The Future of Digidesign: An Open Letter to Customers :

[TAFKAT]

AVID are unifying all of their brand names under one banner, Digidesign as a brand will cease to exist.

I received this open letter in an email, but it is publicly posted Here (http://duc.digidesign.com/showthread.php?t=270775)

[Sam]

I did notice the latest version of protools splash screen says 'Digidesign is Avid' and not the usual division of statement

[nikki-k]

lmao

[LEX]

Its not a surprise really, and makes better sense financially. Why have 6 marketing divisions?

LEX

[TAFKAT]

It does make sense, but its a bold move retiring the Digidesign brand name that has been synonymous with Pro Audio for 15 years or so.

[ROCKINROG]

It's a bold move but very much a neccessity as a large corporation to move forward,cut costs and solidify their business. I saw this coming from dealing in the broadcast market installs.

[Jonesy]

And it happens just after they have been selling their flagship product at half price.... There may be more to it.

[kdm]

Avid went through a restructuring last year didn't they? A lot about listening to customers and wanting to respond - so I assume all of this is part of that plan. Probably means a new line of ProTools under the Avid banner - intentionally moving out the old gear to put money behind the new lines and market plans.

[Jonesy]

Really liking PTLE 8, but seriously their LE hardware is not desirable at all. To bad you can't use their software with a decent interface. I dislike the Nuendo dongle, but the PT dongles really suck.

[nikki-k]

Avid is making mistakes left and right. Trust me... it will be getting worse... or, more ridiculous, depending on POV.

[olamo]

There is a rumour of a PT HD Native version.. Maybe what we are waiting for, ehh.. besides the usual Steinberg updates, of course :D

Ola

[nikki-k]

There is a rumour of a PT HD Native version.. Maybe what we are waiting for, ehh.. besides the usual Steinberg updates, of course :D

Ola

Impossible, simply since HD=TDM, which means DSP card(s).
PT LE can currently be expanded to be nearly equivalent to HD in software features, ala Complete Production Toolkit. Delay Comp, I/O, and TDM plugin use (obviously) are among the features HD retains exclusively. For Avid to simply dissolve the HD line in favor of native would be great for the end user who desires it, but suicide for the PT line for Avid. Making a slim version of HD, still requiring at least one card, might be a dirty way to lure idiots in though... if I were looking to make cash without conscience, that is what I would do ;)

[kdm]

For Avid to simply dissolve the HD line in favor of native would be great for the end user who desires it, but suicide for the PT line for Avid.

They had better have their DSP ducks in a row then as native may be on the verge of another exponential leap in power well beyond the multi-core capabilities with co-processing options. HD's far-underpowered DSP chipset is verrrrrryyyy long in the tooth by comparison, and no new option will be backwards compatible (i.e. a major pain and potential losses for TDM plugins devs, who may just jump ship for native only to avoid such a change). For too long Digi has been hanging onto ProTool's market dominance as it's main attraction, with little technical advancement to show for it. Technology has passed them by, so this year may be a turning point for PT - it either goes Native, introduces some massive custom DSP option similar to Fairlight's CC-1, or it hangs onto the old model and watches it slowly fall apart over the next 2 years.

[Daryl]

Whilst we're talking rumours, I heard one that said both Mac and PC versions were going to be discontinued in favour of dedicated PT hardware. That would upset the iFruits....! :wink:

D

[LEX]

Whilst we're talking rumours, I heard one that said both Mac and PC versions were going to be discontinued in favour of dedicated PT hardware. That would upset the iFruits....! :wink:

D

Well that would kill them all together. The biggest problem I see overall is the upgrade cost for users in terms of hardware. There are many who haven't moved beyond 7.3.1 or 7.4.2 because of having to replace cards and computers.

If you look at AVID, they already offer an AVID software program only for about 3 large.

If AVID is running the show, they'd see how much Final Cut has eaten into their market, and creating a PT Hardware only would be the death of Pro Tools, which I'm sure many would welcome.

