Universal Audio Paradise Guitar Studio

[MirrorProfiles]

That's actually one of the no-gos for me. I want to play with the sound that is actually used (even if I fool around with it later on). It's also a matter of how I play, which can be considerably different when the amps feel different.

Haven't you already gone down the rabbit hole of a low latency interface etc? Again, with a HW modeller, I can understand the desire for low latency because you might be mixing and matching different FX and your speakers/monitoring may incur additional latency that you have no control of. When going direct into a plugin, you have way more leeway for the plugins to incur a little bit. But yeah, if I was running into issues, I'd just be tracking through a low latency version of a plugin and either keeping it (because the trade off is worth it) or subbing in the UA versions after the fact (if there is something to be gained). Usually the trade off with a better performance is preferable to SLIGHTLY better modelling. A low latency mode would help (presumably the latency is caused from oversampling modules individually as the fuzz and amps seem to incur most) but Im not sure UA are the sort of company who want to offer "reduced quality" versions of anything they do. They seem to prefer keeping it dumb and simple, so there's only one definitive sound to expect.

there's been people kinda requesting UA to put "their" high gain offerings in as well - just that they don't have any of their own, at least not in plugin versions.

I think depending on how Paradise goes, they'll either just drop all the new high gain models into a new plugin, or they'll drip a few high gain single plugins first before doing a container (so they can sting you twice). I think there's zero chance of high gain amps (or anything else major) getting added to Paradise. Maybe an improved tuner, or a V2 with a more evolved cab engine. Maybe a pedal or effect somewhere, but nothing that veers off the overall intention of Paradise.

It wouldn't surprise me if they just do a high gain equivalent of Paradise featuring all new models that we haven't seen yet, rather than making loads and loads of single plugins and then combining pre-exisitng models. But who knows with UA these days, they seem to change direction at a moments notice and throw spaghetti at the wall. I feel like if Paradise sells well for them, it'll be the blueprint for things to come.

Anyhow, I'm pretty sure the highgain pedals will find their way into Paradise - but not for free.

Almost certain that nothing major will get added to Paradise. I think Paradise's defining feature is that it's a curated set of amplifiers and sounds. The intention is to have a plugin that DOESN'T go between Hank Marvin and Cannibal Corpse, but to have it a bit more focussed and curated. I think it's way more likely that we'll see (at the least) a high gain equivalent plugin, and a bass one. And who knows what else (solid state? modern boutique? studio/band branded tie-ins?)

Either way, Im really looking forward to eventually trying their rectifier model. On paper, it ticks a lot of boxes for me but I have zero desire to be pissing around with pedals (at which point I may as well just fire the amp up). Plugins all the way.

 

[Sascha Franck]

Haven't you already gone down the rabbit hole of a low latency interface etc?

Sure. And that was precisely because I wanted to play through amp sims and not through some approximation while tracking a splitted DI.
And it works absolutely great that way. I can now freely decide whether I'd track through hardware (in that case I rarely ever record a DI track at all anymore, as I just want the sound coming out of whatever hardware) or plugins.
It's actually pretty much playing/recording heaven.
The only situations when I'm running into latency issues are whenever I have a latency introducing plugin on the master output bus. But these can easily be bypassed should I want to record something later on.

but Im not sure UA are the sort of company who want to offer "reduced quality" versions of anything they do.

They could as well just do it as Acustica Audio, offering the same quality at low latency and higher CPU demands. That way, their quality would never be compromised and it'd be up to the users and their computers.

It wouldn't surprise me if they just do a high gain equivalent of Paradise featuring all new models that we haven't seen yet, rather than making loads and loads of single plugins and then combining pre-exisitng models.

I'd say the best way for them (and possibly their users) would be to do "in-app-purchases", so you could just add whatever models.
If I was purchasing Paradise and had to buy an entirely new suite for whatever my high gain needs might be, I'd be pretty annoyed.

Almost certain that nothing major will get added to Paradise. I think Paradise's defining feature is that it's a curated set of amplifiers and sounds. The intention is to have a plugin that DOESN'T go between Hank Marvin and Cannibal Corpse, but to have it a bit more focussed and curated.

Maybe. Personally, I wouldn't think of that as a good idea.

