i actually think that this is a topic worth mentioning.
firstly, nice one for going legal, and dont feel ashamed for using cracks to begin with. most professionals have taken the exact same route.
now, bypassing a program's security features usually does not affect its sound. or at least that was the case up until recently. with simpler challenge/response systems the sound is exactly the same, be that legit or pirated version. but with newer security features, like iLok and PACE, the developers have implemented safeguards as to affect the sound if the software isnt properly registered. For example, some Eiosis plug ins were recently released by a japanese team. ive been drooling over their transient designer and vocoder for such a long time that i fell into my old sinful ways, and installed them on my machine. well let me tell you, the sound was awful, and i was thinking "what the hell, thats supposed to cost £300 and it sounds like a dying goose.." so i got rid of it, and fell somewhat smarter that i saved my money. until i heard some examples from a chap that purchased the plugs legally. They sounded wonderful, and i was so gob smacked that i asked him to put some samples of mine through his transient designer, and use the same settings as i did. When i got them back, the difference was just too much. The crack has blatantly a much worse sound.
moral of the story ? cracks arent worth it. yes, you have some gems, like H2O's SX3 which many claimed that it worked better than the legit version, but overall cracks are more of a hassle. And its not only the worse sound quality that its the issue. most cracks are compromising the system's stability with dodgy codes and malware. imagine installing a seemingly innocent EQ, just to have a registry error, and be forced to re install everything, losing all your work in the process.
fuck that.
ive said it many times before, and im starting to sound like a broken record, but here goes once more: these are great times for computer musicians. there's tons of free and very cheap software that sound great and are able to deliver professional results, as long as you spend enough time practising with them. theres just no need to use cracks anymore, and anyone who claims otherwise has spent more time reading producers Q & As, rather than making music.