As far as Native, PT is like UAD. They sell DSP. Native maybe if they came out with a DSP box that could be stacked and added. I thought Waves did something like that a while back, but it seems to have gone away.

Probably to expensive and not mind blowing DSP.

LEX

[olamo]

lol.. guys
Funny how this start spinning. I only refer to very unofficial info from the inside.
As to PT HD: HD means high definition ( it is not "PT HW") so there is no reason it should be impossible.
Benefits would be several: better price point, larger track count, ADC, support for alternative hardware to mention a few.

The problem AVID faces is that there is a too large gap in their product range pricewise. I guess they need to adjust the price and offering for their LE complete solution.
Anyway it is quite obvious to me that they were unprepared for the trend in native video editing ( Final Cut ) and they see the same possible scenario for their audio products. Let us wait and see..

Ola

[LEX]

lol.. guys
Funny how this start spinning. I only refer to very unofficial info from the inside.
As to PT HD: HD means high definition ( it is not "PT HW") so there is no reason it should be impossible.
Benefits would be several: better price point, larger track count, ADC, support for alternative hardware to mention a few.

The problem AVID faces is that there is a too large gap in their product range pricewise. I guess they need to adjust the price and offering for their LE complete solution.
Anyway it is quite obvious to me that they were unprepared for the trend in native video editing ( Final Cut ) and they see the same possible scenario for their audio products. Let us wait and see..

Ola

Yes, HD Mean High Def, But you are missing the point. When PT HD was "invented", it was the HD revolution. Back in 2001. Well even prior to that.
At that time, with the 888's, which were industry known as crap and shitty sounding, Euphonix came out with the R-1.

The R-1, capable of recording up to 96k, was a big choice for alot fo composers prior to PT HD. So were many records being done that way, ie Korn's Untouchables.

PT wasn't capable of 96k, and were in danger of losing their market. Digi hired the sane converter designer for the Euphonix A/D/A for their 192's.

PT HD is just a marketing label, nothing else.

The bottom line, is that being the DSP is controlled by Digi they don't have to deal with the ever changing CPU market that changes faster than a babies diaper.

Security in that kind of reliablility is what people buy.

Native, There are alot of variables as we have all experienced. Hense why Digi "qualifies" certian products.

Vin, the master, can navigate through all the MOBO's, RAM, ect. and build a system that will work with anything.

So you buy a Digi PT rig, with qualifying puters, or you buy one from Vin, because he's don't the leg work and testing and knows what works and whta is fucked.

BTW, While FCP is great, it still cant generate a change list and there are alot of things that still can't be done that are done easily in an AVID.
Independent = FCP
Feature = AVID

LEX

[TAFKAT]

Impossible, simply since HD=TDM, which means DSP card(s).
PT LE can currently be expanded to be nearly equivalent to HD in software features, ala Complete Production Toolkit. Delay Comp, I/O, and TDM plugin use (obviously) are among the features HD retains exclusively. For Avid to simply dissolve the HD line in favor of native would be great for the end user who desires it, but suicide for the PT line for Avid. Making a slim version of HD, still requiring at least one card, might be a dirty way to lure idiots in though... if I were looking to make cash without conscience, that is what I would do ;)

Hey Nikki,

The HD Native with one card isn't as idiotic as you may believe. PTHD's strength is no longer in its DSP power for plugins, which as we know is laughable compared to what is available if they managed to optimise RTAS to a level close to AU/VST. PTHD's strength is in its I/O and mix engine being DSP powered IMO , there is no reason why they couldn't come up with a hybrid system where they could get the best of both worlds.

I have it on good authority that the PT devs are aware they really do need to focus on improving the native scaling capabilities of Pro Tools , that doesn't mean they will drop the DSP's all together, but it does indicate that they understand that their is a huge untapped potential at their disposal , and its no longer 1998 where their whole locked down legacy approach had some legs.

