GuitarRig 4.1 is out - NOOOOT

As revealed about a week ago, Komplete 7 users are given GuitarRig version 4.1. on their spanking new DVDs. It is not available yet for 'proper' GuitarRig users however. Actually, according to NI's official post in this very forum (At this moment it still reads "Official update status - Guitar Rig 4 – Upcoming: 4.1"), it is out in beta still. There's still the "public beta" to do, and then the final release. Obviously this is untrue. Alright - this wouldn't be much to make a fuss about if it wasn't for the update being a quite significant one. Day to day GuitarRig users have waited for this. so my question to 'someone' at Native Instruments is:
- Why is it that what we can only call random GuitarRig users (true there is a few Komplete subscribers who use GuitarRig as one of their main tools, but the main herd does certainly not) is your priority over dedicated GuitarRig users? It takes a while to prepare masters and print all those DVDs which has been shipped a while ago. Hard proof that version 4.1. has been ready for the public since the beginning of summer or so. Why is the main base of GuitarRig users left out? Please explain.

This is my post # one thousand BTW. Sorry it should be about such a silly topic.

 

I'm sure they only want to be certain, that the new version really really really works for us users, who already payed good money for somewhat working software.
The K7 upgrade offer for GR4 users is absolutely irrelevant in this context, since it just would make no sense to buy software you don't need to get your purchased software working.

 

Many more aspects why Guitar Rig Pro users are not treated well by NI at the moment.

I don't want to name em all. Just one aspect:

As a GR4 Pro owner you pay more per software license then Komplete 7 owners. We should be first who gets the possibility to buy updates & add ons. Or at least at the same time. Once again: NI rethink your marketing!


I would have switched to Komplete 7 this time, but NI doesn't offer Komplete 7 upgrade for GR 4 Pro owners.

I own GR 2/3/4 Pro licences + Rig Kontrol 2. They offer it to GR 4 Pro Kontrol Edition owners. Although they paid less then i did. Komplete 7 is a bargain!

 

Hello Andre&Thomas@NI,

I am interested to acquire the Rammfire package on 1 september 2010 for my GR4 PRO. But if i read in the section "system-requirements" of anouncement http://www.native-instruments.com/#/en/products/producer/powered-by-guitar-rig/rammfire/ ("http://www.native-instruments.com/#/en/products/producer/powered-by-guitar-rig/rammfire/"), i do need GR4 PRO version 4.1 or higher to use this new amplifier emulation (current state of GR4 PRO is 4.08). Now, I am a little bit confused ... just my questions:

a) do I am understanding something completely wrong here ?
b) will NI rollout GuitarRig PRO 4 v4.1 on 1. september 2010 parallel with the Rammfire package too ?
c) will I be able to buy the Rammfire package on 1. september 2010 but not be able to use it in GR4 PRO vers. 4.08 ?

... any kind of a feedback or status update of GR4 Pro v4.1 will be very much appreciated ... thanks

 

You can use Rammfire in combination with the free Guitar Rig Player (smallest GR 4.1 edition). Everything downloadable Sept. 1st.

 

I wanted to update the update status thread earlier, but I was out last week. There won't be a a public beta test for 4.1, the final update and the player version will be released this week.

 

Hello Thomas & phisk888,

thanks for your quick feedbacks ...

 

Thanks so much for the update on the release date.

I am very pleased with the way NI is updating essentially all its plugins to support 64 bit Mac OS X at no charge to existing users. A number of other audio software vendors were not as generous...many added a few minor features to their software along with the Mac 64 bit support and used that as an excuse to call the upgrade a 'Major Upgrade' and charge for it.

Many of us understand that updating your software to support 64 bit Mac OS X is not a trivial or low cost effort. Therefore, I think we all owe NI a big round of thanks!

Congratulations to NI and all its developers and staff...keep up the great work!

 

Yeah i have to agree, its awesome. Usually add-ons, plugins and what not get expensive.

 

LOL. you guys kill me. ooh, look. there's something on your chin. LOL :lol:

 

Grow up and act like and adult...your comments are very childish. Is this gibberish all you have to offer?

