KVR Audio

Karmacomposer · Post by **Karmacomposer** » Tue Jun 16, 2009 8:54 am

A good price point is the deciding factor for me. That, and a loyalty discount for upgrading.

I prefer serial over C/R any day. Vista can be a pain in the rump and C/R (for example, with NI stuff) sometimes has to be re-done. Serial number simply work and you are no longer bugged. Plus, heavens-forbid, you guys ever fold, at least with serial, people still can re-install their purchased product.

Look what happened with Superwave (for a long time).

Mike

kv331 · Post by **kv331** » Tue Jun 16, 2009 10:56 am

Karmacomposer wrote:A good price point is the deciding factor for me. That, and a loyalty discount for upgrading.

We believe $59 IS the right price point for this product. Also, we are evaluating "lifetime" licences, such as the one that exists in Fruity Loops. We might introduce a licencing model like this, so updates are FREE!

Bulent

bobsled · Post by **bobsled** » Tue Jun 16, 2009 10:44 pm

kv331, you just sold a synth. Much respect. The conversation in this thread sold me as much as the "shooting yourself" demo/free version.

Best of luck with v2, I look forward to it.

kv331 · Post by **kv331** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 4:41 am

bobsled wrote:kv331, you just sold a synth. Much respect. The conversation in this thread sold me as much as the "shooting yourself" demo/free version.

Best of luck with v2, I look forward to it.

Thanks man! You wont regret it

Klemperer · Post by **Klemperer** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 7:56 am

Really nice of you, guys

. Like bobsled I'll buy now. I liked the free version of synthmaster 1, and I guess I'll be happy with 2.0 as well.

kv331 · Post by **kv331** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 8:57 am

Wow! Thanks for your support folks!

Aloysius · Post by **Aloysius** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 9:21 am

kv331 wrote:. . . As a developer, I am seriously scared to see copies of my product on p2p networks scattered on the internet. So far, I have spent almost 5000 hours (five thousand, yes) on the R&D of this product, so I dont want to waste my efforts.

I don't know what your 'scared' about! Your market remains the same. The people who have purchased software in the past, will continue to purchase software in the present, and into the future. People who don't, still won't! Get over it!

kv331 · Post by **kv331** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 9:40 am

Aloysius wrote:Your market remains the same.

We doubt that, potential buyers might download an illegal copy that has its serial number on it.

Nevertheless, we made the decision, so let's look forward...

Bulent

Aloysius · Post by **Aloysius** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 9:47 am

kv331 wrote:
Aloysius wrote:
kv331 wrote:Your market remains the same.
We doubt that, potential buyers might download an illegal copy that has its serial number on it.

Nevertheless, we made the decision, so let's look forward...

Bulent

Well I can't change the world. If I like your software and think it's worth the money, then I'll purchase it!

Lot's of things MIGHT happen. Even GOOD things! Anyway . . . thanks for taking the time to reply! You seem to have your mind set and since I can't change the world for you, I doubt I could ever change your outlook! Have a nicer day!

Lotuzia · Post by **Lotuzia** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 9:53 am

kv331 wrote:
Aloysius wrote:
kv331 wrote:Your market remains the same.
We doubt that, potential buyers might download an illegal copy that has its serial number on it.

Nevertheless, we made the decision, so let's look forward...

Bulent

Afaik Bulent, and only imho : C/R protection is far from beeing bulletproof but certainly delays the aggressivity of w....z "clans". Only delay it though.

It also have have a cost, both in implementing, testing, building, maintaining and supporting such a service.

The only true effective protection seems to be the Syncrosoft dongle. Here's the real choice imho. Serial or Syncrosoft. Syncrosoft also has a price : It will prevent some users to buy the product ( Anti dongle) and there's a licence fee, wich makes the final price more expensive. Otoh the product wont be w....d.

A true counterstrike for serial protection is to disable the w..zed serial numbers in the next updates and add these serials to a blacklist database (or array) embedded in the Vsti.

Another incentive possibility is to propose a certain ammount of the ressources (like additional presets banks, manual, aso) only on the editor website to regular registered users.

Just some ideas ....

But I perfectly understand your need to offer the best possible protection to your work. Just seems natural to me.

Hope this helps,

LtZ

ObsoleteAcc99 · Post by **ObsoleteAcc99** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 10:46 am

[DELETED]

kv331 · Post by **kv331** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 10:59 am

ttoz wrote:there's gonna be an AU version with SM2 isn't there...

Of course there will be!

