These NEGATIVE plugin reviewers are RUINING the audio industry!!!
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- Опубліковано 2 жов 2024
- WE NEED TO BAN ALL NEGATIVITY ON UA-cam!!!
My name is Paul Third and I am a Scottish youtuber / audio engineer / mixing engineer / audio geek. I mostly cover audio engineering related content ranging from audio plugin shootouts / plugin comparisons (acustica audio plugins, universal audio etc etc) to actual analog vs digital / gear vs plugins plugin tests via access analog and mix analog. I even include ddmf plugindoctor tutorials in my plugin reviews so you can be your very own plugin tester and experiment and understand whats actually going on under the hood. I also discuss digital music distribution from time to time and like to give my viewpoint on online music distributors such as onerpm and distrokid.
All of my audio blind tests involving music production software are conducted in presonus studio one which is my main daw and I also use HOFA blind test 4U as my blind test software. In terms of my audio interface I record and monitor through my audient id44 and use an audio technica AT2050 for all of my voice overs.
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What do you think? Is criticism an important thing to keep on youtube as long as its factual?
In an ideal world we would have completely objective reviews with a steady balance of pros and cons, but thats just not how this platform works most of the time unfortunately.
Dan Worral does a much better job than me at "finding the balance" but I dunno, it feels like you either do it right and lead by example like he does a lot or hit the tilt straight on with a f*cking sledge hammer... My approach most of the time haha 😅
Its not a good approach but I hope people understand why I sometimes attempt to "balance the equation" and trust that I only do it on occasions where I feel like marketing and hype has gone overboard without any real merit (in my opinion)
Be interesting to read what you all think. Good or bad 🤓
We've got to have negative reviews. If you can null an expensive "analog" EQ with a stock EQ (but with more aliasing), people have a right to know. Cheers!
I think this is a mostly good point you make. The distinction I think that is worth drawing, and one you don’t quite address (as it isn’t really the point of this video so this isn’t meant as shade or anything of that sort), is the difference between what a video says and the business-side of things.
A lot of the commentary about negativity that I have seen recently is about the business side of these videos. It isn’t about “omg you railed against this plugin” but “in order to make these types of videos I have to get taken advantage of/I find no joy in these types of videos”
Keep doing what you do. I mean, what's the point of just saying what the company's own advertising videos already say? In fact I seek out negative reviews of stuff I'm thinking about getting. Sometimes they dissuade me; sometimes I think "Yeah that's minor" and go get it. But I would never go OMG HOW CAN YOU BE SUCH A HATER. (And it's not like you never like anything.)
For the record, I haven't bought the BB plug and thanks to your review I'm not going to, but I got the free version -- yes it's just tube saturation, but it's tube saturation that sounds good to me, it's easy to use and it's free. So we differ. OMG I MUST SLAG YOU NOW. (Eyeroll) I can't believe people get so worked up about this.
@Jared Loiben I understand. What Im viewing on youtube is creators moaning about use of plugin doctor and debates about "irrelevant" features, and slyly aiming that at guys like myself.
The "making people feel like they are being conned" thing I can't hide from as I do genuinely believe that is the case a lot of the time.
However I understand how others will disagree as it can be viewed as trivial points to some.
@rick massimo I do the same. The only time I ever touch gearspace is when I'm looking for criticism towards anything audio related. If it's there I'll find it quick. I try not to go near it though and do my own tests but it's there as a last resort if I can't be arsed 🤣
Keep doing what you’re doing man. Your honest reviews never seem toxic to me and I’m grateful for you cutting through marketing speak to explain what’s actually going on. We follow you because of your attention to detail, your point of view, your ear, and your sense of humor! Love ya Paul!
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Big fax
This “every reviewer is paid once they reach a certain threshold” will reach a critical mass at some point. I’m sick to death of most audio gear channels, I’m tired of being advertised to non-stop. Keep up the good work Paul, you’re a light in the darkness!
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Agreed. I unsubscribe more than I subscribe these days.
Absolutely! The most recent of marketing tricks that has worked a charm. Get people to advertise products to each other and take the marketing man out the equation. Let us run our mouths silly doing their work and if there's backlash...oh well take that on too no worries
Simply put, your to the point personality / style & opinions based on testing / facts make you one of the best UA-camrs on such topics.
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Worrall's good - knowledgeable & has a way with words. The Dutch guy's also knowledgeable and generally trustworthy, but suffers from the false belief he is funny and tends to give mostly subjective reviews. Mr. Third is Actually funny, also probably just behind the older Worrall in knowledge/experience, and performs rigorous testing in the manner of Worrall. Both Worrall and Third have also demonstrated that they can make very good mixes, and so should be considered credible.
I'm just over the moon you think I've demonstrated very good mixes. I care more about that than anything else haha
I'm wondering still, every day, how is it possible that 80% of adult human monkeys get to call themselves as adults, when their mental development seems to have withered after 9 years of existing. Triggered about every weeny tiny obstacle they encounter. And I'm bewildered also about why is this kind of video even necessary. Analytical and critical thinking is the base for development, learning and evolution. It's the only way also to be continuously creative and push the limits of "safe space". Companys have no interest in your success or well-being, they only care about your money. If they can trick you out of your money with bad products, they will do so. I have myself been victim of this countless times, so I do know what I'm talking about. And there is no other entity to battle this, than the consumer itself. If the consumer is not critical, you will get piles of steaming s**t for your money, and the company's CEO laughs all the way to the bank. And still, people don't understand this... I have no words or thoughts to handle this fact.