They also need to bite the bullet and get some viable ADC/PDC into the Native systems , as even the hardest of the die hard LE guys are starting to jump ship from what I have seen over at DUC, where there seems to be a rising chorus of guys going to Reaper.

I think the next 12 months will be telling , but to be honest IMO there isn't anyone in the market that is a serious threat even if they did fall on their sword..

[olamo]

Yes, HD Mean High Def, But you are missing the point. When PT HD was "invented", it was the HD revolution. Back in 2001. Well even prior to that.
At that time, with the 888's, which were industry known as crap and shitty sounding, Euphonix came out with the R-1.

The R-1, capable of recording up to 96k, was a big choice for alot fo composers prior to PT HD. So were many records being done that way, ie Korn's Untouchables.

PT wasn't capable of 96k, and were in danger of losing their market. Digi hired the sane converter designer for the Euphonix A/D/A for their 192's.

PT HD is just a marketing label, nothing else.

The bottom line, is that being the DSP is controlled by Digi they don't have to deal with the ever changing CPU market that changes faster than a babies diaper.

Security in that kind of reliablility is what people buy.

Native, There are alot of variables as we have all experienced. Hense why Digi "qualifies" certian products.

Vin, the master, can navigate through all the MOBO's, RAM, ect. and build a system that will work with anything.

So you buy a Digi PT rig, with qualifying puters, or you buy one from Vin, because he's don't the leg work and testing and knows what works and whta is fucked.

BTW, While FCP is great, it still cant generate a change list and there are alot of things that still can't be done that are done easily in an AVID.
Independent = FCP
Feature = AVID

LEX

Not missing the point Lex, I understand perfectly what you say. It was rather a remark to Nikki saying that PT HD Native solution was impossible as such. I know as well as you do that PT HD is a marketing label - that was my point as well ;-). I was not arguing against AVID hardware solution either as it has it's benefits too. Just the fact that Final Cut has gained a huge market share over the last few years, that it is a native solution is a major part of the picture.

[olamo]

sorry double post

[nikki-k]

As to PT HD: HD means high definition ( it is not "PT HW") so there is no reason it should be impossible.
Benefits would be several: better price point, larger track count, ADC, support for alternative hardware to mention a few.
Ola
While "HD" is an acronym for "High Definition," it is implied with PT that it also refers to the TDM architecture. My "impossible" simply refered to the HD = TDM thing. Avid would be eliminating this distinction, and thus redefining their own line. This would reduce the value of existing customers' rigs incredibly, and would likely eliminate a high percentage of those customers who were loyal for so many years. But, considering how many businesses operate today, it is more about new customers, so maybe I am way off...

[nikki-k]

Hey Nikki,

The HD Native with one card isn't as idiotic as you may believe. PTHD's strength is no longer in its DSP power for plugins, which as we know is laughable compared to what is available if they managed to optimise RTAS to a level close to AU/VST. PTHD's strength is in its I/O and mix engine being DSP powered IMO , there is no reason why they couldn't come up with a hybrid system where they could get the best of both worlds.
HD Native... "with one card." THAT is the issue IMO. With the TDM architecture, a single HD Core is extremely limiting. Many people are completely clueless about TDM (HD) architecture and operation, and (IMO) Avid is gambling on this. Erm, will be gambling.

I have an, erm, "educated guess" about what is forthcoming ;). The lemmings, llamas, and sheep will be most pleased. The wolves will be most entertained.


I have it on good authority that the PT devs are aware they really do need to focus on improving the native scaling capabilities of Pro Tools , that doesn't mean they will drop the DSP's all together, but it does indicate that they understand that their is a huge untapped potential at their disposal , and its no longer 1998 where their whole locked down legacy approach had some legs.

They also need to bite the bullet and get some viable ADC/PDC into the Native systems , as even the hardest of the die hard LE guys are starting to jump ship from what I have seen over at DUC, where there seems to be a rising chorus of guys going to Reaper.

