**WARNING** do NOT buy IK NAMM Specials...

[keys_au1]

I just bought the NAMM special MODO bass, and as it only came with four basses, I deceided to upgrade to MODO Bass 2 (@$49 euro) however as I bought the "special" MODO Bass SE, I am ineligble for an upgrade path. I either buy VERY expensive instrument packs at 99 euros EACH, or dish out for full MODO bass at about 299 Euros.

HUGE rip-off and avoid like the plague.

PS: update - I thought I could only buy the full version in the "max" pack - turns out I can actually buy MODO Bass 2, it was blocking the "upgrade" path method. So probably some user error there, although the IK system was confusing. I have asked if they will give me a store credit or jampoints for the earlier purchase. Will advise the outcome here, although I am not very hopeful!

[Examigan]

I think it’s been that way for years. Not saying it’s a good thing, but that’s how it works with them.

[zerocrossing]

Consider it a lesson learned. The only way to buy IK Multimedia that doesn't make you mad in the future is to wait for them to do a group buy and get everything for a few hundred dollars. That said, their stuff is pretty good to great. For instance, I've yet to find a guitar amp solution that's more comprehensive and of equal quality.

[Examigan]

Sometimes you’ll find their products on Humble Bundle for cheap also.

[Cuauhtli]

Like zero posted: only buy during the group buy, especially when you can qualify for the max level for $20-$30.

Or wait for the max version of the particular product to go on sale, which is multiple times a year.

[Lbdunequest]

IKM plugins are not better then what competition offers, so i think its worth considering to just ignore IKM and use tools from companies like uhe, uad, maybe softube, omnisphere el3 ect

[DrOcsid]

Except for MODO Bass 2, which is better than most of what the competition offers.

EDIT: I can't forget about their tape simulators either, which are also some of the best ones around.

[skarvika]

Except for MODO Bass 2, which is better than most of what the competition offers.

Paired with a halfway decent cabinet sim, it sounds great. Another one I really like is EZBass Gospel.

[Examigan]

IKM plugins are not better then what competition offers, so i think its worth considering to just ignore IKM and use tools from companies like uhe, uad, maybe softube, omnisphere el3 ect

Some people want to avoid iLok, so UAD and Softube wouldn’t be options for them.

[mambo888]

Do not buy anything a beg, wait for one of their deep discounts where you will get the whole shebang in the total studio max for maybe $129 dollars. I bought separately Amplitube, then Tonex max, then total studio max just to see in the summer that the full package is reduced to $129 dollars. They will make you look like a fool. They call it marketing, very wicked move. It means punishing the paying customers and rewarding piracy.

[Stokely]

I thought about the group buy (a couple times)...end of the day, for once I exercised restraint and stuck to my "do I really need it, does it do something I don't have already" principles.

in the end, I got B-3X on sale for $39 and nothing else. It is the best b3 organ sim I've personally used, and that includes a few plugins and a few hardware keyboards, including Nords and a Hammond sk pro. The Logic pro vintage organ is no slouch and can get the job done, and I was happy with it until I A/Bed it up against B-3X. And so it goes against my ideals a bit, not a "need", but really fun to play and I'm happy I got it

[Examigan]

Humble Bundle had the standard Sampletank 4 for $1. But I don’t think they allowed upgrades from that version. But it’s still a great deal if that’s all you need.

[Gamma-UT]

I'd also consider whether the full Modo monty is necessary. Unless you're desperate for a violin bass, the two main missing elements there are the fretless and the upright, which are both where MODO is weakest. The keyswitch configuration for the fretless is a bit weird in practice, making slides and bends harder to achieve than it should be. And I find it easier to emulate the 80s mwah in other tools (should that be important - realistically a lot of that sound comes from the pitch shifters in the FX chain). And uprights are tough to do well in anything. It can be better, though fiddly, to work with sampled instruments.

But overall, don't get mad, get even. As others have said, the full package will go on deep discount one way or another at some point, and probably soon. It's rare with IK that the upgrade path is the cheapest unless you pick up one of the Max packages at some point, as the "maxgrade" tends to be the most consistent discounted option. But IK is rarely consistent overall.

[Lbdunequest]

IKM plugins are not better then what competition offers, so i think its worth considering to just ignore IKM and use tools from companies like uhe, uad, maybe softube, omnisphere el3 ect

Some people want to avoid iLok, so UAD and Softube wouldn’t be options for them.

I understand but from my experience id rather get an ilok usb stick and have something rock solid stable then something that might break and IKM will not gonna acknowledge despite multiple tickets

[martinjuenke]

I sold all my IKM stuff some time ago, never looked back and never missed anything.