And by the way, there is a difference between critical and negative. If there's a reason for criticism, it is just that: criticism. If there is no reason for criticism and still b*tch about it, that's negativity. So when you point weak points in a product, you are not negative. The people who get triggered about it, are. So, long story short, keep on the good work. Thanks for your efforts. I'm one of those critical consumers, who want to see the critical analysis of products, but also the myths and beliefs of the industry. Let the adult babies cry in their bubbles, you never know if one day some of those bubbles may burst.
I made a ‘critical’ video about the BB Tubes and said it’s NOT game changing and isn’t as good as most of the hype , but there’s a difference between being critical and just bashing a product / company just to get clicks. There is a professional way of doing things and then there are some UA-camrs who need to be outrageous, screaming and yelling with tons of foul language just to get views. I tell my audience to be VERY CAREFUL about who you’re watching and what their motives are.
"just bashing a product / company just to get clicks"
Enlighten me on who does that Dave?
However I also tell my audience to be VERY CAREFUL about who they are watching because you never know which companies are being protected by certain creators... As you said a lot of hidden agendas out there, especially when there's free stuff to get out of it.
That's why it's always nice to have some contrast on the platform, regardless of how it's delivered. Everybody should be entitled to voice their opinion and deliver that in whatever way they seem fit on this platform 🤓
Keep doing you bro, in every sphere of life balance is needed. How can you trust a source if all they talk about is the upside of something?
Correct. Works both ways
Hi, Paul. A friend of mine has a Ferrari, he has had a lot of costs and problems with it, but he still talks wonderfully about the brand. I bought a cheap but practical car, nothing fancy, but it serves me well. Can my friend critique my car? No, he can’t, because I paid mine and it serves me. Can I critique his? Nope. It’s his problem or vanity. I mean, we can critique and analyse what we have paid for, what we use, and we should, because we are merely humble small consumers to the all mighty and wealthy big companies. I see it as not only our right but as our duty! On the other hand, it would be very hypocritical to critique daws and plugins we were given free by those companies in return for propaganda. Therefore I got huge respect for sir Dan (and not so much for the Dutch boy). Amongst ourselves, honest working, paying, using and consuming humble people, we are needed to analyse and critique in honest ways, sometimes humorously, sometimes constructively, and sometimes we need to say how bad the things are they want us to pay way too much for. That’s how we get better, learn, improve workflows and also let us be respected more by those big companies. Imagine someday they will see the importance of improving their products, even their client support, they might even listen to their clients needs! Wouldn’t that be wonderful! In the end, we all win, but we must contribute in honest ways. Do it for yourself, for us, not for Waves, UAD, Avid or Plugin Alliance and (need I say it) by no means for Google’s UA-cam neither ;)
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Before you started getting paid for doing adds on UA-cam, I'd watch every video you made. Now I just pop by now and then to see if there's anything of value to me on your channel. I understand you want to taken as a informative and honest channel but honestly that went out the drain when I realized you'd "gone commercial". Good for you if you want to strike a balance between honest reviews and making money from your partnerships but it has a price. You loose a certain part of your community. I was with you from the start but not anymore. When I saw you all all the rest of the "produce like a pro" hustlers doing the same "review" of the Audient stuff at the same time, your "credibility" went down the drain for me.
I do however hope you gain the popularity and income you wish for here in UA-cam land and luckily there are other very small channels starting up, that continues where you left off being 100% independent.
Still - Best of luck :-)
Opportunities will come up from time to time when you grow an audience and you've got to make that decision whether a demonstration of a product is of interest to you and you feel that it can be genuinely useful for you.
I'm not fussed on credibility. Credibility doesn't pay the bills or make you any happier a person. It's more of an ego thing than anything else in my opinion but that doesn't mean I'll shill out to every Tom Dick and Harry either. I'm very picky and I've actually only done like 10 or 12 sponsored videos in my time. Considering I've done over 300 videos on this channel.
Take the SP8 as a good example. I have a good relationship with audient products. Used the id14 then id44 daily and the SP8 worked really well when I tested it.
I enjoyed doing the geeky stuff and learning about expandibility, standalone modes, adat connectivity and stuff. I learned a lot from making that video.
I understand you would rather have somebody fully independent but as I've said previously in another video, I'm not a big fan of making all of these developers and manufacturers a lot of money at the expense of my hard work.
Id personally feel like an absolute mug now for making free content cause a developer asked me to do it for an NFR.
I make the content I want to make on my channel. I do very little sponsored content by choice and I get it from your point of view but when you are working a full time job and spending a lot of your spare time following your passion at the expense of spending time with your family, you need to take certain opportunities that work for you without selling yourself out.
How do you think I was able to afford the 500 series stuff for the tests I'm gonna do this year. How do you think I could justify buying the dx7 pro+ and all of the rest of the stuff I need. I took the opportunities to work on products that interested me that I would actually use.
I believe I do what I do in a way where my own moral compass is in check but if you believe that everybody on YT should be 100% independent then it'll never matter what I say.
I respect your opinion though
While I have personally felt your criticisms were nitpicking a bit, I’ve come to appreciate the honesty. It’s difficult to navigate the gear review world with the default positive approach. Sometimes I buy something anyways and disagree with a negative reviewer yet I appreciate their review all the same. If anything, I went in with better understanding of what to expect.
Your autism and approach are absolutely necessary in this climate. Thanks for this video, Mr. Third.
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I enjoy your vids, find them very helpful. you're testing products, giving an honest opinion. I appreciate it. So thank you for your work.
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Please keep doing your "yeah, but you could just use a basic EQ for this" content! I learn a LOT about how audio really works when you dive into these details.