What 'kills' me is how some people seem to be able to do nothing but complain, even when they are handed something good. I complain when necessary but also give praise when its due.

 

I'm terribly sorry, Dave. Childish? Yes. Your response absolutely predictable? Yes.

In the words of Sargent Hulka: "Lighten up, Francis."

So, am I supposed to be dripping with enthusiasm over the fact that the "upgrade" to Guitar Rig 4 Pro completely left me in the dust by doing away with Snapshots? And at the same time while they issued said upgrade were actively ADVERTISING the virtues of Snapshots? So guilty were they, that they eventually had to remove all references to Snapshots in the GR4 advertising. AWESOME!

Or is it the fact that most of the patches exported from Guitar Rig 3 to GR4Pro have been reworked by the new "upgrade" and don't sound the same, and may NEVER sound the same in GR4Pro? Can you say "backward compatibility"?

Yes, Guitar Rig is a nice product, by and large. I purchased it because it represents certain POTENTIAL usages that currently cannot be realized through typical hardware products. But for what I've paid for a laptop and Guitar Rig software (plus hours of frustration and toil), after 2 years, I could see myself being just as happy - perhaps happier - with a Fractal Audio Axe-Fx.

Sorry, Dave. I'm still quite pissed off about this situation.

 

NAUGHTY BOY! You must NOT criticise people who want to crawl up NI's back passage. You should face into the West and chant loud praises for NI NOT charging you for Mac support (even if you use a PC). You should ignore ALL shoddy practises, all broken promises and every slipped deadline. Just learn to shout "THANK YOU, NI".

 

If you search the forum you will see that I was not happy with the loss of snapshots and with the way GR3 patches do not transport well to GR4. These were cases where I expressed my opinion that NI could have done things better. However, I also stated that it was possible that unavoidable design decisions had to be made that caused these difficulties and that perhaps we would all benefit in the long run. I am still waiting to see how this will turn out. I the meantime I have gone about the task of updating my patches (of which there are many...those used for live gigs and those used for studio recording). That was more productive then continuously complaining after I said my piece and NI acknowledged the issues and said they would fix them. Until I have some reason to believe otherwise, I will take them at their word. Time will tell.

Regarding the implementation of Mac 64 bit support, I find it interesting that you find that a trivial matter. Your statements make it clear that any improvements NI make that do not directly affect your PC platform of choice do not constitute a valid use of NI resources in your opinion. Well, I am relatively sure that then NI expended the resources necessary to provide 64 bit Vista and Windows 7 support you found that agreeable. Since NI products are developed for BOTH Windows AND Mac PCs, there will be times when you will have to wait while NI implements Mac centric upgrades that have a higher priority than some of the upgrades you desire. You will just have to deal with it; the same applies to Mac users as well so don't feel so put-out.

Now, when NI does something very positive, like not charging you for 64 bit Windows support, and now, not charging for 64 bit Mac support (as many other vendors have) don't you think it would be a good time to give NI some credit? If you whip your dog when it does something wrong, and also whip him when he does something right, you will have one mean dog that refuses to do anything. Think about it.

No one does his/her best when they only receive criticism...if you would like NI and its staff to do great things then perhaps it would be a good idea to encourage them instead of whipping them all the time. Use the whip only when necessary and it will get much more notice by NI and you will get much better results.

 

daverlee, poor analogy. money is tight these days, and if you are in business you had better prepare yourself for the "dog eat dog". Thankfully, (one would hope) NI has a stronger stomach for the criticisms that a big NOBODY like myself has to hand out than you do.

I show my "praise" by willfully giving my hard-earned dollars to NI for their product. If that is not enough of an endorsement, then tough ta-tas.

And the way you keep your customers paying for your product, and singing your praises while doing so, is to make sure you've buttoned things up by servicing your clients in the best, most ethical manner possible.

If NI proves (or continues to prove) to be not up to the task, I'm sure that there are other places I'll risk spending my money in the hope that their product, practices, and customer service is better than NI's.