I think the next 12 months will be telling , but to be honest IMO there isn't anyone in the market that is a serious threat even if they did fall on their sword..
True, and it comes back to the stupidity of the average human. Perfectly good ocean sitting 100 meters away, and yet the idiots will splash about in a cesspool and complain, rather than simply hop out and walk a short distance. (sorry, extremely ill today, so my thoughts are quite jumbled..)

The bottom line is that PT HD has a price. If one looks at what they get, and then compare to other solutions, they will likely feel the cost to value aspect of PT HD is quite low; but, many will buy just for the IDEA of what they think they are investing in. If Avid sac the line, they loose their asses. If they compromise the lineage by offering M-Audio versions of PT HD, well... lol. Yeah, I know what is coming, and like I said.. popcorn ready and waiting. Will Avid go down for this? Eh, not sure, but it will be interesting to watch. Meanwhile, I have gone form owning an HD4 Accel + 192 rig to using C5, and seriously looking at Reaper. A lot of work to get out of the cesspool, gather my belongings and trudge down to the beach to hop in the ocean. But, I am enjoying myself immensely now. Plus, it is kinda fun to make daiquiris and go sit upwind of the cesspool and watch the lemmings flail about. With new floaties being thrown in soon (and new sewage), it should be even more amusing. But, it will also be sad, especially when thinking back to "the old days."

As for native scaling... (sigh) I wish I could elaborate more. I know for a fact that people were aware of the failings of RTAS back as far as ver 5.3/6. Load up PT 6, hit "Help -> About" and then imagine that one fo thos enames was someone who reported issues on RTAS. Like, severe, wicked issues. With recipies for disaster. And other things. And got ignored for some, heralded for others. Let's just say that when I have time now, it is not wasted on corporate deafened ears any longer...

[TAFKAT]

HD Native... "with one card." THAT is the issue IMO. With the TDM architecture, a single HD Core is extremely limiting. Many people are completely clueless about TDM (HD) architecture and operation, and (IMO) Avid is gambling on this. Erm, will be gambling.

I have an, erm, "educated guess" about what is forthcoming ;). The lemmings, llamas, and sheep will be most pleased. The wolves will be most entertained.



Hey Nikki,

Only if the one card is the current architecture and using the current mindset. What if, and the if is me purely speculating, what if there are new cards which are simply vehicles for added I/O at the top end, you have to hang those 192's off something , a small amount of DSP purely for the I/O and Mix engine - not at all dissimilar to what most other cards that have a hardware mixer already have but more closely integrated , and the main DSP overhead given over to native.

They can then scale the feature set as they now do with LE and HD , and bingo.., PT reborn for the native age.. :-)

Yeh, Yeh, I know, click my heels 3 times... LOL

[Jonesy]

What about Fairlight's Crystal-Core card? They claim a massive power for their FPGA engine...

[TAFKAT]

Hey Steve,

That they do , but its a proprietary closed system that can't be used by third parties... , the potential was there but they totally missed the boat IMO..

[nikki-k]

Hey Nikki,

Only if the one card is the current architecture and using the current mindset. What if, and the if is me purely speculating, what if there are new cards which are simply vehicles for added I/O at the top end, you have to hang those 192's off something , a small amount of DSP purely for the I/O and Mix engine - not at all dissimilar to what most other cards that have a hardware mixer already have but more closely integrated , and the main DSP overhead given over to native.

They can then scale the feature set as they now do with LE and HD , and bingo.., PT reborn for the native age.. :-)

Yeh, Yeh, I know, click my heels 3 times... LOL
Hehehe!! I knew that is where you were going ;)

The big problem with TDM... (sigh) OK, several problems with TDM when native gets involved. But, one pretty big one is the TDM Mixer.. or, more appropriately, TDM Environment. The TDM Environment is one bastard of a place. It nests on (or in?) a native environment, namely the computer. Without going too deeply into how they do things, or why (so many "why's"), that TDM Environment requires "doorways" or "gates" to move things in and out. Need to move data in via hard drives? Gate. Wanna stream anything back out for processing by a non-TDM chip? Gate. Oh- and those Gates are one-way only. And each Gate requires DSP. No free rides at all. Plus, that Environment is a semi-fragile one. 48-bit fixed, *truncated to 24-bit when "hopping chips"*, etc. And yes.. AFAIK (IIRC), native PT is simply (hahaha.. simply..) "tricking" the code into thinking a CPU (and other native hardware) is the TDM Environment. Yes, this makes yet a bigger mess.

