The future of Reaktor

[oobesan]

You're insinuating that Reaktor could live on in a Komplete UI? I mean I get it in terms of NI using Reaktor to make PLAY style instruments with limited interaction etc. with Reaktor internals, but that just makes Reaktor an internal development environment to a degree which it was anyway wasn't it? Doesn't do much for the third party people making ensembles except give them a modern interface to code for.

Yes, KUI would be used to give ensembles a HiDPI supported look and feel. Which is a pretty big deal in and of itself really, since it tackles the biggest end user usability pain point basically.

My problem with Reaktor ensembles in Komplete is that it is for performance only, not sound design. So, it's not really a solution, but a misdirection.

[Funkybot's Evil Twin]

PlugData is surely very interesting and does have a thriving, creative community. Still not really a new Reaktor for me, though. https://gumroad.com/discover?query=plugdata

I've honestly never used PlugData, and making Reaktor ensembles using low-level blocks is even beyond me, but where do you see the two products as differing? Is it the community related stuff? Ease of use? Integration with NKS or something?

Probably worthy of a separate thread, but if PlugData is being actively developed and Reaktor isn't, maybe it should be the future. But I'm not sure what the pros and cons are.

[EvilDragon]

My problem with Reaktor ensembles in Komplete is that it is for performance only, not sound design. So, it's not really a solution, but a misdirection.

Hmmm not sure what you're talking about, there's plenty of parameter tweaking in Reaktor based products that are in Komplete...

[machinesworking]

My problem with Reaktor ensembles in Komplete is that it is for performance only, not sound design. So, it's not really a solution, but a misdirection.

Hmmm not sure what you're talking about, there's plenty of parameter tweaking in Reaktor based products that are in Komplete...

Maybe you thought Komplete the package not Komplete Kontrol?

Sound design usually makes me think deep changes to a sound, the "Reaktor based products" in Komplete Kontrol typically change the sound in ways suited for macro knobs, things like filter settings, delay and reverb amounts, etc. the things that you would tweak in a performance. It's PLAY level "sound design", you're not developing a sound from the ground up.

[EvilDragon]

Even in KK you can show the full view of the ensemble with all the parameters, of course not all of them are necessarily exposed to NKS, but you can edit the parameters the usual way with the mouse in any case.

But I think oobesan confused Komplete Kontrol and Komplete UI, which is something else.

[rACatkvr]

I'm one of those people who quit using Reaktor and other NI legacy products solely due to the itty bitty fonts as my eyes get not-younger. I'd pay money just for a UI update!

The super annoying thing is - When NI founders were still around, they understood the value of Reaktor as a DSP prototyping tool, and ecosystem for Ensembles. But then the suits came in...

I dont think your eyes are getting older/worse, you just write in tiny font size. Like really small. Im gaving hard time reading what you wrote, i have to zoom in.

I think you missed the irony.

[XorXisT]

For you grandpas & grandmas out there, you can zoom in using windoze & macos desktop zoom features.

Windows: windows key plus the PLUS key.

Mac OS: accessibility > zoom > choose a key to use the mouse scroll wheel (or touchpad) to zoom.

I use both & they work great (macos is the better way IMO).

[sunthief01]

That's correct and I'm glad the OS's have basic accessibility features like that but very annoying on a dual screen set up and definitely less good overall than the ability to resize

[XorXisT]

Yep I agree with you.

But when we don't get what we want, we workaround.

That's what I'm trying to say.

[machinesworking]

Yep I agree with you.

But when we don't get what we want, we workaround.

That's what I'm trying to say.

I've had control up arrow assigned to zoom in Mac OS for years, great feature. I think a lot of us have not transitioned over to higher screen resolutions because of this. I have two 27" 1080p monitors and the 32" 4k is at 2560. I don't personally find most Reaktor instruments unusable, but it's certain that it will become that way in the coming years. The elephant, I do not gravitate towards plugins with ancient GUI's no matter what the workaround is, it's always less desirable than a GUI that you don't have to constantly zoom to use.

We're just dancing around the sad panda reality that great plugins like Reaktor do not survive in a cash driven world where the youngins love their PLAY ROMplers and MIDI packs!

[Broken]

It would speed up the process, arguing against that is illogical but here we are.

I literally cannot think of a better application for AI than examining crash reports, compiling the basics of a new UI, outlining blueprints for a small project etc. that can be then expanded into the final product.

I don't need it to play bass on my next project I just need it to help developers find bugs in their code, or compile cross platform modern UI's that don't cause issues.

Yeah, I don't really get the push back. AI is obviously increasing developer productivity, so it's reasonable to assume that an unviable project might become viable in the future.

[XorXisT]

We're just dancing around the sad panda reality that great plugins like Reaktor do not survive in a cash driven world where the youngins love their PLAY ROMplers and MIDI packs!

[bmanic]

Mac OS: accessibility > zoom > choose a key to use the mouse scroll wheel (or touchpad) to zoom.

Yeah this is what I'm using currently. Works decently but sometimes has a problem with keyboard conflicts.. the toggle mode seems to be most reliable but the temporary zoom thing + scroll wheel doesn't always work nicely.

[bmanic]

Yep I agree with you.

But when we don't get what we want, we workaround.

That's what I'm trying to say.

I've had control up arrow assigned to zoom in Mac OS for years, great feature. I think a lot of us have not transitioned over to higher screen resolutions because of this. I have two 27" 1080p monitors and the 32" 4k is at 2560. I don't personally find most Reaktor instruments unusable, but it's certain that it will become that way in the coming years. The elephant, I do not gravitate towards plugins with ancient GUI's no matter what the workaround is, it's always less desirable than a GUI that you don't have to constantly zoom to use.

This is why I refuse to sell my old panels. I keep a bunch of 1080p monitors around for the upcoming apocalypse.

Reaktor is also one of those things that has it's own dedicated computer (or 3 actually) waiting for it when it's discontinued. It'll live on for as long as I have a machine to run it. It's unique, awesome and a must have for me. I treat it as a "hardware" synth in that regard. It'll last as long as there is hardware to run it. The latest version is pretty damn stable and virtually "perfect" in my opinion. At least good enough to be a set and forget system. Only thing worrying me is how to activate it if NI goes under. I might have to sail the seas for a bit and see if there's a reliable alternative out there for that scenario. It's the only thing I haven't done yet.

[Broken]

Surely this is easy and not asking too much

It's not asking too much, but it's far from easy. Not unachievable, certainly.

Sounds like a job for the .ensConverterbot5000