Here's more to stoke the fire a bit. Make sure you read the conversations below the article. Some interesting points.

[[url=http://[/URL]="http://www.pro-tool…"]AIR Virtual Instruments Set Free - Pro Tools Tips, Tricks & More... - Pro Tools Expert Blog[/]="http://www.pro-tool…"]AIR Virtual Instruments Set Free - Pro Tools Tips, Tricks & More... - Pro Tools Expert Blog[/]

The severing of PT from the lower level hardware of MBox and the Digi 00x line always gave them the opportunity to sell off this part of the business. It's never been (to my mind) part of their core business and they may be finding that they are selling as much software with an iLok dongle as they were with a 003 or Mbox dongle.

To me, they are first and foremost a software company. (Those who paid for all that HD equipment may disagree.) I've had some problems with PT10 recently. So I'd like to see them become a better software company. (I don't understand why things are acting up now when they didn't a few months ago.)

hueseph, post: 391165 wrote: Here's more to stoke the fire a bit. Make sure you read the conversations below the article. Some interesting points.

[[url=http://[/URL]="http://www.pro-tool…"]AIR Virtual Instruments Set*Free - Pro Tools Tips, Tricks & More... - Pro Tools Expert Blog[/]="http://www.pro-tool…"]AIR Virtual Instruments Set*Free - Pro Tools Tips, Tricks & More... - Pro Tools Expert Blog[/]

As you say, the comments are interesting. There are definitely people who want a vertically integrated system with all/most of their hardware and software provided by the same company. Apple has had this model forever. It cost them market share in the PC market and has brought Apple near bankruptcy many times. Avid tried that model, but is now clearly abandoning it. We will see. I see a lot of free advice offered to Avid on audio forums. This advice comes from people in the recording business.

I said it many times before...

Avid's NEVER thought of audio as one of it's core businesses... it's broadcast and film... with a nod to audio, as it's necessary to carry the message of the images.

I think that Avid, along with many of the other players in the audio market, bent to the wind in thinking that there was indeed a profitable market in audio. I think that they are seeing that the winds of change are blowing that margin into a dust storm of nonexistent profits.

Hopefully, they'll lead the heard again in dropping this folly of prosumer audio and get back to serving the professional markets with better tools that have a better integration of professional audio as part of their market focus in film, broadcast and professional video.

My humble $.02 worth

More on this.

[[url=http://[/URL]="http://www.pro-tool…"]The Avid News We Didn't Want To Break: Comment - Pro Tools Tips, Tricks & More... - Pro Tools Expert Blog[/]="http://www.pro-tool…"]The Avid News We Didn't Want To Break: Comment - Pro Tools Tips, Tricks & More... - Pro Tools Expert Blog[/]

I realize that many who use Pro Tools are already subscribed to Pro Tools Expert Group. I'm posting this for the benefit of the rest of us who are not and who might be interested. Could the economy and the file sharing epidemic affect the rest of the Major DAWs?

Avid is heavily invested in the professional market for television and film. In that market, today, their competition is gaining ground. So just like before when Digi Design and essentially went out of business and was absorbed and purchased by Avid, it's happening all over again. Though I also think this could mean the end since they needed this huge influx of cash by selling off its lower end audio stuff to those other companies. As has been indicated, ProTools 10 is having its problems. So instead of devoting money, time and resources to that, they are going after the higher ticket broadcast and film industry. This is nothing new in today's economy. Everyone else's software has progressed to the point where ProTools is not as highly regarded as it once was. Most everyone else's software now offers features that have surpassed ProTools. It failed once before and it is failing again. It's rats abandoning a sinking ship. Rats aren't dumb. And they can generally swim better than people. So the rats are migrating to other floating vessels. All the while the humans are flailing at Avid to save the ship with all hands manning the bilge pump's. They are desperate to preserve their high ticket items and are throwing all unnecessary weight overboard. And for those that have purchased the original high ticket, high definition, heavy hardware laden systems, those too have become archaic and unnecessary in our newer computer age. It makes perfect non-sense to those with a sense of cents while we all smell the death and rotting scent of death. I mean to say, how the heck did Ampex die? They had a stronghold in the entire broadcast and recording industry. They were technology leaders. They created some of the first digital optic devices you would find that every single television production facility and broadcast center. Why should this be any different for Avid? Notice even Sony is keeping rather quiet these days. And why should the cost of LEDs that have been around since the early 1970s suddenly skyrocket in price? They are still no different than a simple transistor. Transistors have come down in price while LEDs have increased. What does this tell you? It's all based upon greed. Greed is the prevailing factor in all business plans. People migrate to where the greed is best. Supply versus demand would normally indicate that LED light bulbs should not cost any more than an old-fashioned lightbulb. But today, these new LED lightbulbs are $30 each. So three light bulbs is equivalent in costs to a SM57. What's with that? Greed. It's a simple equation even for a mathematical moron like myself.

