UAD still worth it?

[_leras]

After asking for a discount from UAD for Signature Bundle 10 days ago saying I have many of the plugins inside of the bundle already, they said:

"Thanks for contacting UA Customer Care. There is no systematic discount but I went ahead and put a $50 coupon in your account, I hope it helps! Have a good weekend!"

I don't think I will ever buy something from UAD again, too bad.

As you say many, rather than most...

Well, it's not as good a deal as if you're a new customer, but that price for what must be at least half of the signature bundle isn't bad by any measure...

If you had most, and not many, they may have offered a better discount...

[discogsaddict]

Some of the pricing for bundles doesnt make sense.

For example i own Manley Voxbox, Massive Passive and Vari Mu. On my offers it says i can upgrade to the bundle for the discounted price of £120 (i think, definitely over £100)
Yet the only plugin im missing is the Manley Preamp which is on sale for £49.00

If i were actually interested i would contact them

[Funkybot's Evil Twin]

I did some comparisons of just the spring reverb in a few Space Echo models. I think I was mistaken when I said all Space Echo models use convolution. I'm starting to think UAD doesn't. It has some drip (through not a lot, since it's a Type 8 tank), which is something convolution can't do. You also can hear individual echoes within the reverb, particularly at the start. That's very similar to what PSP SpringBox (which is modeled) does, as well. Convolution springs always sound much smoother and washy, without discernible echoes.

The worst (by that I mean least accurate) Space Echo reverb has to be the one in Arturia Delay TAPE 201. But ironically, the SPACE ECHO tank in Rev SPRING-636 is one of the best (most authentic) convolution based Space Echo reverb. It sounds nothing like the spring reverb in TAPE 201, despite both being Space Echoes.

Also, I watched the comparison video above, and I thought the Audiothing Space Echo sounded quite off from the hardware at a fundamental level, at least in the settings he had it in. The delay sounded way too sharp and metallic. I couldn't get a good sense of how the UAD Space Echo compared to the hardware in the video because he was doing something totally different with it from the beginning.

I think Space Echo tanks just cover a wide range. AudioThing's Outerspace/Springs have impulses from two different tanks and they sound very different. I'm no fan of Type 8's myself. I had one in my Vox AC15 and replaced it with a Type 4. Then I got a '79 Vibrolux Reverb and that also had a Type 8 in there for some unknown reason, and that also got a Type 4. Type 8's tend to sound murky and not don't really drip like a Type 4 will in my experience. At least in the guitar amps I've used them in they did. I have a drawer here with three type 8 tanks in it (an old Accutronics from a Marshall Valvestate, the newer Accutronics from the Vox, and an MOD from the Vibrolux).

Anyway, I wouldn't expect a drippy surf spring after a tape delay to be a Space Echo sound. I think that somewhat murky reverb is just part of it (thinking everything from like dub reggae to The Beastie Boys). So in that case, the murkiness of a Type 8 might be desirable. Also, when you talk about individual echoes in the UA version, that's something I consider a weakness of many ITB spring models. Too many spring emulations sound like weird delays and not springs. That's an area where the new Klanghelm plugins completely nails the spring sound IMO: it sounds like the diffuse, resonant, metal tank these things are. I just need Klanghelm to emulate a Fender Spring reverb tank at that same level as the AKG's and I'd be in heaven.

Just my two cents.

[VitaminD]

Some of the pricing for bundles doesnt make sense.

For example i own Manley Voxbox, Massive Passive and Vari Mu. On my offers it says i can upgrade to the bundle for the discounted price of £120 (i think, definitely over £100)
Yet the only plugin im missing is the Manley Preamp which is on sale for £49.00

If i were actually interested i would contact them

Their pricing is the worst. And the cheerleader guy they have in the forums isn't really helpful on it.

If you're still somehow interested in buying from this company, you're better off buying the large bundle. Which is seemingly their intentions, because there doesn't seem to be any discounts for which plugins you own already. That is, I don't think they have a graduated discount system.

