Waves goes full subscription model - Creative Access

[johnchop]

Tired of Waves update plan?

 

Not convinced that their “everything is $30” sales are really sales? (They’re like the Kohl’s of plug-ins!)

 

Realize that it was a de facto subscription model all along?

 

Welp… $250 a year for everything, $149 for a decent subset, more if you pay by the month.

 

Still licensed per machine.

 

Cue the pissed off userbase.

 

I dunno… there’s some Waves stuff I really like. I would have spent more to keep the update plan going every year.

 

[TWB121234]

I have a handful of Waves plugins which I rarely use so the subscription route is definitely not for me. I kept the update plans up to date, but always grumbled about that. Now this settles my relationship with Waves. Best wishes to Waves and those whom pursue this option.

[analogika]

Bleh. 

[Paul Vnuk Jr.]

I think Johnchop hit the conundrum on the head. Despite owning dozens and dozen of Waves plugins (and always doing the $30 intro when one comes out), when its time to "re-up my WUP" it's usually $240'sh, as such the yearly subscription suddenly becomes a bargain...and yet, I am still not a fan of plugin subscriptions.

 

The problem is (for me) software subscriptions are like getting rid of cable is to Netflix, Hulu, Disney+...if I want to subscribe to two to three plugin companies...they add up fast.

[DJkeys]

The thing I always liked about WUP is that I could use the plugins for as long as I wanted without upgrading. That seems to still be the case for the plugins that I already own-

 

-dj

[johnchop]

No more WUP that I can see.

 

Stay on the version you have or subscribe. That’s it.

 

Edit: DJkeys I see what you're saying. Yes, you still own the plugs you have, just at whatever version you have now.

[ElmerJFudd]

It’s for the best. Everyone hates getting zinged with an update plan bill.  

[KuruPrionz]

I have very few of their plugins. 

There are lots of options. 

I'll let mine wither on the vine and look elsewhere.

I've been using fewer and fewer plugins as I go on, you don't really need very many. 

Some of the ones I use come with Mac OS, Apple does make some nice stuff. 

A full suite comes with my DAW - Waveform. 

 

I've been considering thinning the herd anyway, Waves makes that decision much simpler. Buh bye and good luck...

[ElmerJFudd]

14 minutes ago, KuruPrionz said:

I have very few of their plugins. 

There are lots of options. 

I'll let mine wither on the vine and look elsewhere.

I've been using fewer and fewer plugins as I go on, you don't really need very many. 

Some of the ones I use come with Mac OS, Apple does make some nice stuff. 

A full suite comes with my DAW - Waveform. 

 

I've been considering thinning the herd anyway, Waves makes that decision much simpler. Buh bye and good luck...

They were most attractive when they had some magic the DAWs did not.  But  stock plugins are modeled as well these days.  SSL has their own branded plugs now, UAD has gone native.  The market has changed.  That said, Waves catalogue is huge. 

[KuruPrionz]

11 minutes ago, ElmerJFudd said:

They were most attractive when they had some magic the DAWs did not.  But  stock plugins are modeled as well these days.  SSL has their own branded plugs now, UAD has gone native.  The market has changed.  That said, Waves catalogue is huge. 

I LOVE the Eventide plugins. They've been in the digital game longer than anybody, legendary studio gear mostly. 

Physion 2 and Split EQ are both amazingly useful tools that sound fantastic. 

 

Coding plugins is not a place where one can sleep in peace!!!! 

[D. Gauss]

other than my internet, gas/electric bill and hbo max, i have no monthly subscriptions to anything (not even a car/house payment), nor do i want one. Having said that, there's 3 or 5 waves plugs i use on every single mix, so that kinda blows chunks. and yes, the ones you have now will work fine UNTIL they magically aren't supported by whatever latest com-pu-tor chip comes out.

[ElmerJFudd]

The old system also had money up front - the bundles like Horizon, Platinum etc. were not cheap to begin with.  The upgrade paths were not cheap and neither was WUP - which you inevitably had to pay with a change in hardware or operating system.  At least the new subscription model gives you access to everything and you know what it costs up front.  The market will decide if the subscription is too high.  

 

Comparison:

 

UAD Spark is $19.99 / month, $149.99 / year

SSL is $24.99 / month pay as you go, $14.99 / month with an annual contract, and $149.99 / year if you pay it up front

Eventide is $29.99 / month pay as you go, $299.99 / year

[johnchop]

The StudioVerse bit is kinda cool.

I am not a mix engineer, so having some help in picking processing chains is welcome.

 

They aren’t a substitute for taste, of course.

[Stokely]

No thanks.  No subscriptions.

I don't make a living with plugins, in fact I go months without using them if I don't work on stuff at home.   

Also, the Waves model of paid upgrades has always kept me away from their stuff.  I'll stick with companies that don't charge for upgrades due to OS upgrades, thanks.

[KuruPrionz]

1 hour ago, ElmerJFudd said:

The old system also had money up front - the bundles like Horizon, Platinum etc. were not cheap to begin with.  The upgrade paths were not cheap and neither was WUP - which you inevitably had to pay with a change in hardware or operating system.  At least the new subscription model gives you access to everything and you know what it costs up front.  The market will decide if the subscription is too high.  

 

Comparison:

 

UAD Spark is $19.99 / month, $149.99 / year

SSL is $24.99 / month pay as you go, $14.99 / month with an annual contract, and $149.99 / year if you pay it up front

Eventide is $29.99 / month pay as you go, $299.99 / year

You can also just purchase an Eventide plugin. I've had some for a while now, still working great. 

