Something interesting happening at Access Music

[ctank909]

Hello,

Just noticed following ad on Access Music website:

• Du hast gute Kenntnisse mindestens einer der folgenden Plattformen: Windows, Mac OS X,
Linux auf ARM-Prozessoren, iOS?

So, they are looking for software developer with c/c++ language, prominent in at least on of the following : Mac, Windows, Linux (with arm processor), iOS. Also they are asking experience in large software development projects.

Now, iOS is self explanatory, and ARM processors are used by most of Android tablets and phones, also with Linux OS.

So we can expect something definately happening in at least in phone/tab world regarding Virus. Hopefully NAMM January will reveal something even bigger..

[MBTC]

Indeed an interesting find. I hate gossip unless it is substantiated by some interesting news and well-aligned like this post is

One possibility that came to my mind at first is that maybe Access is considering creating a new generation of Viruses that move away from the Freescale DSPs and onto an ARM instruction based chip. I have not researched and honestly don't know how these compare in terms of synth-processing capability to the Freescale chips in the Virus, but given the growth in mobile over the last few years, I'm fairly sure the advancements in ARM chips dwarf the capabilities of those old formerly Motorola chips. Many times I've thought to myself that the fact that Freescale doesn't offer anything more powerful could be one of the reasons Kemper isn't moving the product line forward -- nowhere to go if faster chips aren't available (and apparently perfecting the existing integration is either too challenging or just not interesting enough to invest in). Also Kemper cut his programming chops on Motorola chips supposedly, so that combined with the ongoing sales of the current Virus and his interest in modeling amps may be contributing to lack of product refresh.

So, maybe the Ti3 will be an ARM-based beast that does things the DSPs of yesteryear could not. In some ways that would make a lot of sense, the collective developer pool and knowledge base for modern mobile chips is certainly much better than embedded systems for obscure DSPs like Freescale. Much better future for it. I would think the market for devices that use those old Freescale chips is probably shrinking rapidly in the wake of mobile progress, which would mean that Access could be crapping their pants and wondering if these chips will even be available in the future.

Lots of good possibilities, however, let me play devil's advocate for a second. When I put on my recruiter hat (because I often work as a development director and have a lot of experience recruiting developers so I've written these job requirements many times in the past), and I read that requirement, assuming your English translation is accurate, it sounds to me like they just want a general c/c++ developer who has worked on any one of those platforms, and the ARM qualification after Linux is simply to address the fragmented nature of the operating system, and the fact that iOS is sorted as the last platform is an indication that it is lowest in priority. That would tell me that the iOS experience is a nice to have but not directly relevant to the hiring goals -- that would certainly not be the case if they were working on a mobile app, the iPhone/iPad would be their lead platform and Android secondary. So, being a little pessimistic and realistic at the same time I would say this sounds more like a support role to work on Virus control than it does to do OS work on the Virus itself. I fear this may just be looking to supplement the existing Virus Control team, or worst case scenario replace a developer who is leaving.

Like you said though, maybe we will learn something from NAMM. I cross my fingers on that every year. The floorplan shows a booth rental that's the same size they have every year, but of course that means nothing by itself, there could still be a big announcement.

[nutrinoland]

Maybe they are thinking of doing something like the Modulus 002. Cloud storage, network, sharing etc... Wifi/Bluetooth remote through tablet...

[MBTC]

Originally Posted by nutrinoland

Maybe they are thinking of doing something like the Modulus 002. Cloud storage, network, sharing etc... Wifi/Bluetooth remote through tablet...

That's starting to sound like a Virus that will cost $5,200 US and aspires to let me connect to Facebook and Soundcloud right there on the synth so I can browse slobbering babies and bad tunes but will take a few years of updates to actually catch up with PCs and Macs and phones and enable the promised capability

I don't see cloud storage, sharing or whatever as adding much that a computer can't already do better. In a hardware instrument I just need it to work with the computer better. I still think they should focus on that.

[nutrinoland]

Are They aware of the integration and timing/clock issues users have been facing ? Have they acknowledged these issues over the last few years ? or do They claim that its all working fine and the issue is on the users end ?

[MBTC]

Originally Posted by nutrinoland

Are They aware of the integration and timing/clock issues users have been facing ? Have they acknowledged these issues over the last few years ? or do They claim that its all working fine and the issue is on the users end ?

I'm not quite sure of the current status of the issues, actually. There have been a lot of posts here about it over the years. Admittedly I don't hear much complaining about it lately, but I've thought that has more to do with folks getting used to the current state of things, making tradeoffs where needed, etc. rather than an OS update that just fixed everything. And it's been a while since I had a Virus in my hands, so I can only observe the struggles or successes of others. I've seen some folks that rave about their support, others say attempts have been unproductive.

