Hauptwerk VI - paid update after 11 months?

[M. Qualley]

Greetings to all on this post!

It is with great apologies if any of you have felt left out of communication on the release of V6. It was not intended to be what most of you seem to perceive. The lack of communication of the up and coming release was done to help ensure a smooth launch. It was never done to make you feel you are not important or kept in the dark.

We are intentionally boosting awareness of V6 slowly to help catch any complications that often can happen when launching new software. We are not trying to keep anyone in the dark.

Endless appreciation to those on this post that are supporting MDA.

Best,
Michelle

Endless appreciation to those on this post that are supporting MDA.

only speaking my mind, and my own thoughts ( that said as first)

i think the concerns shouldn't be there, but at the customers that already hold the sailing ship with only one hand since the release of v 5.
For non techie, non english users it gets nearly impossible to use even half ( and less) of the functions. Even with all explanations done around the release of v5, it's been a real struggle to find the needed settings to use some of the new features, or reset the deleted ones by the new installation.
And now a full new version, within a year.. sorry, but that made me blink several times.. how can this be after all the years v4 with updates. While the version 5 to 6 doesn't even change a lot.

For the first in many years of using Crumhorn/MDA Hauptwerk i'm not happy with a update and won't blindly follow and wait some time to rethink

My suggestion would be ; bring a more userfriendly program, not al your users are IT or other technicians.

Endless appreciation to those on this post that are supporting MDA.

My suggestion would be ; bring a more userfriendly program, not al your users are IT or other technicians.

My thinking too. People already familiar with this software may (or may not) welcome its becoming ever more sophisticated. But keep in mind the law of diminishing returns: every incremental improvement (if it is one) will probably be less useful than the last, with possible benefits impaired by growing complexity -- and one can assume that this growing complexity becomes an obstacle to potential new users that fewer and fewer are willing to overcome.

So, future development should perhaps also aim to enlarge the market by making the software simpler to use.

Endless appreciation to those on this post that are supporting MDA.

My suggestion would be ; bring a more userfriendly program, not al your users are IT or other technicians.

My thinking too. People already familiar with this software may (or may not) welcome its becoming ever more sophisticated. But keep in mind the law of diminishing returns: every incremental improvement (if it is one) will probably be less useful than the last, with possible benefits impaired by growing complexity -- and one can assume that this growing complexity becomes an obstacle to potential new users that fewer and fewer are willing to overcome.

So, future development should perhaps also aim to enlarge the market by making the software simpler to use.

..simpler to use, especially the mixer!!!!
Otherwise I like this update because of sound improvement.

Greetings to all on this post!

It is with great apologies if any of you have felt left out of communication on the release of V6. It was not intended to be what most of you seem to perceive. The lack of communication of the up and coming release was done to help ensure a smooth launch. It was never done to make you feel you are not important or kept in the dark.

We are intentionally boosting awareness of V6 slowly to help catch any complications that often can happen when launching new software. We are not trying to keep anyone in the dark.

Endless appreciation to those on this post that are supporting MDA.

Best,
Michelle

Michelle - What is the roadmap/timeline for V7? Chris

I think MDA should consider a licensing model such as the one used by Mathworks for Matlab.
With Matlab you pay an initial price for the product and then you pay a yearly maintenance fee. The maintenance fee entitles you to the two yearly product upgrades and support. If you lapse the fee, then you have to buy the product again for the full price if you want updates.
They also provide downloads for legacy versions several years back.

I think this is a very predictable and nice way of maintaining a software and would encourage more people to pay, rather than sporadic new versions.

I have no problems paying a yearly fee for maintenance, but I also then want to know what I will be getting for that money. The subscription is of course an option, but it should be possible to continue to use the product when the subscription period ends, just that you wont get any new product updates and that new sample sets could be incompatible.

Is it possible to use the subscription option with an iLok dongle?

Remember that you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.

[mdyde]

Is it possible to use the subscription option with an iLok dongle?

Hello Principal8,

Yes -- subscription licences can be activated to iLok dongles (in which case no Internet connection is needed to the Hauptwerk computer, but that you need to attach the dongle to an Internet-connected computer to refresh the licence whenever the subscription period expires, e.g. once per year, in the case of a yearly subscription).

Personally, I prefer the actual formula instead of a subscription.

As a loyal Hauptwerk owner going back to 2007 when it was then called Crumhorn Labs (I still have the install discs !!!) I have had an opportunity to see the progress over the years. For years, Version IV was perfectly fine for me untill everyone was lauding the benefits of Version V. Honestly, I never saw any audio benefits going from Version IV to Version V. However the single-most benefit to me was the ability to "Auto-Detect" stops, pistons, etc. It was a huge benefit over the pevious method and the fact that it required less RAM to run everything.

A recent unrelated problem with my console ( I live by the ocean and I think the salt air environment may have caused some issues) prompted me to dig into my system to determine why stops were chaninging randomly without me depressing stops, toe or thumb pistons. I have a workhorse computer, recommended by Brett Milan back in 2007, a MacPro Dual-Quad Core, which has been remarkably reliable for thirteen years. As a side note, nothing I own has operated flawlessly for 13 years, just for the record !!!! This monster computer has FOUR hard drive bays, each independent of the other. I have the original Crumhorn Labs, Version IV and Version V on these hard drives.

