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Bye bye Kontakt?

Not really. Well, Kontakt was always an "engine"..
I take that onboard - what I mean is the wider Kontakt userbase doesn't go under the hood or use it as a traditional sampler. Think outside the tech community and VI control.

NI has leveraged Kontakt to make all sorts of cool player stuff and I bet there's a whole bunch of users who don't really consider it a sampler in the traditional sense.

To clarify, I love Kontakt and wish for a Kontakt only world. But, you know, money talks etc.
 
Aside from money reasons - maybe thereare some unique audio processing ideas that OT / Spitfire wanted to play around with. Things that might perform really badly in ksp or require programming features that maybe kontakt doesn't provide? For the record I don't know anything about kontakt scripting, so maybe I'm underestimating what kontakt can do.

Some examples that I imagine would strain kontakt, if they're even possible at all:
- measuring the envelope/level of the sample over time, so you can reliably stitch together the right release sample at the right gain
- having data that estimates the detuning caused by vibrato, so that you could detune the beginning of a legato transition to match
- doing some kind of frequency dependent crossfade or some other magic to reduce phasing of different velocity layers
- implementing a search or rich GUI - like some of Output's instruments or like capsule, they seem to really weigh down on kontakt
- adding a layer of physical modeling to the sampled audio
- etc

Definitely kontakt has a strong place for indie developers and for instruments that don't need unique processing. But it makes sense if major sample libraries see improvements and innovations they could try, by making their own specialized software.
 
For those with more history in the game - How big an impact did "Play" have on EastWest?

I know their products are a fraction of what they once cost (Hollywood was over $1000 at release?) and now seem to be on almost permanent sale.

How much of that was down to "Play" or was the decline before that?

Well, I used the old NI "Kompakt" player that EW used prior to Play, it was basically a customized version of Kontakt. I am one of the apparent few who actually likes using Play, it has always worked great for me, never an issue; I never require a sampler anyways. The cool thing is, I can still use all those older libraries in the latest version of Kontakt (Symphonic Orchestra, RA, Stormdrum, etc). I also own and use Kontakt extensively, and enjoy it as well....although I really hate the new Native Access crap.
 
I'm probably the only one who likes Native Access. It makes backing up and moving licenses across computers really easy. All at one place.
I really like it too. There's a lot of moving parts to a Komplete installation and Native Access makes a brave attempt to tie it all together.

I just think it's fashionable to say you don't like it. Like one of those "accepted wisdoms" that gets paraded around the internet and repeated ad infinitum. ;)
 
I really like it too. There's a lot of moving parts to a Komplete installation and Native Access makes a brave attempt to tie it all together.

I just think it's fashionable to say you don't like it. Like one of those "accepted wisdoms" that gets paraded around the internet and repeated ad infinitum. ;)

Ha yes! True. These dealings in absolute like "Play sucks" :-p
 
The fact that around 90% of my libraries are in Kontakt really helps with organization, and with getting the libraries to work together in a project. Even then, it takes a ton of time.

Imagine you have a project with 25 instruments, each with different sampler interfaces. Sounds no fun at all.

I'm actually in the process of moving miscellaneous smaller libraries into Kontakt so that can adapt them to my workflow. And so that they show up in quickload, so I can remember I even have them.
 
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I really like it too. There's a lot of moving parts to a Komplete installation and Native Access makes a brave attempt to tie it all together.

I just think it's fashionable to say you don't like it. Like one of those "accepted wisdoms" that gets paraded around the internet and repeated ad infinitum. ;)

I'm not saying for the sake of being fashionable. I just don't like having to re-download libraries every time I want to relocate them to a different drive, unlike the previous model where all I had to do was locate the library right from within Kontakt. I have not upgraded to the latest version, perhaps this was resolved?
 
I love the Kontakt player. I do not like Native Instruments. If the Kontakt player didnt exist, NI wouldnt see a dime of my money.

Look at their facebook page. People with genuine concerns....get no response...while on the same post, people with positive comments usually get responded to.

Same even on their own forums...genuine concerns....totally ignored.

As a company, they have zero transparancy. I hate supporting a company with their level and lack of of customer service.

But as been stated already.....the Kontakt Player is the best there is and isnt going anywhere.
 
I'm not saying for the sake of being fashionable. I just don't like having to re-download libraries every time I want to relocate them to a different drive, unlike the previous model where all I had to do was locate the library right from within Kontakt. I have not upgraded to the latest version, perhaps this was resolved?
Yeah, that was a problem for sure. With later updates, you can repair moved installations in NA.
 
I'm not saying for the sake of being fashionable. I just don't like having to re-download libraries every time I want to relocate them to a different drive, unlike the previous model where all I had to do was locate the library right from within Kontakt. I have not upgraded to the latest version, perhaps this was resolved?

It was.
 
I look at the problems I’ve recently had with NI support and its ever increasing opacity and it makes me wonder if some developers are facing similar issues on their side of NI; that NI is not as transparent and helpful as they’d like; that NI’s business priorities are not theirs. And as someone mentioned above as long as they are dependent on Kontakt they are dependent on a company that is sometimes a competitor.
 
Whatever happens to disrupt NI's nefarious abuse of monopolistic power is what I'm in favor of and would like to see. I am completely done buying VIs unless:

1) They are entirely PACE/iLok free.
2) You can install & activate the product you paid for 100% offline.
3) You have local control over the activation process after purchase, as with a serial number or key file.

Everything else should be seen as the corporofascist oppression that it is and boycotted. Period.

I used to be okay with C/R, but after Native Instruments betrayed their customers who choose to maintain offline workstations, I no longer trust this protocol.
 
I love Kontakt for the most part. I don't think I use it as well as I could. But I disagree about it being the easiest. I moved my Play libraries around when I got new drives and have very little problem re-connecting them with the EW control center/installer thing.

Of course that may be because I don't have 150 Play libraries. Sigh.
 
Hi guys, I recently saw the new Orchestral Tools Sampler. Spitfire recently released choirs, evolutions, HZ strings and LABS with their proprietary sampler too.
What do you think about it?
Don't be silly. Own sampler are like electric cars...just a stinky fart in a hurricane.
None of these 2 sampler mentioned above gave me goosebumps. Marketing, hype, a period. We're going to sit it out and are happy again when that medieval timebeeing is overcome.
 
If a library is made for Kontakt I go for it. If it is for another engine I most probably won´t buy it or even totally ignore it. No matter if it is Spitfire or Orchestral Tools - or Bestservice with their Engine. I just use Engine because there are a few libraries like FK II or ERA II which have no competition within the Kontakt Realm. Otherwise it would be a no go for me. I never had ANY problems using Kontakt. It was always reliable, quick, easy to control and stabile. That is why I always will choose the Kontakt product if there are 2 similar purchase options on a comparable level I would have to choose from. But that´s just how I handle it ;)
 
And... having Kontrol built into Kontakt is something I think would be excellent. But hey, this thread isn’t a wish list thread.
 
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