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I value your honesty, mate. I want to hear the pros and cons of new music gear so that I can make an informed decision before I purchase anything. Plus, coming from a fellow Scot, we're a bunch of dour f*ckers. We can't help it! 😂👌
Very true.. Door as f*ck 🤣
False positivity is the negativity that needs to vanish... "No that pool of sharks is fine to jump in, I'm sure they are all lovely"...
Setting someone up to fail by lying about the positives is actual very toxic
Im like that, but I've got to watch cause I'm a bit too honest with my girls. 4 & 8. I stopped clapping at my eldests ballet recital cause I thought "I like it, but not clap for every little thing like it. 2 rounds of clapping is plenty".
I see the world different to most other parents 😅
My family doesn't believe in false positivity. If your shit at something you'll know pretty soon haha 😅
@@PaulThird But you also need to encourage children to explore their interests. Before you have trained you are always bad at something. Chances of making use of ballet, are pretty slim though, is is pretty toxic culture, but it may lead to interest in other dancing styles, or be the necessary level of ballet needed to work in musicals. So that balance is difficult... Playing an instrument opens a few more avenues to make something of that interest in the future.
And in the music industry, it is quite possible, someone has to play in to the false positive, with some singers for example, to be able to get the material needed to finish the project.
idk, I much prefer objective and sometimes harsh honesty if it means i'm getting the clearest picture possible. In music production/engineering/software theres a lot of toxic positivity and sugar coating and companies wield that to their advantage.
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Plllllease keep doin your thing. If you are truely, factually, with graphs and data, and it exposes what is real and not real.. that is something people need.
There is far too many big companies that abuse their power of popularity to excuse themselves of making a quality product and instead just pump out the next thing, use some BS marketing language, pay some engineer for permission to put their name on a review like they actually use the shit. Waves specifically, their business model is "trick as many people into buying our shit by making them think its on sale and saving 200 bucks".
From what I've seen, you approach all your comparisons from a neutral position, and use your ears to make an opinion, and dive into the inner workings to show what they are actually doing. Just keep doing you, ignore the hate mail. There is no avoiding it, and it just validates you are doing something right. Tell them to forward their hate mail to the youtube comments so it helps you with the youtube algorithm. lol.
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The negativity is the main reason I've backed away from creating content for my channel. I also feel like too many are caught up on the delivery and productions that look like Hollywood Blockbusters. The trolls just miss the point of an informative video.
Tbh Ive found that production value isn't that important as long as the content is engaging and well paced
Constructive critics are important to make better changes and better products. You are really good doing that bro .
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Come on people, the sole reason for youtube channels is to try to make money. Anyone else saying different is a fraud. I remember the days before money could be made when people actually cared about giving good advice, today that's all gone.
I'm dabbling in DSP development (mostly Max for Live at the moment), and took a couple DSP and signals classes as part of my engineering degree. I'm highly (and vocally) critical of plugin developers, even ones I like, mostly because of the marketing. In my view, it often is misleading, or at the very least overhypes, and is usually (objectively) designed to convince people to buy "the same thing" over and over again. This is especially true for EQs and saturation (most of which is based around 2nd order biquads and simple waveshapers respectively). Nothing wrong with these approaches, but I think people should have the knowledge to decide whether it is worth it to them to spend $50 to $100 for a slightly different interface covering the exact same DSP method(s) used by plugin(s) they already own.
I started offering free "clones" of several of these I've analyzed and reverse engineered (unfortunately only M4L right now), but I'm trying to come at it from the perspective of education. There are too many people trying to fleece you. I have a couple videos on the way of my reverse engineering techniques, how waveshapers work, and why you should think twice before buying another. Knowledge is power!
Also, for the record, I highly respect some plugin developers. On the paid side, Sean Costello of Valhalla DSP seems to do everything right in my book. He charges a fair price ($50, no discounts, plus some free plugins), is quick to update his plugins (free updates), shares his knowledge but publishing articles on various DSP reverb related topics, and doesn't employ any draconian copy protection systems. His UIs are also simple and functional, and his marketing is grounded. See! I can be nice.... :) Reddit doesn't always think so...
Dan is helpful. You can be hyper critical but at least in a scientific way I can tell you have researched. Unfortunately the snake oil guy usually reviews things without any prior experience or referencing the manual, which is counter productive to me
Personally? I think its a load of BS! Most of the music channels. Who cares what someone opinion is on a tool? Only the person buying it can decide whether they like it or not. Being as no one hears audio the same... Which brings me onto the learning channels. You can't learn to be a mix engineer by watching videos!
You'll learn techniques and not really know when to apply them as the source material changes every time... I can name channels that're taking lessons from pro producers, And then making out they're top engineers who are uncertified.
But its because they know if you watch their channel you won't get to a good level, So you'll keep going back. Overtime they're improving by taking lessons than just feeding tiny aspects of them lessons! Just enough where people think they're improving but couldn't' possible determine that because they don't have the listening skills haha
When just hiring a teacher, Depending what level you're at?
Maybe 1 to 3 years you'd be a pro mix engineer. You get to a good level when someone showing you & training your listening skills!
Do you think these people would have a youtube channel, if they didn't get paid? Reason they have a channel is because music is a dead media and that's their only source of income!
Stop giving these clowns money and a platform.
People think they're pursuing a career this way by watching? Deluded. Really no point in watching them channels...
One day people will notice that on channels and stop supporting/watching their BS! Anyone can be an expert on a video about music production. Why would you need to be versed in something? To go read up about a subject and reiterate that on a video? Absolutely bonkers...
