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Not renewing Pro Tools "subscription"

Fredeke

Fredeke

Senior Member
JohnG said:
so...it's a Reaper thread now?
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Yeah... That seems to be this forum's curse.
Maybe Mike should set up a Reaperward Derailment Zone, along the Drama Zone ;)

JohnG said:
If you've "never seen or used Pro Tools," I don't think that's the ideal position from which to comment, even though I sort of agree with you.

It's a cost/value proposition that absolutely does not work for everyone. That said, the first round of PT stuff was over $10k, over 10 years ago, so it's much more affordable than that now.

...except for the subscription.
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I've used ProTools and loved it. But in my modest business, it's not sustainable.

And sure, they've made some less expensive versions, as a response to the competition - with limitations the competition doesn't have.
But the equivalent of what cost $10k 10 years ago is not cheaper today, is it?
 
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OP
JohnG

JohnG

Senior Member
Hi Rob -- I think you've solved quite a few problems that people have raised in this thread. I wonder if you have the interest in starting a new thread about how to get things done -- low/zero latency etc. -- without too much fancy kit?

A lot of composers can make a decent living using midi and supplementing by recording soloist(s) in their homes / apartments. Maybe they don't want or can't afford the overhead of Pro Tools and all that, and your advice could be useful?

For me PT is mostly for collaboration, since a lot of my work in the last years has been overseas / geographically dispersed. But that's not necessarily routine, so your approach might really help people.

Either way thanks for persisting with your comments. I think you have made many good points.

Kind regards,

John
 
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JohnG

JohnG

Senior Member
Fredeke said:
But the equivalent of what cost $10k 10 years ago is not cheaper today, is it?
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Yes, far cheaper. My setup was cheaper even though I had to replace my Mac as well and buy Thunderbolt housing for external drives. The main savings is that you can use the $1,000 box (HD Native Thunderbolt) instead of buying an expensive rack of PT interfaces and HD or HDX cards.

Don't quote me on this because (since I already had PT interfaces so I didn't focus on it) it's possible the latency is not as good with 3d party interfaces going into the HD Native Thunderbolt box, or there are additional limitations. But for me the setup was much less expensive to get much better functionality.

I needed just about exactly what the HD Native solution provides, which is 64 (mono) simultaneous inputs (if I remember correctly) but high / (for my purposes practically unlimited) playback track count. That's sufficient to record in one pass spits for pre-production for an orchestral / hybrid piece.

Kind regards,

John
 
Jeremy Spencer

Jeremy Spencer

Senior Member
I hate to say it, but $24 per month is not too bad for the regular version. I have been just using the "as needed" subscription when I'm required to use it. Even for $30 that's pretty decent.
 
AllanH

AllanH

Senior Member
Michael Antrum said:
You want the upcoming next generation to be learning and using your tools - so when they graduate to professional status, they take your tools with them. That’s why companies such as Autodesk have really serious discount student packages available to them for things like Maya & 3D Studio Max.
...
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AutoDesk has it figured out. At least high school students get every Autodesk product for free personal use at home. It's also free to the schools. 1000s of HS students leave school knowing Maya, 3D studio, Autocad, Inventor ...

EDIT: I meant to also add, that I wish Avid understood that getting your technology in front of students is critical, or at least very important, to the long-term strength of the business. I still have to see a single PT installation in K-12, even though I'm sure it exists somewhere. With today's focus on career technical education, Avid is leaving a lot of money on the table.
 
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X-Bassist

X-Bassist

Senior Member
AllanH said:
AutoDesk has it figured out. At least high school students get every Autodesk product for free personal use at home. It's also free to the schools. 1000s of HS students leave school knowing Maya, 3D studio, Autocad, Inventor ...

EDIT: I meant to also add, that I wish Avid understood that getting your technology in front of students is critical, or at least very important, to the long-term strength of the business. I still have to see a single PT installation in K-12, even though I'm sure it exists somewhere. With today's focus on career technical education, Avid is leaving a lot of money on the table.
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Avid have never been smart with the future or long time customers. Personally I’m stocking up on my support plan since there is no limit as long as you purchase before July 1st. $99/year for 5 years is now looking good. Though I’m not happy about paying it now, at least it covers me until 2025. Perhaps by then they will lose a huge market share, get bought out (at least digidesign) by a better company who will realize the biggest market nowadays is home studios and businesses that can’t afford $400 or even $200 a year.

