Which developers are a safe bet for longevity.

[FAS122]

I say Kilohearts is gonna stick around for a while. Seems like they have a lot of goodwill with the community and I'd imagine they make serious bank off their preset packs.

[ghettosynth]

... rest assured that the Reaper will have been involved in this in one form or the other

And all is right with the world...

[BBFG#]

In this digital world, what is the "definition" of "longevity"?

(Even "saturation" is figured around 18 months, yet is more realized around 9-11 months.)

[SHall1000]

In this digital world, what is the "definition" of "longevity"?

In this context, which ones will last longest i.e. longer the other ones.

[Michael L]

I love developers but it's unfair to depend on them.
I control longevity with a stable hardware/software platform.

The 'wares I already have create more possibilities than I can explore.
Why do I need to make problems for myself by 'betting' on the newest shiny?

Also I 'came of age' producing in a hardware studio where the gear served the idea.
The now-common practice of building ideas on the gear feels emotionally empty to me.

[syntonica]

Why do I need to make problems for myself by 'betting' on the newest shiny?

I used to work very easily on the first iBook G4 800Mhz It was a great balance of power vs price. Sadly, it disentegrsated and Apple bought Logic and ruined it.

I love my new MBA M1, another great balance, and am creating a setup that should last me for 20 years. So, as to every new shiny--no, I don't need it, per se. But it'll be nice not to have to bounce every MIDI clip to audio...

I think we're definitely at the point where plugins are "good enough", soundwise, and a can find several that wipe the floor with the original Logic plugins and come nowhere close to maxing CPU like they did back then. One just has to get past the hype and FOMO.

[jamcat]

In this digital world, what is the "definition" of "longevity"?

In this context, which ones will last longest i.e. longer the other ones.

I read it as long-term maintenance and support. Which plugins will still be actively updated and developed, and will still open and work in your projects 5 or 10 years from now, regardless of which DAW or OS or plugin format you are using.

Which plugins can you count on for the long haul.

[machinesworking]

I love developers but it's unfair to depend on them.
I control longevity with a stable hardware/software platform.

DP11 can open files from 15+ years ago. Zebra, Waves, PSP etc. etc. This is how it's done. Some developers do not care about backwards compartability, some do.

Mostly it's not hard to determine which developers will slash and burn if they feel it's necessary, and which keep on updating old plug ins, but that's why this thread exists right?

[Michael L]

that's why this thread exists right?

It's necessary to foreground this important issue!

But there are so many use cases, it's helpful to share and learn alternative strategies for our unpredictable world, e.g. mac v. windows compatibility; classic abandoned synths; great products from 'unsafe' developers; developers that were safe but are now unsafe, and the opposite. I can think of multiple examples of each case

[machinesworking]

that's why this thread exists right?

It's necessary to foreground this important issue!

But there are so many use cases, it's helpful to share and learn alternative strategies for our unpredictable world, e.g. mac v. windows compatibility; classic abandoned synths; great products from 'unsafe' developers; developers that were safe but are now unsafe, and the opposite. I can think of multiple examples of each case

Yep! For years Iced Audio Audio Finder was vigorously developed then in the last year or so, nothing really. Developers sometimes just get better or more intensive jobs, rumor is he's working for Meta.

Semi large companies like MOTU, well the DAW itself is well maintained, but plug ins were developed out of house, or by developers that are no longer working there. So most of their plug ins are long in the tooth.

FXpansion were around forever, I recall Urs and Angus debating the merits of AU when it came out, then they went belly up.

all of this makes PSP, Waves and IK look pretty good, super low body counts of plug ins from 20 years ago that don't work on modern computers.

[ghettosynth]

all of this makes PSP, Waves and IK look pretty good, super low body counts of plug ins from 20 years ago that don't work on modern computers.

PSP not so much, but the other two tell you that aggressive marketing and sales bullshit help to keep a company afloat and viable. So there it is. People around here love to complain about, well, everything; however, what they want, as evidenced by this thread, is stability, i.e., mature and stable market players.

Gone are the days when things were so bad in terms of what you could actually find that KVR readers would throw a few bucks at someone for their Synthedit creation. Gone are the days where you only needed slightly more than an example project complied with some shit DSP to sell a plugin. Gone are the days when you could slap a slightly upscale vintage looking GUI on your shit DSP and call it a premium vintage plugin. And, surely gone are the days where you could sell some shitass clone of a classic piece of hardware for almost as much as a used version of the vintage hardware sold for at the time.

What KVR readers want is exactly what they're getting: consolidation, lower diversity, more homogeneity, less risk, and rock bottom prices. It will continue to work for some time yet.

[BBFG#]

all of this makes PSP, Waves and IK look pretty good, super low body counts of plug ins from 20 years ago that don't work on modern computers.

Not IK-M. I had about half of their 64 bit effects refuse to work on my systems. After some time working with support, they just gave up on trying to fix it and declared me "an anamoly" and worked hard to not let me recoup my losses. Likewise Sample Tank 3 also never worked and I didn't see another work until the last versions of S-Tank 4. Which was still fairly disappointing to me. And then there's their whole download, jam points and transfer policies (which they changed after the sale to make it all a loss to me.) Really wanted to like that company, but don't think I'll ever trust them again. So "longevity" is more of a scar in personal history than anything usable.

[Michael L]

what they want, as evidenced by this thread, is stability, i.e., mature and stable market players.

KVR surveys have always found stability to be the most important feature of software. But the market is not mature or stable, it's actually fragmented and unpredictable. So we need to take responsibility for 'longevity' within our own situation. Depending on developers is too risky --and limiting-- for me!

[Dencheg]

Nexus 6?

Ok, seriously: simply stick to those who will live long and will keep the business operational.
LOL

[whassup]

Waves. 25th aniversary anybody?
U-He. When people love and therefor live their stuff.
Steinberg. Love them or don't care: They survived some ruff times and don't seem to stop.