So, let's say Avid releases a new I/O box (or boxes ;) ), and also releases a new card that is sort of like.. hmm.. how about a blend of the 001 and the PCI card it used? If.. HUGE if.. they did, and gave it a price point of ~1K, then I think they would score a lot of buyers. I know I would want one. Make that card allow use of a Digi 192 (WTH will they call the 192 and 86 now?) or an Apogee, Lynx, etc.. even better. Make a card with some TDM DSP for TDM plug-ins, and add $$ accordingly, and I think they would be headed in the right direction. But, then they would run into the same issues with native they have now, with no relief for those issues in sight before 2012 at the very least. Plus, they would still be charging for the Complete Extortion Toolkit to obtain almost all the HD feature set. Wanna really piss LE people off? Offer ADC in the CPT only for LE users. Lol... yeah, would really do a number.

I think the heart of the matter lies with the whole TDM Environment. Existing customer base of TDM users that they have to code for, and will continue to *need* to support, for how many more years at least? I seriously doubt they would abndon the TDM Environment code to sub in full native coding (with possible "hooks" for accessing TDM plugins to satiate TDM plug owners, and TDM 3rd party coders/devs). But, what do you do when your primary product line is no longer necessary? RADAR (for example) never needed to worry about native power, per se. PT TDM/HD is a hybrid already, and it is the hybrid nature that is the crux of the problem. What I can see Avid doing is trying to "trick" people into thinking that they re getting a great deal by offering something that appears to be a mid-point solution. It is their long term goals that I am curious about. If they refuse to go full native with TDM as a non-necessary option, I can see them failing miserably. But, human ignorance and laziness may just be enough for them to ride this out for many years to come ;)

The PT code really offers nothing so unique that one cannot find it elsewhere. It actually comes down to headspace/workflow/environment. It is nowhere near the difference between say, a sweet 2" 16-track Otari or MCI and a 1/2" 16-track MSR-16 Tascam deck; it is more about the converters.. the front end. So, let's say that someone can recreate that environment with about 99% similarity to PT HD ver 7.4, minus RTAS and TDM plugin use, and completely native, plus offer a whole host of extra features, AND the ability to customize it even further. Or, maybe close to the ver8 look and functionality. Maybe...like..
http://stashbox.org/851279/Rea-Tools-Rulers.png
Oh, pfft on me. Just take a few moments to peruse the whole thread: HERE (http://forum.cockos.com/showthread.php?t=43608)

BTW- check out RussUK's new avatar over there. And yes- that is RussUK that runs the AIRUsersBlog, the very guy that got Avid ticked for several things over the past few months, but used to hold favor with prior.

[kdm]

Hey Steve,

That they do , but its a proprietary closed system that can't be used by third parties... , the potential was there but they totally missed the boat IMO..

And how. 230 channels of 48k audio with HD video, 220 I/Os, 64-bit EQs on every channel, 3rd party plugin support (afaik, VST is/was there, but dev support was very limited). They could have made a huge mark on the market and probably exceeded their high end console sales, but apparently they have no interest in going that route. Someone should though. The CUDA and similar co-processing cards just might do it if plugin/host developers jump on board.

[olamo]

Back to the actual rumour, no indications that they will end their DSP line HD1-3 though..
But, as some of you suggest, sooner or later DIGI will porbably have to change the DSP and IO structure to meet the demands on a native solution.

Then, at some point the TDM could be obsolete..