Fact is? They tell people or show people, What they want them to believe. And it doesn't matter to them because they're getting views either way. As for that White Sea Studios, What a twonk!
How is that a good review or scientific breakdown? WTF? Who cares what he thinks or likes or doesn't like? That doesn't define it as actually being good or bad.
I like to hear both sides to a story, I like the positive or negative reviews - your opinion is as valid as the rest. I will then make my own mind up, KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!!
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I don’t think you’re negative you give an opinion on something based on your criteria for a plug in … it’s up to the viewer to make a decision on using or purchasing , based on their needs
I think I can sometimes be a bit overly critical to the point where there's no room for objectivity which isn't great, but I only do that if I feel that it's absolutely necissary
@@PaulThird don’t be too hard on yourself … we are all learning all the time 😃i enjoy your content
Conflating criticism with negativity seems dishonest. Fact based criticism always has and always will be vitally important to anyone interested in doing good, honest work.
Thanks Paul.
That's what I try and tell people. If there's nothing for me to criticise then I can't really say much but when there is stuff physically there for me to criticise then it's fair to comment on it. There's been a few cases of people faking problems which I disagree with. As long as its fact based and can be effectively recreated by other users then it's fair criticism
@@PaulThird Who's listening to their mix saying "I shouldn't be too critical here, that's bad." anyway? be honest & critical, it leads to improvement.
Yes, balance sounds good. But that dutch fellow is all about click bait. Almost exclusively rants with annoying cuts. The audio community needs someone like Gerald Undone. Lots of info, pros and cons, etc., can't say he's not passionate about what he does.
We need criticism and critique… and bs callers to push the industry forward. To improve the tools. To improve our music production.
You do the work of good Paul, keep it up.
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Some people cannot handle the truth. Its the same with many things. They are like children not grown mature rational adults.
I watch many, many plugin videos but you are one of the few I have bookmarked. I like your honesty and thorough, logical approach, and I like the humour. You know I often think with negative comments, if you don't like it, don't watch it for goodness sake! If I don't like a video I turn it off right away. Why would I want to waste my life watching a video I don't like, getting angry about it and then venting in a comment? It's just getting caught up in the drug anger/righteousness. It's super addictive, but it's no way to spend your life in my opinion. Think about how you feel when you do it. Do you feel good? I'll be you don't if you really look. You're feeling bad and venting with a negative comment to try and quench some of that, but it doesn't really help does it? Before you know it, you're raging again about something. Is that really how you want to spend your time?
I think social media in general has turned into a very contrasting space and it's the severity of the contrast that causes such nastyness in the comments. Basically, everybody has to be wrong for somebody to be right.
I love things like contrast and criticism, what I can’t handle is this performance aspect that seems to develop in some UA-camrs where they feel things need to be dramatic and confrontational. It’s just exhausting to watch. I don’t need to watch someone get upset and tell me how stupid designers are that chose to put screws on their plug-in graphics. Sure, be passionate about what you’re talking about, but my god, I’d so much rather have a helpful friend on the other side of the screen rather than a performer disguised as an informative critic of the tools we use.
Taking youtubers seriously is like taking tabloid journalists seriously.
Yup, ..it's a good thing question claims on (virtual)gear. And yes, White Sea Studio's is a guy with a fair opinion aswell.
I ONLY watch you, dan, and white sea. There are exceptions: the turorial guys. Warren, MDN, some others…for plugins though you guys are my final stop. If you were a shill- I wouldnt watch. You style and way your brain works is why I love you ❤️
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Any specific niche that has gear has this same problem my other YT friends in other niches tell me stories all the time so its just universal that people seek confirmation bias and if you stray from the narrative in any capacity individuals tend to not like it, espically went its tied to emotional desires. But contrasting opinions in audio are what have led many audio engineers to think outside the box, challenge the normal opinion and status quao to develop new approaches to creating music. As long as words aren't harming any individual or malice in intent then there is no harm in videos having a difference of opinion then most other channels coving the same gear and or topics. Enjoyed the video.
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when it comes to my own channel i just try to keep the balance right. i like ranting about plugins that i find quite useless. it is meant to show the other developers that they should actually try hard, no matter what their target group is. but if all my videos were rants it would be kinda meh. no one wants to watch someone being mad all the time. you have to give people credit, so i don't jump on every scandalous bandwagon, but just on the pearls that stick out to me
Yeah, I had to really rein my content back as I was becoming "that guy" for a while. I only do the ranty over critical stuff when the youtube landscape and community kind of make it clear that it's something to be looked into
I don't like you. I don't dislike you. I'm indifferent. This is why I watch your videos. Your content offers an interesting perspective and has value. Your time and effort is appreciated. My opinion isn't worth much though, as I'm a massive loser. Cheers!
It's just content at the end of the day. It's there to be consumed. I don't expect people to like or dislike me. As long as you appreciate the work that's put in that's all that matters 🤜🤛
Cant wait for you to review the new waves Magma channel strip...lol...I wonder if they fixed anything or just repackaged it.
Nah I'm done haha I can't be bothered with waves. There will be enough sceptics surrounding this release this time
I only recently discovered your channel and Dan Worral's channel, and I unsubscribed some other, because they're just marketing content/spam. A waste of time (and money if you buy some overhyped useless stuff).
