Terms of Service

Your seller and contracting party for new purchases through the Flat4Audio store is Hodfords Solutions Limited (HSL), operating the Flat4Audio store, a private limited company registered in England and Wales, United Kingdom under company number 14158129 (UK VAT registration number GB 422 5779 86; statutory director: Gavin Adam). Our registered office is 63 Havelock Road, Brighton, England, BN1 6GL. Contact support@flat4audio.com for purchase support or complaints. Revolut processes payments for HSL. HSL supplies the software and grants your licence under an intercompany licence and distribution authority from Hodfords Limited (incorporated in Hong Kong), the upstream owner and licensor of the software rights supplied under that authority. The Flat4Audio brand and each product’s brand intellectual property remain with their respective rights holders.

HSL grants you a non-exclusive licence to install and use the downloadable product and purchased major version identified in your order, for your own use within the disclosed user and machine limits. Ownership and intellectual property remain with the relevant rights holders. Subject to your compliance with these terms and the activation requirements below, the purchased-version licence is perpetual (has no fixed expiry), personal to the licensed user and non-transferable except where applicable mandatory law requires otherwise. Catalogue removal or repricing does not withdraw an existing purchased entitlement.

The product information supplied before payment and confirmed with your order specifies the permitted machine limit, activation method, online refresh interval, offline allowance and deactivation/replacement process. Unless a specific product page states otherwise, the following terms apply:

• Permitted machine limit: One (1) licensed user may install and activate the software on up to two (2) computers owned or controlled by that user at the same time, for non-simultaneous use (one active computer at a time, with unlimited plugin instances inside supported hosts on that active computer). Reinstalling or updating the software on the same computer does not consume an additional seat.
• Activation method: Activation is completed online inside the plugin or standalone application using the 24-character licence serial key (AUR1-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX) supplied by email and in your Flat4Audio account. No hardware USB dongle or background system service is required. Until activated, the software operates in Demo Mode (periodic brief audio muting every 20 seconds). Entering your serial key while online binds the activation seat to that computer, stores a cryptographically signed licence receipt locally, and enables full licensed use of the purchased software on that computer.
• Online refresh interval: Whenever you launch an activated plugin or standalone application while connected to the internet, it automatically refreshes its local signed licence receipt in the background and resets your offline allowance window.
• Offline allowance: Once activated or refreshed online, the software runs completely offline for up to seven (7) consecutive days without an internet connection. If a computer remains offline for more than 7 consecutive days after its last online launch, the software will revert to Demo Mode on the next launch until that computer reconnects to the internet to complete an automatic launch refresh (or you re-enter your serial key while online).
• Deactivation and replacement process: You may transfer an activation seat between your computers at any time within your 2-computer limit at no charge: (1) In-plugin deactivation: while connected to the internet, open the plugin and select Gear (⚙) menu → Licence… → Deactivate to immediately free that seat and return that installation to Demo Mode; (2) Online account management (My Library): if a computer fails, is lost, is sold or has its operating system replaced before in-plugin deactivation, sign in to your Flat4Audio account (My Library at /library) and click Deactivate next to that computer to free the seat remotely (you may also re-enable a deactivated computer in My Library or by re-entering your serial key in the plugin whenever a seat is free); or (3) Support assistance: email support@flat4audio.com and we will reset the seat at no charge.

Please check the product specifications before purchasing to confirm compatibility with your computer and digital audio workstation (DAW). Vicious Circle and Retro Delay support the systems and formats below; other releases publish their requirements on the product page.

• Operating systems: macOS 10.15 or later on Intel and macOS 11 or later on Apple Silicon, running natively; Windows 10 or 11, 64-bit (Intel/AMD).
• Plugin formats: On macOS: Audio Unit (AU v2), VST3 (64-bit) and Standalone application (unless marked Standalone-only on the product page). On Windows: VST3 (64-bit) and Standalone application. (AAX / Pro Tools, VST2, CLAP, 32-bit hosts and Windows-on-ARM are not supported.)
• Tested DAWs: FL Studio 20 or later, Cubase 12 or later, Ableton Live 10 or later and Logic Pro X 10.6 or later. Logic uses AU on macOS. For Ableton Live, VST3 requires version 10.1 or later; Live 10.0 on macOS uses AU. The DAW’s own operating-system requirements also apply.
• Minimum hardware: 8 GB RAM (16 GB RAM recommended for sample-based instruments such as Vicious Circle), 1 GB available system drive storage (SSD recommended), 1280×720 display resolution, a CoreAudio- or ASIO-compatible audio interface, and an HTTPS internet connection for licence activation and periodic 7-day seat refresh.

