You have no idea how good it is to hear someone else say that!
I disagree in parts on both of you.
I know my tools and I do not cahnge my tools every week, e.g. buying all the plug ins of the world.
I work with my favourite plugs on a regular, constant basis, some of them are friends since 12 years.
At least me... I am much faster than ever before.
I am open to new technology, and the right workflow ...
I am using an I pad and apple-trackpad here.
Writeing/Arraneging never has been easier to me since Apple inventet the Logic-Drummer.
It never was easier to get good drum sounds out of the computer.
Depending on the stile of music its that good, taht it fools drummers.
Programing Drums always was a pain in the A. special when you are not drummer.
That was a big reason to me why some songs never came to an end.
Logic Drummer is a GOD send becasue the drumming parts are not static, they are indeed more like a real human doing it.
That is inspireing to me.
It motivates me in arrangneing, becasue nothing is more boring than static drum parts.
Yes some VI sound like fake - but.
I learn to use my Buddies for this, to get rid of fake.
Yes sometimes you need to let go the marketing hype that VI can do everything.
Its to easy to belive in it, and its true it can make songs sound like plastic.
And it happend to every modern DAW writer I know.
Yes, not everything is Gold thats true, and I agree on this.
But overall the invention of digital lets me work faster and better, with less fuzz and its more carefree.
Given the fact that your workflow is not hindering you to do things the way you want them to do.
It all comes down how you organize your arranging process in the DAW, and around you in your studio.
Thats my deep believe.
Its a constant progress and it never ends.
With every song I find something to change my workflow, to make the process easier.
It helps to get in the flow - doing it.
I optimize not only short keys... everything that makes it easier to get the goal is intresting to me.
Shortcuts programmed on the I pad, saves big time special if its always the same task to do.
Knowing your sounds, which ones work, and which ones sound like fake, its important.
I also know that my psyche can make a sound nicer than it is, the next day I think - what was I thinking.
In my template I erase those sounds.
Only sounds that give the thing something organic stay in my arrangeing template.
The rest is real humans playing real instruments.
BTW I use for diffrent stiles of music diffrent templates otherwise I loose track, focous on what I am doing.
To me its not a matter of technology, old or new, its a matter of staying organized that the job gets done asap.
Oterwise I lose track and motivation to do it at all.
My 2 cents