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negativity can be hold in weight, when even showing postitive things.. so yea
Human beings have stopped just being honest. Every tweet, post and comment seems to require an agenda or a political point these days. If we are honest, and say what we truly believe about something based on a good knowledge of the product, then that is all we can ask, and require. Thankfully most of us (I hope) can see though the click bait and false claims and only have genuine reviewers and content makers in our playlist. Your time and effort is not wasted Paul. 😎
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I have a lot of respect for your reviews and their honesty, and from what I've seen, you and Weaver Beats are the only two creators of any size really willing to give proper warts and all reviews. And that's important, particularly when you get some developers that are extremely unethical and target and market snake oil products at new producers (*cough* Unison Audio) in what is scam adjacent if not an actual scam.
If people get all butthurt because your review doesn't agree with their confirmation bias about some product they've bought, really, does that matter? Far better to cater to those who haven't yet bought and may be considering it, than preaching to the choir, so to speak.
I think the balance is pretty well placed for unison. That's the only reason I've never made a video about them. They are the exception to the rule as mostly everybody knows its all bullshit. Even the positive guys nail them 🤣
Keep doing what you're doing Paul. It's all about context - you do a great job of explaining your context and why you've come to your conclusions. If people don't like that, that's not your fault, or indeed your problem.
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You are doing the job that 99% of reviewers never do
We need them to call bad plugins and bad practices out
See Unison Audio if we just sit there and do nothing the ultimate loser will be all those beginners that will benefit the whole industry later
All those companies aim for some quick bucks in the present but forget that they can get so much more in the future
Waves Audio somewhat improved because of OUR pressure on them we need to do it no matter the cost, the future depends on us
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Great video. Just do what you do man. People have to be responsible for how THEY think, act and feel. It’s not your problem.
I have bought some products, based on my interpretation of your opinion. Some of those I have grown to love. Some of them I have not. Now that’s MY responsibility. I’m not about to say “Oh you made me waste money in a product that … blah blah, f**king blah”. No, YOU didn’t do anything EXCEPT show a product. What I do with that information is up to me.
Love your work. 👍
Keep it up. ❤
Ps: DONT “like or heart” this comment. 😂
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Hey Paul. Geeky, autistic... what could possibly go wrong? Great channel and content, keep it coming and good luck to you....
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Is it really about positivity and negativity? Isn't it about rationality vs emotions? About being objective or bias?
Most of the time youtubers don't do youtube solely for educational or entertaining purposes. Usually youtubers try to grow their numbers. Wether it's for attention, money, fame - people try to get more people to watch them. I'd argue most youtubers try to directly or indirectly do it in order to make some money. But most channels don't make money, eventhough they are a lot of work. It's hard to quit something you've invested in. Thus they start comparing themselves to bigger channels and adapting. They continue doing what gets them numbers, even when they are sick of it. Once you dance with the devil, he will always be the lead. Translation: Once you look at making numbers, you will never be fully free to do what you want to do.
For most people being a "yes-man" is more successful than being a "no-man". For some the opposite is the case. At the end this is the "free market".. there is a certain demand and the supply adapts. But of course on average there is more of an incentive to be positive: You get free stuff, your video might be featured on a plugins webpage which drives traffic to your channel. And last but not least: People that spent money on a product are more invested in defending it, than people that haven't spent money on it are invested in congratulating you to save them money.
What I like is objectivity - wether it turns out to be positive or negative in the end is not as important. You attempt to be objective, but you don't always succeed. Nobody does. The thing about objectivity is that it's very rational. But you don't sell products NOR your video with rationality. Emotionality sells. Be it positive or negative - most people like emotions. Social media is all about emotions. Selling plugins noone needs is all about emotions. Selling hardware noone needs is all about emotions. Growing your youtube channel is all about emotions. ON AVERAGE. And that results in a lot of exaggerated and fake emotions everywhere.
What I don't like is that everything is so incredibly revolving around products and almost every youtuber treats this as a business, instead of a hobby. I understand that they treat it as a business, because they put in a lot of work - but I don't like the result. I understand that it's all about products, because that's the biggest common ground of industry, content-creator and viewer - but I don't like the result. The last instrumental I made was 95% Ableton-Stock-Plugins (challenged myself). It's a great instrumental. And I bet you you can't "hear" wether I made a beat with mostly stock-plugins, or "paid" ones any more than I can hear wether something was a little saturated or not. You'll prefer one beat over the other and that's that.
I'm currently really sick of politics, capitalism and society. I try to have more fun. I want to see and feel real emotions. I'm sick of fake laughs, fake anger, fake sympathy, fake objectivity, fake consideration, fake authenticity, fake everything. I want to keep it real and people to keep it real with me. If someone honestly believes something I know is false, that's okay - as long as he doesn't fake to believe it in order to protect his bias, his ego, his business, his friends or whatever it may be. It's hard, I know - we're all going through some of that. But I just hope 2023 will be more real than 2022.
Yeah I sometimes wonder what people on youtube actually think about things. It'd be interesting if we heard all the truths. I've been told loads about reviews that never happened cause of xyz and nobody will ever know. There's even one big youtuber blackmailing a developer cause they refused to pay them a monthly amount for promotion throughout the year haha its crazy when you see what nobody else sees
BB tubes was lame. Unfortunately I already bought it before I saw your video, but I was able to exchange it for a different plug. Keep doing what you’re doing. Appreciate your honesty
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Who is calling for such a ban? Just what I want,.the honest audio engineering channels to be banned like the honest medicinal product channels were banned...
Mostly channels making digs about plugins that have had a thorough once over with science. Basically what there saying is "I know there's a video already out showing this plugin to have issues that 'nobody cares about'. I'm all about sound, not analysers so I want you to disregard all of that 'purposely made for drama' nonsense and listen to a 'real engineer using his ears'
Theres quite a few at it. Some have tried to entice me to reply back in the hope I can garner views for them but I'm not biting
@@PaulThird hahaha, well Paul all I have to say is you are doing something right because you have haters out there who just want to give their subjective opinion. Which really doesn't amount to much unless it's also backed up with objective analysis.