They've had the Ultimate bundle upgrade for 199 dollars on sweetwater recently, but it didn't require you to own anything to qualify. So a lot of folks got the whole suite for 199.

They had the large Signature bundle for 149 dollars on site too.

Then they've had the sale period change on the fly in the middle of it where they shortened by a month.

They also seem to have dumped a lot of customer support tickets so they could speed up their response time. I saw the UA cheerleader guy posted if you still have a problem to make another ticket. hahaha. How many people submitted a ticket days back only to discover their ticket was closed without help and are now being told to just make another ticket and wait more.

[jamcat]

I did some comparisons of just the spring reverb in a few Space Echo models. I think I was mistaken when I said all Space Echo models use convolution. I'm starting to think UAD doesn't. It has some drip (through not a lot, since it's a Type 8 tank), which is something convolution can't do. You also can hear individual echoes within the reverb, particularly at the start. That's very similar to what PSP SpringBox (which is modeled) does, as well. Convolution springs always sound much smoother and washy, without discernible echoes.

The worst (by that I mean least accurate) Space Echo reverb has to be the one in Arturia Delay TAPE 201. But ironically, the SPACE ECHO tank in Rev SPRING-636 is one of the best (most authentic) convolution based Space Echo reverb. It sounds nothing like the spring reverb in TAPE 201, despite both being Space Echoes.

Also, I watched the comparison video above, and I thought the Audiothing Space Echo sounded quite off from the hardware at a fundamental level, at least in the settings he had it in. The delay sounded way too sharp and metallic. I couldn't get a good sense of how the UAD Space Echo compared to the hardware in the video because he was doing something totally different with it from the beginning.

I think Space Echo tanks just cover a wide range. AudioThing's Outerspace/Springs have impulses from two different tanks and they sound very different. I'm no fan of Type 8's myself. I had one in my Vox AC15 and replaced it with a Type 4. Then I got a '79 Vibrolux Reverb and that also had a Type 8 in there for some unknown reason, and that also got a Type 4. Type 8's tend to sound murky and not don't really drip like a Type 4 will in my experience. At least in the guitar amps I've used them in they did. I have a drawer here with three type 8 tanks in it (an old Accutronics from a Marshall Valvestate, the newer Accutronics from the Vox, and an MOD from the Vibrolux).

Anyway, I wouldn't expect a drippy surf spring after a tape delay to be a Space Echo sound. I think that somewhat murky reverb is just part of it (thinking everything from like dub reggae to The Beastie Boys). So in that case, the murkiness of a Type 8 might be desirable. Also, when you talk about individual echoes in the UA version, that's something I consider a weakness of many ITB spring models. Too many spring emulations sound like weird delays and not springs. That's an area where the new Klanghelm plugins completely nails the spring sound IMO: it sounds like the diffuse, resonant, metal tank these things are. I just need Klanghelm to emulate a Fender Spring reverb tank at that same level as the AKG's and I'd be in heaven.

Just my two cents.

Right, an original Space Echo uses an 8AB2D1A Accutronics tank (Type 8 ), which is the same spring found in my early JC-120.

For some reason, Arturia SPRING-636 has both a Space Echo and a Type 8 model, so perhaps there are other components that contribute to the Space Echo's reverb than just the spring. They sound very similar, as they should, but the Space Echo is a little darker than the straight Type 8. This tends to be reflected in most of the Space Echo models out there. So it must also be going through some additional circuitry, perhaps a LPF to eliminate noise.

Type 8s don't drip nearly as much as Type 4s, since their springs are almost half the length of Type 4s, but there is still a discernible splash to it that is not reproduced by convolution, since it seems to have a pitch modulation component to it. I think this is due to the physical distance the signal travels fluctuating with the vibration of the springs.

Pure convolution springs are very flat and washy, and that's not how a real spring sounds to my ear. There are definitely echoes within the reverb of a real spring. Something like a very quick slapback that you can make out immediately after a percussive note. Both the PSP SpringBox and UAD's Space Echo reverb does it pretty well. Also, there is a vibration to the reverb that isn't found in the flat uniform convolution spring models.