[TAFKAT]

Hehehe!! I knew that is where you were going ;)

The big problem with TDM... (sigh) OK, several problems with TDM when native gets involved. But, one pretty big one is the TDM Mixer.. or, more appropriately, TDM Environment. The TDM Environment is one bastard of a place. It nests on (or in?) a native environment, namely the computer. Without going too deeply into how they do things, or why (so many "why's"), that TDM Environment requires "doorways" or "gates" to move things in and out. Need to move data in via hard drives? Gate. Wanna stream anything back out for processing by a non-TDM chip? Gate. Oh- and those Gates are one-way only. And each Gate requires DSP. No free rides at all. Plus, that Environment is a semi-fragile one. 48-bit fixed, *truncated to 24-bit when "hopping chips"*, etc. And yes.. AFAIK (IIRC), native PT is simply (hahaha.. simply..) "tricking" the code into thinking a CPU (and other native hardware) is the TDM Environment. Yes, this makes yet a bigger mess.

All of the above is showing just how archaic the whole TDM architecture is, harking back to pre 2000 , where it was in many ways warranted to a certain extent due to the limitations of the available hardware/OS's , but its way past its use by date.




The PT code really offers nothing so unique that one cannot find it elsewhere. It actually comes down to headspace/workflow/environment.... snip

Oh, pfft on me. Just take a few moments to peruse the whole thread: HERE (http://forum.cockos.com/showthread.php?t=43608)


Well the main contributor on that thread is who I was referring to previously when I mentioned hard core LE punters jumping ship , and it just goes to show that Digi can be just as blind as our friends in Germany as to who their greatest assets are . I can see a mass exodus off LE unless Digi connect a few missing dots , and with the momentum being generated with that PT workflow to Reaper project , I wouldn't be surprised if it will happen either way to be honest.

[nikki-k]

All of the above is showing just how archaic the whole TDM architecture is, harking back to pre 2000 , where it was in many ways warranted to a certain extent due to the limitations of the available hardware/OS's , but its way past its use by date.
Bingo! :)

[TAFKAT]

For those not familiar with what TDM (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time-division_multiplexing) actually stands for - Time Division Multiplexing :

May have been great in 1998 , but not in this day an age of multiprocessor scaling capability.

Pro Tools - History : Here (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pro_Tools)


When run from a host Apple Mac or Windows PC, HD systems perform most audio processing on DSP cards, and use external, rack mountable interfaces to handle incoming and outgoing audio. TDM, a proprietary interconnect based on time-division multiplexing (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time-division_multiplexing), is used for communication between the devices.

Pro Tools systems have long relied on dedicated DSP (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_signal_processing) cards to handle most audio processing, due to the fact that at the time Pro Tools was first developed, consumer-level computers were not powerful enough to process high-end digital audio.

[blob]

AVID acquires Euphonix!!!
http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/Avid-Announces-Agreement-to-Acquire-Euphonix-NASDAQ-AVID-1145661.htm

Wow. Now they own the competition. Nuendo is gone...So am I...Can probably throw my MC5 in to the dust bin...

[Daryl]

AVID acquires Euphonix!!!
http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/Avid-Announces-Agreement-to-Acquire-Euphonix-NASDAQ-AVID-1145661.htm

Wow. Now they own the competition. Nuendo is gone...So am I...Can probably throw my MC5 in to the dust bin...
I guess that this will also mean that the "Apple only" deal will disappear.

D

[blob]

Its a worst news. Knowing Avid, they will probably stop support for "3rd party" software, Cubendo...

[Sam]

The release says they will continue support for eucon, but this is the evil empire we are speaking of, maybe the will build some eucon capabilities into media composer and PT? ;) haha we will see......hmmmm

[MattiasNYC]

My guess is that the Apple exclusivity will remain. I have a hard time believing that Apple would have not thought about the possibility of acquisition by third party. I think that's how it's done many times. That said the smart thing for Avid would be to start selling Eucon for PC's. Lot's of additional revenue I'm sure.

