Think twice before you buy at reFX

[Kongru]

I own Nexus. Great synth. Great customer support. I'd be staggered if 'Nexus deliberately crashes'. Sounds like sour grapes to me. Can't believe the audacity of the pirate comment

There is no such thing as "great customer support" at reFX. There is just a quick responding number of people or bots. Being quick doesn't mean being helpful.

I've been using Nexus 2 for years. I own a few dozen additional soundbanks (at least on paper and in the user profile). After many years my eLicenser broke down. That means: I can't use my paid(!) licenses and my paid(!) software with the broken eLicenser.

That in itself is not a problem and it should be, because otherwise the eLicenser would not make sense. For exactly this reason I always have a replacement at home - you never know what will happen.

At Steinberg, that was no problem at all. There you can find the "Zero Downtime" program. You click on it, get a temporary key immediately and can continue working with a new eLicenser. Then you fill out a form, send it to support and after a check you get a new activation key while the old eLicenser is deactivated. This is exemplary and customer-friendly behavior and this makes even such kind of protection acceptable and tolerable.

Nothing happens with reFX. You can't get a temporary key - support talks about it, but they don't give it away. Instead, you have to be implicitly described as a liar and fraud who wants to obtain a second license. You try to coerce them at your own expense - and that's neither cheap nor easy, since the eLicenser has to be declared to customs - and send them to any anonymous mailbox at your own risk, without even getting any guarantee that you'll get a license immediately afterwards (not to mention how long that might take).

Let me be frank: Even if one out of a hundred people were to lie, the damage would be minimal. But the damage caused by pissed off customers who are affected by such ridiculous and customer-hostile behavior is many times higher and leads to the fact that hardly any of the affected customers will ever pay or recommend a cent to this company again. At best, access to the license can be so important that it has to be paid for in a forced manner - but that doesn't change anything and at best means that the person no longer uses Nexus in any further production.

The behavior of reFX is neither rational nor clever. It's ridiculous and 100% customer hostile. You don't need to talk nice about that.

I deliberately didn't say a word about the quality of the sounds. Also not about the purchase price. Nexus is not a hi-end synthesizer, but first and foremost a "convenience tool", a preset player with current sounds that can be used directly. A kind of time saver for highly commercial or time-critical productions. To my sound perception, the presets are quite ok - but I don't play in extreme ranges, but in the pitches covered by the presets and I rarely play the built-in effects, but my own, separate ones. In fact, I only use certain presets - because Nexus is also a blender. The soundbanks contain only about 2% to 3% really useful sounds for my purposes. But it's the 2% to 3% that really save me time.

Whoever wants the ROMpler and has the money, buys it - but most customers don't know what to expect when they buy the eLicenser if it is stolen, lost or simply broken. If customers were to suspect this, they would probably think again about whether the price is appropriate - because in case of doubt you are standing with your back against the wall and cannot work on your projects.

Steinberg shows that things can be done differently. Steinberg, too, risks that there might be a case of abuse - but at the end of the day this should be the absolute exception. And there is likely to be an understanding there that an abuse case among dozens or hundreds of emergencies is less painful than pissed off customers who also talk about it.

By the way:

At the eLicenser there seems to have been a problem with a usb contact. A friend had repaired it with a little solder. Steinberg was so kind as to allow me to copy my Nexus license, for which I am extremely grateful. But that didn't help me much - the factory-soundbank works, but the rest doesn't. Because changing an eLicenser with reFX is also undesirable and not easy. After all, I can now open my projects - which was not possible on the Mac without the license, because the hosts are crashed. This gives me the chance - even if it means work - to replace Nexus in my projects with an alternative.

Nobody gives me back the hundreds of Euros I invested in this ROMpler. However, I won't do business with the a**holes of reFX anymore and after this experience I won't tolerate their pranks and won't use their software anymore. Who behaves in such a way opposite paying customers, that deserves neither loyalty nor understanding. At least in my opinion.

So I'm guessing you still haven't sent the eLicenser back?

[ramseysounds]

[pixel85]

worst sounding synthase I ever heard.

Need to have pretty good ears to hear interactions at the molecular level;

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synthase

[vreckan]

So I'm guessing you still haven't sent the eLicenser back?

