mike_mccue
If it is truly no trouble to get around PACE then the cost of fees, if any, don't seem like a convincing cause for small vendors to avoid updating to AAX.
 
 
 
 
Consider, if you will, Michael Carnes as an example. He runs a one man show, he makes two plugins, he was one of the first vendors to offer AAXx64 compatibility. He answers emails promptly, he always seems to be working on a update to enhance his two plugins, and he seems to have time to enjoy skiing in winter and hiking in summer.
 
The PACE doesn't seem to be slowing him down. :-)
 
 
 
 
edit spelling

The problem with these kind of anecdotes is they lack a lot of relevant information. Is his source of wealth the two plugins he develops or is he simply taking a loss a a labor of love? Every vendor is not in the same position. As far as the getting around pace thing, I'm sure you realized I was referring to pirates and not legit vendors. It would be really odd for a legit developer to release cracked plugins.

backwoods

bitflipper
ANY copy protection can be circumvented if somebody has the patience, time and motivation to do so. But digital signing doesn't have as much to do with anti-piracy as it does with Avid wanting Apple-like control over who gets to sell software for their platform. This scheme lets them dictate who can sell ProTools plugins, with the added bonus of collecting a commission.
 
The positive spin is that this will yield more reliable plugins that conform to standards set and enforced by Avid. No more letting third-party components crash the DAW. Unfortunately, as long as plugins run in the same process as the host, such assurance isn't really possible.

I have heard that anything is breakable if the will is adequate; I just don't see that iLok2 has been broken yet. It's been out a while too.

I will keep this short and simple. Yes, there are programs that use ilok2 available to the dedicated pirate, but harder to find because most people using pirated software prefer the easy way. Any explanation would likely violate CoC.

Ok let's take for example the guys at FabFilter. I bought their plugins expressly because they were offering them as both AAXx64 and VSTx64.
 
How about PSP Audioware? That's why I bought Xenon.
 
Waves? Yes, I have S-1 and De-Esser running as x64 AAX.
 
 
 
An anecdote about a guy who can't afford a license fee so he can sell stuff, is just another type of anecdote. For all we know that guy that says he can't afford the license fee has all his money tied up in real estate in Maui as a labor of love.
 
 
 
 
In the case of Voxengo the proprietor says he can't get Pro Tools to work so he can't test his own plug ins in it.
 
Voxengo is slowly drifting in to past. For example, their premiere reverb, a really fine reverb, which I own and formally used as a go-to, is still stuck in x86, and it seems as if there is no intention of updating it.
 
Voxengo keeps sending me emails about their latest updates etc. but nothing they are doing is as important to me as learning that I can use their stuff on either/or DAW I am using at any given time.
 
I'd buy Pristine Space and Elephant all over again at full price in AAX, but apparently it is too hard for Aleksy to figure out how to get Pro Tools to run on his CPU.
 

Why debate the relative merits of copy protection or methods of strong arming Pro Tools users when there's so many alternatives? If the platform is proprietary then you have to live with it. 

All I'm going to say is that when you buy into proprietary standards rather than open ones, well, you either get what you pay for or you pay for it.

That's all very interesting, but straying back to the OP, thanks for the heads up, Bit.
Voxengo SPAN is the one plug-in that is always in my master bus.
It's almost iconic, and it's still free.

drewfx1
All I'm going to say is that when you buy into proprietary standards rather than open ones, well, you either get what you pay for or you pay for it.

Pro Channel?

mike_mccue

drewfx1
All I'm going to say is that when you buy into proprietary standards rather than open ones, well, you either get what you pay for or you pay for it.

Pro Channel?

Ya, certainly valid to think about. If you buy all your FX in ProChannel only format, well you are then beholden to Cakewalk and you have to use Sonar, or lose your FX. That should affect what you ware willing to pay. Like I bought Concrete Limiter, because it was nice and cheap ($20-30 I paid I think) and good. However I wouldn't sink $200 on it, even if I thought it were that good, because I'd want something that would also work in Vegas and Sound Forge.
 
I think it is a nice option to have, and I like the plugins that offer PC versions, but I still want the VST version if there's any real amount of money involved.

I'm just funning with Drew.
 
My initial entry into the thread was simply to voice some frustration that I don't get to use my Voxengo stuff more often.
 
Having said that I'm glad to learn that SPAN is finally VST3. 
 
:-)