 

[laxu]

Haven't you already gone down the rabbit hole of a low latency interface etc? Again, with a HW modeller, I can understand the desire for low latency because you might be mixing and matching different FX and your speakers/monitoring may incur additional latency that you have no control of. When going direct into a plugin, you have way more leeway for the plugins to incur a little bit.

I think anyone would want to just NOT have to think about it. I don't really think about the latency of say Tonex or Neural DSP or whatever when I play through them, but there were just some scenerios where it became a noticeable change in feel in the UA, for things like just turning on an overdrive which in the real world does not make that kind of a change in my experience. For a plugin that prides itself on authenticity, I think that can be a big deal.

I think depending on how Paradise goes, they'll either just drop all the new high gain models into a new plugin, or they'll drip a few high gain single plugins first before doing a container (so they can sting you twice). I think there's zero chance of high gain amps (or anything else major) getting added to Paradise. Maybe an improved tuner, or a V2 with a more evolved cab engine. Maybe a pedal or effect somewhere, but nothing that veers off the overall intention of Paradise.

It wouldn't surprise me if they just do a high gain equivalent of Paradise featuring all new models that we haven't seen yet, rather than making loads and loads of single plugins and then combining pre-exisitng models. But who knows with UA these days, they seem to change direction at a moments notice and throw spaghetti at the wall. I feel like if Paradise sells well for them, it'll be the blueprint for things to come.

I totally expect them to do that as well. Call it something like "Hellfire Guitar Studio" or whatever. Instead of vintage fx it could be things like SD1, Whammy etc.

Almost certain that nothing major will get added to Paradise. I think Paradise's defining feature is that it's a curated set of amplifiers and sounds. The intention is to have a plugin that DOESN'T go between Hank Marvin and Cannibal Corpse, but to have it a bit more focussed and curated. I think it's way more likely that we'll see (at the least) a high gain equivalent plugin, and a bass one. And who knows what else (solid state? modern boutique? studio/band branded tie-ins?)

Agreed. At first glance, the biggest flaw of Paradise Studio is the limitations of the cab sims. Like if you would rather have cab X with mic Y, you just don't get that option. "UA knows best" approach once again. I think even "this cab, with this mic at a position we consider best" would be a big improvement.

 

[Jarick]

I've been maxing out on my memory/CPU working on this new project quite a bit...I have an entry level Macbook Air M1 with 8 GB of RAM. When you add in drum software there's very little margin for error. At some point I'll need to bump up to a new system with more memory. Or start freezing tracks.

Here's what my workflow has been for recording. I run the guitar into a hardware modeler and run the analog outputs to my interface where I can direct monitor with no latency. Tone on the modeler isn't super important, just get in the ballpark. Then I run the USB from the modeler to my computer which will give me both the stereo wet signal as well as a DI signal. Record just the DI or both if you have a tone you like. Then run a plugin on the DI to dial in your final sound.

You get no latency monitoring while recording plus a clean DI signal.

 

[MirrorProfiles]

They could as well just do it as Acustica Audio, offering the same quality at low latency and higher CPU demands. That way, their quality would never be compromised and it'd be up to the users and their computers.

If the latency in Paradise is caused from linear phase filters from upsampling and downsampling, you can’t just throw more DSP at it. Using IIR filters would be less computationally taxing, and low latency, but would sound worse. Acustica shouldn’t be used as a positive reference for anything, and aside from how janky and unreliable their overall experience is, the way their plugins work has more in common with IR’s than traditional emulation. What works for them doesn’t apply to UA.

I'd say the best way for them (and possibly their users) would be to do "in-app-purchases", so you could just add whatever models.
If I was purchasing Paradise and had to buy an entirely new suite for whatever my high gain needs might be, I'd be pretty annoyed.

Please no. I don’t want the plugin to spiral into some kind unfocused mess. There’s a huge advantage to keeping things concise and to the point. I don’t think I suddenly need to go from one extreme to another, and if I do, then opening another plugin really isn’t the end of the world.

If I’m in high gain territory, I don’t need 1x8 cabs and tweed amps getting in the way. The strength of Paradise is that they haven’t thrown absolutely everything at you - it’s a lot more focussed while still offering some amount of customisation. I don’t see them throwing that in the bin when it’s the core of the product.