Honestly, 128 voices (mono or stereo) unlimited midi tracks and track folders is all I really need (and am still paying in the hopes they will add the latter 2). I think these changes just reflect the slow downfall Avid as a video editor, even many long time users have switched to something else by now (even here in Los Angeles) and Pro Tools is their last cash cow still being used widely.

Hopefully Netflix will buy Digidesign before Avid goes down. ;)
 
Fredeke

Fredeke

Senior Member
Yeah, it all comes down too which schoolyard you're playing in. The big guys, or the kindergarden. (Me, I'm the kindergarden type.)

But as some have mentioned, it's pretty shortsighted because more and more youngsters will have no ProTools experience - which in itself means nothing, but they'll have great experience with cheaper software - so Avid has better pray other software never matches their performances !

Then again... it's the same story in every field: I do a bit of photography too, and it's true that as you go up in prices, the price difference increases more and more, for improvements that get more and more tiny. But if you absolutely need the tiny improvement, and you need it right now (as you sometimes do), then you've got no choice.

Avid decided to differenciate themselves from the masses. Let's hope for them they can deliver.
 
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ironbut

ironbut

Active Member
I hope for the best for the Pro Tools guys.
Avid,.. not so much.

Anywho, no matter what side of the debate you're on. tonight's the last night for renewing your perpetual licenses at the old price.
Personally, I ponied up my hundred bucks so (hopefully) I'll get a 64 bit version of PT for the day that I decide I have to upgrade to osx Catalina.
 
Fredeke

Fredeke

Senior Member
ironbut said:
I hope for the best for the Pro Tools guys.
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The guys will be all right, whichever tool they use.

I threw my copy of ProTools into the trash personally (sometimes I make impulsive choices!)
I was fed up with the anti-piracy hinderances. A legitimate customer shouldn't have to put up with them.
 
X-Bassist

X-Bassist

Senior Member
ironbut said:
I hope for the best for the Pro Tools guys.
Avid,.. not so much.

Anywho, no matter what side of the debate you're on. tonight's the last night for renewing your perpetual licenses at the old price.
Personally, I ponied up my hundred bucks so (hopefully) I'll get a 64 bit version of PT for the day that I decide I have to upgrade to osx Catalina.
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True. Keep in mind you CAN buy several years worth at $99/ year and your Protools account will advance the expiration date. You just have to purchase before the end of today (they can be applied to your account anytime). If you buy from avid they will automatically be applied, but from JRR shop or Sweetwater they can be applied later. Hopefully by 2025 something more reasonable will be worked out, but until then I got updates for about $8/month... while maintaining my perpetual licences if I decide to keep it for years after that. Seems to be the most reasonable option for staying on the platform.
 
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Nick Batzdorf

Nick Batzdorf

Moderator
Moderator
Complaining about upgrading Pro Tools is nothing new - in the '90s it was hardware upgrades every time Apple changed computer slots - but the argument was always that your existing system would continue to work, nobody was forcing you.

I've had a longstanding rule not to put any time-bombed software on my machines, and subscription software is a deeper level of that.
 
dzilizzi

dzilizzi

Senior Member
Nick Batzdorf said:
Complaining about upgrading Pro Tools is nothing new - in the '90s it was hardware upgrades every time Apple changed computer slots - but the argument was always that your existing system would continue to work, nobody was forcing you.

I've had a longstanding rule not to put any time-bombed software on my machines, and subscription software is a deeper level of that.
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As long as your OS doesn't automatically update and kill your compatibility. :)
 
Nick Batzdorf

Nick Batzdorf

Moderator
Moderator
dzilizzi said:
As long as your OS doesn't automatically update and kill your compatibility. :)
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Can you turn that off with Windows 10?

I use Pro Tools on a Mac, and Windows 7 doesn't auto-update.

The next macOS will kill 32-bit programs, so I'm not going to do it. My current machine is frozen, in fact I'm probably going to put in an older OS on a separate SSD as well (120GB SSDs are now $20).
 
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