The biggest myth I hear on UA-cam about recording. "Oh, it's a great band in a great room recorded live ", with regards to albums made in the 80s, when I know from personal experience, that's total hogwash.
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You do what you do. It’s great to have an honest opinion. Love you and your channel.
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Mate, I fully appreciate your honest approach and critical thinking. At no point did I think you were being negative and in fact you've saved me money, BBTubes lol, keep it up and more c word...please!
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Your videos have done two things for me:
1) saved me money on unnecessary plug-in purchases
2) encouraged me to dig deeper and work on mixing skills rather than gear.
Big thanks for that.
(Now please like this comment)
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Basically, the truth doesn't sell products 😉
Big ups Paul and keep doing what you do bro, unfortunately Jesus wasn't crucified for being one of the "good guys" 🙄
edit
If you put a heart ♥ or a like on my comment, I'll never listen to you ever again 😂
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What's the point in criticizing you for your opinion? They could if you made mistakes on describing objective features and functionality but not for opinion. Anyhow, I love your reviewing style and yourrr accent :)
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I find some aspects of plugin reviews rather subjective and pointless at times, considering you can download demos of most products, you can simply A/B compare you experience with reviews, weighted against cost to you and how it sits in your studio set up, which is also part of comparison you need to make as a potential customer. The people I most worry for, are new people to the producer scene who maybe haven’t observed the explosion of DSP and music technology with the same eyes as more seasoned folk who can quickly spot a ‘Trash’ or ‘Disguised’ plugin and a company with plans on your wallet. I find these arguments a little more difficult with hardware, as the development and manufacture of hardware is a lot more complex with reliance on hands on experience at it’s core statement. One of the first statements I learnt about music production when I got started, still remains true today. “There’s nearly always another way”. 👍
Hardware I think is a little easier cause you can check for L+R discrepancies on stereo units, run the gear through doctor and test frequency response, harmonics, dynamics, run physical sweeps, null tests etc etc
You can still easily check if hardware is delivering what they claim and set up closely matched AB's to see if the price tag is justified.
The QC issue with hardware can be it's strong point as well as if I have a problem on a plugin, most people will have the same problem where with hardware theres no way of proving if its a fault on one unit or them all. However if it is an issue with them all then it's not a quick easy fix where a plugin just gets a fix via an update.
I think really puting analog through its paces is more important due to QC, shipping, human element etc but not many seem to test gear as much as plugins. Normally just plug it in and be amazed by the 'magic' haha
What ever get views right? Strong emotions makes cash. As someone who watches all the video's, I take what everyone says as a grain of salt because I know you all want views so you cannot above all else be boring. Plugins are either GREAT! Or complete shit. Just you cannot be boring above all else.
Unfortunately there's a lot of truth to that. People need to be constantly engaged to keep their attention. That's why this video was originally 24 minutes but chopped down into under 10. When people are bored they switch off and stop listening
There are people in parts of the world for whom $29 OR $59 is a significant amount of money. They might have to save up or make do without some thing else for several weeks in order to save up and purchase a plugin for such an amount. And for those people having a review that outlines what may be wrong with a product is a very positive thing. It's all well and good when such amounts of money are trivial, but for a high school student from Cuba, it's almost a betrayal when her trusted "expert" on UA-cam is just dishing out praise while failing to mention negative issues with a plugin that she'll later discover after spending her hard-earned savings.
I think about that all the time. Annoys me when people say "it's only $29".. The value of money is very different from neighbourhood to neighbourhood, city to city, country to country.
If I can help people spend their money where they feel they got good value from something then it's a bonus
You should expect to upset people's beliefs when you're challenging those very same beliefs. So arguing with those very same people you're debunking is fruitless. You'll never win a game of tennis when you're playing against a wall. You'll never win a debate with a wall. Your content is for everyone else, not them. Keep doing you, man.
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Delightfully logical. My BS meter always goes off when everyone appears to agree on what I should buy. Don't like/heart this comment! Use that second to work on another great vid!
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Don’t change anything Paul. Except occasionally your underwear. Love the channel.
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I honestly don't think there's a debatable issue at all. The Internet, especially UA-cam and even more specifically the pro audio space therein is absolutely rammed with bullshit opinions and misguided or downright corrupt and dishonest advice. The worst of this are 'producers' who are earning an income from having good things to say about things they are given to review. Mind you, it's been this way for decades with magazines selling the ideal of 'buying this will make your music better'.. So it's nothing new. What is new though is the sheer quantity of poor information.
So I think that honest commentary on the state of the art and all the associated products is absolutely crucial. It's gold. Its real.
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so, this is fundamental: while on the one hand social media "invites" a lot of people who obviously have no purpose in life to share their useless complaints about whatsof***ever, on the other hand all these "music geer-UA-camrs" live from the sole fact that they help the industry to sell their stuff. Of course they want everything nice and "pro sales"....Let´s not take any of this too serious... It´s people talking ...let´s better do stuff...
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When someone is making a conscious effort to avoid any kind of critical statements in something they call "review" - it's definitely not a "review". A review consists of critical appraisal followed by a list of pluses and minuses. Also, in a world where almost every type of plugin was done 100 times before, it's getting harder and harder to fake enthusiasm and is getting increasingly annoying to run into these fakes. These "pro reviewers" tend to get sanctioned promptly by the community because their effort is dishonest and unprofessional - not because of inherent toxicity.