I think anyone would want to just NOT have to think about it. I don't really think about the latency of say Tonex or Neural DSP or whatever when I play through them, but there were just some scenerios where it became a noticeable change in feel in the UA, for things like just turning on an overdrive which in the real world does not make that kind of a change in my experience. For a plugin that prides itself on authenticity, I think that can be a big deal.

I think it’s ultimately just a game of managing trade offs. Users want to be able to choose different amps and to mix and match different gear. I’m not sure I agree with UA’s implementation but it makes sense to me and I don’t think the trade off is too bad. I think there’s enough ways to work around it for any situation where it’s absolutely critical to have less latency.

 

[Sascha Franck]

If the latency in Paradise is caused from linear phase filters from upsampling and downsampling, you can’t just throw more DSP at it. Using IIR filters would be less computationally taxing, and low latency, but would sound worse. Acustica shouldn’t be used as a positive reference for anything, and aside from how janky and unreliable their overall experience is, the way their plugins work has more in common with IR’s than traditional emulation. What works for them doesn’t apply to UA.

I have absolutely no idea about the technical aspects under the hood, I was just mentioning Acustica Audio because they're providing two versions of their plugins.
Whatever UA is using, I think that in 2025, users can expect that amp sims would work within the latency/buffer constraints of your DAW and not add much (if anything) on their own. I mean, other companies are doing this fine.

Please no. I don’t want the plugin to spiral into some kind unfocused mess. There’s a huge advantage to keeping things concise and to the point. I don’t think I suddenly need to go from one extreme to another, and if I do, then opening another plugin really isn’t the end of the world.

Each to their own I suppose. But I'd prefer being able to quickly change any element in a signal chain without having to change anything else. One of the reasons why I like HX Native, I can just gradually move from one patch to the next and would possibly stumble over some interesting things on the way.

 

[Jarick]

Considering I have half a dozen NDSP plugins for modern high gain use I'm pretty good with the amps and effects offering as is. I guess the one thing that would be nice would be some type of Soldano or Bogner or something in the 80's higher gain style if you want to do a Lukather thing because it does have all the other effects. But you could probably get there with the Lion and a boost.

It would be nice to have an IR loader, although you can always run it with no cab and use a loader afterwards. I don't think UA has an IR loader in any of their products, right?

One thing I'd like to see them add as a plugin is the OX Stomp. I've basically abandoned the pedal because it adds so much latency to the chain but it would be awesome for recording purposes. With a decent reactive load or preamp pedal you can effectively have an OX Box.

 

[Whizzinby]

Please no. I don’t want the plugin to spiral into some kind unfocused mess. There’s a huge advantage to keeping things concise and to the point. I don’t think I suddenly need to go from one extreme to another, and if I do, then opening another plugin really isn’t the end of the world.

I think it will be messy no matter what.

If they do a plug for the 5150 and Dual Rec, are they going to port the same effects? If so it would just make way more sense to sell the 5150/Dual Rec as $50 FlameThrower Booster Pack. If they are going change up effects, then it gets dumber, when the Memory Man is in the Paradise plug, but not Pugatory. The Whammy is in Purgatory not Paradise etc. At that point nobody is winning for convenience.

Hell has frozen when a micro transaction looks the most sensible approach.

 

[MirrorProfiles]

I think it will be messy no matter what.

If they do a plug for the 5150 and Dual Rec, are they going to port the same effects?

I’d imagine they’d try to add different content for each one and minimise overlap unless it’s something ubiquitous.

UA is sat on such a huge pile of code that they don’t really have to reuse the same things too much. Rather than 224, they could use the RMX16 or 480L. They have several plates to choose from. Paradise has the EP34, so there’s still Galaxy for a tape echo.

Maybe the tubescreamer on a high gain bundle would have mod switches. TC Integrated Pre/33, Horizon Precision Drive, Whammy/Pitch FX, maybe a different type of BBD.

I really think the decision to put limits around what’s included in paradise isn’t because they’re scraping the barrel and don’t have anything else to include - it’s because they’ve chosen gear that goes well together. I just don’t see them adding a couple of high gain amps to the mix when they can sell a similar product for more money.

I don’t see UA doing an all singing kitchen sink guitar plugin like Amplitube or Helix. This is like a guitar version of their Topline plugin, which is a much more “UA” approach. I actually don’t think the need for a guitar plugin to be able to cover absolutely every bit of ground is necessary at all and probably easy to go past the point of being helpful.

