Izotope RX loudness control - come pay extra for the RX4 fix as a separate plugin...

[klagga]

https://www.izotope.com/en/products/pos ... s-control/

I´ve as a consumer spent considerable money on the RX plugins during the years from RX1, RX2, RX3 and the latest, RX 4, every one of them paid updates and rather expensive, too.

The main reason for me to buy the latest upgrade to RX4 was the new loudness control functionality, which turned out to be a rather clunky design.

Now, instead of releasing a free update fixing that plugin that one has already paid for, Izotope releases an update to RX 4 fixing the loudness control functionality - as a separate plugin for $349.

That has got to be one of the most expensive fixes you have to pay for in the history of VST effects...

[Spitfire31]

It seems that lately, iZotope has shifted from innovating to renovating.

In such a competitive field, it's seldom a route to long-term success.

/Joachim

[Ben H]

They seem to be doing that with all their products lately.
I'm a bit worried that they are going to shoot themselves in the foot with this sort of behaviour.
That's one of the main reasons I haven't bought into Iris 2, even though I love Iris 1.

[Sampleconstruct]

So this is basically the "Leveler" module we have in RX4 Advanced, in a slightly different GUI and with less functions? I've used the Leveler a few times, in most cases it makes the resulting signal clip so yes, it's basically unusable unless you want to declip it again with the Declip module and then run it through the Leveler again and then declip it again and...maybe remove some artifacts with the Spectral Repair tool before you run it through the Leveler again.

Other than that, RX4 rocks and is probably the most used program here, it's indispensable for preparing/cleaning/editing sample content. But spending 350 bucks on a Loudness-war tool seems super-duper-ridiculous.

[Shabdahbriah]

... Other than that, RX4 rocks and is probably the most used program here, it's indispensable for preparing/cleaning/editing sample content. But spending 350 bucks on a Loudness-war tool seems super-duper-ridiculous.

Agree, even the regular (non-'advanced') version of RX4 rocks, and I can't complain about the upgrade from v.3. {unlike Iris-2, compared to v.1}

However, WTF? is it with all these different loudness "compliance standards" that are cropping-up all of the sudden, that would require one to have any of these "loudness control" apps, (that are insanely pricey) ?

Can't this "maximizing" be done in your DAW or editor? I seem to really be missing something here.

[stardustmedia]

But spending 350 bucks on a Loudness-war tool seems super-duper-ridiculous.

It's totally ridiculous

The RX4 Advanced upgrade was my last iZotope product I buyed. It was pricey, but RX4 is quite a life saver, although I don't need it often.

iZotope's product development, pricing and marketing really get on my nerves. With all the new "downgrades" while "old" version don't get updated anymore. E.g. Insight makes Logic crash, until now no response to my bug report, for a 400$ meter plugin. Ozone5 sometimes doesn't work sometimes, as you can see after reloading a project containing O5, it doesn't compress/limit anymore (you have save the preset, unload the plugin, reload the plugin and the preset).

I lost a lot of trust in the high priced iZotope. Why going for more expensive upgrades, let's say Ozone6, only to be left with bugs in the future?

[matthines]

Hi Folks! As the Product Manager for the RX family of products, and a user of such tools myself, I appreciate your feedback.

It's great to see a discussion of RX Loudness Control hit the KVR forums, and I thought I'd reach out to continue the conversation, as well as to help demystify the behavior and the genesis of RX Loudness Control. RX Loudness Control is a new product, driven by user request for a separate solution, and incorporating many new and valuable features. Here's the TL:DR...

How does RX Loudness Control work?
It goes through the file multiple times to build up an accurate picture the True Peak, Integrated, Short-term and Momentary loudness for correction, as well as the Loudness Range, or LRA. It then applies:

1) A fixed amount of gain to hit the specified integrated loudness

2) [optional] An RMS compressor to limit the Short-term (or Momentary) loudness

3) A True Peak limiter

Though more detail can be found in the manual, there's a little more detail on the product, and loudness compliance in general here: http://help.izotope.com/docs/izotope-rx ... ontrol.pdf

Why RX Loudness Control?
RX Loudness Control is a new addition to the RX product line. It was designed to address the needs of many engineers in the post production and broadcast industries, who were looking for a separate product, dedicated to loudness compliance that fit their workflow. This includes the following new features:

1) Generate a loudness report in .CSV

2) Supports surround sound, up to 5.1

3) Available on the Adobe CC platform and as an Audiosuite DPM/AAX plug-in

4) New, faster loudness algorithm (still with industry-leading accuracy). The algorithm from RX 4 Advanced is still available as an option.

5) Supports the EBU R128 s1 standard, released in November 2014.

I’d welcome the chance to continue this conversation and indeed talk about anything related to loudness compliance or the RX family of products, which will soon include RX Final Mix as well. I’m easily reached at matt.h@izotope.com.

