dgc4rter
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Topics Started: 1
Replies Created: 18
Has Thanked: 1
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dgc4rterA good question which has now pointed me in the direction of what the root cause actually was. To begin with I tried the project in the standalone and it was fine. That meant it was something in the DAW which was the cause. I’m running Cubase 13 and had created a Chord Track. EZBass was actually playing the chords from this. I haven’t delved into the reasons how and why yet but that was the problem. I’ve deleted that track (which I no longer need) and it’s playing fine.
Thanks for pointing me in the right direction. Much appreciated.
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Thanked by: John and Braddgc4rterNo, I thought additional notes may be hidden underneath but I deleted the note where it starts and checked. Grid Editor only shows single notes and they’re only overlapping when legato/slides are being played other notes are distinctly separate. It’s certainly got me completely baffled.
dgc4rterToontrack do not tend to use teasers like this for their expansions. I could be wrong but I certainly can’t recollect them doing anything of the sort for their most recent sound expansions for EZKeys.
I, along with most probably the whole EZKeys userbase, are hoping this is what we’ve been wanting and waiting for for so long. They’re going to have a LOT of disappointed customers if it isn’t.
dgc4rter@Zed
Toontrack did appear to have a representative earlier on in this thread who was responding to posts but obviously under an NDA so he couldn’t really say anything. I think he gave up because he started getting too much grief from posters.
dgc4rter@Zed
OK, to begin with, let me point you to a Virtual Instrument software developer who believe in communicating with their customer-base with respect to the ongoing development of their products.
https://www.virharmonic.com/dev_update
Question: Does this information cause any inconvenience, adverse feedback, negative consequences for the company in any way?
Answer: If there are, I can’t find any.
Their products are openly discussed on one of the major Virtual Instrument/Sample library discussion forums called VI-Control https://vi-control.net/community/ Their latest major release, v4 of the Violin has just been released and the Cello follows shortly with a new product – the Viola, also coming out soon. These products have been in development for well over two years with several delays not least because of COVID. However, they have kept their customers fully informed with regular updates. If you cared to read through some of the forum threads on these products, you would probably ascertain that there is an underlying sense of respect and patience for the company and an acknowledgement that these things take time, delays will be inevitable but it will be worth the wait because the product will be great when it is finally released. Have I noticed any “venom” against the company in these posts? No. Quite possibly because of the simple fact that no one is being kept in the dark.
Now, back to Toontrack and EZKeys. Most of the criticisms and venom you see in this forum thread are almost certainly born out of frustration and the fact that Toontrack, for whatever reason, insist on keeping us in the dark about its development. It is not because EZKeys is a bad product, it’s because it’s a good product but one that desperately needs updating. Name me one other VI software developer that have an innovative and popular product that’s been left on the shelf for 10 years since initial release.
If they just came out with a very simple statement to the tune of, “We are aware of EZKeys customers’ frustration….blah blah blah. We would like you to know that we have not abandoned the product… blah blah blah and a development roadmap does exist… blah blah blah”, you would most likely see all the negativity disappear.
dgc4rterLet’s all face it guys, Toontrack is aware that we have been begging for an update for years. EzKeys has been out for a decade. They don’t care. EzKeys is not a priority for them. They throw us a bone from time to time, and give us an expansion pack here and there, with some more MIDI packs to play with. But never a new numbered version.
Let’s just address the elephant in the room. They aren’t working on EzKeys 2. At all. You know it, I know it, they know it. And they don’t care how you feel about it. I know that because they have in ten years never said one word about it. I know, I know, Toontrack doesn’t talk about products they are working on, blah, blah, blah. That’s corporate speak for, “we ain’t doing sh*t all, and we don’t feel like we should have to explain anything to you, now shut up and buy what we will give you.”
That’s where we stand. Toontrack doesn’t care about EzKeys or it’s users. If they did, they wouldn’t have waited a DECADE to still say NOTHING. I wish they would sell the code for EzKeys to someone who will develop it. I mean we have all given them a laundry list of things we would like to see for a new version. But Toontrack can’t even be bothered to just give us an update that lets us resize the GUI for a 1440p monitor. You don’t need a whole numbered upgrade to do that much. They could have dropped that into a plain old update on the product manager.
I almost wish they would just discontinue EzKeys if they aren’t gonna sell it or develop it. At least then we would have a definitive way to show that they don’t really care about EzKeys. Have you ever counted up the number of Toontrack releases since EzKeys first came out?