That's a good point. Whenever I reviewed a member of staff i was always focused on what can be improved. Hardly much thought into positives as that was an expectation they had set, but I still did it for the "shit sandwich" haha
I don't need a damn heart because I know we're on the same page.
Don't give me fluff, just give me honest and critical reviews. Every kid can't get a trophy.
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How can we see a tool for what it really is without having any kind of critique or perspective? “Just see a tool for what it is” needs critique otherwise it’s a blind statement that might also miss some unique characteristic on the flip side. Anyone who doesn’t care isn’t watching anyhow! I personally enjoy being enlightened and understanding what’s going on under the hood!
Some people want to be the passenger on a plane, and some people want to know how the engine works. Out of 300 videos on the same topic you’re going to find the ones that serve you the snack on the flight, and then you will also find the ones that tell you how the engines work. When a product comes out and pretends it’s a whole different kind of engine than the engine that you already know, it’s not a negative comment to say “that’s the bloody same” especially if it is the same. That’s called “seeing a tool for what it is.” The negativity comes out of pretending that it’s something else and the people who care feeling like they’re being deceived. And I’d call that truth more than negativity. I’m only 2 mins in. I need to finish watching your video. :)
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hows about you only like comments I make, cuz I dont care or know how to even see if my comment has been liked, and we dont tell nobody why, and I'll make comments that are not even tangentially related to the video, and you respond in kind, with a statement that is not even in the same realm of what I said. and then... we'll be rich RICH RICH I SAY, rich in the spirit of a life lived ok-ishly.
Me and my old boss uses to play air ping pong when nobody was in the shop, we'd even make the noises...
I heard a proverb: Don't argue with an idiot. From a distance people dont say "Hey, look at that smart guy and that idiot arguing"; they say "Look at those two idiots arguing."
That's a pretty good saying tbf haha
Quite honestly, I reckon content creators should do genuinely honest blind tests - that way none of us will ever be fooled by them. But that won't happen. And I really hate millennial sound bites but honestly, just ignore the hate. There's plenty of us who find your videos entertaining and informative. And that's the point: informative, whether negative or positive, we have reviews that we can rely on.
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I'm the type of person who likes all the wacky plugins like Infiltrator and Silo and Stutter Edit 2. None of that is analogue unless you're from Space
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Tha wurdled is indeed filled with contrasts.
Much respect to you Paul and your content, i think a lot of people value your tests. Your testing is very fair and unbiased but the entertaining way tear some plugins to shreds based on these objective test is so entertaining. UA-cam has become an advertising tool, and marketing is inherently full of crap designed to get our money. I see the same in youtubers that do golf content and there is a creator in that space called Mark Crossfield that through fair and objective testing challenges (and confirms) the marketing that has frankly gotten totally out of hand in the golf industry. Its looks the same in the audio production space. It looks like manufactures freely make claims because they know the general user wont be able to test it our hear it and positive reviews + our want to justify our purchase will take over and we will convince ourselves that the plugin is good thus, wasting our time and money on it. Your, Dan's and Wytse's channels don't bring negativity they are very entertaining (which is positive and what youtube content is supposed to be) and i would question (hard) the motivation of any one that says so (being negative that is), ye bring balance to the hard sell that youtube has become... and thanks for that.
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My three favourite reviewers on here Paul are you, Wytse, and Weaver Beats - simply because you are very willing to be negative where it is needed. I don't want to waste my time watching paid shill commercials.
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Companies are now cherry picking content people and are now only giving gear to UA-camrs who align with their marketing. They used to like getting true feedback but now they don't want feedback, they want to only sell their cheaply made flawed products and not to have to fix them or withdraw them.
They know their products are flawed or not even needed in most cases.
This is true. I never get expensive gear offers cause they know I'll test it against the plugins or cheaper hardware properly. The only way you can justify expensive gear in the thousands is to A/B it properly. Nearly all hardware comparisons that claim night and day differences are louder in the hardwares favour. It's so common its scary. Either that or the plugins simply been dialed by eye and not ear or in doctor to match curves or compression envelopes.
Theres too much money to be made with the big stuff. Needs to be glorified and not objectively viewed.. Funnily enough most of these guys are sponsored by Sweetwater haha
You've always punched above you're weight, Paul - don't stop now 🤜🏻🤛🏻
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“If I’m calling to an end of the war, then I’m a pacifist. And in times of war pacifists are more hated than the enemy. Because the enemy affirms their identity. The pacifist questions it.” - Charles Eisenstein
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A reviewer who is not willing to be critical and point out problems is
nearly useless. Everything is not equal, and differentiating the great
from the not-so-great is exactly what a reviewer needs to do for us.
I agree. I got flack for that sp8 video I made last week even though I ran physical tests to give people more context. Compared it against a much more expensive unit as well for contrast but cause I was paid to geek over it.. I'm now a corporate man 🤣
Paul, that's why people with at least half a brain like your channel. We're interested in your honest opinion and why you think that way. Personally I just like shiny things...😁
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Have not found any negative criticism in your videos. What I found is constructive criticism which is a whole different thing. I enjoy watching this type of videos as they are unfiltered and to the point. I always take the information I find with with a pinch of salt and make up my own mind about it without criticising the criticisers criticising critics. Ehm not sure if that made sense :) but hey, I love your videos and I wish more creators would be as honest and to the point as you. Keep it up!
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White Sea has been pretty good, but he seems more interested in generating cash from YT recently.
Makes sense. He’s got a lot of really expensive gear to pay for. Not really feeling like I need to chip in. Lol
I say live and let live.
You do your thing and let them do theirs.