Best,

Matt

[Simon Morrison]

Hi Matt,

I think you're missing the point.

The folks who spent $1,199.00 on RX 4 Advanced or $399.00 on the upgrade from RX 3 Advanced to RX 4 Advanced are expecting that any improvements to the Loudness module be delivered as an update to RX 4, versus delivering an improved $349.00 standalone module.

A majority of the post-production engineers who want a standalone loudness control product are actually RX 3/4 owners. For many, the decision to purchase/upgrade to RX 4 was based on the availability of the Loudness module.

With the last two RX Advanced updates, RX 2 > RX 3 and RX 3 > RX 4, owners paid $399.00 for each update, and received zero (0) upgrades during each product lifecycle.

The perception, based on pricing strategy, and non-delivery of product upgrades, is that there is a significant lack of concern for customer loyalty, and an overriding focus on profit.

Perhaps you could address this?

Thanks,

Simon

[Shabdahbriah]

Hi Matt,

I think you're missing the point.

The folks who spent $1,199.00 on RX 4 Advanced or $399.00 on the upgrade from RX 3 Advanced to RX 4 Advanced are expecting that any improvements to the Loudness module be delivered as an update to RX 4, versus delivering an improved $349.00 standalone module.

A majority of the post-production engineers who want a standalone loudness control product are actually RX 3/4 owners. For many, the decision to purchase/upgrade to RX 4 was based on the availability of the Loudness module.

With the last two RX Advanced updates, RX 2 > RX 3 and RX 3 > RX 4, owners paid $399.00 for each update, and received zero (0) upgrades during each product lifecycle.

The perception, based on pricing strategy, and non-delivery of product upgrades, is that there is a significant lack of concern for customer loyalty, and an overriding focus on profit.

Perhaps you could address this?

Thanks,

Simon

Indeed. ^^^

[Ben H]

Hi Matt,

I think you're missing the point.

They seem to be doing that quite a bit lately.

[klagga]

Hi Matt,

I think you're missing the point.

The folks who spent $1,199.00 on RX 4 Advanced or $399.00 on the upgrade from RX 3 Advanced to RX 4 Advanced are expecting that any improvements to the Loudness module be delivered as an update to RX 4, versus delivering an improved $349.00 standalone module.

A majority of the post-production engineers who want a standalone loudness control product are actually RX 3/4 owners. For many, the decision to purchase/upgrade to RX 4 was based on the availability of the Loudness module.

With the last two RX Advanced updates, RX 2 > RX 3 and RX 3 > RX 4, owners paid $399.00 for each update, and received zero (0) upgrades during each product lifecycle.

The perception, based on pricing strategy, and non-delivery of product upgrades, is that there is a significant lack of concern for customer loyalty, and an overriding focus on profit.

Perhaps you could address this?

Thanks,

Simon

Well put!

[Spitfire31]

Hi Matt,

I think you're missing the point.

The folks who spent $1,199.00 on RX 4 Advanced or $399.00 on the upgrade from RX 3 Advanced to RX 4 Advanced are expecting that any improvements to the Loudness module be delivered as an update to RX 4, versus delivering an improved $349.00 standalone module.

A majority of the post-production engineers who want a standalone loudness control product are actually RX 3/4 owners. For many, the decision to purchase/upgrade to RX 4 was based on the availability of the Loudness module.

With the last two RX Advanced updates, RX 2 > RX 3 and RX 3 > RX 4, owners paid $399.00 for each update, and received zero (0) upgrades during each product lifecycle.

The perception, based on pricing strategy, and non-delivery of product upgrades, is that there is a significant lack of concern for customer loyalty, and an overriding focus on profit.

Perhaps you could address this?

Thanks,

Simon

What the man said.

As a governing principle, greed has its long term drawbacks.

/Joachim

[Daags]

I wonder if Matt was hoping the people commenting here would be grateful just for the fact he showed up ?

I see that quite a bit in forums. Several users will get a usually justified chorus of complaints going, then the usually absent dev or representative shows up to offer some kind of 'man that sux, bro' comment. And then everyone changes their tune and starts making 'thanks so much for addressing me personally by name, i have self-esteem issues' type comments. I think they call it 'damage control' or something. Chilling people out with a little glad-handing goes a long way. usually.

I guess licensees of $1,200 software aren't so pavlovian

anyway, iZotope emailed a survey to existing customers. Quite timely I guess.

[klagga]

Dear Matt at Izotope, hope to hear from you soon, there are some people here eagerly awaiting your response.

[elxsound]

Dear Matt at Izotope, hope to hear from you soon, there are some people here eagerly awaiting your response.

I think his post was a way of showing that they are involved in the community and actively listening to their customers, as well as a way to divert the public discussion to a private discussion, via email.

Though, I could be wrong...