So close, yet...
The current blow-out prices of UAD1e cards are attention getting. If you own an 8-core MacPro and are thinking of taking the plunge on the UAD1e, be aware of the following.
To recap: UAD is blowing out it’s stock of UAD1 & 1e cars. They are still honoring the vouchers that came with the cards, so you can buy an Express Pak for $299 and get a $100 voucher and, with the promo going on right now, you also get a $150 coupon when you register the card. That’s $250 for use at the UAD online store. (It’s like getting the card for $50 in my warped “stay broke forever” reasoning). With the expert pak you pay $599 and get a total of $900 vouchers and coupons.
Anyway, I have always been curious about the UAD line and figured with some of these sale prices + promos, it would be a good time to give the card / plugins a try and, if I like them, maybe upgrade next year to a UAD2. So I bought a UAD1e. Got it installed. Sound quality is good. DSP power not so much — there’s a reason the UAD2 came out — but enough to add some spice here and there.
My problem is stability. I’m using the card in Digital Performer 6. DP6 has been really very stable for me…maybe crashed at most twice in the last couple of months. Since installing the UAD, it’s crashed/quit maybe 4 times yesterday. My UAD meter says I have plenty of juice left as I’m only using 50% of available DSP…
So I went a searching through UAD support forums and, lo and behold, there is a problem with the UAD1e and 8-Core MacPros:
