UAD-2 solo/Laptop or Waves CLA

[Derykus]

I'm mostly interested in the LA-2A and 1176 plugins. I was looking at picking up the UAD solo/Laptop for the 1176/la2a/pultec-eq, but it seems like the card will be severely limiting if I want to upgrade in the future. So then I thought maybe the Waves CLA compressors will do. The CLA's get rave reviews around here, but a lot of people seem to swear by the UAD stuff being more accurate emulations.

By the UAD site, I could run up to 22 instances of the compressors/eq that comes with the solo/Laptop. I like that it would free up my CPU for other things. I would either get the UAD-2 and keep my current laptop, or I would get the CLA compressors and I'd probably need to upgrade my laptop for more processing power.

Which would you guys go for? Has anyone compared the two?

 

[OneDaySky]

I'm mostly interested in the LA-2A and 1176 plugins. I was looking at picking up the UAD solo/Laptop for the 1176/la2a/pultec-eq, but it seems like the card will be severely limiting if I want to upgrade in the future. So then I thought maybe the Waves CLA compressors will do. The CLA's get rave reviews around here, but a lot of people seem to swear by the UAD stuff being more accurate emulations.

By the UAD site, I could run up to 22 instances of the compressors/eq that comes with the solo/Laptop. I like that it would free up my CPU for other things. I would either get the UAD-2 and keep my current laptop, or I would get the CLA compressors and I'd probably need to upgrade my laptop for more processing power.

Which would you guys go for? Has anyone compared the two?

I went for the CLA for the same reason as you are thinking, not the UAD card for upgrading purposes. So if your PC is powerful and can afford CLA then I'd say go that route

 

[gabriel g.]

CLA

 

[Derykus]

So if your PC is powerful and can afford CLA then I'd say go that route

That's the only problem; my PC is pretty outdated. 2.0ghz Core2Duo. Plugins start to tax the CPU usage very quickly after Superior 2.0

 

[MetalSound]

i own 4 uad-1 cards and have to confess they are awesome. but 4 cards is the minimum to get a nice amount of plugins at the same time. so i guess a solo-2 (which is 2,5 times a uad-1 iirc) won´t get you that far.
i never tried the waves cla stuff but i would not recommend a uad-2 solo. buy a duo at least.

try the waves demo version and see how your cpu can handle it.

 

[botus99]

I got 2 UAD-1's and LOVE IT!!! Whenever they run out of power I use the Antress 1176 or LA-2A (seventh sign & lost angel) or The Rocket compressor. The UAD Pultec is my favorite "color" EQ

 

[exoslime]

i agree with MetalSound, that an solo/laptop wont you get that far for a long time

the only problem with the uad is that you will start to love their plugins and you will have to buy another dsp card sooner or later

i have also a pretty outdated pc, but running on win xp on pretty solid and audio based slim system, my cpu struggles if need to use tons of vst effects and instruments, thats why i bought an uad2-quard card, and 2nd hand tc-powercore, and it works like a charm.
top quality sounding plugins + a dsp chips that will enhance your overall system resources big time.

 

[Brett - K A L I S I A]

The UAD plugins sound slightly better than the Waves one to me. That being said, if you're using Pro Tools, the Waves are better programmed/coded and have way less latency, plus automation on them is much better too (unless maybe UA finally release their damn 6.0 version which is supposed to be RTAS).

 

[crillemannen]

I can really recommend the Ik multimedias 76 and La2a plugins. Sounds just as good as the Waves one.
I really like the vibe that the IK 1176 gives and except for the attack (which no plugin can simulate) they got it 100% right.
And they are quite cheap to, 99$/each. I just recently bought a couple of waves plugins that i use but i avoid waves as much as i can, the whole wup thing and that they are a horrendous bloodsucking company.

 

[greyskull]

I prefer CLA but thats just me.

 

[Derykus]

The UAD Pultec is my favorite "color" EQ

If you stack like 5 UAD Pultec eq's without making any EQ adjustments, does the signal get changed from just running through the "circuitry" of the plugin?

I've heard that it does, but I've never had any plug-ins that do this. Supposedly The Glitch Mob does this and they say it makes the audio "warmer."

 

[Skaldir]

Problem withe Pultec is that it always raises the volume of the track by adding it to around +1.5 dB
Then you automatically think its better

 

[MetalSound]

If you stack like 5 UAD Pultec eq's without making any EQ adjustments, does the signal get changed from just running through the "circuitry" of the plugin?

I've heard that it does, but I've never had any plug-ins that do this. Supposedly The Glitch Mob does this and they say it makes the audio "warmer."

no need to stack 5 plugs. one eq instance also colours the sound.

 

[Derykus]

no need to stack 5 plugs. one eq instance also colours the sound.

Could you post a little comparison of anything showing what kind of colour it gives? Or anyone else for that matter.

It's really tempting to buy one of these cards, but I want to be sure. There's no demo for these plugs

 

[BLUElightCory]

I'd pick the UAD plugs over Waves every time for sound quality, though they are admittedly much less convenient. If UA released the current UAD2 lineup as native plugs it'd be like Christmas.

I'd say to look around and see if you can find a retailer who will allow returns on UAD stuff (not sure what the policies out there are since they're a hardware/software combo). That way if you aren't happy you can return it.

Also, a Solo won't get you far - I'd advise going for at least a Duo or ideally a Quad (though you'd have to go with the Firewire solutions instead of the laptop card).

 

[tenebre]

I use both.... UAD is my favorite by far. I use one UAD2 quad. I can get through a large mix without to much printing. I would not bother with a SOLO.. too limiting one Massive passive is all you can run :-(

 

[xFkx]

I bought two UAD-1's when they were selling them for 99$ (+100$ gift coupon) and dig them a lot

but now, if I had to dish out the cash for a uad-2 card, i'd def go for waves

 

[Derykus]

but now, if I had to dish out the cash for a uad-2 card, i'd def go for waves

The UAD-2 solo/laptop card includes the 1176, la-2a, pultec eq, realverb pro, EMT-250 classic reverb, and a $50 voucher for the UA plugin store.

Additional plugins are included with the duo and quad right now.

CLA classic compressors looks like I can get for about $300 at some places. And I could get the UAD laptop card for $400.

How hungry are the CLA compressors? I vaguely remember demo'ing them last year, and I couldn't run very many...

 

[Melodeath]

I've never used UAD plug-ins, so I can't really advise you in terms of a comparison. However, I can tell you there's a promo going on through September 30th where UA is giving out free plug-ins. If you buy a quad you get the Massive Passive, EMT 250, and Studer for free. http://www.frontendaudio.com/SearchResults.asp?Search=UAD

I've been tempted to get a quad ever since the satellites came out.

 

[Ermz]

I can really recommend the Ik multimedias 76 and La2a plugins. Sounds just as good as the Waves one.
I really like the vibe that the IK 1176 gives and except for the attack (which no plugin can simulate) they got it 100% right.
And they are quite cheap to, 99$/each. I just recently bought a couple of waves plugins that i use but i avoid waves as much as i can, the whole wup thing and that they are a horrendous bloodsucking company.

The CLA is my choice, but you do have to balance it with Waves essentially being a bunch of vampires, as Christian said. I never feel quite so bad buying software as when giving money to them.

Maybe demo the IK plugs alongside the CLA pack, see whether they hold up, and if at all possible go that route.