The FREE plugin that wasn't free

[mabian]

6 months ago, an AI based plugin for noise/reverb removal was touted by many MANY youtubers as free to download and use: GOYO aka Supertone Cleaner.

If you go to the GOYO website, you learn that it was in fact a time limited beta, and it redirects you to the product (which seemingly works well, btw), which is sold under the Supertone Cleaner name.

I nevertheless found a link to the original GOYO plugin and installed it, only to be greeted by a banner telling me the beta period is over and I have to buy it. Nothing wrong with that, but it shows that it was designed as a time limited demo from the start. However dozens of Youtubers/influencers and websites advertised it as FREE. And I suspect many of them were honest and would have called it time limited beta had they known it, instead of free. I'm having a hard time believing all of them consciously lied to their viewers.

So it seems that Supertone lied to all the Youtubers by telling them it's free and thus got free advertising from them. And if that's the case, it's not the first time some plugins editors do that, it's a worrying trend.

The other way round, many Youtubers and influencers completely neglected to check information. I commented on one of such videos during the beta because they "advertised" GOYO as free, telling in the comment it was likely GOYO would go commercial later, the answer was "the video is about what I use now and is free now". It tells a lot in my opinion. The beta was advertised correctly at the official website long before the company started sending mails to tell that the beta would have ended soon and GOYO would never be available shortly after.

The problem is, we trust and give far too credit to the YT/Influencer world. I understood this a while ago.
For example, how do you define a video with title like "Best free plugins in 2023" that only shows the plugins released in the last month, most of which are being tested first time directly in the video? "Best free plugins in 2023"? Seriously?

And there are tons of them...

Have you noticed how many videos were out about Waves "Silk Vocal" - of whatever is called - literally few hours after the release? How can you ensure a plugin is worth without practically using it in projects? No, they only needed to rush the video out to get views before the others.
It got worse than TV shows.

Jeez....

- Mario

[vurt]

my next video will be titled "the best vst plug ins of 2024??
then just the usual hour long modular noodle, with hardware.
but in the description "wonder what they will be? comment below"

[mabian]

my next video will be titled "the best vst plug ins of 2024??
then just the usual hour long modular noodle, with hardware.
but in the description "wonder what they will be? comment below"

Exactly, but I would directly skip to 2025 so you're safe and sound to be the first

[zerocrossing]

Youtube influencers are a pain. They're not really very honest, they shill, they make very pretty videos.

Not all. Many are just trying to provide good reviews or tutorials. There’s always going to be some bad actors. Be smart and learn how to avoid them.

They then wouldn't be an influencer though? Many channels are people actually reviewing stuff, and I would imagine that it works like it used to with them receiving stuff to review from companies. But many are paid by the companies to hawk the products.

I guess that depends on what you consider an influencer is. I’m influenced by integrity and honesty.

Somebody who is paid to hawk stuff on YouTube

That's a "shill." A shill may be an influencer, but not all influencers are shills.

[lolilol1975]

That's a "shill." A shill may be an influencer, but not all influencers are shills.

Agreed. I have zero problem with Youtubers who make videos testing or showcasing products, as long as it is clearly stated on the video (and not merely in the blurb under the video). Youtubers have the right to make money, just as music or photo gear journalists do.
I do have an issue when they say false things about the product though, and qualifying a product as free product when it's merely a time limited demo is, for me, a lie. Most Youtubers I follow have such a work ethics. Those who don't have work ethics don't deserve to be followed.

[zerocrossing]

That's a "shill." A shill may be an influencer, but not all influencers are shills.

Agreed. I have zero problem with Youtubers who make videos testing or showcasing products, as long as it is clearly stated on the video (and not merely in the blurb under the video). Youtubers have the right to make money, just as music or photo gear journalists do.
I do have an issue when they say false things about the product though, and qualifying a product as free product when it's merely a time limited demo is, for me, a lie. Most Youtubers I follow have such a work ethics. Those who don't have work ethics don't deserve to be watched.

Yeah, I can think of a dozen people on YouTube I’m influenced by, but I’m influenced by them because they provide information that I find to be accurate.

[Bunny_boy]

That's a "shill." A shill may be an influencer, but not all influencers are shills.

Agreed. I have zero problem with Youtubers who make videos testing or showcasing products, as long as it is clearly stated on the video (and not merely in the blurb under the video). Youtubers have the right to make money, just as music or photo gear journalists do.
I do have an issue when they say false things about the product though, and qualifying a product as free product when it's merely a time limited demo is, for me, a lie. Most Youtubers I follow have such a work ethics. Those who don't have work ethics don't deserve to be watched.

Yeah, I can think of a dozen people on YouTube I’m influenced by, but I’m influenced by them because they provide information that I find to be accurate.

Hey, forgot to respond - sorry. Yes, I agree with your definitions.
I was going to suggest the experiment of - what if they didn't exist, how would that change things? With my shill definition it would just be less advertising; with the YouTubers that you follow, that would be a loss of information about things that you enjoy - which isn't a great situation.

[martinjuenke]

THERE IS NO FREE LUNCH !!!

[Zeroin]

THERE IS NO FREE LUNCH !!!

assuming - no.. and still someone else may pay for it. when you use a Cracked or pirated software - it is payed by developers labour.. for you its FREE!!!

