Native Instruments Maschine Discontinued ??

[cryophonik]

I highly doubt (and hope not) that the next version of Maschine will have a built-in audio card. Kore is a good example:
- Kore 1 - built-in audio
- Kore 2 - no built-in audio
- Kore 3 - ...Maschine?

Anyway, there are many things that an updated Maschine HW controller could use. NI has been constantly adding features, including the new v1.8 features, while the controller has remained static. So, a few more dedicated knobs, some updated labeling, etc. would go a long way to improve the hardware/software integration and workflow. I would think that whatever the improvements/additions in the next HW unit are, NI is likely considering the future and will make it forward-compatible with whatever long-term plans they have for Maschine.

[bunnywrench]

Well, why do people resort to hacking the F1 protocol and actually find out that the remix decks can be controlled just fine with 3rd party controllers already?

"After seeing some of the recent discussions of Remix Decks and third-party controller support, we felt it would be worthwhile to explain our reasoning around not immediately providing in-depth control through the Controller Manager. There is a lot of conjecture around this issue and we wanted to be clear in our decision making process.

Remix Decks will have limited third party control options in Traktor 2.5, however more functionality will be added with later updates.

With this release we have created a new quality of integration between controlling hardware (F1) and software to provide an unparalleled user-experience.

It's far more than a new feature, the addition of Remix Decks is like a new platform being added to the software. DJ, play live or mix the two, it's your choice.

The feature set of the new Remix decks has introduces a new level of complexity which exceeds the capabilities of the current midi mapping features.

Adding new Remix Deck controls to the Controller Manager will happen in future Traktor updates, however it will be never be possible to find a "one size fits" all solution that matches the level of integration with F1.

Traktor 2.5 contains more options for Midi mapping than any previous release. Rather than reducing configuration possibilities in the future, Traktor will present more freedom than ever for Midi-mappers."
http://www.native-instruments.com/forum ... p?t=166665

[stikygum]

I like Maschine, but F@#$ that if they are going to discontinue it after selling it like a flagship product. I'm not buying it unless it has something really necessary or important.

Geist blows Maschine out of the water. Which is why I use the Maschine controller with the Geist template to control it.

[bunnywrench]

I like Maschine, but F@#$ that if they are going to discontinue it after selling it like a flagship product. I'm not buying it unless it has something really necessary or important.

Again, there's absolutely no basis for this "discontinue" talk (as much as some sour Kore users might love to spread false rumors) as already pointed out above.

Geist blows Maschine out of the water.

Geist is a software-only product so cannot be compared to Maschine and thus cannot "blow Maschine out of the water". The whole point of Maschine is the hands-on workflow from the integration with the dedicated hardware.

[Crackbaby]

NI is a frustrating company. Very little communication to users about future features. There's not much competition on the market for Maschine so you'd think they could be a little bit more open about it.

While i have little respect and confidence in NI politics, Maschine is still a wonderful product. For what it is, it's very cheap, isn't it?
With Mux (http://www.kvraudio.com/forum/viewtopic ... 28#4981928) Maschine just became three times better.

[bunnywrench]

NI is a frustrating company. Very little communication to users about future features.

I wholeheartedly disagree. Because of the massive popularity of their products, there's a proportionate amount of whiny hobbists complaining on the interwebs about all thing NI because they can't be bothered to actually learn to use the tools they spent money on (or torrented) to make music. NI actually communicates with its userbase far more and often than any other major music product company out there as evidenced by the regular On The Record Q&A sessions with users in their forums.

There's not much competition on the market for Maschine so you'd think they could be a little bit more open about it.

With Akai abandoning hardware MPCs and trying to rebadge it as a Maschine clone, you can bet there will at least be some competition that NI has to be aware of. Despite that NI has continued to do the On The Record Q&A sessions for Maschine, revealing as much as they can without giving it away to competitors.

[bobbybland]

I love it, can't wait to use 1.8 n if they do release another controller,I'll be interested to see what they can do vs the mpc ren. exciting times

[Crackbaby]

Ehh.. What do you know about those whiny hobbists' knowledge of their products they bought ... OR TORRENTED(?!)?

How do you know they're revealing as much as they can? Do you have any inside knowledge or are you just assuming in good faith?

And tell me, these on the records, how often have they had them? Take the last two for Maschine. How about that 60+ pages thread where NI fiiiinally managed to pop in and say some optimistic words.