For a HW modeller, you kind of have to just include the whole lot but I don’t think that makes sense for plugins. IMO they’ve struck a pretty perfect balance with what’s included in Paradise, even if there’s the odd tweak I’d like to see.

 

[Whizzinby]

I’d imagine they’d try to add different content for each one and minimise overlap unless it’s something ubiquitous.

UA is sat on such a huge pile of code that they don’t really have to reuse the same things too much. Rather than 224, they could use the RMX16 or 480L. They have several plates to choose from. Paradise has the EP34, so there’s still Galaxy for a tape echo.

Maybe the tubescreamer on a high gain bundle would have mod switches. TC Integrated Pre/33, Horizon Precision Drive, Whammy/Pitch FX, maybe a different type of BBD.

I really think the decision to put limits around what’s included in paradise isn’t because they’re scraping the barrel and don’t have anything else to include - it’s because they’ve chosen gear that goes well together. I just don’t see them adding a couple of high gain amps to the mix when they can sell a similar product for more money.

I don’t see UA doing an all singing kitchen sink guitar plugin like Amplitube or Helix. This is like a guitar version of their Topline plugin, which is a much more “UA” approach. I actually don’t think the need for a guitar plugin to be able to cover absolutely every bit of ground is necessary at all and probably easy to go past the point of being helpful.

For a HW modeller, you kind of have to just include the whole lot but I don’t think that makes sense for plugins. IMO they’ve struck a pretty perfect balance with what’s included in Paradise, even if there’s the odd tweak I’d like to see.

Yeah I don’t think it’s a matter of whether they have the content to make two different suites, but whether we’d want them to create two silos. I don’t think the Paradise plugin somehow becomes bloated by having the 5150 or Dual Rec in the amp selection screen, or by adding a couple extra fx etc. But I suspect you’re right that will probably go with whatever they think churns out the most money. I’d have no issues dropping a couple bucks to add a couple amps. Keeps its clean and simple.

 

[Ed DeGenaro]

Just seen this now.

Is this going to be iOS / AUV3 iPad compatible (?)

Why would it be. Nothing UA is iOS compatible other than the app to get deeper in the pedals.

 

[Jarick]

Yeah Its don’t think it’s a matter of whether they have the content to make two different suites, but whether we’d want them to create two silos. I don’t think the Paradise plugin somehow becomes bloated by having the 5150 or Dual Rec in the amp selection screen, or by adding a couple extra fx etc. But I suspect you’re right that will probably go with whatever they think churns out the most money. I’d have no issues dropping a couple bucks to add a couple amps. Keeps its clean and simple.

I keep putting on my "how does UA" work hat...

I don't know how they would have add-on purchases within the plugin as it doesn't fit their ecosystem at all. I think it's either part of the existing plugin or something separate.

And I'm not sure if they would want to do a metal plugin. NDSP has so much market saturation here, and UA would need to compete with other features like the transpose and standalone function. That doesn't fit UA's brand at all.

I would guess they maybe expand the existing Paradise suite by adding new amps about a year from now as a free update. I think that would entice people to either purchase it if they haven't already or to subscribe to Spark.

 

[synthpenguin]

If you think about it, maybe the real boomer bends are the forum posts we made along the way.

 

[AlbertA]

He really likes it I guess

 

[Dimiguitar]

Tried this out finally. Very good sims, but I probably still prefer S Gear. Something about the feel.

 

[Cactusprick]

Tried this out finally. Very good sims, but I probably still prefer S Gear. Something about the feel.

I love Scuffham very much, but it does not quite do jangly vox tones.
Hopefully Nam Thing (coming next year?) could offer more amp tones but I don't really care for it personally

 

[Dimiguitar]

I love Scuffham very much, but it does not quite do jangly vox tones.
Hopefully Nam Thing (coming next year?) could offer more amp tones but I don't really care for it personally

You would have imagined more sims, considering how long S gear has been out.

At any rate, the quality of what is there is spectacular imo.

But I'm sure the UA plugin will be more comprehensive eventually. And I do love AC style tones for sure!

 

[holoholo]

Caveat I am regarded. But how is the plugin $150 and you get all those sims but you pay fuckin $350 for one amp at a time pedals. At least make the firmware swappable or something god damn. Guitarists nips must look like beef jerky for how much they get milked.