Ableton Forum

I bought Live 8 back in December and Ive been playing around with it daily and learning a ton from experimenting and tutorials. I want to get some plugins now but Im not really sure about which ones are really good to have.

Any recommendations?

Thanks.

Do you have the suite version of Live? If so I would just mess with that stuff while your learning. If you just have the regular Live version I would get a few synths. Are you new to synths?

That really all depends on your style and prowess. By plug ins I suppose you are talking about VSTIs and not signal processing. It's like asking someone what sneaker should I buy. There are tons of them available and Live already has a sampler in simpler and drumracks that can take care of most anything you can think of. Albeit that other plugins have their own niches and sound generator techniques such as additive vs. subtractive sythesis. There are romplers and other type of plugs that offer sequencers that have varying things as well. You should do your homework and look at the tutorials and demos on Youtube and make your own decision. Anyone else's opinion will be biased based on their preference and style. Good Luck!

PS: As a personal note I enjoy Native Instruments Komplete 6 that offer a variety of instruments as a package.

it sounds like your pretty new to making music with computers.
do your self a huge favor and learn what you have already.
with lives instruments and effects you can do almost anything you want when it comes to electronic music.

i said almost..
live is really lacking a convincing analog va. for analog sounds i suggest u-he's ace or sylenth1.
but after that you really dont need anything else.


if you are doing something besides purely electronic music the list gets much much longer.

UAD but you need a DSP card they are fukkin wow though compressors EQs and some vintage reverbs, delays and FX
SoundToys expensive & super good
Softube super good

Waves are good but $uck as a company so get a crack or avoid altogether

djsynchro wrote:....so get a crack or avoid altogether

Ohhh no you didn't...... I'm telling!

Unless you Want to release a commercial record, you have everything you need in the suite. If you have the boxed version, of course. (the eic collection is a good starting point)

Live has all you need to get you starting and produce completely tracks that are capable to be released, as long as the music is good enough.

i think you place your question a little bit wrongly, start and then you will discover what YOU need or what you want different opposed to live's plugs and then ask again what people recommend regarding a specific plug... always start with what you have and then you will discover yourself after a while what is missing for you... asking in general what plugs are good to have, will bring hundreds of answers, if you then buy them all, does still not mean you really need them or have use for it, right now.

lapieuvre wrote:Unless you Want to release a commercial record, you have everything you need in the suite.

i think this statement is wrong, it is possible to release (produce) a commercial release with live only.

3rd party plugs are great and they can enhance the sound, character and possibilities, but they are not a 100% necessary must to achieve a good
production. (even i don't use much live's plugs, but for other reasons)

As some previous posters have said, make sure you learn the stuff you already have thoroughly before buying more.

If you are determined to get a plugin instrument then ZebraCM on the Computer Music magazine cover disc is awesome.

To answer a question with a question... what do you want to do? What are you feeling the need for that Live's built in stuff lacks?

I've always thought getting new gear (plugins etc.) is a way to fill a gap so it should be fairly evident if you need something new. E.g. if you're not happy with Live's reverb you'd go and look at new reverbs, etc...

djsynchro wrote: SoundToys expensive & super good
Softube super good

Nice!
Stillwell is also quite nice..

You've got a ton of excelent free plugins, both for instruments and effects.
At the moment, I'm having loads of fun with MinimogueVA.

Guitar Rig, Reason/Record, Native Instrument B4 (ORGAN)and Waves Diamond Bundle. Works for Reggae/Rock Steady music. As a previous poster said, you dont have to buy them all, especially since you wont be making any money off them for awhile.

and if you really want some 'new' stuff right away also have a look at dontcrack.com plenty of good freebees around there and they keep the site regular updated, too. well worth a visit once a month or so...