Why should I? I have to pay roughly 40 bucks just for DHL and additionally need the time for the legal part (customs etc.), have no guarantee what happens and when. Why throw more money after lost money? And this with a shitty company like reFX that f*cks its customers? The money i spent in the past is more or less lost and I'm not in the mood to deal with the a**holes at reFX anymore. I'm done with them.

The last days I started to work on the affected projects to replace Nexus with an alternative instrument. This for sure changes the overall impression of the projects - but to be honest, this is also an opportunity to polish them.

To be honest: reFX is fully burned for me. This company showed hostile behavior. I don't give away the proof of their shame and after I'm now able again to open my project files, I don't give a f*ck on the wasted money I spent in the past. The important part is, that this a**holes should be kicked out of business due to to their hostile and shady behavior.

I know, Here are always clowns blaming customers for hostile support behavior. I don't care.

Again my advice: Do not buy at reFX. Check for alternatives.

[SciFiArtMan]

Hahaha, that's pretty sick, chk071! Laugh-worthy, but mighty twisted!

Yes, good money after bad, etc., etc..

I tried to deal with them as well, and as you say, there's not much give to customer satisfaction! Luckily, my situation was self-resolved (my USB licenser wasn't damaged, my USB port drivers were).

The fork in the road is clear, and each has to decide which road to travel and at what ultimate harm. Personally, I'd try hard to work out anything I could with them to try to reduce the harm. But I can certainly appreciate the alternative direction too.

So drag their name through the dirt as best you can, eventually culminating in a thorough washing of your hands, and tracks. And then find your personal peace with the world, and never forget - the art is the ultimate focus.

All the best!

[dermichl]

Hahaha, that's pretty sick, chk071! Laugh-worthy, but mighty twisted!

That‘s not sick at all. This dude is DISGUSTING...

[simmo75]

Hahaha, that's pretty sick, chk071! Laugh-worthy, but mighty twisted!

That‘s not sick at all. This dude is DISGUSTING...

Totally agree!
I’m disgusted that this even allowed here

[chk071]

I'm disgusted about the lack of understanding of sarcasm. And someone like the OP who stands up on a stool, and tells people not to buy at a developer. I think people can well think and act for themselves. Noone needs a smartass telling everyone how to act and to think.

[Hink]

forgive me...I stepped away to mow my lawn

[Burillo]

I'm disgusted about the lack of understanding of sarcasm.

well, this is internet. of course no one understands sarcasm here...

[chk071]

forgive me...I stepped away to mow my lawn

That was quick... wished you guys were as quick as that when it comes to real trouble.

[Kongru]

So I'm guessing you still haven't sent the eLicenser back?

Why should I?

...

To be honest: reFX is fully burned for me. This company showed hostile behavior.

I know, Here are always clowns blaming customers for hostile support behavior. I don't care.

Again my advice: Do not buy at reFX. Check for alternatives.

Please enlighten us on what this "hostile support behavior" was? Correct me if I'm wrong but you haven't given any examples yet.

[Orbit-50]

I own Nexus. Great synth. Great customer support. I'd be staggered if 'Nexus deliberately crashes'. Sounds like sour grapes to me. Can't believe the audacity of the pirate comment

I totally agree. One can say all they want, but at the end of the day, reFX has damn good support. There are other things that I personally could burn them into the ground about, but support and the quality of their products is not one of them. The few times I reached out to them, they were extremely respectful and helpful and I was happy to deal with them. You give them respect, they give it back. Cutting off ones nose, to spite their face over their policies is not how to deal with reFX. Their not the type of company that deals with that crap very well, and for that reason, I actually admire them. When dealing with them, you just have to follow the correct protocol and everything turns out peachy keen in the end. They don't set out to screw anybody. Simple.

P.S. I, just like you, have never ever had a Nexus2 crash.

[dermichl]

I'm disgusted about the lack of understanding of sarcasm. And someone like the OP who stands up on a stool, and tells people not to buy at a developer. I think people can well think and act for themselves. Noone needs a smartass telling everyone how to act and to think.

Sounds like a whiney excuse from a dumb idiot...
One can argue about claiming not to buy from reFX. But one can not compare this claim to the barbaric intentions of the Nazis. This is not sarcasm but a dumb ass ignoring the past. Setzen sechs, du Vollkoffer!!!

[chk071]

There isn't anything to excuse, so why would i do so? The OP is acting like an idiot, and so are you.