• Updates included: Your perpetual licence covers the purchased major version (for example, Version 1.x) and includes all minor, maintenance, bug-fix and compatibility updates (v1.x.y) released for that major version at no additional cost.
• Support commitment: We provide technical support via support@flat4audio.com, account installer downloads and online activation services for the purchased major version for at least 24 months from the date of purchase (or 12 months after that major version is withdrawn from sale, whichever is later).
• Future major versions and expansions: Future major versions (such as Version 2.0+), new standalone instruments and optional expansion packs are separate products that may require a separate purchase or paid upgrade fee. Releasing a future major version will never revoke, disable or downgrade your existing perpetual licence for your purchased major version.
• Outage and activation-service closure arrangements: Temporary network interruptions or activation-server maintenance do not invalidate a current local licence receipt during its 7-day offline allowance window, and offline DAW audio rendering/bouncing is never blocked by network checks. If we permanently discontinue the online activation service without providing a successor service, we will give registered buyers at least 60 days’ advance notice by email and provide, before closure, either a non-expiring signed activation receipt or a downloadable activation-free maintenance build (made available for download for at least 6 months following notice) so that you can continue to install and use your purchased version on compatible computers without an online activation server.

You may install and use the software on your own machines within the disclosed user and machine limits, and you may use the rendered musical and audio output you create with the software in your own commercial or non-commercial productions on a royalty-free basis. The restrictions below apply only so far as permitted by law. Nothing in this licence restricts mandatory lawful-user rights, including applicable rights to make necessary backup copies, observe, study or test the program, or decompile for interoperability where statutory conditions are met. You may not, except to the extent applicable law permits and these terms cannot restrict:

• resell, sublicense, rent, lend, share, transfer or redistribute the software, its encrypted sample/ROM content (VC.rom) or your licence key;
• extract, rip, re-sample or repackage the raw internal audio samples or wavetables to create, train or distribute any competing virtual instrument, sample pack, preset library or AI/machine-learning model;
• circumvent, disable or tamper with the licence activation or any technical protection measures; or
• use the software unlawfully or in breach of a third party’s rights.

We may take proportionate action against the affected entitlement where there is clear evidence of material licence abuse (such as unauthorised sharing or resale), fraud, or a final payment reversal leaving that purchase unpaid. Where lawful, we will explain the grounds, allow a reasonable opportunity to respond or correct the issue where appropriate, and provide human review through support@flat4audio.com. A genuine security or fraud risk may require immediate temporary suspension followed by prompt review. A pending chargeback or bona fide complaint is not itself proven abuse. We will restore access where the dispute is resolved and payment stands, and will not penalise exercise of statutory remedies or affect unrelated valid entitlements.

New software prices are displayed and charged in GBP (£) and include any applicable VAT, GST or indirect digital-services tax. There are no payment surcharges. If your payment card or account is in another currency, your card issuer converts the GBP charge at its own exchange rate and may add a foreign-transaction fee. Before you pay, checkout shows the final GBP total and, based on your billing country, any included tax (or confirms that £0.00 tax applies where the supply is an export outside the scope of UK VAT and below local non-resident registration thresholds). The seller takes payment through Revolut. Revolut collects your payment card details directly on its hosted checkout; HSL receives transaction identifiers, payment status, billing address and non-sensitive verification metadata (such as card country and 3D Secure / CVV check outcomes) for fulfilment, tax and fraud-prevention records, and never receives or stores full card numbers or card security codes (CVV).

