Enough with the Vintage Plugin Look

microapp
Just because your Fairchild plug has chipped Bakelite knobs does not mean your mix is going to sound like Abbey Road.
Why not have huge knobs for faders in console view like the old EMI consoles if they are so cool.

That's a great idea!  Can you add it as a feature request?  

it's all about familiarity

yeah i'm also with the op, being a geek, was just explaining why they do it...

I kinda like to know what the plug is actually doing.
I don't like the magic knob concept where the min setting is 'sucks more' and the max setting is 'sucks less' and you have no clue what is actually doing.
IMHO, theoretically any plug could emulate any other plug by changing a few parameters in the basic code.
There are software libraries which have standard filter code for creating plugs. Emulating specific hardware exactly gets a little more complicated but it is still just code.
The boutique plug market is just that .... market-ing.
It is reminiscent of the guitar pedal market.

joel77
I don't know, .... I kinda like the vintage look. 
To each, his own I guess.

Joel, You should be able to choose the vintage skin.
I should be able to choose the techno geek skin.
Problem solved.
There is a gazillion skins for WMP mostly user created.
Why not sell a plugin skin for $4.95? Or better yet since you can easily pay $1K for a few plugs, throw in a few skins FOR FREE.
uh-oh I said the F-word.
 

I find a "hardware-like" interface many plugins is often easier to read at a glance and better laid out than many with a more so-called "modern" gui. You could design e.g. an amplifier plugin with just numerical entry boxes for gain, bass/mid/treble, reverb and volume but a "traditional" interface works much better. For me anyway.

It's true that there are some awful looking and confusing fake hardware plugin guis around and I agree that some of the Nomad plugs could look better but that's more of a colour/contrast/layout issue than a fault in the basic concept.

Personally I hate the move to cartoon GUIs...I think it's an age thing ;) I'm used to real equipment and plugin interfaces that try to emulate the real thing just make more sense to me.
 
Bill

If the original was nice looking an the layout intuitive, then I like the variety. I've been checking out the FabFilter Twin, and it functionality suits it's look, and I like how it looks, but it's a modern synth. The retro stuff I like the look of, but enough of the scratches, chips and weathering. If they are going to make it look second hand, change me second hand prices

They would sell less, 'cause I'm a sucker for those vintage skins!!! :)

cowboydan
While your at it could you ask if the next Sonar upgrade will be delivered with a (real Reel) Tape recorder with 2 32 track tape reels and a cutter for editing the tape before mastering.

No, but it would be reely cool if the plugin reels actually turned while in use...

soens

No, but it would be reely cool if the plugin reels actually turned while in use...

Kramer Master Tape does that! Of course, who knows how big o chunk of my CPU it eats up.

microapp
One reason I like the Sonitus plugs is that they typically have a modern look with linear controls and bar-graph meters.
I love the graph on the Sonitus compressor.

Dude, anything Sonitus looks like Windows 98. That's hardly modern at all but I tend to gravitate towards things like the QuadCurve EQ and Waves H-EQ Hybrid Equalizer
http://www.waves.com/plugins/h-eq-hybrid-equalizer
 
I need eye candy and delicious looking buttons.

I've posted my thoughts on this before:
I hate knobs - A modest proposal about virtual hardware UIs

Cakewalk Sonar is a together diced pile on purchased 3rd party plugins without any kind of corporate-identity.
 
I would like to see in Sonar some really high quality plugins that gui design fits into the skylight interface. It should look as one system.
 
Please Cakewalk take a look at Cubase , Studio-One or ProTools. They all have their own labeled high quality plugins with all the same look and feel matching the interface of the DAW. This other DAW's do more appear as a complete system, because of their well designed plugin interfaces.
 
_Markus

There's a good argument, I think, for retaining the layout of emulated gear. For example, I've long thought that a big part of the "magic" of a Pultec isn't just what's under the hood (though that's of course very important), but the way the Pultec's UI design makes you think, and the EQ moves it steers you towards.
 
However, I think layout is the only significant thing there. If we're having knobs, fine, but for me, I'd be happy if we could lose the weird photo-realism.
 
This is one of my favourite plug in UI designs. All clarity, all function. Nothing there that doesn't need to be there.
 

 
 
 

While I'm on the subject, and relevant to citizens of this parish, here is, with honestly no desire to offend, my number one least favourite UI design of all time:
 

The VC-64 was technically and sonically superb. But that UI slows me down so much I hardly ever used it. It successfully looks like a generic piece of ace high-end vintage gear. And renders itself near-unusable in the attempt.