Beacuse I have been cursed with a lack of computer knowledge, doing ANYTHING to my computer is done with trepidation. Unlike most things, what can be done with computers cannot always be undone, especially in the environment of Hauptwerk where there is little help to resolve problems. Apple experts I have dealt with have never heard of Hauptwerk so I am on my own. Having a complete "back-up" Hauptwerk on a separate hard drive was a must for me, just in case something crashed or a hard drive went bad. By the way, after 13 years not one hard drive has failed. What's that all about ??? You mean they actually CAN make a hard drive that doesn't crap out after a few years !!!! I say all this because the earliest Crumhorn Labs version I have is in tact on one of my four hard-drive's. Same for Version IV and Version V. You can laugh all you want at my paranoia but one instance of a three month Hauptwerk downtime was intollerable (a disgraceful episode with Apple and their predatory business practices) for me as I have enjoyed playing my Hauptwerk daily and it has given me the greatest joy and satisfaction.

I say all this because it is easy for me to power up any one of my four hard drives and compare Crumhorn Labs to Version IV and Version V. The only benefit I experienced with Version V over Version IV was that it required less RAM than before. This translates into a bigger sample set using less RAM than before. All these updates were free. I see today that you have to purchase Version VI.

As of today, I am still not sure what the benefits are with Version VI compared to V. My experience with other computer related problems (not Hauptwerk) is that you can get yourself into a situation that you can't get out of and there is always a Tech ready to charge you $60/hr to fix it. Because of the uniquness of Hauptwerk and the fact that nobody out there knows anything about it, I'm cautious about doing anything.

A year after Version V was released I decided to upgrade to Version V only because I found a computer tech/whiz/musician in my area (who has since moved away) that promised me he knew what he was doing. Martin Dyde, the genius software engineer that came up with this Virtual Organ miracle, very kindly outlined for me, step by step,what my tech should do. This help was not offered by anyone else. With Version IV still availabe (on one of my four hard drives) at least I could revert back to the earlier version if there was a problem. Martin Dyde recommended that the earlier version be deleted to have a "clean sheet" to start with (i.e no conflicts, etc.). Since I had everything backed up it was not a problem. Version V was installed in early 2015 and I have been using it daily, ever since. I have dozens of organs, some free, some hybrids, etc. installed and spread over all my hard drives and I go back and forth just for fun.
What is the biggest benefit to upgrading to Version VI ?

Antoni Scott

[mdyde]

What is the biggest benefit to upgrading to Version VI ?

Hello Antoni,

Thanks very much for the interest in v6. The release notice always has the full details of all of the changes in each new version:

https://www.hauptwerk.com/documentation/

For example, some of the key enhancements are:

- Options for improved audio quality (lower distortion, giving better perceived clarity).
- Combination stepper improvements, including editing abilities.
- Lots of other combination system improvements.
- Ability to edit 'favourites' assignment lists.
- Ability optionally to auto-detect Hauptwerk's 'master' combination pistons for all organs (rather than per-organ).
- Ability to re-map MIDI ports if your computer unexpectedly renames them (or if you change your MIDI interface) at any point , avoiding the need to auto-detect things again in that situation.

Upgrading from v5 to v6 is very easy, as summarised in the instructions in this topic: viewtopic.php?f=10&t=19228

(As I mentioned in your previous topic on v6 requirements, there are no changes in platform prerequisites between the two versions, so if your computer can run v5 then it can run v6: viewtopic.php?f=4&t=19390 .)

Hello Martin:
Thank you for your prompt response. I hope you are staying safe during this pandemic that has paralyzed the planet. At least I get to spend much more time with my Hauptwerk playing. I appreciate the list of major enhancements.

I have a question about setting up couplers using my Version V. I can Auto-detect any of the available couplers using the drop down menu available plus I can use the 2nd option. I can assign a coupler to a thumb piston, toe piston or an actual tilt tab coupler. I can activate any coupler to be operated from two separate areas. Is there a third option ? i.e. have a Swell to Great 8' operate from a:
#1 Tilt Tab
#2 Thumb Piston
#3 Toe Piston

Antoni

[mdyde]

Thanks, Antoni.

I have a question about setting up couplers using my Version V. I can Auto-detect any of the available couplers using the drop down menu available plus I can use the 2nd option. I can assign a coupler to a thumb piston, toe piston or an actual tilt tab coupler. I can activate any coupler to be operated from two separate areas. Is there a third option ? i.e. have a Swell to Great 8' operate from a:
#1 Tilt Tab
#2 Thumb Piston
#3 Toe Piston

Although Hauptwerk normally [with the exception of the stepper next/previous pistons] only natively allows two different MIDI controls to be auto-detected to any given virtual switch (stop/coupler/tremulant/piston/etc.), you could potentially configure master reversibles to toggle individual couplers/stops, then auto-detect your additional MIDI pistons/switches to those master reversibles.

The 'Registration menu: master reversible combinations' section in the Hauptwerk user guide covers how to use those (pages 108-109 in the v5.0.1 version).

I am the guy, who started this long topic two months ago. I was really upset, since I didn't expected to get applied for a payment again for an update after such a short time. Especially I was afraid, that there is no communication of any release and fee plan, so that I could not even roughly estimate what to expect in future. There is still nothing commented regarding this concern so far.
BUT: I just want to tell you, that I bought the update to version VI and I do not regret.

@Martin Dyde: Again, you did a great job in improving the software. The higher quality and less distortion in pitching (which I think is also relevant for any kind of fluctuations and tremulants), makes a noticeable difference and I reduced the polyphony on my "little" Mac Mini from around 2000 to 1000 to get benefit from it. The fade-out algorithms at this limited polyphony work so well, that I do not notice any "stopping" sounds. And all the other minor changes are not must-haves, but make the life easier. So I pushed my initial displeasure away and I am now happy with version VI.

[mdyde]

Thanks very much, Lars. Glad you've found it beneficial.