[IamMisiek]

The thing I do not like with this plugin is not the fact, that it has gone commercial - it is completely natural when do you want to make a satisfying living from making good products.

The thing is that the communication around the product felt, to say the least, misleading. Company and influencers say that it is a free plugin, when in reality it was an open beta.I do not remember exact communication around the product in the open beta phase. Mentions that the product will go 100% commercial (and the free usage of the beta-plugin will be blocked) weren't articulated explicitly until the later part of the open beta period.

While I like denoisers from iZotope, Magix (SoundForge) and Bluelab (sadly out of business); I really liked what I heard with GOYO. But thanks to the communication around this product in the beta phase, I have some doubts if I can trust this company.

[hightyde]

The thing I do not like with this plugin is not the fact, that it has gone commercial - it is completely natural when do you want to make a satisfying living from making good products.

The thing is that the communication around the product felt, to say the least, misleading. Company and influencers say that it is a free plugin, when in reality it was an open beta.I do not remember exact communication around the product in the open beta phase. Mentions that the product will go 100% commercial (and the free usage of the beta-plugin will be blocked) weren't articulated explicitly until the later part of the open beta period.

While I like denoisers from iZotope, Magix (SoundForge) and Bluelab (sadly out of business); I really liked what I heard with GOYO. But thanks to the communication around this product in the beta phase, I have some doubts if I can trust this company.

I guess I don’t share your sentiment. Not to say you’re wrong/right. I guess I was always under impression during the beta phase that GOYO was always going to eventually be replaced by a finalized plugin (a commercialized paid one at that). I thought they made it pretty clear from their site and email blasts.

[mabian]

The thing I do not like with this plugin is not the fact, that it has gone commercial - it is completely natural when do you want to make a satisfying living from making good products.

The thing is that the communication around the product felt, to say the least, misleading. Company and influencers say that it is a free plugin, when in reality it was an open beta.I do not remember exact communication around the product in the open beta phase. Mentions that the product will go 100% commercial (and the free usage of the beta-plugin will be blocked) weren't articulated explicitly until the later part of the open beta period.

While I like denoisers from iZotope, Magix (SoundForge) and Bluelab (sadly out of business); I really liked what I heard with GOYO. But thanks to the communication around this product in the beta phase, I have some doubts if I can trust this company.

I guess I don’t share your sentiment. Not to say you’re wrong/right. I guess I was always under impression during the beta phase that GOYO was always going to eventually be replaced by a finalized plugin (a commercialized paid one at that). I thought they made it pretty clear from their site and email blasts.

Agreed.

[IamMisiek]

The thing I do not like with this plugin is not the fact, that it has gone commercial - it is completely natural when do you want to make a satisfying living from making good products.

The thing is that the communication around the product felt, to say the least, misleading. Company and influencers say that it is a free plugin, when in reality it was an open beta.I do not remember exact communication around the product in the open beta phase. Mentions that the product will go 100% commercial (and the free usage of the beta-plugin will be blocked) weren't articulated explicitly until the later part of the open beta period.

While I like denoisers from iZotope, Magix (SoundForge) and Bluelab (sadly out of business); I really liked what I heard with GOYO. But thanks to the communication around this product in the beta phase, I have some doubts if I can trust this company.

I guess I don’t share your sentiment. Not to say you’re wrong/right. I guess I was always under impression during the beta phase that GOYO was always going to eventually be replaced by a finalized plugin (a commercialized paid one at that). I thought they made it pretty clear from their site and email blasts.

Agreed.

Ok, in my spare time I'll try to look for the source material of their communications.

[hightyde]

Looking through my emails, this is a semi timeline of what I can confirm (unfortunately the goyo beta site no longer has any relevant info)

8/15/23 : date that I became a goyo beta tester

8/30/23 : email sent from goyo stating

“Dear Goyo Beta User,

Thank you for your tremendous support of Goyo Beta. We’re absolutely thrilled by the feedback and love you’ve shown us.

Today, we’re excited to announce the release of Supertone Voice Clarity, our official product replacing Goyo. This upgraded plug-in retains Goyo’s simplicity and powerful algorithm, along with added features like enhanced CPU performance and offline workflow.

Supertone Voice Clarity will be available for purchase starting early October for $99. As a valued beta user, you'll get an exclusive $70 discount, making it just $29.

Following the release, we’ll transition into phasing out beta testing. Usage and support for existing users will continue until October 31st, after which we encourage you to use Supertone Voice Clarity.”

9/27/23 : email from goyo stating beta sign ups will close on 10/1/23.

“GOYO Beta will close on November 1st, 2023. You will not be able to use the GOYO Beta plug-in afterwards.”

10/23/23 : email from goyo announcing release date of 10/30/23 release date for “supertone clear” along with announcing discount code to get clear for $29 for beta testers.

10/30/23 : email from goyo stating release date for supertone clear has been pushed back until “early November”

11/7/23 : email announcing official release of supertone clear, along with coupon code to receive clear for $29

[t.o.t.s.]

I think they were super communicative about they're plugin from day one. Also... those stupid YouTube thumbnails... I'll skip over anything like that these days. Influencers annoy the complete piss out of me.