UAD PolyMAX - This thing is Sick

[Uncle E]

UA rep said “we did it this way because that’s what users requested.”

[sqigls]

if they just did machine auth, i'd buy all the UAD stuff.
any company that uses cloud or dongle only is instantly avoided by myself and a lot of potential users i'd say. That includes the many Sonnox and the free UAD plugins i already own.

[jens]

UA rep said “we did it this way because that’s what users requested.”

lol...

[Immanencer]

For a couple of days I had been thinking about picking this synth up as a freebie, but now I'm glad that I read this thread to learn that all UAD stuff is either ilok dongle or ilok cloud...with no machine authentication! I went down this road once before, a few years ago, with McDSP, and ended up buying the ilok dongle for $50 after I bought their plugin on sale, only to realize that it just doesn't fit with my work flow since I now make music on two computers in different locations. It was easier for me to dump the McDSP plugin than remember to bring the ilok with me every friggin' time, lol. Like subscription models, this setup just doesn't work for me and never will.

Edit: Apparently this plugin and the free LA-2A do allow for machine authentication...see posts below.

[ericzang]

I just got the freebie a couple of days ago (and the LA2A freebie awhile ago). Fortunately, for me it has machine authorization (cloud does not show as an option, see screenshot). I think I recall somewhere in the install process there was an option to choose cloud?

[ghettosynth]

$15 for a skin. What a joke. Hard pass.

Good point. His Juno skin is $10 and I think it does a better job of making PolyMAX easier to use.

Not to be that guy, but how in hell can PolyMax be "hard to use." I have it now because of the essentials bundle. It's not really interesting to me, but I did plug it in, it's pretty basic.

[Uncle E]

I just got the freebie a couple of days ago (and the LA2A freebie awhile ago). Fortunately, for me it has machine authorization (cloud does not show as an option, see screenshot). I think I recall somewhere in the install process there was an option to choose cloud?

Oh, that's interesting! Mine still says iLok or Cloud only. Might be worth getting a second free license for that.

[Uncle E]

Not to be that guy, but how in hell can PolyMax be "hard to use."

It all looks the same. With the Juno skin, it's easier to identify the sections. But yes, basic synth, the skin isn't necessary.

[ramseysounds]

Free with any purchase at Plugin Boutique and it’s native. So I bought a £3 sample pack and got this free, because well why not

[cdbaksu]

I love its interface, and the sound is one of the best poly synths I've worked with.

Don't really have a horse in the whole ilok race, but my internet is one of the best and most reliable in the world (apparently), so I never had any issues. Have both cloud and machine activations.

[sqigls]

I just got the freebie a couple of days ago (and the LA2A freebie awhile ago). Fortunately, for me it has machine authorization (cloud does not show as an option, see screenshot). I think I recall somewhere in the install process there was an option to choose cloud?

Oh, that's interesting! Mine still says iLok or Cloud only. Might be worth getting a second free license for that.

the LA2A compressor is the only one that allows machine auth, so far

[Uncle E]

See ericzang’s screenshot. Apparently new PolyMAX licenses can also be machine authorized.

[concealed identity]

$15 for a skin. What a joke. Hard pass.

Good point. His Juno skin is $10 and I think it does a better job of making PolyMAX easier to use.

Not to be that guy, but how in hell can PolyMax be "hard to use." I have it now because of the essentials bundle. It's not really interesting to me, but I did plug it in, it's pretty basic.

Usability isn't just about features and complexity but also design, user interface, and logic of workflow. As an extreme analogy, think of how you're used to driving a car, so it's not too difficult for you. Then imagine a car where the positions of the accelerator and windshield wiper are switched - it's not any more complex, but it's not where your brain expects things to be, so it's going to be a lot more difficult to use, even if it has the exact same amount of functions as your normal car.

In the case of PolyMax I personally think it's fine, but these things will change from person to person. For me, a better example is Tyrell N6, which is a pretty basic synth, but it's so much easier to use with a reskin where your eyes don't have to search around for different functions, you instantly recognize where everything is.

[Funkybot's Evil Twin]

$15 for a skin. What a joke. Hard pass.

Good point. His Juno skin is $10 and I think it does a better job of making PolyMAX easier to use.

Not to be that guy, but how in hell can PolyMax be "hard to use." I have it now because of the essentials bundle. It's not really interesting to me, but I did plug it in, it's pretty basic.

Also "not to be that guy", but UncleE never said it was "hard to use", despite you having put that in quotes as though he did say that. The statement was "making PolyMAX easier to use". That means it could've gone from easy to use, to even easier to use because of the colorful sections in the Juno skin. Which is a perfectly reasonable thing to say. I'm pretty certain UncleE wasn't struggling to use PolyMax.

[nirm123]

uncles are never wrong.