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Paul - You do great work. And your clinical fact-based opinions are valuable. Keep up the analysis and don't let the children grind you down.
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speak your mind and don't be afraid to call things out if they're wack. we've got enough smoke blowers and fence sitters to sift through. do you.
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Cheers, keep going. Contrast is good, and I like how you present your reviews. And your accent is icing on the cake. :)
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Balance is where’s the magic at, being just positive is as false as being just negativ. How about just being as honest as possible and trying to get to the truth no matter if she’s pretty or ugly. I’m so tired of this whole snowflake movement going on in this world.
That's the struggle. Many people believe I should be only negative all the time. Others believe I should be 100% independent. Others believe I shouldn't be negative whatsoever.
What I've found is that people get frustrated that I don't stick in one lane. I'm all over the shop so it's harder to control me and many want to push me in one box.
One week I'll be overly critiquing an overhyped plugin, and the next I'll be demonstrating a sponsored plugin, then I'll do 4 week's of geeky audio related stuff, then randomly talk about the UA-cam community, then do an interface video, then a video about headphones, then back to critique.
I just go with whatever takes my fancy at any specific moment. My personality is polarising, as is my content and many in the industry don't like that unpredictability. Gives them the impression I can just do whatever the f*ck I like, and unfortunately for them, I kinda do within reason.
I agree with you, as soon as you become purely negative, or purely positive you run the risk of getting trapped in dishonesty
I start from negatives and try to understand where from is that opinion and if is right of course. Besides keep rocking :) You do gooood work. Regards from Poland
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Positivity and negativity are two sides of the same coin, you can't have one without the other. Talking only through one of them makes us blind to reality, about any topic.
Agreed. Even if I make content about something I like, I expect there to be contrast and somebody else having a different viewpoint. However, I will admit that I do struggle to see others pov when I make my mind up about something but that doesn't mean I'd want to ban or remove their content altogether cause I undetstand that we need contrast even at the detriment of me. Unless it's proven to be false. I don't believe in false truths regardless of if its negative or positive. That's the stuff that should be completely eradicated from society.
I don’t care what everyone says about you or if you sound like Mrs Doubtfire. I think you’re alright!
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Just do your thing man. You’re good at it. Always going to be critics.
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I think it's good to have some negative videos and comments, to compare with. And to foster debate. Another interesting thing is that sometimes I found a plugin or a technique in some obscure video, and it turns out to be amazing, and then the overall silence about it I think indicates that's it's a secret weapon haha.
I do that a lot.. WHY IS NOBODY TALKING ABOUT THIS!!??... AUTOMATIC SECRET WEAPON 🤣
I love your English 😛 You could say a total bullshit (which you don't) and I'd just listen.
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True what you say but I think there are too many people that review gear for the first time and not know the products and say bad stuff about it without taking the time to really spend time with it. Then you get those who work with the stuff and see what it really can do but come across those who make reviews about stuff without really knowing the product and that is what they talking about.
I wouldn't say there are too many people saying bad things about plugins. 5% max per release. Gear, maybe argue a bit more but gear isn't as accessible as plugins so a lot of gear reviews are positive as most have been sent it from the manufacturer or a retailer. I'd agree there are a lot of people who don't dive fully into the plugins or gear and describe certain features wrong but it's still mostly positive.
The thing with spending time with a plugin or a piece of gear is that it has no relevance to whether there's a factual fault in the product. Doesn't change anything.
Only thing spending time with a plugin or gear achieves is better user objectivity which is good but if a function doesn't work, it doesn't work, regardless of how long you use it. |
Doesn't change factual issues. Tbh i agree there is a lot of reviews from people getting features wrong but mostly not saying bad stuff about it unless its a plugin vs hardware or cheap vs expensive. Normally find the cheaper alternative gets a bashing. That's a different psychological battle in itself. I normally find with straight up single reviews, you'll struggle to find critical videos
Keep it going Paul, for me its important to see|hear different perspective.
Cheers from Norway
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Any you take a joke. Relax cuah 😂
Focusing on a weakness is a positive if it's not just subjective but confirmed with measurements - all engineering is based on measurements, so how is it a problem when you reveal a pro/con with PluginDoctor? And frankly, if a reviewer does not mention "cons" it's not a review... it's an ad. I'll tell you what is a problem... the trolls who all talk like they're the lovechild of Bob Clearmountain and Rupert Neve! 😁
Cause doctor is visual and doesn't give any real wiggle room for subjectivity. Many youtubers hate it cause it removes lot of the "magic" from things.. And can make it harder to sell things as well as they can't really refute a lot of the stuff that the science shows. It's "sciences fault" that they are getting shit in the comments.
And also it takes time to learn and physically do the tests where its much easier to stick something on a few tracks, twiddle a few knobs and go.. "what about that eh.. Magic" haha
@@PaulThird It probably boils down to this: gearslag searches for plugin, the most viewed are the first 3 "reviews" are all positive, they demo the plugin and immediately buy it because Wells and Chiccarelli love it, they use it and wonder why their not getting the same results as W/C, they look for more videos... and then they find Paul Third! 😬
Dumb people look for confirmation bias. Intelligent people look for both sides of a story.
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Well, I like what you do. It's not about being negative for the sake of taking crap.
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I stick with Rowan Atkinson on those things: we should allow and encourage criticism, but stop basing our own worth on it.
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I prefer Paul Second. He's just that little bit better. (negative)
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Never stop making up your own mind. The rest of the world can make up theirs. Stay true to yourself ♥
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Paul III didn't like nor heart any comment. Got to send him an hate email right now guys.
Give it time... 🤣