[bill5]

I heard good things about Waves and they had a freebie offer or two so I tried. The registration/install/etc was such a PITA I wrote them off entirely. But if I hadn't, the subscription thing would have done it. The only time a subscription thing makes any sense IMO is if there's some pricey stuff (say an orchestral library) and you want to "try before you buy." But the idea of "renting" software otherwise makes zero sense to me and I'll never do it. 

[David R]

Yup. No thanks. Time to fully switch over to Plugin Alliance (which allow you to either subscribe or buy things outright), Softube, UAD or SSL.

 

I did use Element, Codex and their Electric Grand for a lot of things but I will just use the old versions, frozen on my system. 

[Mighty Motif Max]

This is very unfortunate, given that they will not allow people to update individual plugins. I'm a heavy Waves user as I find I prefer the sound of some of their plugins, but I don't have enough of them to justify a $300/year subscription. Unfortunately Abbey Road Studio 3 is virtually a necessity for mixing in my current circumstances (headphones only)...hopefully they will change course after getting some pushback on this.

[Fleer]

WOOP dem Waves. 

[UnderGroundGr]

I am tired with Waves' update plan. And now subscription, sorry not for me...

I use Arturia's plugins and instruments and i am very satisfied!

[zephonic]

I despise WUP and spend more or on it than I did on the actual purchases. I despise software subscription plans.

 

But I'm tired of being pissed off about things I can't change. I caved and opted in on Roland Cloud. Pretty sure I will cave again to keep my Waves plugins running.

 

[MPN21]

No Waves Update Plan and no subscription!  Good thing that I didn't go deep with their platinum bundle.    The only reason I signed up for Roland Cloud last year was because I can keep two plugins for free; I chose D50 ($149) and XV5080 ($129).  It was cheaper to sign up for a year and get those two plugins free than buy these two plugins outright.  

 

Besides no subscription, another policy of mine; never buy again any plugin that allows only one computer activation.  Waves is one, it seems.   No more EastWest, Steinberg, and etc.  

 

Yes to those plugins and hosts with a generous number of activation; Arturia, NI and for that matter Kontakt 3rd party libraries, Ableton Live, Gig Performer,  and etc.

 

Roland Cloud has changed their policies quite a bit ever since they started.   When consumers say no, they will change.   

[Geoff Grace]

It’s one thing to stop selling perpetual licenses and another to stop supporting them. A subscription for temporary use is no substitute for selling an upgrade for perpetual use.

If a company goes out of the business of supporting perpetual licenses, then as far as I’m concerned, they have gone out of business. I’ve purchased countless Waves plugins over the last 25 years, but I will not subscribe.

I’ve decided to no longer use Waves plugins unless I’m willing to print them as audio files, to future proof my sessions. When I’m tempted to reach for a Waves plugin, I will ask myself, “What can I use instead?”

Best,

Geoff

[ElmerJFudd]

8 hours ago, Mighty Motif Max said:

This is very unfortunate, given that they will not allow people to update individual plugins. I'm a heavy Waves user as I find I prefer the sound of some of their plugins, but I don't have enough of them to justify a $300/year subscription. Unfortunately Abbey Road Studio 3 is virtually a necessity for mixing in my current circumstances (headphones only)...hopefully they will change course after getting some pushback on this.

I can’t imagine they will reverse from following the field.  But, they should have already announced a path for their users that have updated their WUP recently, bought a collection recently, etc.  

[konaboy]

seems like the honorable thing would be to reach out to all their existing customers in advance, let us know that subs are coming, and offer us the opportunity to at least upgrade our purchased plugins to the latest current version.

 

doing it this way is dirty and underhand and will piss off all their existing customers, and angry customers are not likely to buy a subscription.

 

i have no problems with the subscription model, but it feels like I wasted hundreds of dollars on the plugins I previously bought.

 

there is no discount if you already purchased any of their plugins or bundles, which doesn't feel right.

 

i've bought dozens of their plugins over the years, but only use 2 of them all the time. I'll keep using them until they no longer work, then look elsewhere for replacements.

 

[Stokely]

It's not like I've done extensive testing of any sort, but my impression is that there are always multiple viable alternatives out there for almost any plugin.  Heck the stock plugins in DAWs can be very capable.   Even really niche plugins like those for referencing--I use Metric AB and love it, but if plugin alliance ever went subscription only there's others out there I could use.

 

[johnchop]

I believe there’s a pittance of a discount for existing customers? I agree there should be some discount if you’ve renewed a WUP in the past year.

 

I don’t buy software with the expectation that it will work forever on all versions of an operating system or with whatever hardware upgrades I make. I just don’t.

 

But for a big company not to do better, when other companies offer choice, well, they’re going to feel a reputation hit for sure. 
 

-John

[konaboy]

i asked customer service what would happen if I bought a subscription, got the upgrades to latest version, and then cancel the sub.  Will they downgrade all my plugins again? I suppose so... we'll see.

[Stokely]

Subscription aside, I don't believe I've ever paid for a new version of a plugin if it was just for fixes related to OS changes.   If a plugin changes versions and adds a ton of functionality, then maybe--but even then I'm not sure I have.  I have too many plugins from a lot of companies so I'd have run into this for sure--when I jumped from High Sierra to Monterey, I had to download new versions of most of my plugins.  Not one of them charged me for it.

That is the main reason I've never used Waves.   That's borderline fraudulent to have this paid WUP considering it's not industry standard (though I suppose most people know about it up front I hope.)   People get excited by their big Invicta watch 95% discounts and don't realize they'll need to pay later.  Subscription will be a 2nd main reason!  

[Franz Schiller]

Yeah that blows. Though like a lot of you fellas, I only use 2, but they're pretty unique. If I can replace them, I can go totally Waves free.

 

Do any of you gents know of a non-Waves plugin that's similar to Vocal Rider?