Izotope product opinions

[bpence310]

Are the Izotope products really worth it? I've been trialing the Ozone Elements product and I've got mixed feelings about it. It does make a nice mix, but I've been able to get a better sound without using it. I'm sure there's a learning curve to it, and I am but an amateur, but it seems to not really be as good as I thought it could be. Any thoughts?

[ChanceB]

You should trail ozone standard at least. Elements is severely crippled and not all that useful because you are basically stuck with varying degrees of whatever the assistant thinks is best,with no option to adjust individual modules. I was using ozone 9 elements for a while which gave more control then the current elements and it was nice but I just recently got ozone 11 standard and I love it.

[bpence310]

Ok, so the Elements products are "too" basic then? What advantages come with the Advanced or whatever one is above Standard? Is standard all that is needed?

[Robmobius]

Advanced is where it's at for me.
But standard is a decent option however I'd not bother with elements at all.

[ralfrobert]

If you don't need the latest and greatest, you can always go the cheap route and buy second hand. This is easy with iZotope. And there are many good offers around.

[kritikon]

I've been meaning to upgrade from Elements to standard for ages, just haven't got around to it for some reason. Certainly Elements is so hobbled, it's limited use. The limiter is basically what most people use it for and as limiters go it's reasonable at moderate settings. It can only be pushed so far before it totally destroys your mix. The assistant is almost useless imo if you have any even basic skills in Eq use.

In terms of is it worth it? Well it's dirt cheap, so you have to say yes, in fact it's often given away for free - I got mine as part of a bundle with something or other else. But I get the cheap upgrade option and for the better versions I'd say yes, it's good value. You definitely can get similar or better results with other plugins but often multiple plugins, and Izotope certainly makes it easier and quicker.

I have elements version of that restorer/denoiser thingy (free again) but tbh I haven't even used it yet. First glance and it wasn't intuitive, but tbh I don't work that much with audio that needs restoring, and I can't be arsed to use it for other creative options. Kinda makes sense for cleaning up drumloops etc I suppose though. For the price, they're good and they get the job done quick. But just one of many options out there and there a far better individual options if you don't like the Swiss Army knife method.

[Scoops]

I've been using Ozone for a while (8, 9, and 10)
The automation is so so, but does provide a good starting point
I rarely used the advanced package because I can get everything into the "mothership".
The music re balancer is nice, but in reality, I kinda feel if you have to re balance it, go back to the mix.
If I recall, the EQ scales come in +/- 5db by default, and that's all you see, but that can be adjusted

My $0.02

[Opaque]

Individual modules are really good, but take the suggestions of mastering assistant with a grain of salt. Also, careful with the stabilizer, spectral shaper, clarity, and other similar tools (gulfoss and soothe fit here as well) since those can easily ruin the groove of a track (dynamically boosting and cutting the high-freq percussion range can change the feel completely).

[MattLeschuck]

Been using Ozone since v4 and Neutron since Alloy 2. I personally still think they are great products, despite people regularly complaining about them as a company (at least from what i see).

Tonal balance, Insight, RX, Ozone's / Neutrons Exciter and Imager are used regularly from me. I also think the Stabilizer and Clarity modules do a great job (when used properly). I have never found the need to jump over to Fabfilter with owning most of Izotopes stuff (though I think FF make great products as well).

You can often get into some of their bundles for cheap if you wait for a sale.

[foosnark]

RX Declick (I think mine's from RX 6?) is good. I don't have much of an opinion about any of the rest of their stuff.

[bpence310]

Thanks for all the info, I'm going to try out Ozone Standard and see if it changes my mind. If the elements products are that limited, I just wonder how many people never bother with the higher end products, or is it just understood that plugins that have really expensive versions as well as really inexpensive ones are going to be pretty terrible at the low end?

[digitalboytn]

Neutron 3 is the one plugin I would take to a desert island...

It is indispensable in my workflow...

It replaced Alloy 2 which I used for years and N3 is a very powerful set of tools which I mainly use on channels...

Nectar 2 was very good,but Nectar 3 is even gooder

Trash 2 still gets used a lot here because that is another winner

I'm not a fan of the Series 4 plugins,so I picked up a few of the V 3's and they will keep running for quite a while on Windows 10

[Fannon]

Due to iZotopes offers and free license transfer policy, it's possible to get a Neutron 3 Standard very cheap (like 15$, see https://knobcloud.com/search?search_key ... 3+Standard).

Most people will probably like Ozone best, so a used Ozone 9 Standard costs a bit more, but that's the one that I personally found most value in.

[DCrown]

Izotope some good,
but NI no good business

[CrystalWizard]

Ozone, Rx, Trash, Alloy all great tools. I still use Alloy quite a bit, Rx often, Ozone i generally use a chain of other stuff (PSP mostly), still use Trash, occasionally.
Good software, crap company (now a days, they were cool way back when, imo).
I would also recommend getting a used copy of Ozone).