Who needs math when we have greed?
Mx. Remy Ann David

Incidentally, they are maintaining the MBox line AFAIK. It's M-Audio that is going. Along with Pinnacle Studio and the rest of that line. It's going to be Pro Tools and Media Composer from here on in. There is speculation that they are preparing the company to be sold. That isn't necessarily a bad thing. Look what Yamaha did with Steinberg, another Pinnacle line.

By Jove, I think you've hit the nail on the coffin? Their stronghold in the television industry, like Ampex Before it, is being replaced by the other total control systems such as Dalet. Which not only integrates Master control but the entire news departments and production departments. This world is a changin'. So I wouldn't be surprised if even analog magnetic recording tape also has a resurgence in the not-too-distant future? You know, what's old becomes new again to others. There are still folks that are utilizing Sony's linear digital tape recorders. So why shouldn't others also jump on that bandwagon? It's more easily accomplished with today's technologies than it was 20 years ago. And linear digital tape does not crash. Haven't we all been burned by that? Maybe I should hang onto my DA 88's? LOL. Not! Those are rotating head and not as infallible as linear digital tape. Pinnacle has changed hands now numerous times.

My head is spinning just like my disk drives
Mx. Remy Ann David

It's unfortunate that it came down to this. I thought they were on the right track when they release Pro Tools 9. The influx of new money got their heads inflating and then that fiasco with the release of Pro Tools 10/HDX. Too little too late. They never got the previous version working properly for many people and expected a premium to upgrade to their next release just 10 months later. They try to buttress their finances with an outrageously priced support plan and with that imply the apparent release of yet another revision. Insinuating that the purchase of their support plan will give them a free upgrade to this new version. Insinuating is nothing close to a proposition and light-years away from a guarantee.

It was a hideously transparent cash grab. The worst part about it is that they thought their customers were too stupid to figure it out. It's insulting. The only people who bought into it were either endorsed by Pro Tools or too high on their horse to admit they were being had. They made their own shovel and proceeded to dig a hole with it.

Maybe we'll get lucky and Harley Davidson will purchase it?

They make a lot of noise
Mx. Remy Ann David

MadMax, post: 391181 wrote:

Avid's NEVER thought of audio as one of it's core businesses... it's broadcast and film...

+1
Media Composer, Isis, Interplay, and especially iNews are the big products. Pro Tools & Sibelius are small parts of the company.

I really don't know what to think about the news. The M-audio boxes were really confusing. The $700 2626 has more capability than the $3000 Omni.

Also it was really nice to get all of the AIR VIs bundled with Pro Tools but I can appreciate the argument that they should just concentrate on getting the main product working properly and leave the extras to someone else.

I know that I am in the minority here but I really do hope that Avid gets their act together and regains the reputation that they once had. IMO it is very desirable to be able to go into any major studio and have familiar software. It is also desirable to be able to move incomplete projects from studio to studio. I don't want to learn several different programs...I won't be really good at any of them. Whatever it's failings, PT is still very widely used and you can have a reasonable expectation that any major studio will be able to work with .ptx or .ptf files. I'm hoping that this abandonment of the 'low end' market results in an improvement in their dealings with professional users.