Of course there are also a lot of bad modeled springs that just sound like short metallic delays out there. But SpringBox and UAD Galaxy are not among them.

[_leras]

Some of the pricing for bundles doesnt make sense.

For example i own Manley Voxbox, etc


Manley Preamp which is on sale for £49.00

If i were actually interested i would contact them

I'm in the same boat. The preamp is actually in the Voxbox.

I think they should just give the preamp to Voxbox users...

[jamcat]

Any hints from UA about what/when we might see ported next?

[LoveEnigma18]

It seems to me that they are not in the mood to release any new Native plugin this month. I wish they did though, as I have a couple of coupons that I could use for it, else they will expire by end of this month.

[mothra]

Any hints from UA about what/when we might see ported next?

Pleeeeeeease let it be either the AKG BX20 or the SSL stuff!

[Funkybot's Evil Twin]

Pleeeeeeease let it be either the AKG BX20 or the SSL stuff!

We just got a killer AKG BX20 emulation and more via Klanghelm's TENS. Definitely low on my UA Port wishlist at the moment.

[elxsound]

Pleeeeeeease let it be either the AKG BX20 or the SSL stuff!

We just got a killer AKG BX20 emulation and more via Klanghelm's TENS. Definitely low on my UA Port wishlist at the moment.

How do you like it?

I’ve been waiting for a native BX20 emulation for a long time. I would love to pay Klanghelm over UAD.

[Funkybot's Evil Twin]

How do you like it?

I’ve been waiting for a native BX20 emulation for a long time. I would love to pay Klanghelm over UAD.

It's amazing. Seriously. I like it so much I want him to do a Fender style spring reverb. There are 5 BX models (BX5, BX10, up to BX25) and 2 variants of each (A tank/B tank). If you want an authentic sound, basically center the knobs but you can customize from there. The preamp modeling is great.

I don't have firstand experience with the BX20 or the series, but I love spring reverbs and this one is excellent. It really nails the dwell and decay of a spring reverb+tank without sounding cartoonish or too much like a weird delay. I guess the design intent for the originals was to use a spring to achieve a plate-like reverb and I hear that. It sounds like a spring reverb, but smooth, and not trying to drip and be splashy like Fender springs.

If anything, it could cost more and I'd be just as stoked on it. But it was less than $30.

[elxsound]

How do you like it?

I’ve been waiting for a native BX20 emulation for a long time. I would love to pay Klanghelm over UAD.

It's amazing. Seriously. I like it so much I want him to do a Fender style spring reverb. There are 5 BX models (BX5, BX10, up to BX25) and 2 variants of each (A tank/B tank). If you want an authentic sound, basically center the knobs but you can customize from there. The preamp modeling is great.

I don't have firstand experience with the BX20 or the series, but I love spring reverbs and this one is excellent. It really nails the dwell and decay of a spring reverb+tank without sounding cartoonish or too much like a weird delay. I guess the design intent for the originals was to use a spring to achieve a plate-like reverb and I hear that. It sounds like a spring reverb, but smooth, and not trying to drip and be splashy like Fender springs.

If anything, it could cost more and I'd be just as stoked on it. But it was less than $30.

Okay, I’m excited

Yeah, supposed to sound similar to a plate which is a big reason I’ve wanted this for so long. It’s been difficult to explain this difference every time a new spring reverb would be announced….

“Does it come close to BX20? - Why are you asking, it sounds like a spring reverb, what else would it be?”

FFS.

Clearly, Klanghelm nerded out on this and I need to join the party.

I’m off to buy.

[Funkybot's Evil Twin]

I think you'll love it. Head over the Klanghelm thread to share your thoughts on it once you've tried it out.

[be]

If I don´t have a UAD card, does it make sense to buy a Pick any two Plugins-Bundle now if I´ve got the Signature Bundle already? When selecting the bundle on the UA site one has the two plugins instantly, but if I buy from pluginboutique or elsewhere, I should be able to register my bundle code(?) and therefore my plugins later, right?