At this point in time I wouldn't want to pay for the updated fix because Cake has got homework to be done that relates to all control surfaces - and that is clearly a software warranty issue. There was a similar thread just over at the X2 forum.

Plus, just do the math: take the number of users who acknowledged that they own the system (<47 as there are double posts) * $99 and you don't even get a summer intern for long enough to find a single bug ...

Focus on the music and slow the *@#% down unless you're producing anarchic punc rock, of course

If all goes wrong, then there is the open source option. or the 'semi-open source' option where you pay these $99 a single developer who'd love to fix these bugs because he can and he owns the system. For such guy 47*$99 might be worth spending countless hours on the code ...

Mully


Open source is the only glimmer of hope....
 
... We would be best off supporting a third party though... however what happens when X3 is released? The real issue since 8.5.3 is the complete new code base I'm sure. If they could make it integrate they would have.

There's a guy in the X2 forum who claims to have turned the Behringer rotary BCR2000 into a fully functional control over the prochannel (!!) using the cake SDK. I'd be curious to know whether he really managed or if it's just blatancy. I can't verify as I neither have his plug-in nor do I own that surface. Hence, until now I did not care.
 
When I had a look at the SDK I saw that it dates back to Sonar 7 (http://www.cakewalk.com/DevXchange/article.aspx?aid=111). Last update was in May 2011, but that just may be an update to the website. The actual SDK is probably older as this guys had claimed that he had to first port it to 64 bit before being able to use it.
 
Really, on that subject it is hard what to believe: Theoretically if somebody can do it for a MCU clone, it should be possible for the VS-700C as you could run that in mackie mode ... yet, for me at least, it's way too early to start that discussion. To kick that off and start a colaborate initiative there has to be a clear and final cut from Cake and Roland, not just silence ...

Yeah I recall all the SDK banter some time ago actually. There were a few of us some time ago just before the Behringer BCF unit came out that were doing some integration things... old threads would be there somewhere. Couple of us had Fostex VM units and I actually got mine ticking quite well with Sonar at that time but the BCF offered touch faders and that was the start of that new phase.

The BCF was quite good but the long throw faders and the track labeling was too tempting a lure to be able to ignore the MCU and that was an excellent unit. Of course the V-Studio option was released and about a year after, most of us here had saved enough and the price had dropped enough for us to jump on board and revel in the glory that was 8.5.3 with a tight surface....and wasn't it good once you got the hang of all the options and how to jump around a 'mixing desk' again.

Of course we know what happened once the X series arrived.... a great face lift with a shiny new transmission whose synchro did not mesh well with our V-Studio gearbox. Things got wonky... then got old.

I'm sure there are some hardware issues with the V surface that make things quite difficult and they are beyond the standard MIDI / Mackie mode type challenges. Possibly the surface is not capable of seeing the signals correctly that are unique to the pro channel as one (very shallow) example.

We know Cake have had some staff changes etc so are only going to be more under the pump but I think we are all shocked at their lack of comment or direction on this issue which surprises me more in the context of how many users it would also deter.... but possibly these are 'acceptable' losses they have acknowledged internally until such time as either the dust settles, or they release the next big thing. Just look how busy the X2 forum is nowadays.... still amazes me just how busier it has gotten since X1 so Cake have possibly baked it and are getting to eat it as well....meantime they get to read this regular soap opera.

Cheers all.

I remember Samara, at least 1 if not 2 years ago, saying that the 64 bit fantom was an enormous task

 
I missed that thread I guess, but yes, I can see that it would be. I guess you'd have to re-write everything, every patch etc. I just wonder why they can't better integrate the editor with the bitbridge avenue. I have it working in 64 bit, I can save and load instrument configurations and work on building and changing settings if I follow the new rules which are rather clunky.
At this point, I'm assuming the blue control band I've talking about is an element of the bitbridge server, but I will have to get with Roland and Cakewalk on that problem. 

Wouldn't it be AWESOME if suddenly Cake released an integration patch! But I am not holding my breath.... are you?

 
We've gotten several reminders that things are being looked at. X1d came along, let's hope for X2b or something in the way of a VS700-Fantom VS update.
To abandon the VS 700 at this point would be really stupid.

A patch would be welcome, yes. But my objection is that it's seemingly ok in cakewalk's eyes to leave compatibility broken for months after a release. It is not ok. 

i'm not as impacted because of few things : *

1) the first time i tried the fantom .....the way it was implented versus what we had in VST world was just a joke : i gave up 

2) ARX drums  ...Excellent sounds , monotimbral  , loaded when my system wants to : i gave up ...early too

3) PC : since i wanna be able to mix every where in every  system , i keep forcing myself using my 3r party plugins

4)Windows 8 : i ain't switching unless i really found an advantage or a limitation that i have in Win7 that i don't have in 8 ...so i don't give  a shhh

but with all those precautions the only area that was good went weird with X1d ...the VS700c way of working (latency of display, ACT going weird on old mapping ect ....)

I'd gladly pay for an update if they'd throw in basic OSX 10.7 and 10.8 drivers while they're at it. I'm not holding my breath. I just can't believe the way this company has changed since Roland bought it. The level of customer care seems to have slipped considerably. That was always my favorite thing about Cakewalk.