Maybe the not so happy valley?

mike_mccue
Maybe the not so happy valley?

I'm very happy McQ. I have nothing to complain about except Cool Ranch chips. Long story short. Years ago I bought some and got................ so I'll never give them or anything like them a chance again.

bapu

mike_mccue
Maybe the not so happy valley?

I'm very happy McQ. I have nothing to complain about except Cool Ranch chips. Long story short. Years ago I bought some and got................ so I'll never give them or anything like them a chance again.

I knew you'd see it my way!  

 
 
BTW, what happened to the OP?

rtucker55

 
 
BTW, what happened to the OP?

Powered USB Hub.
 
'Nuff said.

I've only used it sparingly but I haven't seen any issues with PLAY.

bapu
I've only used it sparingly but I haven't seen any issues with PLAY.

I don't think the bugs effect everyone. However EW seems totally disinterested in troubleshooting them. The bugs I've had are related to pops and clicks appearing in bounced tracks. The tracks would be clean live, but has artifacts when bounced. To the extent they answered it at all it was "don't use fast bounce" which is BS given that all my samplers fast bounce fine or "your computer isn't powerful enough" also BS given that their samples were residing on a dedicated SSD.
 
However there are also some general issues with Play that they aren't interested in changing. One is the lack of sample compression, samples take a long time to load compared to Kontakt or BFD3. Another is the lack of an editor version. They called it Play Pro and had it for preorder about 5-6 years ago, but it never came out and nothing has been heard since. I enjoy the ability in Kontakt to change the mapping on samples, when needed, and you can't do that in Play.
 
What finally pushed me over the edge and made me ditch their stuff (Kirk Hunter and Soundiron were the replacements) was a shadowban on their forums. I was trying to get help with the issues I was having, as well as advising others who had the same issues they weren't alone and that I found Kontakt didn't have these issues, and they banned me. Not came out and said they banned me, mind, they banned me quietly and I just suddenly couldn't make posts anymore and couldn't access the members only tech support forums. All this was on forums for tech support only visible to customers, not to the general public.
 
So I've said "enough is enough," and my money has gone elsewhere. Instead of getting the Hollywood collection and some of their drums I planned to get, I've gotten Komplete Ultimate, Kirk Hunter Diamond CS2 CS3 CB2, Soundiron Choir, BFD3, and some others.
 
When I built my new desktop, I didn't bother to install Play. I find myself never using it, since I don't like the feeling of walking on eggshells and having to bounce each track when done and then listen for errors. Instead I just use the other stuff, load it all in RAM, and then just bounce the final project. So much easier for my workflow.
 
However, I will always say that your mileage may vary, I know others that have not had issue with their software. Just my experience. But personally, I won't give them more money.

I bought the educational CCC bundle last December when they also had a $100 coupon. I got 7 libraries including their wonderful Hollywood Strings, Brass and Woodwinds (gold versions). You'd never get those prices from Kirk Hunter, SoundIron, 8dio, ProjectSam, Vienna or other competitors, even for educational use.

Hi Dan, I'm still a newbie so I couldn't tell you if it's really OK to switch to Play 4. Maybe best check their Soundsonline forum for that.

yeah PLAY 4.2.2 fixed a bunch of stuff and seems pretty solid.
 
I had pops when bouncing in PLAY 4.0 on my old DAW rig, crashes, hanging etc.  PLAY 4.2.2 resolved the issues I had been having since PLAY 3.
 
to the comment about educational licensing and the lower pricing.  Educational licensing is always much cheaper HOWEVER you cannot produce commercially with educational licensing.  Also once you are done with education to get the commercial licensing you need to actually pay MORE.
 
I don't pay $400 for mediocre sound libraries.  I know I know - wait for a sale, I get it.
 
You cannot transfer ownership of EW libraries to other parties.  you buy you stuck with it.  I don't resale software, I don't buy with the intention of reselling BUT if the library sucks or doesn't sound go to me I would like to know that I didn't just waste $400 on a mediocre library.
 
anyway sorry to rant of be a nasayer regarding EW, mostly I just try and keep quiet.
 
PLAY 4.2.2 resolved issues I had been having for a year and could NOT use my EWSO library at all - now I can and it works.  that's a plus.

I have found Eastwest to offer great customer service - really helpful in regards to setup issuess I once had.

Play itself works well.. the mixer page is great.. The sounds are awesome and are my goto.. even though the older eastwest NI based libraries sound great as well!

I can understand the i-lok debate... my biggest problem with it was soundtoys installer plaxing 32bit driver for it which confused my setup.

I dont have the insurance but my ilok died and was sent to pace (Uk to Usa and back) Got everything back fine within 2 weeks.

Wish I had the £ to invest in the Hollywood series...

As we say in my native language: "East West, thuis best" !

In my view, the iLok issue is a "glass half full" or "glass half empty" thing. I got used to dongles back to Logic Pro's XS Key and then iLoks with Pro Tools and the Steinberg e-licenser with Vienna Ensemble Pro. Since 1990 I have had one e-Licenser die and all the others have been fine. Even my 2 old XS Keys still work if I open Logic Pro 7 out of nostalgia:)
 
The good thing is that I can take my keys to anyone's studio and use my own stuff if they install it. The bad news is the potential for problems but with Zero Downtime it is not that big a risk.
 
Anyway the fact is that it is the most effective method to prevent piracy so if you want to use EW stuff you have to bite the bullet. I can't change that.
 
But I am not here to encourage people to buy EW products, I am here to help those who already have and need more help than they are getting. 

ZDT for $30 a year compared to the cost of all the plugs that I own (that require iLok) is pittance.
 
I realize to some, it may not be pittance (lower plug to ZDT ratio) and I respect that.