Superior Drummer 3 and various expansion packs for it
EzDrummer 2 and a whole slew of expansion packs for it
EzDrummer 3 and 1 new expansion less than a month later!
EzMix 2 and a truckload of expansion packs for it (but is also due for an upgrade and a resizable GUI)
EzBass and nine expansion packs for it
Not to mention an absolutely staggering amount of MIDI packs for all three of their instruments.
And in all that time, not even once has Toontrack showed any interest in giving us any news about EzKeys.
Reply To: EZKeys 2 version: 1.3.3
Operating system: Windows 10
Sadly, I think you’re probably right. The hopes I’ve had (for some while) of Toontrack acting on any of the EZKeys community’s wishes are fading pretty fast. Like you say, it’s been a full decade since EZKeys was released. If they’d seen its potential, were bothered about it and/or bothered about their EZKeys customer base surely we would have seen a significant upgrade by now.
I think they’re just going to focus on their drum and bass software for the foreseeable future and I’m with you on wishing that they’d just sell the code to another dev who could realise its potential (Scaler for example).
I guess I’ll always use EZKeys as a starting point in some of my projects. I’ve invested in most of their MIDI packs and it’s still an incredibly useful tool even with its ridiculously small antiquated GUI but there will always be that niggling thought in the back of my mind of just how much better it could have been if they’d given it the EZBass/EZDrummer treatment.
dgc4rterDon’t see the point of EZDrummer 3 when there is Superior Drummer 3. Â I have yet to see what the difference will be between EZD3 and SD3…
Sad that they did not put the resources into EZ Keys to get it up to speed. Â Has it really been 10 years since version 1.0 was released with no major updates?
Reply To: EZKeys 2 version: 1.3.3
Operating system: macOS Monterey (12)
Agree. Apart from a couple of new features, is there much point to upgrading when you have EZDrummer 2 and SD3? Where’s the incentive?
EZKeys is now in its TENTH year and is STILL on version 1.x.x The EZKeys userbase have been crying out for an upgrade for years. If they brought one out with all the new features and functionality similar to EZBass, for example, I’d gladly pay for it without a second thought as would, I’m sure, the rest of us. Toontrack would make far more money from a new updated EZKeys than this incremental meh of an update to EZDrummer – there’s no real competition for a start.
Do these people not grasp that idea? I can only think of one word… crazy!
If it’s true that the OP of this thread has passed away, RIP my good fellow. It’s a pity you didn’t get to see your wishes realised. Just shows how much Toontrack value their customers doesn’t it?
dgc4rterI think, they are planning something absolutely mind blowing with this software, but the AI and editing tools take much more time than anticipated.
I think we’ll all agree it was worth the wait.
That being said, the current UI is pretty sad… 😉
But EZKeys 2, when it comes, will be so much more than just an UI upgrade.
Just wait.
B.
Reply To: EZKeys 2 version: 1.3.3
Operating system: Windows 11
Ha Ha! “Just wait” he says.
We’ve been waiting for at least 5 years for any kind of significant update to EZKeys. This year is its 10th Anniversary and we’ve just been treated with a 0.0.1 upgrade… wow! Thanks Toontrack.
How much development time do you think it takes, for example, to implement a scalable GUI on a plugin these days? Just one feature it desperately needs.
Sorry, but I’ve lost all optimism for anything happening with EZKeys in the near (or even far) future. It’s still a very useful tool for us non keyboard players but it could be so much more.
dgc4rterEZKeys hits its 10th birthday next year. That’s 10 years without a major version upgrade. Name me a piece of software that’s been on the market for that long and is still on version 1.0? (Yes, I know it’s 1.3 but they’re just minor revisions).
Maybe they’ll bring out an anniversary edition with a scalable GUI…
and maybe they won’t.
dgc4rterHi Toontrack, Ive Been following this thread or years.
Id like to see EZKEYS(TWO) – share all the same features that SD3 and EZBASS have, especially..
- better searh MIDI features.
- with a better interface, and resizable windows.
- multiple tracks ,
- adjustable tempo,
- search to find browser and all those other features like EZBass
- follow play styles like in EZBASS
- Id like Advanced Midi editing features that are better than my DAW’s
- Id like to see stand alone versions of EZ Keys / EZ Bass / SD3 all working together as if they WERE A DAW , so i can create a song without needing to open my DAW ( like pro tools or cubase etc)
Â
Note ; What I do NOT want .., is more sounds from EZ KEYS 2 , (unless they are released only as optional extras)
- because EZ Keys for me > IS ALL ABOUT THE MIDI / CREATIVITY / AND SONG CREATION/ COMPOSING!
