New plugins… Licenses revoked?

I can confirm turning on my MPC Live II today I got a prompt that my Flavor Pro was no longer activated. I had to connect to wifi and reactivate. Not sure I can work like that.

This thread is pretty timely for me. I’ve been so fed up with bugs I’ve put my MPC Live 2 to one side for a few weeks while waiting for patches to fix the issues identified by a bunch of people here (many of which have affected my MPC too, it’s taken away a lot of the pleasure of using the thing). Then the new plugins drop and I’m tempted…. new FW update plus a modelled Moog in my MPC, maybe this is the time to dive back in, I think… big Moog fan here. Well… no. Hard pass. I don’t trust Akai/InMusic to maintain reliable activation servers in future years if these paid plugins need regular ‘phone home’ authentication. Forget it, no sale. What I love about the MPC standalone is the ability to just switch on, play, no dramas. The more the MPC becomes like a DAW… eg flaky software updates, needs internet connectivity for copy protection… the more I wonder where Akai are going with all of this. Doesn’t inspire confidence.

I don't know.. it seems like some people need authentication, others don't... It is just weird.. maybe something to do with the software? After all the people having issues using the software? I have never really used the software and have never had any issues really.. atleast nothing that couldn't be fixed by a restart.

I dont use the software and I turn this thing on every single day for hours at a time.

Me too, never touched the software… have never connected this thing to a computer ever and assumed it would only cause problems i did. I was also fearful that even using the wifi would be a path to screwing things up (always did the USB updates before now) but my enthusiasm for the new plugins got in the way and now I’m over €250 down without functioning plugins and an email a day from tech support…

It is strange.. some people have gone seven weeks without an internet connection and they work fine still..

.... and yet for others, the plugins regularly deactivate. These people must be either stupid, or lying, eh?

No. This is the nature of fragile systems. Wireless must be turned on, the box must be in range of its wireless router, the Akai servers must be up whenever the box (opaquely) decides to reactivate. Etc. Any one of these fail and the system goes tits up. And if you're on stage counting on that Moog bass... fuggedaboudit

So. Yeah. Uninstalling my Mini trial today and not looking back. Thanks to the pioneers who took the arrows in their backs on our behalf.

EnochLight wrote:

jamos wrote:Thanks to the pioneers who took the arrows in their backs on our behalf.

Okay. That's an Americanism that might need some explanation to people in other parts of the world. I'm thanking the people who bought the plugins, and discovered this fatal flaw, thereby saving the rest of us who are listening from wasting our money on this unreliable software.

jamos wrote:I'm thanking the people who bought the plugins, and discovered this fatal flaw, thereby saving the rest of us who are listening from wasting our money on this unreliable software.

Ahhhh I got it now. Well, not calling you dramatic or anything, but it's not a waste of money as far as I am concerned, as I use it mostly in a project studio (where WiFi is freely available), and the plugins work 100% solid for me. Fatal flaw? Even if it does require to "phone home" ever so often, this is not a unique thing in pro gear. Roland's new Juno-X (and Jupiter-X before it) also calls home for expansions. If you're touring, log in to WiFi before your show and you're good to go. Not a big deal, IMHO.

If it does require you to ‘phone home’ then someone has to actually be answering the phone! Which is exactly the problem I’ve outlined. There’s nothing wrong with my WiFi (I’ve tried three different networks for trial and error) and I’ve also now used Ethernet. These plugins are still not reactivating despite AKAI performing some mysterious ‘reset’ on my account twice.

These are most likely server issues - someone even said that AKAI had admitted as much in a different thread linked here earlier - nothing less, nothing more; so if the plugins do rely on regular validation then the servers need to be rock solid.

We can’t transfer plugins as far as I know , and I don’t think the MPC hacking group is pirating plugins , so why does it need to call home this often anyway?

I don’t mind the occasional ‘phone home’ authentication if I know in advance that’s the deal. That’s normal in a lot of software copy protection, and one of the two DAWs I use all the time (Reason) checks in the background every time it boots up. Same setup with Adobe and a bunch of other non-music stuff. That’s OK, it’s just how it works, and from the outset the companies involved are clear that’s how it works.

The issue here for me is that Akai/InMusic are NOT clear about any of this - like they are not clear and transparent about bugs and firmware patches (eg no patch notes, zero engagement with users on boards like this one).

I just don’t trust them. If they’ve built a copy protection system that needs regular online validation, they just need to tell us all that’s the case so we know before we buy, and also they need to get their QC house in order so anyone who buys can be confident that Akai’s activation servers will be robust and reliable today and in future.

Right now I’m not even sure my MPC Live 2 will turn on when I power up, save a project without locking up or work as intended in several different ways (from pad perform to sample bounce). I’m sure as hell not sure that a purchased plugin needing regular online reactivation will work a few months from now let alone a few years from now.

I know I could roll back to earlier firmware - which worked fine - but it’s not a great fix in the long run. Same with these plugins. Not like I HAVE to buy them, obviously. But ultimately we all use this kit a lot, we invest many hours in learning our way around it and in buying expansions and plugins etc, and a big part of that IME is based on a belief that the companies who make this stuff will support the platform they’ve created and address problems quickly. Akai aren’t great on that score right now.

jamos wrote:.... and yet for others, the plugins regularly deactivate. These people must be either stupid, or lying, eh?

No. This is the nature of fragile systems. Wireless must be turned on, the box must be in range of its wireless router, the Akai servers must be up whenever the box (opaquely) decides to reactivate. Etc. Any one of these fail and the system goes tits up. And if you're on stage counting on that Moog bass... fuggedaboudit

So. Yeah. Uninstalling my Mini trial today and not looking back. Thanks to the pioneers who took the arrows in their backs on our behalf.

Not stupid or lying, thru are obviously having a different experience and I would like to find out why? Why are you so defensive about it? It seems you have already made your mind up and the fact others have gone months without internet and haven't had an issue seems to bother you since you already decided they need constant Internet connection to work.. but the truth is so far it is only for some, which means it is not supposed to be this way and likely a bug of some kind.

Defensive? I have nothing to defend... why would I be defensive?

Nah.. I just don't like it when people deny obvious issues. Again, the very nature of fragile systems is that nobody knows when they will fail. Akai needs to get its shit together.