Is it OKAY to use presets?

I think presets are ok to use as starting points in *some* plugs, but most of the time they don't ever work for me. The problem with them stems from two things.

1. Whoever created them didn't have your sounds and mix in mind. This alone makes them totally useless in some plugs.

2. Presets often times show off a plug and may use that plug to the extreme. I think they are great at showing you the capabilities, but I myself rarely ever use a preset "as is" without tweaking it so drastically, it's no longer the preset I auditioned.

-Danny

I agree.... 

I use presets.... ones that I have come up with or edited from a "factory" preset.

There is nothing wrong with using them or any sort of legal aspect to using them.... it's all good. 

I do agree that for the most part, to really dial in the sound..... you will want to use them as a starting point. 

For example in Ozone, the acoustic guitar preset is nowhere close to the sound I want to hear from my acoustic. So I don't use the factory preset..... but I have customized it and saved it with the same name.  But still, on a new project, I have to tweeze it to get it sounding right. 

And to add to Rain's post... a preset is a very good way to get to a staring point quickly without having to change a lot of parameters.

For synths, I browse the presets for inspiration. More often than not I will tweak a preset to suit my requirements, but every now and then I think, "hey, that's just what I am looking for."

I use a similar approach with my effects, especially reverb effects. But when it comes to changing tone and dynamics I will generally start with a blank page and try to dial in what I want/need.

Many, many seemingly basic FX VSTs from reverbs to compressors and EQs have nowadays a huge set of features that extend their use far beyond what the user maybe expects.

The presets are, IMO, the fastest way to explore the limits of the VST (or a synth), as they usually do cover also the extreme possibilities of the FX in question.

Otherwise, synths or FX, if the preset works, it works, and I use it without hesitation. Do you question if you should change the strings or tuning of a guitar before you can record it :o) :o)?

I use them all the time. There are so many presets with most plugs that all it takes is a slight tweak to get one to your liking.

Problem is that presets kinda guide YOU instead of YOU guiding it!  Let's say you have an idea for a song, sometimes using a patch will lock you into a space where it is not really fitting into your song.    Build it from the oscillator up (if you know sound design). 

Presets are perfectly legal. It is not legal to take a preset and redistribute it (as in say sell a pack of patches for a synth that includes those presets). Lots of people use presets. There are certain presets for synths that have been used so much that they are embedded in music genres. In Drum and Bass the "hoover" was originally a preset on a Juno and used so much that many synths include a "hoover" preset. Some of the best synth players in the world are clueless when it comes to programming. Many programmers can't play worth squat. As far as effects, it is acceptable to use presets but often not advisable. Especially for plugins that are going to sound very different on different source material like eq and compression. Special effects that are more time or panning based like a rotating speaker effect can often be used right out the box. As already mentioned, presets are good starting points and can often get you in the ballpark or aid in learning the plugin, but cannot be relied on for accuracy.

I think most of the time in regards to effects?, I like to start with null (or zero). So I guess if my studio was called; Null Recordings and someone called to make a booking I would say; Null, sorry. 

Besides; my studio is totally private; not for profit; not for commercial use. (hey Mr Taxman, are you reading this?)!! 
 
OK, got my serious hat on; 

Since my studio is totally private for my own needs I have no need to build-up a mega-list of presets but then again; almost all preset would probably need tweaking because each song is a totally new bag full of fun and surprises. I guess the term; always learning something new applies to 'everybody' no matter how much experience one has. 
 
I will save effects presets that I tweaked but usually for things such as; Reverb because I might be wanting consistency across a particular style for an album I'm working on.  Whereas for track EQ? those setting will definitely change. But often a track requires NO effects at all. 


There are certain elements for an album that requires some consistency such as; reverb, I guess the same might apply for instruments such as; Kick and Snare, so that I can get a sense of consistency ((that sound)) that style for the album. 

Keep in mind though; often not all tracks require treatment at all if the source material is perfect for the song for example; a particular synth pad and such usually has a character and ambiance about it that stands on it's own and requires no further processing (effects)! Another good thing about; getting it right at the source.  
 
In regards to virtual instruments; I start with presets and tweak them from there (more or less) for whatever works best for the song. But I have template projects on standby; readily available so that when nature (creativity) calls I'm ready to open the flood gates. 

yes, the changes you make on any parameter of a synth or FX are saved with the project.

the NEXT project, however, will not have those changes.  if you want those changes to be saved as a preset to be called up for the next project, then use the name field window and the little disk icon in the top of the window of the plugin (when running in sonar) to save as a new file preset name.

Presets should be backed up in a configuration file.  Find the file and you should be able to drag it to a flash drive to use in on another computer.  But then again you can just save the session and open it on the new computer,  the settings will be saved as well.

I usually start with a blank slate on my plugins. But since I work on location recording classical music, sometimes presets are usefull for duplicating multiple sessions using identical setups and instruments.  For instance, I recently recorded a pianist on four different dates, in the same room, with the same miking setup.  I created a preset from the first session on the EQ and the reverb and used that for a subsequent sessions to obtain an identical sound.   I will say, unless you are working with familiar and predictable source material, preset are never reliable without tweaking.