting even their oldest plugins (some probably from the nineties) and you have session compatibility. Not many companies who do that (native instruments anyone? Dropping support left and right) and for those who rely on plugins for professional work, it’s probably more important that the next hot shit from an upcoming indie developer who might not be around anymore in a few years (and whose plugins are often more expensive than the waves stuff nowadays
If that’s not worth a fee for you, fine, no harm done.

But I bet if you go back to a DAW project session from 10 years ago with Waves plugins in it, they won't load - especially if you've upgraded or changed your computer since then. That's my experience. You have to have ancient "legacy" installers and multiple WavesShells (VST 2/3, 32/64) with exactly the right version number (4+ digits) installed in exactly the right places all over your C drive, or your sessions are toast. Meanwhile, all the other plugins in the session from back in the day will load perfectly, because they are not in complex inter-dependent shell files, they are standalone dll's that truly have stood the test of time. For example: Variety of Sound plugins - open an ancient session and they will load, but Waves? Error - could not find WaveShell 5.6.3..5.3.54.5.66.5.5.

But hey your mileage may vary.