Just my opinion. YMMV!

I don't think anyone wants to see Avid go down. I've wanted Avid to get their act together for a while now and though they've started in the right direction, they've gone and done a full 360 in mid momentum. They've listened to their customers and then they've ignored them on so many levels. I think it's time to show some humility.

I'm not the only one who feels this way. Look at this from Pro Tools Expert Group:

hueseph, post: 391212 wrote: ... Look at this from Pro Tools Expert Group...

I don't mean this as an insult, but if I am ever convinced that the management in a publicly held corporation is taking seriously the business advice given by internet audio message boards (this one definitely included) I would take every penny I could lay my hands on and short their stock.

The picture was only to imply that if they would balance the executive salary and invest more in their R and D, that the companies success would likely get better.

In many ways I am with M Berry on ProTools. Even though I'm not an Avid user of ProTools. There is something to be said for a certain standard and interchangeability between various studios and production centers. What would life have been like if every analog tape recorder utilized different speeds, different equalization curves, different track formats. It would have been an untenable situation. In our current political situation there has been much deregulation's. And in many ways it's bringing the USA down. At least the audio community and the video community have Certain standards in place. I don't like to have to learn numerous different pieces of software on a regular basis. My brain can only hold so much. And maybe that's why I'm still using my Adobe Audition 1.5 still, most of the time? I still haven't upgraded my ProTools from version 7 yet. But that's also because I'm cheap. I liked the idea of ProTools version 9 when it was introduced. Right now, I'd be rather reluctant to upgrade to ProTools version 10. And how does everyone feel about the differences between ProTools version 9 & 10? What, if any real advantages are there to version 10 over version 9? I really don't do any MIDI and really don't intend to. And maybe that's where the biggest difference lies? So I'm interested to hear what everybody thinks about that? Was 9 that unstable? Sounds like 10 has more issues? What's a mother to do?

Maybe this is why I've never been a mother? Although some people have referred to me as that in an abbreviated way.
Mx. Remy Ann David

mberry593, post: 391210 wrote:

Also it was really nice to get all of the AIR VIs bundled with Pro Tools but I can appreciate the argument that they should just concentrate on getting the main product working properly and leave the extras to someone else

i totally agree with this. You know what would make things so much simpler? How about VST support? Every other major DAW has it. Even Logic AFAIK. So why not suck it up and admit defeat in the plugin department? You want cross platform compatibility? VST support. You want to make it easier for developers to create plugins for your DAW? VST support. You can still have DSP dependent VSTs a la UAD. So make that an extra and paid for upgrade. But for the sake of stability and universality, VST and for that matter AU support.

Edit(Logic in fact does not support VST. Just to clarify)

Caught these quotes over at PTEG:

Derek Williams wrote:

[="http://www.derekwilliams.net/"] [/]="http://www.derekwil…"] [/][="http://www.derekwil…"]“Shutting down the nerve centre of this confluence of genetic brilliance is an act of such banality, expedience, corporate vandalism and rank stupidity, that by this act, Avid has proven itself unworthy to marshal such a resource into the future.
[/]
[[url=http://="http://www.derekwil…"] [/]="http://www.derekwil…"] [/][="http://www.derekwilliams.net/"]While the board of Avid has been busy shutting down Sibelius, with all that connotes for the staff in human terms, its CEO has meantime quadrupled his salary without a scintilla of prudence or frugality. There is only one conclusion to be drawn. This board are nothing but corporate raiders, feathering their own pockets while presiding over the destruction of one of the greatest software accomplishments the world has ever known.”[/]="http://www.derekwil…"]While the board of Avid has been busy shutting down Sibelius, with all that connotes for the staff in human terms, its CEO has meantime quadrupled his salary without a scintilla of prudence or frugality. There is only one conclusion to be drawn. This board are nothing but corporate raiders, feathering their own pockets while presiding over the destruction of one of the greatest software accomplishments the world has ever known.”[/]
[[url=http://="http://www.derekwil…"] [/]="http://www.derekwil…"] [/]