Delivery is digital. Your order is accepted and the contract is formed when Revolut confirms payment completion and we issue your order confirmation. Immediately upon payment confirmation, tokenised installer download links and your 24-character licence serial key are made available on your post-checkout confirmation page, in your Flat4Audio account (My Library), and by durable-medium email sent to your checkout email address (which records your order summary, the accepted Terms of Service version and text, and your timestamped express consent to immediate digital supply during the statutory cancellation period). If your licence email has not arrived within 15 minutes of payment and is not visible in My Library, contact support@flat4audio.com with your order reference for prompt assistance. Early supply during the 14-day statutory cancellation period requires your separate express consent and acknowledgement at checkout; our voluntary 14-day money-back guarantee and your statutory rights for faulty digital content remain available.

Our Refund & Cancellation Policy provides a voluntary 14-day full money-back guarantee, including after download or activation (approved refunds are submitted to Revolut back to your original payment method). It is additional to any statutory change-of-mind cancellation right and your rights where digital content is faulty or not as described.

We may add, remove, update or re-price products at any time. A change to a product’s price or terms does not change the terms of a licence you have already bought. We may update these terms; the approved version you accept at checkout is saved with your purchase.

Intellectual property in the software, included sample/preset content and store remains with Hodfords Limited, Hodfords Solutions Limited and their respective licensors. HSL grants your software licence under authority from Hodfords Limited. Your software licence grants the use described above (including royalty-free use of your rendered musical output in your own productions, subject to the prohibition on extracting or repackaging raw samples) and does not transfer ownership of the software or its underlying sample library.

We are responsible for foreseeable loss or damage caused by our breach of this contract or failure to use reasonable care and skill. Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits your statutory rights, or our liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or any liability which cannot lawfully be excluded or limited. Your rights concerning faulty digital content under the UK Consumer Rights Act 2015, including applicable device or other-content damage remedies, are explained in our Refund & Cancellation Policy. Subject to the foregoing, we are not liable for business losses (such as loss of business profits, revenue or studio downtime) where you use the software for commercial purposes.

These Terms and your contract with us are governed by the law of England and Wales, and the courts of England and Wales have non-exclusive jurisdiction over any dispute. If you are a consumer resident in the European Union, Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Thailand, South Africa, Scotland, Northern Ireland, or another jurisdiction whose mandatory consumer-protection laws apply to your purchase, this choice of law and jurisdiction does not deprive you of the protection of the mandatory provisions of the law of your country of residence, nor of your right to bring or defend proceedings in the courts or statutory consumer tribunals of the place where you live.

Direct resolution (all markets): if you have a complaint, please contact us first at support@flat4audio.com so we can try to resolve it promptly.

European Union: we do not subscribe to a voluntary alternative dispute-resolution (ADR) scheme and are neither obliged nor committed to participate in proceedings before a consumer ADR body. (The EU Online Dispute Resolution platform closed on 20 July 2025 and is no longer available.)

South Africa: HSL provides the disclosures in these Terms in accordance with section 43 of the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002. You can review and correct your checkout details before confirming payment, and your transaction record is emailed to you and stored in your account. Unresolved consumer disputes may be referred to the Consumer Goods and Services Ombud (cgso.org.za) or the National Consumer Commission.

Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Thailand: your non-excludable statutory consumer guarantees are unaffected by these Terms; you may also contact your national consumer authority (in Australia the ACCC; in New Zealand the Commerce Commission or Disputes Tribunal; in Malaysia the Tribunal for Consumer Claims; in Thailand the Office of the Consumer Protection Board).

Malaysia (maklumat pengguna): Jualan perisian ini dikendalikan oleh Hodfords Solutions Limited (No. Syarikat UK: 14158129, 63 Havelock Road, Brighton, BN1 6GL, United Kingdom; e-mel: support@flat4audio.com). Semua harga dinyatakan dalam Pound Sterling (GBP £) termasuk cukai yang berkenaan. Anda dilindungi oleh jaminan wang dikembalikan 14 hari kami serta hak pengguna mandatori di bawah Akta Perlindungan Pengguna 1999.

For questions or complaints about new purchases through the Flat4Audio store, contact Hodfords Solutions Limited at support@flat4audio.com or its registered office: 63 Havelock Road, Brighton, England, BN1 6GL.