This is business in the big city, my friend. Customer satisfaction rules the day. If NI loses sight of this, their Guitar Rig users will surely lose sight of NI.

 

Jim,

I would agree that poor value and customer support are what ultimately kills businesses. However, what constitutes poor value and poor customer support is the question. No company (or individual for that matter) has unlimited resources nor are they capable of meeting 100% of their customers' expectations.

I know a number of plugin developers personally, all have related to me how much effort (and cost) it took for them to add 64 bit Mac support for their products. So, assuming that this is true, I'm sure that NI expended considerable resources updating essentially all its plugins over the last few months. Now, they could have just put the need for 64 bit Mac support off, but that would have made all their Mac folks very unhappy (since they had already spent considerable resources to provide PC users with 64 bit support) and worked on upgrades that you would have liked. However, it is NI's management team's job to decide what the right course was. I am sure that there were issues that you and I are not privy to that helped them decide; perhaps 64 bit Mac support was required before the other upgrades were completed so that they would not have to do the changes twice. I don't know, but I trust NI's management does.

I am well aware of the 'dog eat dog' times we live in, perhaps more so then you know. I have owned and operated numerous businesses over the last 40 years and believe that that experience has provided me with some understanding of how difficult it is to please all your customers all the time. Its impossible. Unfortunately, for some reason, today things have gotten much worse. Many customers think that a company exists 'just for them.' That only their needs and desires should be of importance to the company...the 'to hell with everyone else' attitude. Few people today have any ability to wait until something can be realistically accomplished and just scream and hold their breath and threaten to turn blue like a small child unless their needs are met 'immediately.'

Can you imagine the demands on the resources of a company like NI? If you had any experience owning and operating a business of any size and complexity you might take a different view of NI's performance.

 

that's alot of reading, my eyes hurt

 

ehhh. nice try, Dave. I appreciate your enthusiasm for the stance, but I'm not buying it, so to speak.

I guess I'll just sit here and hold my breath a bit longer (after all, it's only been 11 months - not THAT long) in wait for Snapshots to re-appear on the NI radar screen. How SELFISH of me. It's not like NI advertised Snapshots before I purchased the upgrade...oh, wait a minute...THEY DID ADVERTISE Snapshots in the GR4 Pro upgrade. Give me a good reason why NI chose THAT marketing strategy? I'm all ears.

Feel empathy for NI's demands on development resources? I don't think so. Try that argument in the world of commercial construction. That'll get you roundly laughed at, followed by these words: "You're fired".

This argument isn't about the fundamental product of Guitar Rig, per se, but the policies set by NI for updates and version upgrades. Clearly, NI has made some calculated decisions and is rolling the dice that the good will outweigh the down side fallout. Let's leave it at this: consider me (so far) on the down side...and still using Guitar Rig 3, because Snapshots are SO COOL!

 

I think jimfist got a point there. Nobody says, that everything about GR4/NI is bad. It is a great product, and evidently we're still using the software despite the growing competition.
BUT there are these two big issues, that justify some of the anger seen here in the last months:

1. The software I bought still doesn't work as advertised.
I understand, that resources may be limited, but when it is possible to push out new pieces of software every few weeks, the feeling you get is something like "you already payed, so **** off".
Even if you consider the abandoning of snapshots a necessary decision in the process of enhancing the software, there still is - in addition to the advertising -

point 2: communication
If there is any official communication at all, it often stays very vague. It sometimes even turned out to be only near the truth.
In my opinion, you are risking very much as a software developer, when ignoring the wishes and needs of the user-base and not explaining the decisions.

It should be allowed to clearly point out the problems, without everytime blowing smoke up the company's ass.

 

Slightly off topic, could somone please give me a screen shot of GR2 preset 'AC tweed' so I can copy it in to GR4? Please?

I think it kinda sucks that they haven't updated and included the old factory presets like normal VSTs do (E.G. Battery, Kontakt, Absynth, etc) can make people feel they have to give something up to upgrade...