I use Maschine every day. Still i need sidechain and timestretch and while i know how to accomplish that, it's still a break from flow. So i will continue to be a whiny hobbit until they've implemented it or found another solution for it. (With transport control as host you can use a host to route sidechain - not elegant but it works).

But please continue to disagree. Rememer that even his majesty Sowari became a critic after a year or two though

Those MPC boxes cost a LOT more than Maschine so i wouldn't say they're a huge competition yet. And you've seen the pictures of them, right? The display and knobs are separated making the point of having hardware control .. pointless.

[cryophonik]

Again, there's absolutely no basis for this "discontinue" talk...

Agreed. That was refuted by Keir (NI rep) on page 1.

With regard to the topic in hand - the future of Maschine is assured. You can have a look at details of the recently announced and forthcoming 1.8 update here: http://www.native-instruments.com/forum ... hp?t=80682

IMO, the OP should do the responsible thing and change both the title and text of the first post to reflect Keir's statement, because too many people are still jumping to wrong conclusions.

[bunnywrench]

How do you know they're revealing as much as they can? Do you have any inside knowledge or are you just assuming in good faith?

How do you know they're not revealing as much as they can? Do you have any inside knowledge or are you just assuming in bad faith?

[TabSel]

Seems they cannot reveal anything.
The last answers to the Q/A were delayed three times, for three weeks, due to this many many questions.......
They answered about 12 questions.
They haven't really answered these 12 questions, apart from saying they can currently not reveal much, basically *g*

[TabSel]

Again, there's absolutely no basis for this "discontinue" talk...

Agreed. That was refuted by Keir (NI rep) on page 1.

With regard to the topic in hand - the future of Maschine is assured. You can have a look at details of the recently announced and forthcoming 1.8 update here: http://www.native-instruments.com/forum ... hp?t=80682

IMO, the OP should do the responsible thing and change both the title and text of the first post to reflect Keir's statement, because too many people are still jumping to wrong conclusions.

What is meant with "Maschine"?
The hardware?
The software?
The concept?

The concept won't be discontinued. The software will evolve. The hardware will be replaced to fit new features of the software. The old controller will eventually become incompatible more and more over time. So, you can call it partially discontinuation of the current Maschine.

[bunnywrench]

Seems they cannot reveal anything.

Just because they didn't answer your question doesn't mean they didn't reveal anything.

I thought the last On The Record was decently informative with some good insights. They've said that there's a few items they are holding off to implement with major rewrites to the audio routing, midi routing and automation. Multicore is also being worked on but is challenging and will come in a future version. They focused 1.8 on getting feature request in that are not a part of larger engine development.

Things I'm happy to hear about from this On the Record:

- confirmation that solo and mute automation along with further extending of automation features, midi import and routing are in the pipeline

- multiple pad select/parameter adjustment is coming

- to expect "closer integration of Battery and Kontakt as plug-ins inside Maschine"

- that a new hardware is definitely a possibility but "current compatibility with the existing controllers will always remain"

- the Transient Master in Maschine uses the same high-quality algorithm as the separate Komplete Effect

[bunnywrench]

The hardware will be replaced to fit new features of the software. The old controller will eventually become incompatible more and more over time. So, you can call it partially discontinuation of the current Maschine.

Wrong. First off, there is no indication of there being any new hardware, if at all, anytime soon other than pure speculation.

Second off, NI has made it explicitly clear that there priority is for existing Maschine hardware to always remain compatible even if a new hardware does become a reality:

6/8/12:
"ray2002 wrote: Are there plans for a new Maschine hardware controller in the future?

We are of course always looking into ideas for developing the Maschine hardware. However, it's important to note that current compatibility with the existing controllers will always remain an important focus for us."

http://www.native-instruments.com/forum ... stcount=10

[TabSel]

Unimpressed. Basically, they are saying they are working on things we knew they are working on for some months already. I mean, what do the think we think they are doing when not working? Nothing new here. And Maschine is compatible with even a mouse, you know, so this also is saying nothing, but your Maschine controller will possibly be as productive working with the evolving software, as a mouse is with the current software. This is compatibility. My controller is half a year old, after being fooled into a crossgrade to a soon to be partially discontinued hardware/software combo. I bought Kore immediately before it got discontinued.
I use both, I like both, but the business tactics, as successful as they are, is pissing me off currently

will there be a crossgrade to the new controller? Or a grace period?