[TweakHead]

Best thread in a long long time!

[Berni]

Well seeing as development of the virus ground to a halt years ago I think a VST/iOS version of the TI is definitely going to happen. As others have said, hardware synths just cannot compete with software one's anymore & will probably go the same way as the hardware sampler (remember them?)
Access are bound to cash in on the virus rep. & lucrative iOS market, it just makes plain business sense. Of course it will piss off a lot of existing virus owners but that has never bothered them before ; )

[TweakHead]

Why? Because they don't suck resources out of your main computer. Because they're instruments, with their own physical interface that's better and surely more inspiring then fiddling around with a mouse or controlling it with cheap plastic controller. Then, it's arguably better because it's a dedicated system that does not have to share its resources with the rest of the tasks a computer has to run under the hood.

The Nord Lead doesn't allow you to lock initial phase position for their oscillators, but let's remember that Virtual Analogue was first thought as a replacement for real analogue machines, giving you more polyphony and options then most of them, while still allowing you the same level of interaction with it! The last part is of course important, since they also appeal to live usage and they can easily beat any software synth on that department!

In the studio, something like the Virus can be thought of like a bread and butter thing. But you can also throw big fat poly sounds or unison patches to a mix without seeing the cpu meter go up a notch, while having perfect control to tweak when recording while you're at it - contributing to a more organic feel overall, that's the main advantage of hardware vs software btw (to my mind at least). Then, software synths are getting a lot better lately, but I still love the sound!

[MBTC]

Originally Posted by TweakHead

Why? Because they don't suck resources out of your main computer. Because they're instruments, with their own physical interface that's better and surely more inspiring then fiddling around with a mouse or controlling it with cheap plastic controller. Then, it's arguably better because it's a dedicated system that does not have to share its resources with the rest of the tasks a computer has to run under the hood.

The Nord Lead doesn't allow you to lock initial phase position for their oscillators, but let's remember that Virtual Analogue was first thought as a replacement for real analogue machines, giving you more polyphony and options then most of them, while still allowing you the same level of interaction with it! The last part is of course important, since they also appeal to live usage and they can easily beat any software synth on that department!

In the studio, something like the Virus can be thought of like a bread and butter thing. But you can also throw big fat poly sounds or unison patches to a mix without seeing the cpu meter go up a notch, while having perfect control to tweak when recording while you're at it - contributing to a more organic feel overall, that's the main advantage of hardware vs software btw (to my mind at least). Then, software synths are getting a lot better lately, but I still love the sound!

There was a time when I could not quite get that "hardware tweaking" feel out of software, but these days with the quality of the knobs on the MK II Remote SL, and the ease of mapping each one to various controls (i.e. either just with MIDI learn or Automap, both work well), the overall feel of for example tweaking knobs on the Virus is replicated perfectly. In most respects it is actually better, because I am not limited by the physical placement of the knob on the unit (I can change where the knob is based on what type of piece I'm playing). Sitting right next to this of course is a true analog Leipzig with analog knobs (and a knob for every function), and the overall experience is actually better. On the MKII I have pots that feel as good as the pots on the Virus, or tactile knobs that are great too. Or, sliders if I want to use them for filters or the mixer.

More and more, I've come to believe that the functional gap between hardware and software was bridged a long time ago, but has since grown -- in the opposite direction. Software has surpassed hardware in a big way and hardware is struggling to catch up.

However, the limitations of hardware actually remain one of it's biggest selling points! Let me explain what I mean.

Since the early days of synths, there have always been limitations that the user of the synth must accept. Those limitations are what encouraged exploration of and experimentation of the instrument. They encouraged the user to spend so much time fiddling with the synth itself, so that after a few months the user ate/slept/breathed that particular synth's user interface (no matter how horrible) and could do things use it instinctively and effectively. When that bonding between hardware and user took place is when the really musically interesting stuff would happen.

So, that's one thing we kind of lose with software -- it's a little TOO good at times. It makes getting from point A to B so efficient, that the bonding process I mentioned above never gets the chance to occur.

I do get a "retro feeling" of bonding with my Leipzig-S for example -- it's so weird and quirky and has a mind of it's own as analog gear does, and sounds so great when it speaks it's mind. But these days are busy days, and I'm glad I have software to help achieve my goals where something like creating a substantial track with the Leipzig-S would require time I simply do not have anymore.