To uad, or not to uad, that is the question .

While I wouldn't say that there is a massive difference in quality between Fabfilter (which I know) and UAD, I still think UAD plugins are worth it.  I still remember the first time I heard a UAD compressor and I couldn't believe the sound it had.

I think that these days there is no "better" quality, only that the sound is different, not better but different.  I have some Fabfilter plugins (limiter, eq and compressor) and I love them.  I use the Fabfilter EQ instead of the UAD one in everything now.

I tend to freeze or mixdown most of my plugins so I cannot comment on the performance of UAD, but my solo and quad are quite good at running multiple plugs and having some stuff UAD and some native is quite a powerful setup.

Bitbridge runs UAD flawlessly, you don't need Jbridge for UAD.  Sooner than later UAD will be 64bit so it won't matter.

I'd would spend the money somewhere else than UAD. Just my 2 cents.

I have been using UAD for many years now and am happy with the quality. I primarily use UAD plugins in my projects - the rest are mostly Nebula. Sometimes I have issues with Bitbridge and UAD causing Sonar crashes, but it's not a big deal (I save my projects obsessively before doing any major edits). The plugins will be 64-bit probably next month, but certainly by December (per UAD's announcement on the subject). I get by fine with a Duo, but sometimes wish I had a Quad for certain projects (without one, I occasionally need to freeze tracks in Sonar).

It can be a big investment, though, so be prepared to spend lots of money on plugins after you buy the card (do your research and buy smart - in the old days I used to buy anything by UAD that was new - but now I only buy what I think I absolutely need). 

Hi Pragi,
I actually own some of the hardware that is emulated in my UAD and I still like the plugs (not as much as the HW, but still...). The 1176 emulations are fantastic (and I own actual 1176's) and I really like the Manley EQ and Precision EQ. The Tape emulation, FATSO, and plate reverb are on just about every track I do these days as well. The LA2A is really very good as well...I don't own one but I do have a TLA-100 to compare against.

Are there other plugs that are as "good"? Possibly, but the UAD stuff is on pretty much everything I do. 

A couple suggestions: 
First, I wouldn't buy it for the DSP processing. The power of modern CPU's is such that I don't think the advantage of the processing being done on the card is really that big a deal. For me I just like the plugs.

Second, don't ever pay full price for the plugins. UAD has a different sale every month and if you're patient you'll find whatever you want for 15 or 20 percent off.

Good luck
Dean


EDIT - Oh, and I run them under Sonar x64 without a problem. I like Jbridge better than BitBridge, but BB works fine.

64-bit versions are forthcoming.

Pragi, the UAD-1 will not run most of the newer UAD plug-in's and will not be supported when Universal Audio eventually evolves to 64 bit. You will need a UAD-2 card to keep up with the latest emulations and the coming improvements.

Pragi,
I've owned a UAD-1 card for many years.  I believe most of their plugin emulations are superior to the competition (including cakewalk's plugs), particularly the compressors, however this could be taste as well. 

As others have said above, UAD has ended support for their UAD-1 cards, so if you're looking to purchase something now, you should go with a UAD-2.  I've run 32-bit UAD-1 plugs within x64 Sonar without issues, but again, as others have said above, UAD is intending to ship 64bit versions of their plugs in the coming months.  Regarding performance - CPU power has increased so much over the last few years, I don't think purchasing a UAD card simply to offload processing from your host CPU is really the primary objective any longer, as it may have been 10 years ago. 

Ultimately I think it comes down to if you prefer their plugins and want to invest in hardware.  Personally I wish UAD would stop using their hardware card, as I'd love to keep using their plugs without having to upgrade hardware.  If you know someone with a UAD a card and can compare their plugs with competitors before purchasing, that would be best - so you don't throw down several hundred for a UAD card and some plugs, only to find you don't feel the UAD plugs are much better than what you already have.

Personally, while I prefer the UAD plugs, I've decided to stop investing in their hardware (I'm not upgrading to a UAD-2 card), as I found Cakewalk plugs very usable and 'good enough' as well.   I'm not a professional and the Cake plugins are probably more than what I'll ever need.  I haven't found a replacement for UAD's realverb pro, but maybe someday I'll break down and try Valhalla. 

Hope this helps.
Russ

If you find a 1 card with a good assortment of plugs, could be a good deal.

Just make sure they have an account and will transfer ownership of all their plugs on that card/account.

You can always add a 2 card.

The older drivers are available but the new plugins won't work on the 1 card, lot of them are hogs and eat up the 2 cards.

Still a lot of plugs do work on the 1 card, but it is hard to work with just a 1 card. You want/need more, but it is a way to get into it slowly.

I'm happy with my UAD-2 Solo card that came as a bonus when I bought my UA 710 preamp.

I don't worry too much about overloading the card with realtime plugins because once I've made a decision how I am going to process a track, I am satisfied to freeze the track and leave it alone knowing that I can always come back to it.