To Me .., Sounds are a separate thing altogether ;
- and it is good how toontrack has kept the purchasing of their sound libraries separate for EZ Keys , so I can decide if I want to Buy their sound libraries or not , or if I want, go and use the MIDI i created within EZKEYS > and use it in my DAW with any other 3rd party V.I. that I own.
Â
Ive been waiting many years for an EZKEYS-TWO to be released , and i cant wait for when it IS eventually released.
C’MON Toontrack, PLEASE Bring It ON!
- and like the others said.., I don’t want to be dying of old age waiting?
Reply To: EZKeys 2 version: 1.3.2
Operating system: macOS Mojave (10.14)
Thanks for getting in touch with Toontrack. We’ll pass your thoughts on to the development team… because we sure don’t give a sh1t about them.
dgc4rterSo, there you have it folks!
I think we can all take it from Scott’s response that we’re all wasting our time here because Toontrack have a policy of keeping their future development plans to themselves and you WILL NOT be privy to them.
Well, the last word from me is; that policy sucks big time and, although they’ve got some great products (and some which could be far better), the company itself and their apparent lack of respect for their customers leaves a lot to be desired and I’ll certainly be expressing that opinion on the various music forums at every opportunity.
Â
dgc4rterPlease give feedback on what you’d like to see in EZkeys2.
I like to start the day with a good chuckle. This one-liner has been doing the job for more than 5 years now. Precious. 😆
Well of course. I’m in charge of everything and know precisely Toontrack’s plan with all releases…5 years ago when I posted. Good call… glad you can point out a 5 year old post.
Just seen this reply from a moderator. One could almost detect a sense of smugness here about the fact that he knows what Toontrack’s plans are but us, their paying customers, don’t.
Hmmm. not impressed Scott.
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Thanked by: Reginald K.Sondgc4rterI’m a huge fan of EZkeys and have been using it extensively since the early releases. However it is looking tired and old compared to EZbass and although Scaler2 is quite the learning curve, you can do some very clever stuff with it if you persevere – so I am using that more and more in my creative workflow.
I still have a strong affinity for EZkeys and I’m fairly heavily invested in it (instruments and midi packs) but I do despair of the interface – which is increasingly painful to use in comparison with other virtual instruments.
An update (or even confirmed news of a planned one) would be very welcome.
Andy
I think there’s more than a few of us in your exact same position Andy. I do find it frustrating that Toontrack won’t respond to this and just let us know whether there’s a development roadmap for EZKeys or not. The silence is deafening! You’d almost think they enjoyed keeping us in the dark.
Like you, I’m beginning to use Scaler more and more but it’s still a long way off from being a threat to EZKeys that has been out on its own for so long. However, the old and tired GUI is quickly becoming a joke. Also, when you think of the potential this has if it acquired the same functionality as EZBass, it really would be a killer music app… that we’re still waiting for.
dgc4rterLol, we’ve been waiting for this for years! EZKeys was one of the very first virtual instruments I ever purchased. I can’t remember how long ago that was. Since then, I’ve acquired Superior Drummer and now EZBass that make EZKeys look positively antique in its functionality and GUI. It’s well overdue an update but Toontrack refuse outright to say anything about it because this has been discussed in another thread which was actually 5 years old and there wasn’t a single word from the developers.
It would be crazy of them to have abandoned it but don’t hold your breath.
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Thanked by: gearnerddgc4rterSo I almost missed the 5 year anniversary a week ago, from when I posted this tread. Hate to see that milestone go by without its recognition. On top of that, this is the 50th post in this tread. Nuff said, other than we are all still waiting.
Happy 5th Anniversary!
It’s a pity Toontrack couldn’t have seen their way to have, at least, acknowledged this thread one way or another.
I use Superior Drums, EZBass and, of course, still use EZKeys in my productions but that’s getting replaced more and more these days with the likes of Scaler and other plugins. I don’t like Toontrack’s deafening silence on this product so I’m kinda trying to find excuses not to use it, finding alternatives and certainly not investing in any more of their products (not that they’ll be the slightest bit bothered about that).
Pretty much given up on expecting any news about EZKeys 2 also so… Roger Victor! Over and Out!
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