Waves ILLUGEN Turns Any Prompt Into a One Shot or Loop With AI
Prompts require credits that you pay for monthly.
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Waves ILLUGEN sees the company embracing AI in a subscription-only model. How do you feel about this?
Waves ILLUGEN
If there are two topics that Gearnews.com readers feel strongly about, it’s AI and subscription-only models. I’ve written about AI numerous times before, and I’ve noticed that even if the story is interesting from a technological point of view and non-threatening to musicians or DJs, there’s still a palpable backlash. It’s a contentious issue right now, no doubt about it.
Subscriptions are also polarizing, especially when there’s no option to buy the product outright. Waves got in trouble once before for going subscription-only, eventually backpedaling on its decision.
Now the company is grabbing the bull by both horns with its new offering, ILLUGEN, an AI-based and subscription-only sample generator.
Waves ILLUGEN: Prompt-Based AI Samples
Waves ILLUGEN is a prompt-based sample generator that uses AI to come up with original one shots, loops and SFX. As the website explains, “describe a scene, mood or crazy idea, ILLUGEN will convert it into sound.”
Some prompts listed on the homepage include “a violin made of ice, playing in a frozen cave,” “a drum fill from an old reggae record,” and “the thunder snare.”
Waves recommends using prompts that describe vibes and not specifics, with a suggested order of Mood + Instrument + Twist, the latter being an unusual situation, like “played by a ghost” or “through broken speakers.”
Waves ILLUGEN The App
Waves ILLUGEN is a standalone desktop app. It saves samples to a folder on your hard drive. You can also drag and drop samples directly to your DAW.
Each prompt will generate three variations on the sample. For loops, you can enter the target BPM. For SFX, there are three possible lengths: short, medium and long. There’s also a random button for when you can’t think of anything or don’t know what you want, and a history tab to see what you’ve made before.
If you’re worried about copyright infringement, you own all of the samples that you generate and can use them freely in your own works. You cannot sell them, though.
As for the app’s training, Waves says that “ILLUGEN’s model was trained exclusively on documented, legally owned material” and states that “Ethical AI development is a top priority for us at Waves Audio—we are committed to respecting creators’ rights and ensuring our training sources are properly licensed and documented.”
Waves ILLUGEN Uses a Subscription Model
Now for the rub. ILLUGEN has a subscription-based pricing model with credits per sample, sort of like Splice. One shots require one credit, loops use two, and SFX can take up to three per generation, depending on length.
There are three pricing tiers for Waves ILLUGEN. Basic gives you 150 monthly credits for $7.99 a month, plus 150 credits as a welcome bonus. Premium doubles the monthly credits to 300 and costs $12.99/month, with 300 welcome bonus credits on top. The final tier, Pro, gives you 600 credits every month for $19.99, with a bonus of 600 to start. Unused credits roll over monthly. You can try out ILLUGEN on the website with 30 free trial credits.
What do you think about Waves ILLUGEN? Does this sound like something you might use, or is the AI/subscription double whammy too much to stomach?
Waves products are available at Thomann*.
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