In the light of big companies taking a "subscription" dive, I thought this thread might be useful to some. I propose sharing personal opinion on 1-3 effect plugins (or bundles) that are non-subscription. Perhaps how you arrived to that specific plugin. I will start with a couple of examples.

Fabfilter
remains my #1 plugin set for EQ, Compression, Limiting, Reverb and now Delay. Used it for 4+ years.

I started out with iZotope Nectar 2 suite (released 2013), which was my first expensive effect plugin set. It was/is very convenient, because it included major effects modules in a single block. Most importantly, it's extremely light on CPU. When the time was right, I upgraded to Nectar3, and it was a complete nightmare. My relatively fast computer was not pulling it well even with just a handful of instances. Reading further, I realized that many people (!PC users) complained of iZotope being a CPU leach. Did a bit of research and arrived at Fabfilter. From the first day I tried Fabfilter, I knew it is the right one for me. Most of their plugins are very transparent and extremely light on CPU. Very intuitive, yet have very deep features. Company has a loyalty program. Good customer service. The only plugin I didn't like was D-esser, but I have a feeling they are working on a new one. Their new Delay plugin is a state of art.

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MeldaProduction
This is a hidden gem company, similar to PGmusic. The two plugins that I personally would recommend are:
MStereoProcessor
Is a widener and exciter. It splits the input in four sections Bass, Low Mid, High Mid and High frequencies sections and can control each of those sections independently. Very deep in features, very customizable. Super light footprint - easy on CPU. I was considering Waves aural exciter prior, I am Sooo glad I got Melda instead!

MSpectralDynamics
This is a monster of a plugin. As title mentions it deals with dynamics. Multi module plugin that takes a lot from guesswork on things like "long term frequency balancing". Has extremely useful starting point "presets". If I had to describe it in one sentence, I would say it is a: Very elaborate compressor, with extreme tweakability.

A couple of other things about Melda. Updates are free. They run year long promotions were they 1/2 price four random plugins. So if you you don't see a sale that you want, worth waiting for few weeks. Licenses are transferable, so you can find their plugins on secondary markets.