I think it's a win for Avid no matter what they do:

They stop having Euphonix hardware supporting competitors - they win.
They keep doing it - they make money off of it.
Or they jack the price for the Eucon etc and it's a combo of both.

I don't like this consolidation one bit I have to say.... Although if WK Audio and/or SB/Yamaha had their shit together (which the latter apparently don't) that would be an opportunity to provide "the one viable alternative".....

Will be interesting to see how this pans out...

[TAFKAT]

I guess that this will also mean that the "Apple only" deal will disappear.

Yeh, I hope Apple just had their arse handed back to them, lets see whether Nuendo/Euphonix guys have as well.


Although if WK Audio and/or SB/Yamaha had their shit together (which the latter apparently don't) that would be an opportunity to provide "the one viable alternative".....

Smart AV have an opportunity to step up here as well..

[MattiasNYC]

Yeh, I hope Apple just had their arse handed back to them,

But don't you think there'd be some clause in the agreement to extend exclusivity despite a sale? That'd be my guess at least..... I hope not though...


lets see whether Nuendo/Euphonix guys have as well.

What do you mean?


Smart AV have an opportunity to step up here as well..

Sure do. I'd think they and WK-Audio have opportunity to make a statement. WK if they managed to somehow support more DAWs, but SmartAV especially I guess.

[TAFKAT]

But don't you think there'd be some clause in the agreement to extend exclusivity despite a sale? That'd be my guess at least..... I hope not though...

Remember the Logic Control, which was basically the Mackie Control with different firmware , Emagic had an exclusivity agreement that went out the window when Apple acquired Emagic , I am hoping the same will happen here.

AVID have a huge presence on Windows , more so than PTHD , so I really can't see them maintaining an exclusivity only for OSX for the smaller controllers.


What do you mean?Simply that I can't see them maintaining as much focus on the 3rd party support , instead investing more in integrating their own products .


Sure do. I'd think they and WK-Audio have opportunity to make a statement. WK if they managed to somehow support more DAWs, but SmartAV especially I guess.The next few months will be interesting .

When is the NAB in Europe ?

[MattiasNYC]

Remember the Logic Control, which was basically the Mackie Control with different firmware , Emagic had an exclusivity agreement that went out the window when Apple acquired Emagic , I am hoping the same will happen here.

AVID have a huge presence on Windows , more so than PTHD , so I really can't see them maintaining an exclusivity only for OSX for the smaller controllers.

You know, that's an interesting thing I didn't think about. I had my mind in Digidesign land and didn't consider the wide Windows base in Avid land in general. The Artist series most definitely should have potential with all the Avid video editors out there on PC's.


Simply that I can't see them maintaining as much focus on the 3rd party support , instead investing more in integrating their own products .

The next few months will be interesting .

Well, I'm guessing they should be able to simply maintain the Eucon protocol. It seems like it might be worth it rather than trying to get existing Eucon users to switch over to Avid gear. But then again, I'm not the one doing the number-crunching at Avid...

[LEX]

AVID acquires Euphonix!!!
http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/Avid-Announces-Agreement-to-Acquire-Euphonix-NASDAQ-AVID-1145661.htm

Wow. Now they own the competition. Nuendo is gone...So am I...Can probably throw my MC5 in to the dust bin...

No. That is not the case. EuCon support will continue with all 3rd party apps.

[LEX]

The release says they will continue support for eucon, but this is the evil empire we are speaking of, maybe the will build some eucon capabilities into media composer and PT? ;) haha we will see......hmmmm

Yep!

Doesn't make sense not to. Why disable a protcol far better than their own? Opens the product base for Euphonix products into Protools.

LEX

[Sound Drifter]

I guess we'll see what happens to support for the devices... Not holding my breath though.

[LEX]

I guess we'll see what happens to support for the devices... Not holding my breath though.

Breathe. You are wrong. EuCon will still be available for Nuendo, Logic, ect.

It will just be part of ProTools as well. Nothing wrong with a Nuendo side car as I see it.

LEX