Here's the schedule:

Windows-VST
OSX-VST
OSX-AU
OSX-RTAS
Windows RTAS

RTAS and AU might switch places, it depends on the feedback we'll get. We'll probably go with AU first, as EVERY mac user has a free GarageBand that comes with OSX!

Bulent

As for licencing, we will be selling each version as a different product. i.e. Windows-VST and OSX-VST are separate products, since each version requires development effort of its own... However, we'll make bundles, dont worry!

kv331 · Post by **kv331** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 11:02 am

Lotuzia wrote: A true counterstrike for serial protection is to disable the w..zed serial numbers in the next updates and add these serials to a blacklist database (or array) embedded in the Vsti.

Well, they make key generators, that might not be easy, but we'll have our inhouse solution

Lotuzia wrote: Another incentive possibility is to propose a certain ammount of the ressources (like additional presets banks, manual, aso) only on the editor website to regular registered users.

We'll definitely do that. Actually, we are working on developing the framework that allows users to upload/download presets online, using a tool that comes with SM2. The tool will also be used to report issues and to download product updates...

Klemperer · Post by **Klemperer** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 8:19 pm

I think Lotuzia is perfectly right, syncrosoft dongles or "trust your customer" are the 2 ways. I wouldn't have bought even this superb synth with a syncrosoft dongle (this topic was talked about many times before, I surely respect other opinions here, I just think different).
If you use the syncrosoft, you will have less crack-users, and less people who buy. What makes more sense, I don't know... At least there are 2 companies who didn't go on well with dongles, so it's not a 100% win-situation...
IK Multimedia dropped the dongle (dunno if it was iLok which I think was cracked or syncrosoft) after too many guys didn't buy amplitube2 and use c/r now, and Linplug first went from serial --> syncrosoft, and about half a year later back to serials...

Some companies even say - I don't know if that's rubbish - that cracked software would be some kind of advertisement (besides taking you the money of course). It would be like "hey, thousands use this, this must be great". Stupid, but well, if it would lead to more sales, the unavoidable stealing and cracking would at least lead to *some* who later buy their stuff.

But apart from that, I might be late to the party to praise the Synthmaster1, but this one is really a wonderful synth!! I am curious what v2 will get to us, but believe me, people who really think about buying the synth should do it now. I bought it a few hours ago, and my, even after an hour of fiddling I can say this is a monster of a synth. There are so many outstanding things in it, of course the sound, the routing, the many things you can change - and what I dig especially and didn't find in too many competitors is the care which was taken to describe many of the presets! Awesome!
I don't know if I'm allowed to post one description here, but you'd find a in-depth description for quite a few presets that simply are this much inspiring, and work like a synth-tutorial while you play.
There are so many people who love to make music but aren't the well-educated physics-geeks, and for all of those, like me, such informations like from Bulent are invaluable, and for sure a starting point to make own presets. As an example, you get told how oscillator 2's envelope changes in which time and why, and by the way they tell you that this or that is about the way a brass instrument (or a bass, or a...) would react. Well I stop here, but that's just great, guys, and just what I was searching for, a great, well layed out synth, and with every setting you see there are developers behind it who think about all aspects and tell their users about it. Often I just do own presets by trial and error - here I think I will get better results, as I understand why things are made this or that way.

last words about the decision - your price is perfect for users, your copy protection for v2 is perfect - now from your side everything is done that synthmaster2 will be a big success. People who like the sounds of this one could spread the word a bit

.
Now how could I convince this metal-band that what is missing in their line-up was a keyboarder who played synthmaster

Aloysius · Post by **Aloysius** » Wed Jun 17, 2009 9:24 pm

You could have just told me that Synthmaster sounds great and is at a highly attractive price point right now for the V2 upgrade instead of crapping on about copy protection all the time.

Seriously, I just tried the DEMO. In my excitement, I exceeded the max number of notes and . . . you know how that goes!

I don't know if you're ever heard of or seen an old TV programme called Father Ted. There was an episode when a houskeeper was being 'sold' a Tea-Master (sounds like Synth-Master) by a sales rep. He told her that the New Tea-Master would take all of the misery out of making tea. She replied: Maybe I LIKE the misery! The name of your product reminds me of that episode. It's hard to shake the images.

Having said all that (nonsence), you have a fine product here (IMHO) . . .

KVR Audio

SynthMaster 2.0: No more C/R, Serial Number cp only!

If you were to purchase SynthMaster 2.0, would the copy protection method affect your decision?