Out of what you listed, I'd go with the CLA plugs. They're a really good deal. Myself, I'm a big fan of the Slate plugs and consider the Mixing Rack to be an excellent investment. I also can't live without the buss compressors or the tape. Don't know how much you were planning on spending, but the CLA course with the plugs is a deal.
 
http://www.audiolegends.com/get-the-cla-course/
 
Looking at your studio picture, I'd get the monitors away from the wall and out of the corner if you can. You'll reduce reflections and have a more accurate picture of how your mix will translate.

You can put your Waves licenses on a generic USB stick. I keep mine on a tiny one that I keep in my wallet. I also use it for general file transfer. WUP is fine, not really that different from the Platinum deal that Cake has now.
 
CLA bundle is good value though I personally prefer the Cake CA2A. Their 1176 beats Cake's though by a fair bit in my opinion. There are better ones available but as a bundle on sale it's tough to beat IMHO.

Pragi
Hi Chuck,
is your audio interface a saffire or a scarlett interface ?
I´m just curious .
regards and have a nice day

Scarlett 18i8 I plan on updating within a year or so, not that this is not good enough but I need more inputs/outputs.

Jesse G
Hey Chuck, have you discovered the secret to learning more about using the MCU with Sonar yet?

thanks man
yes, it is amazing how much you can customize the MCU.
I also have 2 foot switches (Tascam RC 30F) hooked up for punch in recording / play.
but when im editing I use the foot pedals for other things.
the MCU is awesome. im come from the old school of 8 - 16-24 track analog recording (my previous desks)
so it was the hands on thing I was missing. grabbing faders, knobs.
the MCU really brings you in to that creative mode where you can work faster.
 
only problem is, now im addicted. I want an EXT

The Cakewalk LA-2A is just as good as if not better than the Wave's equivalent I think. The Waves' 1176s are no better than the equivalent Sonar module. The Waves 1176(s) do sound a bit different to Sonar and each other on some material, but it's the kind of difference that isn't "better", more a matter of taste.

For brick-wall limiting, Cakewalk's Concrete Limiter is pretty much as good as Waves' L2 and has an additional "bass" switch.

Really the Pro-channel and Sonitus compressors cover most compression needs pretty well. The main reason to get third-party compressor plugs is because they are different, not better. Out of the third party ones I have (several Waves plus others) the +10dB gets by far the most use. It's good for a huge range of things.

I was hesitant about jumping on the Waves Wagon because of their WUP, but all of the plugs I've purchased recently are version 9 and fully compatible with Windows 10, so I think they're future proof for a while yet.
 
I agree that Cakewalk's CA-2A is top notch, I really don't use the CLA-2A at all because of that fact. However, not being a huge fan of the ProChannel, I do prefer the CLA-76 over Cakewalk's emulation. Even if I was a ProChannel guy, I still prefer the CLA-76 over Cakewalk's. I won't go as far as to say it's better, I just prefer it. Same with Waves SLL Bus Compressor, although Cakewalk's is pretty good.
 
Regarding stacking, yeah, that seems to be a pretty common practice. Grab the peaks with one compressor, smooth things out with another. Sometimes the 1176 will get hit first then the 2A, sometimes the opposite. I'm also a fan of FabFilter plugins so I'll often use the Pro-C 2.
 
One thing I've found, especially with the modeled compressors, is that it's really easy to overdo it. I absolutely love the character of the 1176, especially on vocals, but my voice in particular gets pretty harsh and honky if I'm not careful. Plus there's always the issue of sibilance whenever you're doing a lot of compression. That's probably my least favorite part about mixing vocals. These days, it's pretty much standard for a lead vocal track to go through a lot of compression to keep everything audible and on top, but having to fight that with a De-Esser or clip gain automation is a pain. (And I do a lot of vocal stacks, so the issue is amplified in my case.)

hodshonf
after about a month and a half with Sonar Platinum and COUNTLESS hours of learning, the gorgeousness of simple GOOD compressors and EQs finally hit me.
 
i have been starting each session with a clean slate. no templates, no plugins. 
i've been pretty ham-handed with VSTs simply to get an exaggerated feel for their effects.
 
taking the plunge with multi-track drum loops was a HUGE eye-opener. i've struggled with stereo loops for years.
 
i was using the Klanghelm free comp VST MJUC Jr.
 
http://klanghelm.com/contents/products/MJUCjr/MJUCjr.php
 
pretty nice. game changer for me.
 
which leads me to contemplating biting the bullet with high quality comps.
the Nomad BT plugins look pretty nice, BUT...
 
i have my eye on 3 possibilities:
 
1. stick with the Sonar Nomad series.
 
2. buy the Softube Mix Bundle for $329
 
3. buy the currently heavily discounted Waves CLA bundle.
 
what's the scoop on WUP? searches reveal VARIED opinions.
something to be concerned with regarding 3 simple compressor VSTs?
 
this is just for personal project stuff.
 

Get the cheap paid version of Klanghelm, it is fantastic.  Much more than the free one.  
 
Only way I could see improving it realistically is offering a Pro Channel version and dropping some of the proccessing power it requires.  I haven't maxed a project out with it, but I could see it as a possiblity if you individually put it on every track on a really large project and ran it all in HQ mode.   
 
Looking for something better is kind of like throwing money away.  
 
**edit** I see you threw your money away.  
 
 

Somehow I never really connected with the Klanghelm DC8C. Must be me, it seems very well featured. I love and use Pro C2 though for a full-featured comp.

Sanderxpander
Somehow I never really connected with the Klanghelm DC8C. Must be me, it seems very well featured. I love and use Pro C2 though for a full-featured comp.

FWIW, I was referring to the paid version of the MJUC Klanghelm compression, it is much more straightforward, I think.  

Oh sorry their new one. I haven't checked it out yet. Honestly I was a little disappointed with their support on SDRR (which I do like and use but it doesn't work as VST3 in Sonar) and since DC8C didn't mesh with me I kind of lost track of them. I'll check it out, they're nothing if not cheap but thorough! 

+1 for the paid version of MJUC.  If you like the free one, you'll love the paid version.  Fwiw, I've been going BACK to hardware.  I have a Drawmer MX30 and Foote FCS P3EX for compression, and an Elysia Xfilter for EQ.  I also have the Slate VMR, VBC, and VTM as well as some waves plugs so it's not like I don't have enough plugins, besides all the Sonar stuff but for me, going otb through some good outboard beats almost all my plugins.  MJUC is next level though, as close to hardware as I've come in a plugin...